Author's note: Hey guys, readers, reviewers, subscribers…internet monkeys. 'Tis I, Peanut, here to thank Eddie Camp, SSBTMM and Naivette for review chapter 3. 3 reviews for chapter 3…Ironic. Hopefully I can get more for this one! :P In all seriousness, please review, it makes me feel super terrific.

This chapter's a good one folks. (: But hey, all of them are in my opinion. So, read on!

Chapter Four: Breaking News

"I…I don't understand why nothing happened," Queen Andrea said as she paced the room. It was around two in the morning, and we finally had a few moments alone after all the party guests left. It was so hard to stay composed while they were all here, knowing that something was wrong with me. My eighteenth birthday came and went, and I didn't receive the power that I was supposed to.

What's the matter with me?

"Perhaps the legend was wrong," Mr. Bottomsworth said as he also paced in a different pattern than my mother. He was here with us, since he was so intelligent. It was only four of us: me, my mother, Mr. Bottomsworth, and Riku. Fortunately, me and my mom had a quick minute to get out of our formal dresses and into more casual clothes, or else this conversation would have been a little weird. Even if the four of us were gathered, only my teacher and my mother were really talking. "Perhaps it is her twenty-first birthday, not her eighteenth."

"No, that can't be right. I received my power when I was eighteen, and I'm sure my mother was the same."

"What about her genes, then? Are you sure that Terry was royalty?"

"Of course I am," my mom spat with a little impatience and defensiveness. "Her father was of noble blood as well, so there's no way that the chain of power was broken."

"But it was broken somehow. Otherwise, she would have received her power."

"How could it have possibly been broken?" I asked quietly, though nobody heard me. They only continued with their conversation.

"Perhaps it has something to do with her living in Twilight Town most of her life instead of here? Perhaps whatever magical force gives her power does not recognize her as the princess."

"I refuse to believe that," my mother said with determination. "She's proven herself to be a princess since she moved here. It's the strength of her heart that determines her social standing, not where she's lived."

Mr. Bottomsworth sighed, stopping his pacing to stare down at the ground. "That's what I'd like to believe to," he said quietly. "Stephanie has proven herself to be extraordinary since she came here. Extraordinary, even if she is human and has flaws. …Is there any way that the powers can be suppressed by Stephanie herself? Some type of fear within her that's telling her not to accept these abilities?"

"No," Queen Andrea responded. "This power is too great to be held back. Just like you cannot deny your position as prince or princess, queen or king, you cannot refuse these powers."

"What kind of powers are these, anyway?" Riku finally asked, butting into the conversation for the first time in a while. He was sitting right beside me on the couch, close but not close enough to let anyone know that we were a couple. Despite that, his presence still comforted me and assured me that there was nothing that I did wrong. This whole mess wasn't my fault.

"It entails a lot of things," Mr. Bottomsworth explained, lifting his gaze to Riku before he continued. "It's a sense of justice, wisdom. It's not physical strength, but strength of the heart. And…these powers also determine the direction the person will take with their life."

"What?" I asked, paling. What was that supposed to mean?

"When you receive these powers, your fate is determined. Whether it's for Light or for Darkness. If that is what is bestowed upon you, then that is the path you are destined to fail. And there is absolutely no way for anybody to break their path."

"But nobody is ever given a dark destiny in this kingdom," my mom said upon seeing my worry. "I'm sure that you'll be destined to follow a path of Light."

"I'm not so sure," the scholar said pessimistically. "Perhaps this is a sign that Stephanie will give into the Darkness."

"I will not!" I cried defensively. I rose to my feet, staring at the two adults who stood still and stared right back at me. "I didn't trust in the Light for the first eighteen years of my life only to walk a path of Darkness. That's not my fate!"

Silence filled the room, and I only stared at Mr. Bottomsworth. He had never seen me act out before, and he probably never would, since I was so respectful of teachers even when they were hard on me. But I couldn't hold back my feelings on this topic. The Light…it was what I stood for. What I fought for. No way was I going to accept that my path was going to be a dark one.

"You truly are a princess of Cadia, Stephanie," Mr. Bottomsworth said with a small smile. "You keep standing up for what you believe in, and you'll be just fine. Of that, I am certain."

The compliment surprised me, especially since he had never said something so kind to me before. All that I could do was nod faintly before the conversation picked back up to where it was before, discussing the problem.

"What're we supposed to do to fix this?" Riku asked.

"Honestly? I have no idea," Mom said, shaking her head. "But we can't do nothing, right? We either need to do some more research or find a way to fix whatever problem this is. Whichever comes first."

