Aqua woke to the smell of bacon and smoke. Mostly smoke. Immediately sensing danger, she leaped out from under the covers, yanking the pile of blankets off of her body, and by extension, Namine's.
Namine woke groggily from the sudden rush of frigid air, only for her nose to be assaulted by the sent of smoke. Both girls quickly rushed down the stairs, where a loud beeping rang through the apartment, and Ventus and Terra were shouting angrily at one another.
"I told you you were supposed to flip them over!" Ventus shouted, frantically waving rags at the billowing cloud of smoke over the stove. Whatever he was trying to accomplish had little effect on the dark cloud, and he began coughing profusely.
"Well how was I supposed to know! It doesn't say anything on the box!" Terra retorted, scrambling around the apartment to open all of the windows.
"It's common sense! Who the hell doesn't know that you're supposed to flip pancakes! And it says to flip them right here!" Ventus hollered, chucking the empty box of Mama Odie's pancake mix at Terra's head, which he batted away easily. Unfortunately, there was still a small amount of pancake powder inside of the box, and it exploded in a cloud of dust onto the nicely upholstered couch.
"Fuck! The master just replaced that couch!" Terra cursed, frantically trying to rub out the whitish powder from the couch's dark grey fabric. The rubbing only made it look worse. Terra cursed again, punching the couch angrily. Terra swiped the now empty box off of the floor, and read the directions furiously.
"It says to flip them when they're golden brown! They were never golden brown!" Terra yelled, whipping the box across the room and trying to fan the black smoke out of the open windows. Ventus, who was doing the same, shot his brother a glare.
"Well they were golden brown, but now they're BLACK," He replied sarcastically. Terra growled in frustration.
"Shut up! It's not like you could've done any better!"
"I have done better! I've cooked before without setting the kitchen on fire!"
"Nothing good!"
"Better than yours!"
The two glared daggers at each other as they tried to salvage what was left of their pancakes and bacon, as Aqua and Namine stood in the entryway, gaping. Ventus noticed the two female inhabitants of the apartment and acknowledged them with a shy grin.
"Morning?" He said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly with one hand, weakly fanning the flames with a charred rag with the other. Terra grunted incoherently at their arrival, still fanning the now smaller cloud of smoke out of an open window. Ventus winked at Namine, who blushed and hid behind Aqua, but smiled shyly back at him.
"What's going on in here?" Aqua asked, astonished. The clean, beautiful kitchen she'd been drinking tea in the night before was now a complete mess, as if a tornado of smoke, kitchen utensils, pancake batter, and bacon grease had hit at full force.
"Well, we have this rule," Ven began, bunching up his rag and throwing it at Terra, who growled, but continued fanning the receding smoke, "that the last person awake on weekends has to cook breakfast. Since Master Eraqus left early to get some things for your room, Terra's alarm clock is still broken, and we figured you two probably don't know how to work a stove... Long story short, Terra woke up after I did."
Aqua started giggling, and waved a hand through the air. A sudden draft ran through the apartment and swept all of the smoke out of the window Terra was trying to fan it all out through. Terra froze, an expression of dumbfoundment on his face when he whirled toward Aqua, his face now expressing abject horror.
"Why didn't you do that in the first place?" he cried(almost literally) dropping his tired arms dramatically. Aqua laughed again and walked into the messy kitchen area. She turned the flame on the stove off and dumped the contents of pan Terra had been making pancakes in into the trash.
"Do you have any eggs?" Aqua asked, taking one of Terra's rags out of his hand and turning on the sink, like Eraqus had shown her the night before. She scrubbed the pan clean, then returned it to the stove. Namine had already begun to collect the garbage off of the counter and put it away. Ventus scrunched his nose in confusion but complied, pulling the eggs out of the refrigerator and a few other things Aqua had requested; salt, pepper, milk, garlic salt(she'd asked for garlic, and this was the closest thing they had), a whisk, cheese, some sliced ham, whatever bacon was left, and some bread. He, Terra, and Namine set the table as Aqua got to work in the kitchen.
