AN: Hey, the poles in, so expect to get a lot more Kingdom Hearts: Hearts Colide. Starting with this oddly named chapter, enjoy.

Ventus

"Zack, is that really you?" I asked, looking up at Zack, awestruck that this could be the teen I'd left behind all those years ago.

"Last time I checked, but who are you?" He asked, leaning back cockily and putting his hands on the back of his head. "You seem familiar, but I'm not sure I know who you… Aqua, is that you?"

"Umm… hi Zack, nice to see you again." Aqua said shyly, covering her mouth and blushing a bit. "So, have you become a true hero yet."

"No, but I'm really close." He said, standing up strait before he started to do those squats of his. "A matter of fact I was about to head out and hunt down some Heartless. I'm sure you've heard of them before."

"Yeah, Terra, Ventus and I fight them all the time." Aqua said, relaxing a bit. "So the Heartless are showing up here again two. Would you mind if we tag along."

"Sure, but who are these two?" Zack asked, looking down at Terra and I. "They don't look familiar, how do you know them?"

"Zack it's me, Ventus." I said, taking off my helmet and showing my face to Zack. "Don't you remember me?"

"Ven, wait, so is that Terra?" He asked, pointing at Terra. "I remember you being a lot taller, did you shrink or something."

"No Zack, I think you've grown." Terra answered, taking off his helmet. "So, where are we going Heartless hunting?"

"There's this forest a few miles out where they show up like crazy, I gotta warn ya though, it's pretty dangerous." Zack said, smiling cockily as always. "Hey, maybe we'll even get that date Aqua."

Aqua straightened up suddenly and her eyes widened as she blushed up at Zack. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that."

"Well I didn't, when I become a true hero you owe me one date." Zack said, still smiling down at her. "Come on, it wouldn't be that bad would it."

"No it's just… okay, one date." She said much to Terra's and I's surprise. "Maybe if it goes well I consider giving you a second."

"Let's get going then, those Heartless aren't going to beat them." Zack said, spinning around on his heel. "Follow me to victory."

We walked through the forest, laughing about the old days and what had happened to us since then.

"Okay, so let me get this straight." Zack said, gesturing with his hands as we walked. "You spent eleven years asleep, Terra became Lord of Darkness, and Aqua was in the realm of Darkness. All I've done is train in the coliseum and fail at saving a friend."

"Wait, you failed at saving someone." Aqua asked, grabbing Zacks shoulder as we walked, trying to force him to look at her.

"Yeah, he got into some bad stuff and ended up falling into the River Styx." Zack said, looking forward with a steely focus. "I heard a rumor a few years back he was competing at the coliseum so I came back, but it turned out to be a dead end."

"Wait, you left the Coliseum?" Terra asked; his voice filled with surprise. "Where did you go, how were you training?"

"I went all over the place, fought a lot of Heatless too." He answered, not looking back at us. "But hey, that's nothing compared to what you guys did. I mean defeating Xehawhat'shisname, that's gotta be a big deal."

"I guess so, but Sora was the one who really did it." I said, looking down at the ground as we walked. "He was a real hero."

"Sora, Sora, where have I heard that name before?" Zack asked himself, looking up at the trees before he snapped his fingers in revelation. "Herculese talks about him a lot; apparently he's won almost every tournament at the Coliseum before it was rebuilt."

"Yeah, that' the guy." Terra said, his voice angrier than usual. "He's missing right now, so we're looking for him."

"Well this is a good place, especially if he's won as many games as Herc says." Zack said as we walked into a clearing with no grass or trees to be seen. "We're here." We continued to walk until we were in the middle of the field at which point we all started forming a circle, drawing our weapons as we did. "Okay, everyone who's seen these guys said that they pop up out of nowhere, and always in this field."

We waited for a few more minutes when a neo shadow popped out of the ground and jumped at me. I quickly sliced through it, but I'd jumped away from the group and was quickly surrounded. "Arrow!" I shouted, creating a vortex around me and ripping the Heartless to shreds.

When I looked up I saw my friends fighting off Neo Shadows as well, Terra coated in Dark energy and Aqua in a rainbow, while Zack simply fought with his own strength. I quickly drew upon my wind energy and glowed green first then white, floating off the ground.

I started slashing through the Heatless, using strike raids and spinning Wayward Wind around me, decimating all of them. Within a few minutes the field was empty, but all four of us were hunched over and gasping for air.

"Who else is ready for round two?" Zack said jokingly, standing up from his hunched position. "I know I could use a real work out."

And as if on cue the clouds blotted out the sun, black liquid falling from the sky, forming into Heartless of various sizes and shapes. I stood up strait and drew Wayward Wind, still gasping for air.

"Looks like you got your wish Zack." Terra said before he shouted and dashed through a group of Heartless as the water continued to pour down. "Roxitas' Dusks made this looks so easy."

