I don't own anything associated with Kingdom Hearts or Silent Hill. It belongs to Square Enix/Disney and Konami respectively

Chapter 12

His head ached. It felt like someone had pried open his skull and was scraping it clean with a wire sponge. He squeezed his eyes closed as tight as he could, twisting and turning on the bed. He had the sense that there was something important that he should be doing, and yet he wanted nothing but to lay here and sleep a moment more. Terra had never been an early riser.

A murmur. The soft sound snapped the iron bands crushing his mind and he sighed in relief. This bed really was comfortable, he decided, and he wondered if Aqua or Eraqus had switched his mattress when he wasn't looking. However, he still couldn't shake the feeling that he was forgetting something.

He thought back. Aqua had cooked today, so it wasn't that he left the oven on (again). It had been an easy day and unless Terra had missed something while he was meditating, he didn't think Eraqus had asked him to do anything.

Wait a second. Easy day? Eraqus? Those weren't words usually found in the same sentence. There, indeed, was something missing, the why . . .

Oh, wait, the mission! Eraqus had wanted them to look for the missing Xehanort and his apprentice. The three of them had left to do that, he was pretty sure. Yes, he remembered arriving at the world, where Ven had suddenly zoned out and nearly flown way off course. He had been alert the rest of the mission, but too alert, as jumpy as a rabbit who had spotted the fox too many times. Then the idiot had run off during the night and he and Aqua had tracked him here, and then he lost Aqua, and found Ven in that realm of darkness and fire . . .

And the monster.

The monster that had thrown him off a freaking building.

Rather unintelligently, Terra shot up in his bed. Thankfully, he had no broken bones. Actually, now that he took the time to look, except for his torn clothes, he was perfectly fine. Strange. He was certain he hadn't dreamt up the pain of taking a knife to the stomach.

But where was he? Ridgeview Clinic wasn't
this bright, and the ground that he should have landed on certainly wasn't made of white sheets. That was the colour that filled up most of his view. From the walls to the floor to the bed's canopy, it was all the same. The only exceptions were the multitudes of drawings on the wall by the window, and the head of blonde hair bent over a desk.

"Hello?" he said.

The head turned. It belonged to a young girl with big blue eyes, who wore a plain white dress that blended with her surroundings. "Oh, you're awake."

"Yeah." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Where am I? Where's Ven?" he asked in more desperate tones.

"Brookhaven Hospital. Ven's here, too. You don't need to be scared, Terra. You're both safe."

"How?" Terra wondered as he stood on legs that should have been broken in several places.

"The fall should have killed you," the girl confirmed, "but Silent Hill doesn't follow those rules. He didn't want you dead, so he held you in-between instead. Had things gone his way, you would have woken up in this world still, but not near your friends, and definitely not here."

"Huh?"

"I interfered," she explained without really explaining anything. "Xion told me what had happened, and I inferred and pulled you out before he could do anything to you."

"Xion?" He still had no idea what she was talking about, but that was someone he recognized. He shook his head. "You said Ven was here."

She nodded.

"Take me to him," he commanded, sparing no thoughts for manners.

She did so, and they found Ven sitting at a table in the cafeteria. His eyes were red and bloodshot, and he managed a last sniffle before launching himself at Terra. Who knew such a little person could weigh so much? Terra's gasps for breath were lost under the clamour of Ven's spluttered apologies and sobs, and instead of loosening his grip as Terra had hoped, Ven merely tightened his hold on Terra's neck.

"Can't . . . breathe . . ." Terra finally forced out.

Ven continued to hang from Terra's neck, but did allow him to breathe.

"Terra, where did you go? I looked everywhere for you!"

"I'm . . . I'm not sure." He scratched his head and looked around. "I was pretty sure that I was outside before."

"Me too!" Ven cried. "Me and Ansem looked everywhere for you, but it was like you disappeared. Look, he gave me this cool sweater!"

The girl looked acutely uncomfortable as Ven waved his arms about, showing off the red garment. Terra sighed fondly; if anything, the sweater made Ven look younger. It hung off his body, ending just below his knees, and Terra reached over to yank it off his younger companion.