Moments later, the four were seated at the dining room table, enjoying a delicious breakfast of omelettes and toast. Ventus had to toast it himself, as Aqua had planned on putting it in the oven before Ven showed the machine to her.
"So," Ven asked through a stuffed mouth, "How did you know how to work the stove? I mean, the shower gave you so much trouble last night, and the stove seems more complicated than the shower. I mean, look at Terra. He's lived in this world his entire life and he still has no clue how to use it!" Terra stopped inhaling his extra large serving of eggs to quickly smack Ventus on the backside of his head. The smaller boy's head nearly flew into his food from the force, which wasn't really that much considering who it was that hit him. Namine giggled. It looked like Ven hadn't completely missed his plate of food, as small clump of egg and cheese stuck to the tip of the blond's nose. He looked at her and flashed her a grin, making her giggle more profusely, and hand him a napkin.
"Well," Aqua said, resting her elbows on the table and folding her hands together to rest her chin on, "I learned last night from Eraqus that there are a few things our world shares with yours. For instance, while the technology in your world's stoves are much more advanced and reliable, they are not so different from the ones we have back home. The main difference is that we channel magical energy from the earth and ourselves into our machines, and as for the shower, well, back home, we have large bathhouses with water drawn from the fountain of youth."
"Wait, the fountain of youth is real?" Ventus interrupted, wiping the egg from his nose.
"Yes, it is. And so are many of the other things that this world considers myth. Like my magic for instance, or princesses like Namine," Aqua answered. "Though, the fountain itself can't actually grant immortality, it only makes you look the same age forever. You'll still die from any natural cause, like sickness or old age. The bathwater we use comes from an outlying spring, where the water from the fountain has been diluted enough that it's effects are dampened to only fading wrinkles and making the skin smooth, elastic, and youthful after every bath."
Ventus made a small 'huh' noise, finding the information fascinating, if nothing else. Aqua smiled nostalgically.
"It seems that many things from our world are legend here. Perhaps the ancient texts could have actually been true..." Aqua muttered, mostly to herself.
"Ancient texts?" Terra questioned, wolfing down the last few bites of his omelette.
"Oh, nothing, just... talking to myself," Aqua replied, waving it off like smoke in the air. Terra raised an eyebrow, but shrugged it off, chugging the remains of his milk.
"Well," he said, placing the glass heavily on the table with a satisfied sigh, "this all sounds like one of Kairi's fairy tale's to me."
Ven coughed, "Um, yeah, Terra, speaking of Kairi-"
Ventus was interrupted by the loud bang of the door as it swung open, revealing a pretty, red-haired girl around Namine's age standing at the entrance.
"I SMELL FOOD THAT ISN'T POISON. WHOEVER SHE IS, MARRY HER BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE," said redhead called, strolling into the house as if she lived in it. She rushed over to the table, inches from Namine's face, examining the other girl. Aqua tensed, and prepared to flip the girl out of a window, before she cracked a huge grin and strangle-hugged Namine, squealing, "SHE'S SO CUTE!"
Namine squeaked in surprise, blushing at the compliment and proximity of the stranger. Aqua stared, baffled. Terra facepalmed and groaned.
"Ven, didn't I tell you to warn me when Kairi comes over?" Terra asked, rubbing his temples. Ven grinned sheepishly.
"I was gonna, but I kinda forgot after you set the kitchen on fire."
"Wait, you set the kitchen on fire?" Kairi started laughing, pointing at Terra and clutching her stomach dramatically, like she had just heard the greatest punchline in the history of the world. Terra cursed under his breath. Damn Kairi and her selective hearing.
"Why are you here Kai?" Terra asked, cupping his face in his palms. His bad day was turning into a bad weekend, and was deteriorating a rapid rate.
