A/N: Well, I'm surprised at how everyone came up with different people for who the redhead in this chapter was. I'm glad to hear that I'm not too predictable sometimes. ^-^ Don't worry, though; Axel/Lea will have a bigger role in the future (because, c'mon, how could you possibly not add him? LOL). Still, I apologise for the short chapter. Some prompts are a real challenge when it comes to making it fit in lol (all the more reason to do my best to come up with new plot twists and all). The next chapter is even shorter. :P Anyways, Aqua is 23 years old, Terra's 24, Leon's 26 and our new character is 20.
Thanks: TopazDragon98, MaroonAngel of Darkness, Walker of Nothing, HawkRider, Jizzle Pop, DreamerGirl111, and my lovely beta reader M. L. Ayala. :)
~ Strangely enough, the slightly familiar words "I would watch out for redheads if I were you" came to her mind, but she didn't remember where she'd heard that. ~
17) Interview
The pretty red-haired woman brushed her silky smooth, wine-colored bangs out of her violet eyes, before asking the next question. The young woman – her name was Kairi – had to interview these two very important people for Radiant Garden's newspaper Radiant Daily. She had her internship there, and because the paper was interested in the upcoming concert, they had sent her to interview the pretty bluenette who organized everything, along with the silent and somewhat mysterious man known as Leon.
She had been absolutely thrilled by the news, because this was the first big project she was allowed to work on by herself. There was nobody to babysit her this time, so needless to say, everything needed to be absolutely perfect. No embarrassing slip-ups or awkward silences, but punctuality, professionalism, and passion. Those were the three P's that she always went for. Well, a little bit of luck wouldn't be too bad, either.
Rumor went that this solemn guy had been Aqua's violin instructor back when she'd attended college, and being the curious human being that she was, Kairi had sworn to herself that she would find out if they had a secret affair or not. Kairi was good at reading people, so she could tell when someone was lying, as long as they weren't close enough to her. For some reason, it didn't always work with people that she cared about. Perhaps it was the whole "Love makes us blind" thing, she didn't know.
At the moment, her pale cheeks were rosy, because it was slightly warm in the room. Or maybe that was just her nerves tricking her. At least it kind of matched the soft pink blouse she wore for the occasion, along with a black skirt that reached just above her knees. She was hoping that it looked professional enough, despite the pink (she'd wanted to stay close to her style, so that she wouldn't feel too uncomfortable).
"Sounds like you've had a lot of work to do. How many people helped with arranging this big event?" Kairi asked in a melodious voice.
Aqua looked at Leon and nodded, a silent sign that he should answer this one.
That was another thing that Kairi hadn't failed to notice; the silent understanding between these two hinted that there was more between them than the eye could see. But it was obvious that they knew each other very well. Maybe it was because of the many years that they had worked together... But a part of Kairi hoped that there was another reason as well.
Meanwhile, the bluenette's eyes travelled from Kairi's face to her pink, manicured nails. She looked like a really nice woman, and she was very pretty. Her glossy, wine-colored hair reached her shoulder, giving her a feminine and somewhat youthful appearance. She had probably just reached her twenties, but she still looked like a teen. Perhaps it was because of the innocence in her big, violet eyes. It would attract anyone.
Aqua had this odd feeling that she'd seen her somewhere before, but she couldn't quite remember where or when. Strangely enough, the slightly familiar words "I would watch out for redheads if I were you" came to her mind, but she didn't remember where she'd heard that.
Probably from some cheap movie, she decided then. So she ignored it for now. It was probably the lack of sleep that made her think of weird stuff like this. The past few weeks had been hard for her, aggravating even. It was more that Xehanort took away half of her energy, and that by being merely himself. Apparently, some things would never really change. Still, it was funny how she still wasn't quite used to it, no matter how many times she'd witnessed it.
Aqua blinked, realizing that her mind had wandered off. Thankfully, neither Kairi nor Leon had noticed this little fact.
Kairi's next question, however, took the blue-haired woman completely off guard. "And, purely out of curiosity, are you two…together?"
"What?" Aqua's cerulean eyes widened and she automatically started to blush at the insinuation. "Oh- no! We're just friends, right?"
She quickly looked at Leon, pleading for help. The silent male next to her gave a brief, albeit amused nod, but didn't say anything.
"Oh, sorry." The woman laughed heartily. "It's just that so many people see you as a perfect match that I couldn't help but wonder."
…They did? Since when? Aqua wondered, frowning slightly.
She didn't have much time to think about it, because at that moment, Kairi continued, "Anyways, thanks so much for the interview. I think that should be all."
"Don't mention it. I'm glad we could help. It was a nice change from our usual schedule," Aqua replied with a smile, as she got up to walk her to the door.
"Thank you, Miss Aqua. Good luck with the performance."
The redhead gave Leon a hand too. She had just turned around to leave when Aqua suddenly blurted out, "You remind me of someone."
This made Kairi stop and turn back, tilting her head to the side curiously. "Oh?"
The bluenette hesitated slightly, before daring to ask, "Have you… I mean, do you happen to know anyone named Naminé?"
At this, the other woman started to laugh. "If you mean who I think you mean, then yes. She's my younger cousin."
"Ah, that explains it. But you look so much like each other. If it hadn't been for your hair color, you could've been sisters."
Kairi smiled. "You're not the first one to say that. When we're together, everyone thinks we're twins... I didn't know that you knew her, though."
"Ventus, her boyfriend, is actually a good friend of mine," Aqua explained.
"Oh, I see. What a coincidence. I've met him once. They're so cute together, aren't they?"
Aqua smiled. Ven and Naminé were in their second year in college, both studying in Twilight Town. Naminé had chosen to go for art and Ven was studying psychology. The couple had both rented a room together and they were now roommates. As a result of that, Aqua and Terra barely saw their cheerful, spiky-haired friend. They could only hang out during holidays.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Kairi decided that she should really leave now.
When she was gone, Leon finally spoke up. "I was going to have lunch now. Want to tag along, or are you too scared that everyone will think we're on our umpteenth date when they see us together?"
Aqua smiled. "Very funny. I'm afraid that I'm so hungry I'll simply have to take that risk. People are already starting to think that we're having an affair, so what does it matter, really?"
Leon rolled his eyes. "You made the wise decision."
Over the years, she'd grown to enjoy those lunches the most, so she took every chance to be with him, even if some of the lunches were quiet. It was a comfortable, amicable silence, so she saw no reason to change her schedule, despite all those rumors. Where had they come from, really? Did people make them up out of boredom or was it that hard to believe that a man and a woman can actually just be friends? It didn't matter; people were weird, anyway.
With that, they left Leon's office and he locked the door, before heading for the cafeteria.
A/N: Next chapter: In that instance, Terra realized that he just couldn't look away from the beautiful young woman.