"Teeerrra! Give it back!"

As Ven lunged for it, Terra held the sweater above his head and yawned. Ven pouted.

"So we've here," Ven said, "but what about Aqua?"

Terra froze at her name. He said a curse in his mind and the words bounced off the sides of his skull over and over. In his joy of being reunited with Ven, he had completely forgotten about her. But it couldn't be that bad, right? Aqua could defend herself.

But he shuddered when he thought back to the dark realm he had found Ven in.

"Come on, Ven. Let's go," he grunted.

"No!" The blonde girl scurried after them and tugged at his sleeve. "You can't. It's not safe!"

"That's why we need to go find Aqua."

The girl shook her head frantically. "You don't understand," she said, "bad things will happen if you leave. This is the only safe place."

"Look, Naminé," - so that was the girl's name – "we'll go find Aqua, and then we'll come back here," Ven offered. He held her hands as he spoke, and gave her a grin that Terra swore would rip his face apart.

Naminé was still shaking her head, so Ven continued, "Aqua's our friend; we can't force her to fend for herself, and we can't pretend that we don't know she's in trouble. We'll be careful, I promise! And then we'll come back and –"

"No!" Naminé cut him off. "If you find Aqua, leave. Don't come back."

Ven's smile dropped and Terra was quite shocked, too. "If that's what you want," Ven said. He shuffled his feet, looking profusely guilty. Terra ruffled his hair and together, they left the room.

Naminé caught up with them again at the doors to Brookhaven. "Wait!" she said, and Terra groaned, certain that she was going to try to talk him out of it again. But instead she held her hands out, and her fingers uncurled to reveal his Wayfinder. Terra immediately patted down his clothes; he hadn't even noticed it was gone!

"Take this," she said, "it will help you find Aqua. I usually could tell you exactly where she is, but there is . . . something blocking me. It's not good."

The Wayfinder was warm against his palm. He studied it closely; there didn't seem to be anything physically different about it, but it held a radiance that it lacked before. Aqua had always claimed the Wayfinders magically bound them, and he thought he could see that power now, swirling inside the glass.

"As long as you're here, make sure it's always with you," Naminé warned.

He thanked her warmly and strapped the Wayfinder to Earthshaker. He wasn't going to lose it again anytime soon.

"They are very important to you, aren't they?" Naminé said to both of them. Simultaneously, Terra and Ven glanced at their Wayfinder and nodded. Naminé smiled and further said, "There is so much love and light in them . . . I think that's why the darkness has not claimed you yet. Keep them with you, always."

Terra mulled over her words, turning his Wayfinder over in his palm. He and Ven said their last goodbyes to Naminé, and then stepped out the door.

The coldness of the air outside was in such contrast with the inside of Brookhaven that it knocked him back a step. Ven shivered and tried to steal back Ansem's sweater, which was draped around Terra's neck. Terra saw him and held it up, considering. Making sure that Ven was watching, he wore it himself. It was snug, especially around the shoulders, but he could manage.

"Where do we start?" Ven asked, watching the ascension of his own steamy breath.

"I don't know," Terra said. "We were supposed to meet at a shack in the yard of an apartment, but she wasn't there when I checked before."

"Maybe she is now?"

Terra nodded. "Best lead we have."

He glanced down at his Wayfinder, hoping that it would magically come to life and guide them to Aqua. It stayed stubbornly in place instead.

Snow fell around them. Ven stuck close to his side, giving the fog frightened, sideways glances as if he expected it to reach out and grab him. Terra set his jaw and tried to act as though he wasn't nervous, but Ven's constant fidgeting was getting to him. This town was so dark and strange . . . it electrified his nerves and set them on edge. Terra forced himself to stare straight ahead, even when he thought he saw the shadows of hounds to his side.

"This is it," Terra said as they stood in front of the metal fence. He ran his fingers along it, searching for any dents left from the soldiers. The blanket of snow beyond it was crisp and unspoiled; there was no indication that he or Aqua had ever been there.