"Well, you see Terra," Ven cut in, before Kairi replied with some snarky comment, "Since I thought we kinda needed a girl's input on what to buy girls, I figured who better to ask than a girl?" Ven said almost reluctantly, scratching the back of his head in a manner that Namine had noticed was a bit of a trademark of his.
"Kairi hardly qualifies as a girl Ven,"
"Hey! I resent that statement!"
"C'mon, play nice you guys," Ven said, crossing his arms in an almost pouty way. Terra and Kairi sighed exasperatedly, but complied nonetheless, with a melodramatic, "Fiiiiiiiiine."
"Anyway, is this the girl you were telling me about? The cute blonde one? Cause she's definitely cute!" Kairi gushed, happily examining Namine from across the table. Namine blushed and looked at Ventus, who was blushing as well.
"Kairi! That was supposed to be a secret!" Ventus whisper-yelled to his red-haired friend, leaning close to her ear. She just grinned and said, "Whoopsie-daisy~" in a sing-songy voice. Ventus groaned in embarrassment and buried his face in his hands. Namine blushed and suddenly found the surface of the wooden table very interesting, as she was staring at it intensely enough to make it burst into flames just by thinking about it.
Ventus thought she was cute?
Namine blushed harder at the thought and started fiddling with the hem of her shirt. The shirt Ventus lent her. She blushed again.
Kairi grinned at the both blondes' embarrassment, finding it both amusing and full of potential.
"But I hear you two need a new wardrobe," Kairi said, a mischievous glint in her eyes. Aqua gave Kairi a suspicious look, replying with a, "Yes..." full of equal suspicion. Kairi squealed gleefully, jumping up and down rapidly, clapping her hands together.
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" she cried, grabbing Namine and Aqua by a their wrists and practically dragging them out of the door. Before she could rush through the threshold, she froze. Kairi pulled a complete 180, marching up the stairs with the other girls in tow.
"But first, let's get you guys into normal clothes, not PJs," Kairi declared, toting the girls up the stairs and out of Terra and Ven's sight.
About half an hour and one long, awkward silence later, Kairi bounded down the stairs, mock-formally addressing Ventus and Terra like the host of some talent show.
"Gentleman and boulder-brains,"-Terra frowned at the obvious dig in his direction-"May I proudly present: Miss Namine and Aqua!" Kairi bowed dramatically, a big sweeping hand gesture towards the hallway, and rushed backward off of the 'stage.' Namine and Aqua both stepped into the room, slightly confused, and a bit awkwardly.
Red blossomed across Ventus' face as Namine stepped timidly out of the shadows. She was wearing a frilly sundress with a light pink floral pattern over a white fabric background that most definitely belonged to Kairi. The dress hugged her curves in a complimentary, but conservative fashion, and ended a few inches above her knees, showing off her long, slender, pale legs, which ended with a pair of brown moccasins on her dainty feet. A long, mocha colored sweater draped over her slender frame like a blanket, and Kairi had added a matching pink, flower headband to top off the outfit, because Kairi thought "It would just look so cute on her!"
Ventus simply couldn't figure out how one girl could be so adorable.
Meanwhile, Terra gaped, mouth open an wide eyed, at the provocative outfit Kairi had brought for Aqua to wear. The black jeans were high-waisted, reaching past her naval, but were so tight that Terra could've swore they were simply painted on. The white tank crop-top was hardly anything more than a bra, the words 'Do not touch' printed(and distorted) in block font across her ample chest. The half-sleeve, black cardigan helped slightly, but did little to hide the bountiful cleavage Terra was staring at. At least Terra wouldn't have to look down, pretending not to stare at it, since the black, ankle-high, lace up heels Kairi brought easily gave Aqua enough height to match his own massive build.
"Where the hell did you get those clothes Kairi?" Terra exclaimed, staring at the redhead in confusion and horror. Kairi pursed her lips at him.
