A/N: Well, I guess last chapter was okay, so this update should be good enough…I hope. Yeah, so this chapter may or may not be interesting, I don't know yet because I always write these authors notes before actually typing up the chapter ^-^; heh, I have to write down everything I want to say to you guys first, or I'll forget what I wanted to say! Haha, well, enjoy!
"And after that happened, most of the castle was ruined…well, the bottom floors mostly, because right when the heartless came and started attacking the castle, the pipelines busted and flooded those floors. But, ever since we got back here, the Restoration Committee has been cleaning up, and so far, we've gotten rid of most of the water!" Aerith explained cheerily as we walked down the halls of the castle.
It was so different…The walls were all cracked in different places, and the ceiling was a bit crumbly. Not the way I remembered it from growing up living here. Everything used to be bright and…colorful, for the most part, but now…it was bland and…depressing, somewhat. "Aerith, you can go on back to town if you want. I can find my away around here easily."
"Are you sure? I can-"
"Aerith, I lived in this castle for 6 years. I know where everything is by heart, and never will I forget where anything is in here." I said, smiling at her.
"Ok, then I guess I'll see you later in town." She said, waving with a smile on her face and walking towards the exit.
"Oh, Aerith!" She stopped and turned around. "If you see that kid, Sora, tell him to come meet me here, ok?" She nodded her head, and left, leaving me to continue doing as I pleased inside the castle. After several minutes of just walking straight down the hallways, I stopped as I noticed a familiar blue door out of the corner of my eye. I slowly turned to face it all the way, staring at it blankly as I just stood in front of it.
It was the door to my room, the paint that had once been beautiful and scratch free was all scratched up and…well, peeling off. It made me question how the inside of it looked after being left alone for almost 7 years. Which is why I couldn't help but reach for the doorknob and turn it slowly, pushing the door open, the hinges making a loud creak as I did so. I walked in quietly, leaving the door open and moving to stand in the middle of the room. It was….a bit dark, probably due to the curtains covering the window. I pulled them aside, light flooding in and brightening up the room. The furniture was extremely dusty, but…the room was the same as I had left it 6 years ago. Everything in place and untouched. The bed still in the same place as it had been left, bed covers and all the same ones, my dresser still covered with things that I had left behind, my desk still covered in junk, and my closet…full of all the clothes that I had worn for as long as I could remember, and the walls…covered in picture frames that held pictures of treasured memories over my lifetime. It made me smile as I stared at each one of them.
"This was the one room that wasn't messed with." I jumped in surprise, turning around to see Squall standing in the doorway, his arms crossed across his chest. "When we first got back here, this is one of the first rooms that I checked out. It was a bit shocking to find that it wasn't in the least bit ruined or destroyed. We thought about cleaning it out and using it as a room for storage, but when we realized that it was your room, we made sure no one messed with it and went inside."
"Thank you." I thanked, giving him a small smile, going back to stare around.
He nodded, leaving me to wander around my room alone. I went back to looking at everything, when out of the corner of my eye, a box caught my attention. I noticed it seemed to be unopened, lying on top of my bed. Curiously, I moved over to my bed and sat down, picking up the box and setting it in my lap, pulling the lid off, only to find a card inside it, laying on top of some tissue paper that had my name written on it. Like any normal person would when they found a card that had their name written on it, I picked it up and opened it up.
I remember the day that you were born. Your mother and father were so happy when you were born, the first start to their family life. Your mother probably never mentioned this when you were younger, but she used to work in the soldier force for Radiant Garden as a Protector. Right after she met your father and they got married, she retired from the Protector force to live a happy life staying at home while your father continued to work as a Soldier.
You look so much like your mother, with the exception of the eye color. And since you're turning 18 this year, the age marking adulthood, I thought that you would enjoy these items. They belonged to your mother, and I hope that you enjoy them. I know that she'd want you to have them.
Happy Birthday, Hope.
Love, Grandfather
When did he give me….Oh, wait. I remember now….
Flashback-4 ½ years earlier
Hope stood on the balcony outside of her room, staring down at the town, smiling as she watched everyone walk by, smiles on their faces and their laughter filling the air. It was like it always was in Radiant Garden, and it was how it would always be. Everyone being happy and cheerful, Hope and her friends always being together, and living in the castle peacefully.
A knock on the door caused Hope to leave the balcony and walk back inside her room and open the bedroom door to find one of the servants standing there, a smile on her face and a box in her hands. "Hello, Cora."
Cora smiled, "Good afternoon, milady! Master Ansem sent me up here with this for you." Cora explained, handing the box to Hope, who smiled in return.
"Really? Did he say what it was?" Hope asked excitedly.
"He said it was an early birthday present, but I'm not exactly sure what's inside it…"
"Well, let's find-" Hope's sentence was interrupted by a loud explosion coming from outside, the castle shaking slightly, Cora letting out a surprise shriek. When the tremors stopped, she looked at Hope with a worried face.
"Milady, are you alright? You're not hurt, are you?"
'Always treating me as if I'll break like a china figurine…' "Yeah, I'm alright…But what was that?"
"Radiant Garden is under attack!"
Hope paled slightly, and Cora's eyes widened as the shout of what was going on was let out, panic seeping into them. "Looks like gift opening will have to wait for now." Hope stated, throwing the gift onto her bed, while Cora took off down the halls. Hope closed her bedroom door, and summoned her sword, taking off down the halls.
Present Day~
That's why I never got the chance to open it. Because right before I could, the Heartless began to attack.
I reached down and moved away the tissue paper, blue fabric coming into view. I pulled it out and unfolded, staring at it curiously. It was a long, sleeveless, blue-hued, rib knit duster sweater that had the design of white wings on the back of it. There was also a pair of matching rib knit arm warmers and a black halter top to go with it. As I laid it on the bed, I noticed a picture lying inside the box on top of something else that was covered by tissue paper, reaching down and picking it up. I smiled as saw that it was my mother, wearing the exact outfit I had just laid down. She was probably the same age as I was, the same smile she would give everyone on her face. I sat it aside and pulled out the last thing, unwrapping it and staring down at it in awe. It was a weapon that I had seen before, the name of it being Blaster Edge. It basically consisted of an arm holster and a projectile that returns like a boomerang.
If only I had opened this box sooner, it might've done some good at stopping the Heartless when they started attacking.
A/N:…Heh, first update this week, and all I give you is a piece of filler crap ^-^; I'm an unfaithful authoress that doesn't seem to always keep her promise of a long chapter that has more than what I gave. I'm sorry, but I couldn't think of anything else to put in, except this small thing ^_^! Still, I hope you guys enjoyed it! Ok, so basically, I gave Hope a new wardrobe, her new outfit being identical to Rinoa's from Final Fantasy 8, and the blaster edge being the same weapon as Rinoa's. Yeah, I just thought that some new clothes and a new weapon would be a nice addition to the story! Ok, LATER TATERS!