Ven cautiously followed Terra into the courtyard. He was as jumpy as a cat that had been stuffed into a bag and shaken around. Terra shut the gates and turned to see Ven staring at him like Terra had just locked him in a room with a psychopath. Terra rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to speak, but stopped short. Ven was already freaked out. Telling him about the soldiers would just give him a heart attack.

He kicked open the door to the shack. A lone paper skittered across the floor in the breeze.

Terra sighed; it was empty. He slumped against the shack, holding his head in his hands as he picked his mind for anything that would be of help. He knew that it was unlikely that Aqua would be here, but he had prayed. With that last hope crushed, all his energy oozed out of him. His bones felt like they had been turned into jelly, and he slid down the wall until he hit the ground.

"Terra, what do we do now?" Ven asked anxiously.

He shrugged. "I have no idea."

"Terra, you can't give up!" Ven squeezed between Terra and the wall. His back touching Terra's, Ven planted his feet against the shack and pushed. Terra raised his eyebrows.

Ven collapsed, panting. He crawled away before Terra's bulk squashed him, and sat down next to him. "Maybe we should retrace your steps?" he suggested.

"There isn't much, honestly. We entered the town, picked up a map from a gas station and wound up here." He closed his eyes. "I don't see why she would go back there."

"Well, we don't have anywhere else to look, so we should give it a try. Please, Terra, please?" Ven's voice rose to a plaintive whine, so high-pitched that it literally hurt to hear.

Terra didn't want to move. He was tired, cold, and he ached. It was as if every time he had swung Earthshaker he had torn a part of his muscles, and the pain was all coming back at once. He summoned his keyblade and examined his Wayfinder. When it failed to do anything, he tossed it beside him and sighed.

The Wayfinder rolled away.

A weight settled on his mind, dragging it into a void. Fighting it was like trying to swim in a whirlpool – you only sunk further. His vision flickered black as sleep threatened to claim him. Distantly, he heard Ven's concerned voice, but he dismissed the words without listening to him. He figured Ven was just bugging him about Aqua again. Didn't he understand that there was no point? They couldn't wander around and hope to find her.

Ven flicked his nose. Terra glared at him, but the younger boy was not perturbed. If anything, he looked more troubled as he grabbed Terra's hands and tried to yank him to his feet. Terra didn't move; he didn't want to move. He was tired. He wanted to sleep. But Ven wouldn't have it. He scooped up an armful of snow, and stuffed it down Terra's shirt.

"Argh!"

That got Terra up. He flailed, frantically brushing his shirt down to force the snow out. Normally, Ven would have been laughing his head off; but right now, he watched Terra's antics with no sign of remorse.

"What was that for?" Terra barked.

"We are not going to just abandon Aqua," Ven growled softly. It was an unusual sound to hear from him, and it gave Terra pause.

"I'm not abandoning her," Terra said firmly.

"Then let's go!"

When Ven brushed against him, Terra was shocked by his reaction just as much as Ven was. He grabbed Ven by his collar and slammed him against the wall. Ven squirmed; his legs kicked out as his trembling fingers wrapped around Terra's thick wrist. Terra only leaned in closer, the skin on his face stretching as it contorted into a mask of pure rage. The words tumbled out in a low hiss.

"Don't touch me."

One of his hands slid up to Ven's neck and made itself known. He could feel Ven's heartbeat under his palm. It was tempting, all too tempting to squeeze and make it race. The dark urge to cause pain was overtaking him. He couldn't explain why, but he suddenly hated Ven; his optimism made him sick, and the light in his heart hurt to be near.

Ven's eyes bugged out, and he clawed frantically at Terra's hand. Terra sneered. For all his bravado, Ven really was pathetic when it came down to it. However, Ven's nails were starting to draw blood, so Terra removed his other hand from Ven's collar, and used it to pin down one of the younger boy's arms. At least he could halve the damage taken.