"And we can't let anybody know there's a problem," Riku added. "The people's faith in the government must be a little shaky after everything with Olaf and his brothers."

"Unfortunately, that's true. I don't like keeping secrets, but I don't feel as if we have a choice."

"What if somebody out there knows what's wrong, though?" I asked. "What if they can help?"

"I highly doubt that's the case," the queen responded. "Even if they did, it doesn't matter. Riku's point still stands. We need to keep the kingdom stable."

"Secrecy will do the opposite of that, your Majesty," Mr. Bottomsworth said, speaking for the first time in a while. "Fortunately, I don't think there will be a need for it. I know what's wrong. And it's not something that you're going to like to hear. Any of you."

My heart rose up to my throat at the anticipation my teacher built up, my eyes locked on him. I already didn't like hearing what we were discussing, so what could possibly make this worse? Was it that there was no way to solve this? That I wasn't destined to rule Cadia after all? That would have been alright, I guess. It would have been a lot of pressure off my shoulders. But if I didn't have Cadia, what did I have? Nothing, really. I lost it all when I left Twilight Town. Or most of it, anyway. I lost a lot, but I gained more.

"There's a curse that's holding back Stephanie's power."

All of us gasped. A curse? How bad was it? And who would have—

"And I know who cast it, and continues to have Stephanie bound by it. Sorceress Isabella."

Oh…Oh my gosh. I felt myself get dizzy at the mere mention of that woman. She kidnapped me when I was just a child and raised me like her daughter only to betray me. I loved her, but she didn't love me. I called her "mom", but in the end, she didn't call me her daughter. She tried to kill me once I realized the truth about my identity. But she didn't. And I thought she was killed in the process…

"Steph? Steph! You okay?" Riku's voice was right in my ear, loud enough to snap me out of my daze.

"Yeah, yeah," I mumbled. No, no. I'm not okay…

"You should leave. You look terrible."

"I'm fine. I need to hear this," I managed. "But…I thought that Sora…um…"

Riku shook his head. "No. Sora kept her alive after he took her away, just in case we needed her for anything. She's being kept in a prison, where she can no longer do any harm." Well, that's not completely true, if she's placed a curse on me…I thought, staring down at the ground.

"I don't see how her curse could still hold," Mr. Bottomsworth mumbled mostly to himself. "But I suppose that anything is possible with her…We'll have to go to her to get answers. But we can't let the people know what's going on, or that she's alive."

"You're right," Queen Andrea said. "We can only send a few people…"

"I'll go." I lifted my gaze to my mom, seeing out of the corner of my eye that everyone was frozen and staring at me in shock. That was understandable, considering how touchy I was about Isabella. But… "This is about me. I need to have a part in fixing this."

"You know how dangerous it is out there, Steph," Riku said quietly in concern.

"Not really," I disagreed. "I mean, yeah, it's dangerous, but only because of Heartless. And I've fought them off before. Nobody outside this world knows that I'm royalty. I'm just a normal person, not somebody that people would attack. I'll be fine, right Mom?" I looked to her, eyes pleading for her to let me go. I proved a logical point. And besides, I probably wouldn't be going alone. If anything, I was sure that at least one person would volunteer to go with me. And that was the person right beside me.

"…I have to agree," Mom sighed. "You…Riku, can you go with?"

"Of course, Your Majesty." He would have come with or without an invitation.

"Good," she said with a nod. "Then it's settled. The two of you will set off early tomorrow morning on a trip to see the country for yourselves. And we can't give out your location due to security reasons. It'll be a good enough cover for the few days that you're gone. And when you return, return at night, when people won't see you."

"We'll be good, Mom, promise," I said with a weak smile. If we were leaving in a little over twenty four hours, then there was no need to make these types of preparations right now. If anything, it was time to go to bed. It was probably close to three by now, and tomorrow would probably be a normal day as far as my classes went. It would be terrific if I could actually focus in any of them. I was so shocked my mo—Sorceress Isabella was alive.

"Okay. Now we should all be off to bed. This can wait until daytime."

"Right," me, Riku, and my teacher mumbled in agreement. All of us started out of the room. I was so drained from the day that started so early on. Shopping, then dinner, then the party, and that meeting. I must have been awake for over twenty hours. Hey, I know it's not much, but it's a lot to me. I always did love my sleep after all.

Mr. Bottomsworth said his farewells to me and Riku before turning down another hall to go home for the night. And of course, as soon as he was gone, Riku started walking closer to me.