"Hey, I like that dress!"
"Not the dress, the other stuff," Terra exclaimed, exasperated.
"Mmmm, well, I actually borrowed them from a friend of mine named Paine. By friend of mine, I mean friend of Zack's. And by friend of Zack's, I mean Zack's weird, kinda goth cousin. These were the normal-est clothes I could find in her closet and she was the only tall girl that I knew. But still, she isn't really as tall as Aqua is, I mean, she's almost as tall as Terra! I'm just happy that they have the same shoe size!"
Terra gave Kairi a questioning glance. "How did you get into Paine's closet?"
Terra had met Zack's somewhat estranged cousin before when she came to drop some things of for him at the station with her two odd friends, Yuna and Rikku. The two girls were so bubbly and giddy compared to the grounded, broody Paine that Terra had absolutely no idea how they were friends. Terra knew though, that behind that cold, somewhat harsh exterior, Paine was a good person.
He also knew that she would tear any unwanted snoopers in her house limb from limb and considered the only non-trespassers to be Yuna and Rikku.
Kairi just looked at Terra blankly, before her mouth morphed into a Cheshire grin.
"Ways."
Terra decided it was best not to question the mischievous redhead for the sake of his own mental health.
"Well enough with the chit chat," Kairi exclaimed, hooking her arms under Aqua and Namine's elbows, "We have shopping to do!" Kairi practically carried the two confused girls out of the apartment, down the stairs, and to the fancy red convertible waiting below. Terra and Ventus shortly followed suit.
Kairi hopped over the car door and into the drivers seat, starting up the engine. She beckoned for Namine to join her on the other side while Aqua hopped into the back. Terra frowned.
"Kairi, I don't think we're all going to fit," he stated. Kairi rolled her eyes.
"The back has three seats, we'll fit just fine. And I don't want to sit next to you boulder brains, you'll just critique my driving the entire time!"
Terra frowned at the quip. "I'll just take one of our cars-"
"The Master took the keys," Ventus piped, striding past Terra towards the shiny red car.
"But-"
"Quit being a baby and just get in the back!" Kairi snapped, honking the horn for emphasis. The noise startled Namine, who nearly jumped out of her skin at the noise. Ventus laughed, and for what seemed like the billionth time since they met, Namine blushed. Kairi almost missed the exchange in her irritation at the stocky brunet who was being far more difficult than necessary. "Not getting any younger or smarter Rocky, so let's go!"
Terra scowled, but otherwise obeyed, opening up the car door and sliding in next to Aqua, Ventus having already hopped in on the other side. He slammed it shut in irritation, only to be berated by Kairi saying, "Don't mess up my car! What are you, six?" which caused Terra to scowl even further.
The ride to the mall was something of a production. Terra pouted in the backseat like a little kid who got his toys taken away, but was especially awkward toward Aqua, whom he was pressed up very close to due to the lack of room in the back seat. The worst was when Kairi almost missed a turn and made a sharp right at the last minute without slowing down. Aqua had practically fallen on top of him, and Terra gritted his teeth and forced himself to turn away as her chest pressed against his arm. She apologized, but that didn't keep Terra's face from lighting up like a Christmas tree. He didn't respond, so Terra hoped Aqua didn't think he was mad at her. Judging by the somewhat hurt/guilty/kicked puppy look in her eyes and how she kept avoiding his gaze however, it seemed as if that was the case.
Crap, now he would have to apologize.
After and unusually long, arduous ride to the closest shopping mall, Terra found himself carrying two dozen bags filled with hundreds of dollars worth of clothing, freshly bought and heavier than one could imagine clothing could weigh. The changing room he and Ven were waiting outside of had only one seat and, as expected, Ventus easily beat him in a race for the chair. The blond plopped down in it victoriously, and made it very clear that he had no intention of trading off, especially after the whole breakfast fiasco.
