Let's enjoy the snow together! I wanted to post this fic on AO3, but it took me forever to post my advent prompts so that will wait XD
When Aqua set foot in the Enchanted Dominion, she was glad she took her scarf with her – a pretty blue scarf that Terra gave to her for her last birthday. The place was covered with snow, and she missed the grass already. Out of the four seasons, Winter was her least favourite – mostly because the few bad things in her life happened in winter. She kicked those dark thoughts out of her head : Vanitas was waiting for her, sitting on the snow. Aqua wondered if his dark suit protected him from the cold, and then remembered that time, oh so long ago, when he had shivered because of the cool wind.
"You will catch a cold sitting there."
"I was tired of standing. So I sat."
"But isn't it... Wet, or cold?"
"Both." He stretched and stood up. "But I don't mind. That's the second time in my life I see snow. Surely I can endure the cold."
"Let's not find out. Here, take my scarf."
She made a mental note to give him one of his own next time. Ven had plenty he never (ever) used, so he wouldn't notice if one went missing. But for today, she tied hers (her precious scarf) around his neck. He did not complain.
"How are you doing, Vanitas?"
"Same as usual. Part of me wants to destroy the world, part of me wants to dominate it. Usual stuff. What about you ?"
She gave him a warm smile. "Part of me wants to save the world from you, and part of me actually hopes you are just kidding. Nothing unusual here either. How is your training going?"
He shrugged. "See for yourself."
Using his blade, he made a cut in the palm of his hand, then cast a Cura.
Aqua couldn't help but shiver when the Dark Mist emerged. She would never get used to it, to how evil it felt. And when the mist faded away, the cut was still there – not so deep, and almost not bleeding anymore, but still open.
"I still need to figure out how to balance everything to make it work correctly. Too much negativity and it won't work, too much positivity and it will be too weak. But the old man is giving me plenty of occasions to train, as usual, so I'm learning fast!"
Aqua didn't know if she should regard that as good or bad news, so she gave him an unconvinced smile. "As long as you are getting better, that's fine... I suppose?"
"But hey, I've learnt a new trick, wanna see?"
"Of course!" She answered, deeply interested.
"Cool! Close your eyes for ten seconds. I don't want to ruin the surprise while I set it up."
She kindly obeyed, curious. She should have known. Had it been Ventus, she would have known even before it crossed his mind. But her trust in Vanitas blinded her.
She realized her mistake too late, when something cold and wet crashed on her face. She opened her eyes to see Vanitas preparing a bunch of other snowballs.
"That is not a game you want to play with me, Vanitas..." She warned as she used an Aerora to gather a lot of snow above her head to project it right to him.
"You used magic! Cheater!" He sounded so much like Ventus at that precise moment that she indulged him a tender smile... And was welcomed once again with a snowball on the face. He was good at aiming.
What followed could be described as a snow war. They both mixed up magic in their attacks and ended up soaking wet, freezing, out of breath, but with sparkling eyes that betrayed the fun they were having.
"I need to go back now. I was supposed to get rid of Unversed around here, I don't even know how I'm going to justify how wet I am right now."
"You saw a poor kitten drowning and you jumped into the river to save it. That is so much like you that no one would ever doubt that, would they?"
Aqua let a clear laugh out. "I think they would question it, yes. But no worries, I'll find something. Next time I'll bring another book, okay?"
He nodded and she jumped on her Glider. She was excited to go home and tell Terra and Ven about the snow. She hoped they could come here, the three of us, and enjoy the snow (she still did not like it very much, but being with people she loved made it enjoyable). She waved goodbye at Vanitas and then was gone.
He watched her go and stayed put for a while, catching his breath. He realized she had forgotten her scarf and he chuckled. He heard a soft noise behind him – muffled by the snow, but still audible for his trained ears.
"Well, well, my boy, care to explain me what that happy scene was?"
He tensed right away at the voice of his Master. How much did he see? There was no telling.
"What did it look like?" He lost his cheerful expression, going back to his usual sarcastic grin. His posture completely changed as well.
"It looked like you and the sweet little Master Aqua were having quite a good time. That is... Interesting to know."
Vanitas smirked. "Yeah, well, I'm just doing my homeworks."
"Homeworks?"
"I've been hanging out with her for almost a year. She now completely trusts me. Terra does not, but he doesn't want to hurt her and he's somehow leaving me alone. She's even teaching me what I require to beat him. And soon, she will be confident enough to bring Ventus along. Can't you see what is going on? I'm bringing you the vessel you wished for, and the missing piece to the X-Blade. So could you please don't ruin everything? I worked too hard to see you destroy it all."
Xehanort smirked. "Am I supposed to believe you? You sure looked like you were having fun right now."
"Come on. You extracted that heart from Ventus yourself. You know me better than anyone. You had to send Ventus away so that I wouldn't kill him. So now, tell me : do you really believe there is anything good in me?" His face switched back to his cheerful, boyish face. "This is the boy she is watching mature into someone with actual feelings. This is the boy she enjoys spending time with, and who she even thinks is in love with her" He fluttered his eyelashes with a pure expression, before going back to his hostile attitude. "She is dumb enough... No, she is so desperate to see some good in everyone that she wants to believe that. But to think that you would get fooled... That's more than what I expected. I might even have hidden it from you right now, but I don't want you to use me as a bait and torture me."
Xehanort nodded. "I hope you will prove yourself to be trustworthy, Vanitas."
"You were right about one thing though: I was having fun right now. She's dumb and easy to trick, but who doesn't like a good snowball fight? And when she teaches me about the stars and everything, that's still interesting. There's no denying it : she is probably a better Master than you. But I won't have any remorse stabbing her in the back when the time will come. Remorses are for losers. And I am a winner : I just seize every single opportunity."
Xehanort opened a dark corridor and made his way to the darkness. Vanitas put his helmet on, not before throwing the scarf away and stepping on it with his dirty sole.
Oh. Right. Let's enjoy the snow, okay? Please don't bury me in the snow, okay? Be kind with me, okay? *puppy eyes*