"You okay?" he asked quietly.

I shook my head softly, looking down at the red carpet of the hall as we walked back to the suite. "Of course not," I said softly. "I just found out that Isabella is alive, and she has a curse on me. I won't be okay until she's out of my life forever."

At those honest words, Riku reached over and squeezed my hand. After that, he left me to my thoughts, however unpleasant they were. I thought that my past was left behind me completely. I thought that there was nothing to drag me back to the people who hurt me and abandoned me. But I was wrong.

My past was back in the present, and I had to face it, whether I wanted to or not.

*…*…*…*…*…*

Familiarity surrounded me as I stood in my home, the walls of the hallway painted a light tan color. There was a dark green strip of paint that went horizontally across the wall, running evenly except where it ran into the wooden doors. I remembered…me and my dad painted this hall. I was just four years old, and I insisted on helping him. And so, he gave me a brush and let me paint. Thinking back on the memory now, I was sure that he repainted the hall when I wasn't around. I did a pretty crappy job. But he made me feel like I did terrific. Like it was the best thing in the world that I helped him paint.

And to me, it was the best. I loved spending time with him, and away from my other parent. It was sad but true. My mother never showed me love like he did, nor did she ever make me feel like I was worth anything.

But I still loved her. I couldn't deny that. For that reason, I was here now, home, even after I was told that she was wicked. I wouldn't believe that she was the witch that the Queen said she was. I refused to believe that I grew up underneath somebody so wicked and selfish. And I refused to believe that I was duped that easily.

The door was shut. I knocked on her bedroom door quietly as I stood outside, my heart racing. Would Riku and Sora come? They couldn't…they didn't know where my house was. And I was glad for that. I would face the truth, and I would face it alone. "Mom?" I called softly through the door. There was no answer, but I heard the noise on the other side of the door. What was it?

Softly, I opened the door, and I found the truth, all by myself. My mother was a sorceress.

"What are you doing here, child?"

I blinked at her voice, seeing her staring at me with cold dark eyes, her book still in her hand. She wasn't supposed to speak to me. I knew that she wasn't. But because of her prodding eyes, I responded to her. "I…I came home, Mom."

Sorceress Isabella laughed, tucking back her long black hair that blended in nicely with her long black dress. It also went along perfectly with her black heart. "This is not your home, and you know it. Why do you still dwell on this day? You weren't tortured enough by the actual day, so you need to keep recreating it and suffering?"

"No," I said, tears swelling in my eyes. "I need the truth…Isabella. I need to know how much of it was a lie." My whole childhood that I remembered, I was with her. Or doing as she bid me to do, really. But she did show care every once in a while. Was it all a lie? Was everything to manipulate me? Was my enemy really keeping me fed every day? Clothed? Alive?

Again, she laughed coldly. The laugh sent chills down my spine, and even if I knew this was just my imagination creating a nightmare, I still felt like I was really talking to her. But I couldn't be; her magic couldn't haunt me like this. She was locked away. Not here. Not with me.

"The truth? Truth is relative, my dear. Believe whatever makes you happy. Believe whatever you need to so that you can live your peaceful, happy life. Live that life until the day you are sentenced to death. And that day is coming, sooner than you think."

"Liar!" I cried. "There has to be firm, solid truth out there. The truth is that the Light will conquer the Darkness. That I will be happy someday. And that you'll…"

"I'll what? Burn in Hell? Is that what you really want?"

Tears appeared in my eyes as I shook my head sadly. No…I didn't want that. I did and I didn't. I was so bitter about being betrayed, but something held me back from condemning her. "I loved you," I whispered, just like I did on that day months ago. "How could you do this to everyone? To me? Your daughter…"

Isabella stared at me, with the same cold eyes that she did on that day. Stock still, she didn't move, and neither did I. It felt as if her eyes could pierce right through me and kill me right then and there. But it was her words that killed me. People say that actions are more powerful than words. They remark things like "Gee, if looks could kill…" Well, they forgot the power of simple words. And these four pierced my heart and continued to haunt me.

"I have no daughter."

I woke up with a cry, bolting up in my queen sized bed. With wide eyes, I stared down at the pastel purple sheets, darkness surrounding me. Nighttime. It was still nighttime. So I had the privacy to do this. Tears appeared in my eyes and I started crying, my eyes shutting as my body started trembling. She betrayed me…It was all a lie…

Within only a few seconds of crying, I heard somebody rush into the room to see if I was okay. My small scream must have alerted them to something being out of the ordinary. But I didn't look. I didn't have to. As soon as that person saw me, they walked over to the bed and sat down beside me. Strong arms wrapped around me and pulled me closer to their body, their body heat refreshing even if I wasn't cold.