So, for a torturous hour and a half, Terra stood dumbly, carrying a thousand pounds of women's clothing, waiting for a magic knight and her little princess to try on all of their clothes picked out by the wicked witch of the Kairi.
At this point, Terra was absolutely positive that gingers had no souls.
Inside the dressing room, Kairi giggled as she peeked through the curtains separating the empty area outside of the dressing room to the well furnished inner chambers. The room was round and filled with plush, comfortable seats and cushions, the actual changing areas curtained off.
Dropping the think, hot pink material, she turned back towards the shaking curtains that contained Namine and Aqua. Kairi scrunched her nose. She was slightly confused as to why two full grown women would have so much trouble simply putting on clothes. Come to think of it, it was also kinda odd that they didn't have any clothes in the first place. Or wore any make-up. Kairi shrugged, concluding that they must've lived someplace really remote without any malls or people or anything.
Kairi's eyes brightened. Maybe they were forest people! They could teach her the ways of the wild, surviving in the harsh wilderness.
Aqua and Namine shared concerned looks as Kairi giggled and mumbled to herself, her hands shaking excitedly.
Aqua cleared her throat to get the daydreaming redhead's attention. Kairi promptly spun around, snapping out of her (slightly outrageous) thoughts and inhaling sharply.
"It looks great!" She exclaimed, happily examining the girl's attire. She quickly rushed over to adjust thick elastic bands on her wrists from where the sleeves constricted the skin. The shirt was made of navy blue fabric. It was a form-fitting, puffy bell-sleeved turtleneck with a black lace-covered opening in the front and black lace connecting the bell-sleeves to the 'sleeveless' turtleneck. A pair of simple, dark-grey jeans finished the outfit off, Aqua still wearing the shoes Kairi borrowed/stole from Paine.
Namine's outfit was much brighter; a white, peter-pan collared dress that buttoned from the collar to the hem. There was a sheer, white, lacey top layer, and a silky, cream-colored under-layer, the buttons, collar, and cuffs all a cozy light tan. Kairi had swapped her moccasins for a pair of coffe-colored Mary Janes and a pair of vintage, frilly, ankle-socks in an off-white. Scrutinizing Namine's outfit with a displeased expression, Kairi snapped her fingers and grinned, quickly darting out of the dressing rooms only to race back in a few moments later, clipping a brown bow barrette with cream-colored lace to the side of Namine's head.
"Perfect," Kairi declared, putting her hands on her hips with a satisfied sigh. Namine reached a hand up to prod at the barrette, only for Kairi to quickly lash out and smack her hand down. Namine yelped like a kicked puppy, retracting her hand to her chest quickly. Kairi pouted her lips. "I just said 'perfect', didn't I?" Aqua rolled her eyes.
A loud, happy tune filled the dressing room and Kairi pulled out a small device, a phone Aqua'd been told, from her purse.
"Hello?" Kairi asked, holding the small black rectangle to her ear, "Oh hey Selph! How's it-WHAT!" Kairi's angry scream caught Namine by surprise, and she squeaked in shock. Aqua tilted her head curiously as Kairi yelled angrily into her phone. "Where are you? Where is HE? Where is SHE? I'll be right there. DON'T. MOVE."
Tapping the screen of her phone, Kairi tossed it angrily into her purse before charging out of the dressing room, dragging Aqua and Namine behind her by their wrists.
"Get up, we're leaving," Kairi commanded. Ventus stood up immediately and Terra let out some sort of noise of relief.
"Hey, is everything ok?" Ventus asked, standing up and grabbing all of the bags he'd been carrying.
"No, everything is not ok," Kairi hissed, slamming a wad of bills on the cashier's counter and dragging her friends out of the store, ignoring the protests of the clerk and the sounding alarm system. "Selphie called. Seifer just felt up Olette and now he and Hayner are fighting. I'm gonna go break it up, so we have to call it a day." Kairi grumbled, her pace increasing slightly. Ven perked up slightly at the name of his friend, peeking around his pile of shopping bags. Kairi caught the worried look in his eyes and narrowed her gaze threateningly.
