Radiant Garden was still asleep when Mira awoke that morning, pulled to consciousness by the sense of foreboding that hadn't left her since Braig returned to his room the night before. But the time for dread was over; she had to face this challenge head-on. By the end of the day, whether by success or failure, this hurdle would be behind her.

Mira went through her daily routine with practiced efficiency and headed toward the common room for a few moments' peace before the experiment began. But it was not empty, as anticipated. Illuminated by the moonlight by the big window sat Braig, already dressed in his uniform. Neither communicated beyond a single shared glance, and Mira sat across from him, turning her gaze to the grounds. In the darkness just before dawn, time didn't exist, and the only sound, their quiet breathing. It was meditation of a kind, shared between the two of them.

It was only when dawn's glow broke through the blanket of night that he finally spoke. Braig wasn't looking at her, instead fixing his gaze on the rising sun. "Please be careful."

She didn't have it in her to tell him the whole thing was a huge gamble, and likely out of the scope of her abilities. Instead, Mira threaded their fingers together, whispering, "I'll try."

Mira, Braig, Xehanort, Dilan, and Even lined up outside Ansem's office a little under two hours later. In addition to watching Ienzo, Aeleus was assigned to supervise Lea and Isa in Mira's place. Minutes later, the door opened, revealing the sage-king, and they all filed into the bright study. She blinked, eyes struggling to adjust to the glow. Where there had been a hole in the wall last time she'd visited the king's office, there was now smooth plaster and no sign of a door. She frowned. Where the hell was the door?

"Good morning to all of you. I thank you for joining me at this early hour; let us proceed to the lab. We have a few minor preparations to make, then I will brief you all." Clinical, and to the point. To her befuddlement, Ansem pressed his hand to the wall, and it glowed, opening and revealing the passage previously hidden. Mira stared, open-mouthed as the others stepped around her and went through the opening.

Braig tugged on her hand, lips quirked, though it fell short of a real smile. "Never seen a door before?"

"Not one like that," she muttered, following him in. The door reappeared behind her, cutting off the bright light from Ansem's study, leaving her no choice but to venture further off the map. He led her through the corridor into a cavernous hall that stretched down several floors. Mira made the mistake of looking down, swaying when the floor transitioned from metal to glass. It was thick, and likely tempered for safety, but in her mind, there was no conceivable reason why this choice of flooring was necessary. Especially considering the steep drop below. She tore her eyes away from a fall that spelled certain death and was greeted by rows of empty cannisters aligned on the walls from floor to ceiling. However, Mira didn't have long to gawk as Braig pulled her into a room with the others.

A large red backlit circle surrounded by yellow and white lights encompassed much of the wall behind the scientists. An... excessively large emergency light? Surely it served a greater purpose than that, but Mira couldn't fathom it. She hung back while Ansem and the other apprentices gathered around a computer; Even typed aggressively, muttering to himself about "script" and "code." The others spoke in low, hushed tones, as if afraid someone would overhear. It occurred to Mira that that someone was her. She rolled her eyes. There was no way she could understand them anyway; they may as well have been speaking a different language. For the first time in a long time, she was out of her depth; it was like the beginning her training all over again, not knowing how to summon her keyblade.

Even clicked something, and a door opened across the computer room, but no one made a move to go through it. Mira glanced between them and the door, raising a brow. If they wanted privacy for their secret discussion, she'd make it easy for them and satisfy her curiosity at the same time. Keeping her footfalls light, she moved across the room, through the door, down another glass pathway, and into an elevator, pressing the button for the ground floor.

When the doors opened once more, Mira stepped out of the elevator. There were doors to her left, and the large expanse below the cannisters to her right. Up close, the cannisters were enormous, far bigger than a person, but their purpose was no clearer down here than when she'd been upstairs. Mira marveled at the setup, waiting a few minutes in case someone was coming down to retrieve her, but the elevator remained at her level. At least for the moment, she was on her own. With a shrug, Mira picked a door at random and entered. Bright fluorescent lights flickered to life, revealing a sterile lab room. Steel counters lined the walls laden with various scientific apparatus. Nothing interesting.

Mira exited that room and wandered into another one, and gasped. Set upon a glass table in the middle of the room was a pile of familiar armor. And a keyblade. She sucked in a shuddering breath and reached for the weapon with trembling hands. "No..." But to her relief, it thrummed with a song like rainwater, soft and serene. Not like those dead keys in the graveyard. She slumped, letting out a heavy sigh. Aqua was alright, at least. But why were her things stored in this secret lab? How had she gotten separated from her armor and weapon? It was possible she still had Eraqus's keyblade, but master or not, she'd be vulnerable without her armor-

The door slammed open, and Dilan lumbered in, irritation written in the lines of his face, violet eyes narrowed. "What are you snooping around here for? Put that down, now!"