I slashed through a few Heatless myself before they started to seep into the ground there wasn't a single Heatless that above ground anymore, but we all stood ready for a surprise attack when they all started to move towards a central point in the middle of the field. They began to rise up out of the ground, forming a dome.

"Umm, this doesn't usually happen when I fight Heatless." Zack said, looking around at the rest of us. "And based on those faces it doesn't happen to you guy either."

I walked up to the dome as all of the dark shapes had disappeared from the ground, and it was now turning white. At the base were three simple symbols No. 2, and suddenly I remembered my dream about Oni. "Get back!"

Just as I shouted the dome exploded open and through me forward, slamming me upside down against the tree. When I woke up there was a black cloaked figure, hiding it's face with a hood. It turned and looked at me, no expression on its pale lips. "Keyblade." The figure jumped at me and picked me up by the neck, I quickly slashed at it, but it flipped away, landing on its feet as I fell to the ground. It raised its hand and said, "Dark Arrow." A black missile of wind came flying at me, but I didn't get to see it hit because my view was blocked by purple baggy pants.

"You wanna fight someone; try someone who can actually fight!" Zack shouted before he charged forward, dodging the wind blasts coming from his enemy. He took a slash down towards its face, but it was quickly blocked by a black Keyblade being wielded back handed by the creature.

"I'll keep that in mind." It said in a voice remarkably similar to Oni's. It flipped off its hood and revealed a kind looking face with yellow eyes, framed by black hair that was tied up into a spikey pony tail. "While I take out your girlfriend."

The abomination jumped in the air and spun kicked Zack across the forest to my right, in-between Terra and Aqua who hand ended up in a similar position to me. It charged at Aqua at lightning speed and was about to stab her when Zack got in the way. Blood trickled out of his wound and onto Aquas pants as she looked shocked at him.

The hooded creature winked at me and vanished into a pillar of Dark energy. I tried to get to my feet, but ended up in a crawling position, heading slowly to Zack who was now facing up on Aquas lap as she cried onto his chest.

When I got there he was smiling up at Aqua and stroking her face. "Come on Aqua, don't cry. Every thing's going to be okay, I promise. Hey, I know this great restaurant in Thebes, it has the best food in town, maybe when I'm a true hero we can go on our date there."

"We can go tonight, because as far as I'm concerned you're the truest hero there is." Aqua said, smiling a bit as she cried. "You just have to make it through this."

"Yeah, but in case I don't, I have something to show you." He said raising his hand into the air, a flash of light revealing a steel Keyblade with linen wrapped around the blade. "I call it Fenir, it looks just like Clouds sword."

"Cloud, wait was he your friend?" Aqua asked surprised still crying. "Is he the friend that you said you couldn't save?"

"Yeah." Zack said, looking at his Keyblade. "The one person I wasn't able to save."

"He's not dead Zack, he's not dead." Aqua cried, smiling down at Zack, before she kissed him. I watched a smile spread across his face before his eyes closed. Aqua came up still crying, but she stood up and looked at Terra. "Do you think you could make a grave?"

"Sure." Terra said, holding his hand out as the earth shook and Zack sunk into it, a rock rising up where his head was. "A grave fit for the bravest of heroes."

"What should we carve on the stone?" I asked, looking at the black grey surface, tears beginning to trail down my face.

"Here lies a true hero." Aqua answered, bending down and picking up one of the smaller rocks that lay on the ground around us. She carved her message in when the clouds parted above that one spot above his grave.

I looked up and started to cry at what I saw. It was Zack outlined in stars, smiling the way he had right before he died. He seemed so pure and happy up there that I almost forgot what had just happened.

"That girl, I recognize her face." I said, looking at Terra and Aqua as the smiled at the grave. "She's a girl who used to live in Twilight town before she died in a fire. My friends and I used to play with her all the time, but she didn't have black hair, and her voice was completely different. Her name was Sakura."

?

We ran down the long white hall, slashing down the Heartless in our way before we reached the large white door. We through it open and saw an infinite white expanse with Oni sitting at a grand piano, and Ventus now wearing a cloaked version of his old shirt standing next to her with a smile on his face, but a frown in his eyes.

Oni began to pluck at the keys of the piano and then she started singing. "Promis, you'll wake up in time, when you awaken I will be there by your side. There's a person, he'll fix the broken mistakes. I'll find him and journey on, I'll save you, whatever it takes."

AN: Dun, Dun, Dun. Yeah, that was an interesting chapter which included Zacks death and his and Aquas first kiss. But of course you're all thinking about Sakura, well you're not gonna get mutch about her, but No. 2 is going to be one of the main villains in this story, maybe even the final boss, I haven't decided. If you wanna vote on it there's a pole set up that'll decide which replica will be the final boss. Please review if it pertains to the story.