"No Ven, you can't come with." Kairi said, rifling through her purse to find her keys, giving a small, triumphant laugh as she yanked them out.
"Why not!" Ven insisted, "They're my friends too!"
"Because Seifer bullies you enough already and you have guests to attend to," Kairi replied somewhat irritably. She hated when Seifer acted up and resented the fact that the asshole had a big enough crush on her to listen to what she said, never failing to send her off with some creepy sexual advance. Ventus pouted the entire ride home, but didn't press the matter when Kairi bid the group farewell when she dropped them back off at the apartment.
Eraqus was waiting for the group in the kitchen when they arrived. He greeted his pupils and guests with a fatherly smile.
"Welcome home my sons, and to Aqua and Namine as well," Eraqus said, rising from his seat at the table. "Come. I have something I wish to show you."
Eraqus, a knowing twinkle in his eyes, led the group up the spiral staircase and into the observatory. Namine gasped loudly and Aqua's jaw slacked.
The observatory looked like an entirely different room than the night before. Two canopied beds with ornate designs sat on either ends of the round room, covered in luxuriously designed bedding and throw pillows. Gold trim was everywhere in sight, along with beads, shells, geometric patterns, and deep, sensual colors. A low couch bordered half of the room, bed to bed, and was covered in similarly designed pillows of various sizes, shapes, patterns, and colors. Lamps from around the world were scattered around the room. A long, ovular coffee table stood in front of the long sofa, candles and decorations scattered across the patterned surface. The other side of the room had tall wardrobes, an incredibly intricately designed vanity, and dressers, a large television mounted on top pf the dresser directly across from the couch. Geometric, animal fur, fuzzy, furry, shaggy, short, long, big, small, and colorful rugs overlapped the entire floor in a harmonic chaos that complimented the room nicely. The final, and possibly the most beautiful thing in the room was the massive crystal chandelier hanging above the center of the room, directly above the staircase Namine and Aqua were still standing in, gawking.
"I got most of the furniture from an old friend of mine in Agrabah," Eraqus began, walking over to one of the beds and stroking a beautifully carved bedpost with utmost care. "He called in the cavalry as soon is I mentioned I needed a favor," Eraqus joked. Aqua and Namine both looked at him in awe. He must have done some incredible things to have people willing to make this for him-for them.
"Those lights over there," Eraqus pointed to a pair of lights standing nearby one of the beds, "Came from the Land of Dragons, in the far East. And the Vanity, the wardrobe, and the chandelier-" Eraqus motioned up to the masterpiece of crystal above their heads, "-came from an old friend of mine, a proprietor of a castle once scheduled for demolition." Eraqus chuckled lightly as Namine wowed in fascination. The chandelier reminded her so much of the ones her father loved decorating his castle with. It made her smile with nostalgia, remembering the fresh memories of a ball not so long ago. She turned to Eraqus, running at him and enveloping in a tight, grateful hug. Eraqus blinked in surprise, but smiled fondly and returned the hug gently, Aqua joining the hug soon after.
"Hey," Ventus said, looking around the room, slightly baffled. "How come my room isn't this nice Master?" Eraqus' smile dropped into an expression the definition of 'are you serious?' Terra frowned and bopped Ventus in the back of the head.
"Way to ruin a moment Ven," Terra pulled Ventus down the stairs as he, Eraqus, and the girls parted for the night, heading off to his own room, perplexed as to why he couldn't get the image of Aqua's happy expression out of his head.
A/N: God that shitty ending. Once we get passed the boring intros and crap, I swear it'll probably get better.
Thanks to all those who reviewed, favorited, and alerted this story! It means a lot.
Special thank you to TheFirstTrio(who has a totally amazing story called Girl of Steel that you should read) for you're constant encouragement kind words!