Her own keyblade appeared in a flash of light and she pointed it at him. "Where did you get this?"

He furrowed his brow, glancing between the two weapons in her hands. "That's not your concern. Put it back."

Ansem stepped into the room, taking in the scene. "Stand down, Dilan. What is the problem, here?"

Mira held up Aqua's weapon. "This armor and keyblade belong to a friend of mine, and I demand to know why it's here."

Ansem's brows rose to his hairline. "A friend of yours, you say? It was discovered in the town square beside Xehanort the day we found him."

"What? There wasn't a woman with blue hair nearby?"

"No, my dear. He was alone."

A chill went down her spine. Aqua must have found Terra and then... what? Was she the reason he had amnesia? Where could she have gone without armor or a weapon? Mira lowered her keyblade, replacing Aqua's on the table, eyes downcast. "I see."

The king cleared his throat. "If that is all," he said, as if she hadn't just discovered that her friend as missing, "we should return to the others. But before we move on, I must request for you not to go off on your own. I don't want you to get hurt down here."

"I understand, Lord Ansem." The words were acid in her mouth. What other secrets were hidden beneath the castle? What else were they hiding?

Mira trailed between Ansem and Dilan to another sterile white room where the others were waiting; Even shot her a judgmental stare, but Mira ignored him, going to stand in a corner. Braig tried catching her eye, but she kept her gaze on the floor.

"Now that we're all here, we can begin. Previously, we've had little success unlocking Xehanort's memories, but I hope that with the help of our resident keyblade wielder, we can change that. Mira and Xehanort will begin with conversation, then a spar. Depending on the results, we may move to the final stage in which Mira performs a keyblade technique to reach his heart."

Even raised a hand. "Can you elaborate on what this 'technique' entails? No one has explained what exactly she's supposed to be doing, and I'm skeptical of its safety."

Ansem gestured for her to speak. Mira sighed. "Suffice it to say, I'm going to try unlocking his heart. If I do it right, it might restore his memories."

"We need more information than that," Even groused. "I don't know how things worked at your little keyblade school, but we are scientists here-"

"As you say, you're a scientist and I'm a keyblade wielder. I don't have time to explain the fundamentals to you, much less this complicated of a technique," Mira retorted. Not that even she understood it fully. "Let's stay in our own lane, hm?"

The temperature dropped several degrees. "Even," came Ansem's stern voice. "She is right. We must trust that each of us knows what we are doing. I wouldn't have asked for her assistance if I thought her incapable."

The temperature returned to normal. "I will trust your judgement on this, Lord Ansem," he said stiffly, but his verdant eyes were mutinous.

The king inclined his head. "If there are no other questions, we shall begin."

Dilan and Braig set up two chairs across from one another in the center of the room. Before departing, the sharpshooter put his hand on her shoulder. "You good?"

She refused to look at him. "Did you know about the armor in the other room?"

He opened his mouth in reply, but Dilan cut him off. "C'mon Braig, you can flirt later!"

Braig frowned. "We'll talk after."

Mira stared at his back as he left. He knew. He knew and he kept it from her. She inhaled deeply through her nose, then out through her mouth. There had to be an explanation. But it'd better be a damn good one to justify keeping her in the dark about something so important.

She turned her attention back to the only other occupant in the room. The others were likely monitoring somewhere unseen, but for all appearances, she and Xehanort were alone. They both took a seat. He truly resembled an uncanny combination of both her master and Terra, yet somehow retained a look entirely unique to himself.

After a long moment of regarding one another, she asked, "Is there something specific we're supposed to talk about or...?"

"Master Ansem usually had questions he'd ask, but I wanted to try speaking with you normally, rather than from a script."

"Okay..." They lapsed into silence. Mira hoped the others were watching and were therefore as bored and uncomfortable as she was.

"I'll admit, I don't know what to talk to you about." Xehanort furrowed his brow, averting his gaze to the floor. "This isn't as easy as I'd anticipated." He tapped his foot, filling the silence with a low 'pat pat pat.'

"Bummer," Mira muttered. "In that case, can I ask you something?" He nodded. "When they found you, do you remember seeing a blue-haired woman nearby?"

