I can smell the ending coming near...
Not this chapter of course... but soon... soon...
So... hint number 1: she is a disney princess... woot...
yeah... that's your hint for the next project... go ahead and guess away!
also... college is going good i guess... but i'm going through the phase where it feels like i'm missing out on everything...
it sucks...
so... continue reading!
At Surane's castle, things were the exact opposite. Things were quiet and dreary, and the heroes' plan was not going well. Aqua was taking her time looking for the keys instead of butter to slip Surane's claws out of the shackle. In the meantime, the princess was sitting and watching the night sky. Since this was her last night alive, she might as well watch the beautiful stars. Oh how she wished that Terra was here and she could talk to him one last time. Death didn't seem so awful when Terra's face appeared in her mind.
Shooting stars flew by. Surane tried to imagine Terra was sitting next to her once more, saying how much he loved her and how he would protect her. Of course, her prince was miles away being seduced by a doppelganger. There was no way Terra would see through it, especially if hypnosis lillies were involved. All hope was lost. If Aqua came back in time, she would fly over to the ball and at least see him one more time.
'Terra, please wait a little longer to make the vow. I'll be there soon.' she wished in her head.
At that instant, the blue dancer Aqua came sailing out of the castle with a ring of keys. There were only three iron keys so this should go quickly.
"Just hold on, Surane. I'm getting you out." Aqua assured.
She put the first key in the keyhole and jiggled it. Nothing happened after a few minutes of struggling.
"Try the next!" Surane urged.
The next key was way too small to fit properly. It was moved to make way for the last iron key.
"Come on, work little key!" Aqua yelled.
The key slide inside and the shackle made a loud click. Aqua turned the key to the left and the shackle fell off. Surane stretched her sore foot before taking off. If she was lucky, Ven, Iris, and Kairi were halfway there and Terra hadn't made the vow just yet. It took a few seconds to realize how little luck she had of everything going perfect.
Xemnas sensed Surane's freedom from the ball and chain. Instead of going to trap her again, he only smiled. Larxene and Terra were a little ahead of schedule thanks to the hypnosis lillies.
Why not let the real princess do what she wanted? It was her last night.
In fact, the sorcerer felt that Surane should be there to see the fatal blow. It was a tempting thought, but a good one nonetheless. The only catch was if Surane came crashing through the windows to interrupt the vow. No problem for a magician.
With a small wave of his hand, all the windows and doors of the palace gently closed and locked themselves. No one took notice, everyone was focused on Prince Terra's and Princess Surane's dance. All that was left for Xemnas to do was create a portal for Surane to get here. The plan was nearly done, and good thing too. Larxene's dancing was terrible to say the least.
On the dance floor, Terra noticed the bad dancing through the hypnosis haze. Surane was a princess, she was taught to dance a heck of a lot better than this. The dance was nearly done and he counted ten times Surane stepped on his foot among a number of other things.
"Surane, are you okay?" Terra whispered to her.
She looked up at him and a drop of sweat slid down her cheek.
"Oh yes, I'm fine, love. I'm just nervous about all these lingering eyes. I don't think these girls are too fond of me." Surane lied.
"It's okay. I won't let them or anyone else hurt you. In fact, I wish Xemnas was here to see this. I want him to watch me make the vow and see you freed from your curse." Terra said, brimming with confidence.
'You have no idea...' Larxene thought.
The song ended gracefully. A muffled applause whispered around the ballroom. The King and Queen were still amazed that Surane was here in the flesh. Xemnas waved his hand behind his back and created the portal. It was showtime...
Ven handed the map to Iris while he steered Kairi. The red dusk fumbled the map and a strong wind blew it out of her hands. The wind seemed to be too strong and it threw Kairi for a loop.
"Crud. Now how are we gonna get back in time?" Ven cursed.
In the distance, they saw bright lights against the dark sky. It was bright enough to outshine the moon. Ven instantly knew it was the ball at the Land of Departure. He steered Kairi to the lights.
"That has to be it! I hope we make it!"
After a few minutes, they noticed a strange swirling portal appear right next to the castle. Approaching it, they noticed something came tumbling out and landed on the ground below. The spiral disappeared right then. Kairi dove for the thing that came out. It was Surane!
"Surane? How did you get here?" Ven asked.
The wyvern shrugged her shoulders and got into an upright position. There was no time to waste! Ven ran for the front doors and pulled the handle. To his surprise, the doors didn't bugde an inch. He struggled to open them, and the odd part: they didn't even make a scrapping sound.
"The door won't open!" he yelled to the girls.
All four of them were horrified. There had to be a way in! Iris came over to the front doors and started scratching at them. Again, no sound of her claws hitting the wood. A magical seal was placed on the doors apparently.
Kairi flew up to an overhead window and flew into it. Nothing happened. The window didn't break or budge. Even the people inside the castle didn't show response. The windows were enchanted as well. She looked down to Surane.
"The windows are acting strange too! I can't get in!"