He leaned down so that his mouth was right next to Ven's ear and whispered, "Scared?"

Ven's reply was a garbled mix of choking and pleading, and Terra leaned back so that he could see him properly. Tears were bubbling up in Ven's eyes, and a couple rolled down his face and left a damp trail behind. Terra smirked, staring Ven straight in the face, and relished the thought of the life leaving him.

When the reality of his thoughts hit him, it jolted Terra back to his senses.

Terra glanced down at his arms to see his veins bulging. He released Ven at once, and the boy dropped to the ground, gasping for breath. Horror-stricken, Terra stared at the hand that had been strangling Ven; he hadn't even realized that he had tightened his grip. He didn't even know why he had done that – any of that – in the first place. Ven coughed, a hand on his chest as he forced air into his lungs. Ven looked up suddenly and scrambled back, but it was too late. As soon as the teary blue eyes met his own, Terra felt hatred swell inside him once more.

Kingdom Hearts, what was he doing? Terra desperately recalled all the good times he and Ven had together, but he couldn't control the rash of emotions flooding his mind. Unbelievably, his hand reached for Ven's neck again. He tried to force it back down to his side, but it felt like there was something holding it in place. It wasn't just his arm either. The air pressed against him, immobilizing him, and an irresistible force moved his leg forward.

It took everything he had to fumble the landing, and he toppled face-first into the snow. Ven hadn't moved, and Terra wasn't sure whether it was from fear or a hope that Terra had gone back to normal. He tried to scream at Ven to run, but his mouth refused to open.

In the corner of his vision, light glinted off orange glass.

As soon as the thought flashed across his mind, a weight came crashing down on his arms. He was no longer trying to choke Ven, but he couldn't do anything either. The only part of his body that he could control was his eyes, and he alternated between looking at the Wayfinder and at Ven, trying to convey a message.

Ven looked terrified, but he grabbed the Wayfinder anyways. The younger boy was cringing, his eyes half-shut as he held it out for Terra to grab. It broke Terra's heart to see Ven so scared of him, and with a surge of resolve, he broke free of the mysterious force and grabbed his Wayfinder.

There was an audible snarl as the light entered his body and chased the evil away. Warmth flooded through him, burning away all traces of negative emotions and leaving a dull apathy in its wake. However, that blissful state ended quickly when he heard Ven's terror.

"T-Terra?"

"Ven." He instinctively tried to envelop the blond in a hug, but Ven shied away, his arms protectively in front of him. Terra fell back, feeling sick to his stomach.

"Your eyes were yellow," Ven whispered.

Terra stiffened. The Master had mentioned that he had a problem with darkness, but he would never . . . No, there was no way he would give into the darkness, especially not to hurt his friends!

"Ven, I'm so sorry, I don't know what happened!"

"It's okay, Terra," Ven mumbled. More firmly, he said, "It wasn't you. I know it wasn't."

Ven looked away suddenly, hiding his face. Terra knew why. He moved forwards again, slowly this time, and pulled Ven close to his chest. Ven was quiet, although Terra could hear the odd sniffle.

Ven was so small and tiny, and Terra was filled with self-hatred over the fact that he, however inadvertently, had hurt him. To make matters worse, he couldn't even comfort him that well. He needed Aqua here; Ven never had a problem crying on her shoulder. It struck Terra then that his very presence may be smothering Ven's need to cry and he pulled away with that realization.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked.

Ven nodded, and he wiped the last tears away.

Terra's fists tightened. The Wayfinder grew warmer, as if in protest. Silently, he recalled Naminé's warning to keep it with him at all times. Now he knew why. He put it in his pocket, fuming at his stupidity for putting it down in the first place. However, just before it disappeared from sight, the Wayfinder gleamed. At once, there was a tug in Terra's chest, right where his heart was.

Naminé had told him that the Wayfinder would help him find Aqua. Maybe this was what she meant.

"You sure you're good?"

"Yeah," Ven said, "why?"

Terra stood up. "I want to go find Aqua."

"You know where she is?"

He nodded. "I think so."