I am both happy and sad to tell you that I wrote the last chapter of Secret Place last night. I will not tell you yet how long this will be, but let me tell you you've still got plenty of chapters to read!
It's always a bit sad to finish a story. I'm used to writing one-shots so I don't get the sad feeling, but I've been working on this fic for a while now (and yet not even that long, I mean I started it less than a month ago) and I feel empty now haha. But I've got other projects to work on so that's fine!
...I make it sound like this is the last chapter, so let me repeat it: you've still got plenty of chapters to read! Aqua and Vanitas' story is far from over on your side ;)
Night was falling, and Aqua stretched. She had been so absorbed in the book she had not seen time fly away, but the growlings in her stomach informed her that her body had not forgotten dinner time. She put the book back and quietly left the library, walking towards the kitchen. Ven was already there and welcomed her with a huge smile – it would have been cute, had he not had chocolate spread all across his teeth, and even managed to get some on his forehead, Aqua noted.
"There are leftovers in the oven. The Master cooked us some chicken, and it is so juicy! Terra actually had to yell at me so that I wouldn't eat everything and would leave some to you."
"You shouldn't eat too much before going to bed, Ven. You will not sleep well."
The boy was grinning and about to answer, when he suddenly froze. Aqua did not have to turn back to know what would make him that uneasy.
"May I help you, Terra?"
It had been a whole month since what happened in the clearing. Since then, she had not put a foot in there, and they did not talk about it. Mainly because Aqua refused to talk about anything with them, actually. She would keep their conversations to the bare minimum, in training or in class, and retreat to the library whenever she had some free time. She felt sorry for Ven who ended up in the middle of all of that. He knew the main lines of the story and kept himself from choosing a side, but he came to sleep with her the night after it all happened, hugging her until her tears had dried up. She knew it wasn't fair for him, but she could not back off.
"Actually, I would like to talk to you. Could you sit down for a minute and listen to me?"
"I don't mind standing. I've spent four hours sitting already. Did the Master send you?"
He sighed. "Fine. And yes, he did. Wait! Don't leave just yet. I'd just like you to listen to what we have to say."
She crossed her arms and looked at him, impassive.
"I know we have hurt your feelings. You were showing kindness to Vanitas, and I'm sure he did not do anything to harm you, yet, we treated him the way we did, and by that we insulted your kindness. The Master apologizes for upsetting you, and I am so, so sorry to have angered you, to have showed so much disrespect towards your feelings. I don't expect you to forgive me, but I want you to know that there isn't a single second I am not in pain to see how sad you are. I wish I knew how to make you smile again, I wish I knew how to hear you laugh again. I have hurt you, and I know I will bear the guilt of that forever."
His words softened Aqua's anger. She knew he was sincere. She knew he meant every single word. She could see the pain in his eyes, the way he tried to hide his hands were shaking, the way his shoulders had collapsed.
"But you will not let Vanitas come over again, will you?" She was surprised by how soft her voice came out. She expected to be angry, but she just sounded sad.
"No. He is..." He glanced at Ven, who was listening to them, worried. "He is made of Darkness. You have seen the Unversed, what they do. You know about Master Xehanort's plan to bring the world to a new war. You know their ultimate goal is to forge the X-Blade. We cannot allow him to come back here. I'm sorry."
"Are you sorry for him, or for me? It feels like you are not apologizing to the right person, Terra." She shook her head. Terra was sad, and she was tired of this quarrel. "If you want to apologize for your terrible behaviour towards Vanitas, it is to Vanitas you should apologize. However, if you want to apologize to me for something, then perhaps you should apologize for bringing weapons and violence to my safe haven. That clearing is a place of peace. This is the reason Vanitas was coming here. This was a place without violence, without war, without all the troubles of the worlds. This was a place where people were just people, not enemies bound by their duty to kill each other. It was a neutral ground, and you brought all your negativity, your judgement, your hate in it. This is what you should feel sorry for. I cannot go back there, because it is now tainted with so many negative things. You took my safe place away from me."
Terra lowered his head, and after a few seconds, fell to his knees. Aqua kneeled next to him.
"You are right. We should have talked with you beforehand, and we should never have intruded this place. I promised myself long ago to never trouble you when you were there, because you always seemed so peaceful, and I broke that very promise. I cannot say I am sorry, Aqua, because that doesn't convey strongly enough how miserable I feel. I can promise you to never bring a weapon there again, but would that be enough to you? Will that suffice to make the pain fade away?"
Her gaze met his, and she could see how desperate for her forgiving he was. She felt the remnants of her anger leave her heart, and she wrapped her arms around him.
"Of course. Of course, Terra. Your actions have pained me, but I know you were following your own notion of good. I know the Master and you think you are doing the right thing, and I cannot blame you for it, even though our visions differ in some points. However, let me guess, if you ever spot Vanitas around, even in my clearing...?"
"I will put an end to him." Terra's tone wasn't harsh or cold. It was just a statement. It was his duty, what he had to do. Aqua hugged him and he hugged her back, both incredibly sorry that they knew they would never be able to find an agreement on that matter.
"Now that everyone's friends again, can I have the chicken leftovers?" Ven cheerfully asked, making the three of them burst into laughters.
After finishing what was left of that (indeed) juicy poultry, Aqua decided to quickly go back to the clearing. No one was there, and it was still full of the terrible events of that day, but she quickly dismissed them, remembering all those nights watching the stars, Vanitas not acting like an enemy but just like a boy, eager to learn, and she relaxed. She still had so much more pleasant memories here, she couldn't let bad things cloud them.
She heard a noise in a tree, like the chirp of a bird, but when she looked up, she had the surprise to see an Unversed, staring at her with its tiny red eyes. The creature jumped on her but made no sign to attack. Instead, it fell on its back, and she could see a piece of paper tied around its neck. She picked the paper, and the creature bounced away, disappearing into the woods.
She carefully unfolded the note. It was a messy handwriting, just like one of a child, but she smiled even before reading it. He sure must have trained a lot. She took her time to decipher it, with only the faint light of the moon to see.
"F... U... Oh" she blushed as she understood what the message was. It was made of two words, the second one being 'them' and the first rhyming with duck, although he clearly forgot the C.
Still amused by it, and glad it meant he was okay and probably not angry at her, she walked back to her room. She unlocked her door (she always locked it when leaving, a girl deserved some privacy and that wasn't a concept Ven quite understood yet) and opened it.
She was welcomed by shining topaz eyes and a smile halfway between a grin and a smirk. She quickly entered her room and closed the door behind her.
Vanitas was sitting on her bed, his constellations book in hand and his eyes brighter than ever.
"Now, tell me, what will the next lesson be?"
Vanitas has no idea of what privacy means either, to be fair. And no lock can stop someone with the power of corridors of darkness.
I wish I could blame Terra for his actions but I can't. He really loves Aqua and Ventus and what he's doing is only to protect them.
Also, Ventus = ball of pure fluff.
School is starting over on Monday, so I will try to post quite often but I don't think I'll be able to keep up with a chapter every other day. There will be at least a chapter a week, I will try to post 2 a week!