Surane shook her head in defeat. What's worse was everything going on inside the castle could be heard out here. They even heard the waltz music end and the muffled applause. It was time for the vow. The wyvern went to the door and put her ear to it. She wanted to know what Terra was gonna say anyway.
The prince's voice rang loud and clear.
Terra faced his parents with Surane on his arm. The incidents during the waltz were forgotten with another whiff of summer rain and wet grass. He felt excitement. He was about to prove his love.
"Princesses from around the world, honored guests, ladies and gentlemen, Mother, Father, I have an announcement to make."
Everyone listened intently. Xemnas smiled to himself. The prince looked at Surane and smiled lovingly. She smiled back weakly, praying this would end soon.
"Tonight, I have found my bride! She is Princess Surane, ruler of Radiant Garden!"
Outside, the real Surane clutched her chest in pain. It felt like a flaming arrow hit her straight in the heart. The fire started to spread. Iris held onto her shoulder and tried to wake her out of this strange moment. Ven was prepared to catch her.
"We will marry and join our two lands together, as they should be. And to do this, I will prove my love to her like I should've done the first time." Terra continued.
Surane felt the pain again. She tumbled over and slowly transformed back into a human. Ven gently held her and laid her on the ground. They couldn't help her now. Terra's voice rang out again. He was kneeling before Surane.
"On this very night, I make a vow above all vows, a vow stronger than any magic in the universe, the vow to be heard all around the world!"
The real Surane screamed in pain. The fire was spreading rapidly. Every word stung her heart like a thousand needles, stabbing away with no retreat or kindness. She wanted to call out to Terra, begging him to stop before it was too late.
"I make a vow of everlasting love..."
Too late...
"To Surane." Terra finished.
The last word was the hardest hit to Surane's heart. Now, it was the last straw. Her body couldn't take it anymore. She could hardly hear the audience inside cheering and clapping. Everything was fading slowly.
Inside, the guests were applauding Terra's announcement. The Queen cried happily onto her husband's shoulder. Vexen started up the band and the wedding march sounded throughout the ballroom. The prince came up to Surane's level and smiled to her.
"Surane, I made the vow. How do you feel?" he asked.
"Well, now that you mention it... a little hungry... got anything to eat?" she complained.
Terra gave her a confused look. That's not how Surane would act at all. The scent of rain and grass wafted to him again. Now, he recognized the scent and backed away from her.
"Hypnosis lillies..." he said.
Xemnas came back to his orginal form of a black cloak and long silvery hair. He clapped his hands some more and approached the couple. The room became silent and the music stopped. Terra stepped in front of Surane.
"I have to say, your majesty, your speech was to die for. And I do mean that literally." Xemnas sneered.
"Xemnas, your finished! I made the vow of everlasting love to Surane and she's free from you forever!" Terra spat at him.
"You did make a vow... of everlasting death! Surane was mine. Now she belongs to death!"
"But, this is Surane...?"
Terra looked over at his supposed fiance and instead saw a yellow-haired girl with an attitude. He looked them horrified. Where was Surane? He looked at the windows and saw Kairi frantically flying around the castle. He didn't break the curse after all.
"Where's Surane?" he demanded of Xemnas.
The sorcerer only laughed and snapped his fingers. The windows and doors burst open with a bang. Terra watched the man and his assistant disappear. Xemnas's menacing laugh rang around the ballroom. At the front door, Ven ran inside.
"Terra! Surane's out here!" he yelled.
The prince wasted no time and climbed the stairs.
Surane breathed heavily and struggled to look around. Everything was going blurry and her hearing was out of tune. She could barely make out Iris, who was trying to keep Surane breathing. Suddenly, Xemnas appeared next to her and kicked the dusk out of the princess's vision.
"Well, well, well. I have a dying princess on my hands. If you renounce your kingdom to me, I will save your life and you can be with Terra forever. Last offer, princess." he sneered.
Surane shook her head no and coughed weakly. She only wanted Terra next to her and see her off to the afterlife. Xemnas growled and walked away from her.
"Terra..." she weakly said.
At that moment, her prince appeared right next to her. He had a shocked look in his eyes. She smiled to him and tried to touch his face. Her arm grew weaker by the second, but Terra took her hand and held it.
"Surane, I'm here. I'm with you."
"Terra, I feel so weak... I don't think..." she breathed.
"Surane, don't say that. You will live, I promise. I made that vow for you." Terra said, his voice cracking from emotion.
"I know... I love you...so much, Terra...I'm glad you're here... to say goodbye..." Surane cried.
Terra held her up to his chest and laid his forehead on hers. He could feel her heartbeat grow weaker and slower.
"I'm not saying goodbye, Surane. I'm here to save you. Don't leave me..."
"I...love you..."
Her heart stopped beating. She died in his arms. Xemnas smiled, nothing could go wrong now.
Doesn't that make you cry?
It sure does for me!
Did you cry? Review and tell me!
Stay tuned, our epic finale is coming up!