"Shh, Steph…It's okay."

"Riku," I said weakly. I'm sorry I woke you up. This was the first nightmare I had in a while, and with the news I was given today, I was a little shaken up. She was alive, after all. I didn't know what to make of that. Even if I didn't wish death upon her, I wished she would remain in my past forever. But now she wasn't just in my present; she was in my dreams as well.

"It's okay," he said again, leaning his chin against my head and holding me close as the tears leaked from my eyes. I felt my cheek pressed against warm, soft skin—his shoulder. That feeling and the heat resonating from him told me that he was shirtless. That was okay, I guess. I wasn't focused on it right now. "Bad dream?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah," I whispered.

"About her?"

"Mhm," I hummed, more moisture leaving my eyes. We didn't have to say who "her" was, because we both knew. I hated even saying her name, because that was different than calling her "mom". I had to treat her like who she really was, whether I wanted to or not. I didn't know what I wanted, but it didn't matter. I had to deal with whatever life was throwing at me right now.

"I'm sorry," Riku murmured, pulling me closer. His large hand started running down the fabric of my T-shirt, his touch surprisingly gentle considering how many battles he fought. Slowly, my heartbeat started to soften because of Riku's presence. I wasn't scared; I didn't need his presence to make me feel protected from some kind of physical danger. I just needed somebody with me. A friend, or something more.

"Are you sure you want to go through with everything?" he whispered after a minute. "Sora and I can go to Isabella and get answers…"

I shook my head against his shoulder, careful not to make his head move. "No. No, this is something that I need to do," I whispered. "I need to put the past behind me, and make sure it stays there this time."

"It's never that easy, Steph," Riku commented softly. "Believe me, I know."

"That's still going to be my goal when we set out. Even if I can't accomplish it, I need to try. I can't live with a shadow of the past following me around everywhere I go. It's chasing me, Riku. And I can't lose it…not unless I turn around and chase it."

"Mm."

"So, will you help me?" I asked quietly. I couldn't face this battle alone. Or if I did, I at least needed to know somebody was in the background to support me. I needed his faith.

A single chuckle left Riku's lips. "Of course I will," he murmured, pulling me closer and running over the fabric of my shirt with his hand. "You couldn't just get me to sit by the sidelines and let you face it alone. You're stuck with me."

"Clearly," I mumbled, thinking of the past week or so. He had been glued to my side, and extremely overprotective. And a bit of a jerk, honestly.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, practically reading my thoughts. "I know I come off too strong sometimes, but…I'm new at this. I just don't want you getting hurt, like you are now."

"Nobody could have seen this coming though," I stated quietly.

"No, but I still don't like to see you so upset, you know. I know what it's like to try to shake off shadows of the past. Sometimes, taking that route makes the pain even worse. Instead of chasing the past away, you get sucked into it."

"Maybe…but I still need to try, you know? Succeed or fail, I need to at least try to put this behind me and live in the present."

"You can't completely disregard the past when you live in the present. The past is a part of who you are."

"I wish it wasn't," I mumbled incoherently.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Riku wisely left me to my thoughts, though he did keep his presence known by holding me close to his bare chest. With my eyes shut, I focused on my reflections. I wished my past wasn't a part of me, because it was so terrible. Remembering all the bad things, all I felt towards my past was bitterness. Even if some things did happen in my life. It was easiest to feel bitter because the bad events happened more recently. The wound was still open, and the poison was growing. The more I thought about the past, the more I hated it. The more I wished it never happened.

If I faced this, maybe I could lose the bitterness residing in my heart. Maybe I could feel peace and know that everything was sorted out for good this time, and that I could pursue happiness for my future. Those were my hopes and dreams.

"…Try to sleep, if you can," Riku said softly in my ear.

Sleep? Right, it was the middle of the night. I could feel my exhaustion coming back on now that the adrenaline from my dream faded, and I believed that I could fall asleep here in Riku's arms. That seemed to be what he was planning on.

"Thanks, Riku," I murmured, leaning into him as he ran his soft fingers over my back. I heard him grunt in response, as if this was no big deal. But it was a big deal to me. Where would I be without him? I hoped I would never have to find out.

Within a few minutes, I slipped out of consciousness in the arms of the person I held dear, my negative thoughts leaving me for a little while. I'd face the past another day.