"Blue hair..." Xehanort pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Yes - blue hair and eyes. Her name is-"

"Aqua." His eyes faded to blue for only a second; if she'd blinked, she might have missed it.

Mira leaned forward. "Yes - do you know where she is? Did you see her?"

Xehanort nodded slowly. "...She disappeared..." He rubbed his temples with a grimace, confusion marring his features. "Who is she?"

"A friend of mine. What do you mean 'disappeared?'"

Xehanort shook his head. "How do I know her name? Did she and I know each other?"

Mira hesitated. "Hard to say. I imagine Aqua's met a lot of people while traveling the worlds; you could be one of them. Are you sure you didn't see where she went? Did she say where she was going?"

"I don't remember..." Mira slumped. "I want to ask you something now."

"Go for it," was her absent reply. The last person to have seen Aqua and he can't remember shit. She clenched her fists, glaring at the floor.

His brows pinched together. "It's only the shadow of a feeling, but you seem familiar to me, somehow. I can't pinpoint why, though."

Interesting; was it Terra or her master recognizing her? "Is there anything in particular?"

"Everything."

Mira looked up at him, brows knitted together. If the others weren't watching, she could've brought something up that only one or the other would have known, but that would raise too many questions. "Do you think you're mistaking me for someone else? Someone who looks like me, maybe?"

"I don't think so..."

"But I only met you a couple weeks ago." It wasn't exactly a lie; this Xehanort wasn't her master, nor was he Terra. If she was a betting person, she'd wager he had a heart of his own; he was a completely different person, after all. Memories and experiences made people who they were; for someone to wake stripped of either, what would fill that void if not a new sense of self, a new heart?

A troubled expression settled over his face, reminiscent of Terra. "I know but... have you ever seen one of these?" he pulled a familiar charm from his pocket and her eyes widened. Terra's wayfinder. His gaze sharpened. "You have, haven't you?"

Mira schooled her expression into polite neutrality. "It's a charm of a star – not exactly unheard of," she pointed out. Hopefully Braig hadn't flaunted hers to the others. Mira hadn't seen any of them since she and Aqua made them together. Her eyes softened. "It's pretty."

"It's handmade."

"Is it? Impressive handiwork, then. It must be special to you, if you've been carrying it around all this time."

"It... I feel like it's important. But I don't know why."

"Maybe it was a gift from someone who cares about you-"

"That's just it," he interrupted. "I think it was a gift. And whenever I look at it..." he clutched his head, squeezing his eyes shut, "...it reminds me of you for some reason."

"I didn't give it to you," she stated with complete honesty. Mira neither made nor bestowed his and Aqua's wayfinders; she only made hers and Ven's, and even then, she hadn't been present when they were gifted. "I'm sure you're just confusing me with someone else-"

Xehanort stood, knocking his chair back. His eyes flashed blue. "Stop lying! I know it was you!" he snapped, jabbing a finger at her.

Her eyes widened. "Calm down-"

"Tell the truth!"

"I didn't give it to you."

His shoulders were taught, and he clenched his fists. "If you keep lying, we're done-" There was a flash of light, and her master's keyblade materialized in his hand. They both stared at it, incredulous. Braig was right after all. Xehanort recovered first. "I challenge you-"

"Seriously?" Mira scowled at him. "I'm not fighting you when you're angry like this."

"The next phase is a spar. Get up," he hissed, darkness rolling off him in waves. When she made no move to stand, his frustration morphed into something more hateful; an expression not seen since the last time she faced Terra, and she flinched. He closed the space between them, kicking the leg of the chair out from under her, sending Mira crashing to the floor. Xehanort jabbed the keyblade right under her chin, forcing her to face him. "Get up," he murmured, "or you won't be leaving this room."

Her heart quaked in her chest. "Do you really think they'd let that happen?"

He scoffed. "You'd be surprised."

She stilled, breathing unsteadily. It was entirely possible Xehanort was bluffing, but the day Even had suggested procuring someone's heart for an experiment came to mind. It wasn't out of the realm of possibility that they would allow her to get hurt down there, Ansem's words notwithstanding. Mira threw herself back, springing away from him, keyblade materializing in her hand.

Xehanort lunged, throwing his whole weight behind the attack, but Mira already sidestepped him, jamming her foot into his back and sending him careening to the floor. "It's all well and good to have the keyblade, but it won't help you if you lack skill."

He pulled himself up and growled, "I'll show you skill-"

"Not if you let the darkness control you!" she snapped. "Pull yourself together and fight me properly, or not at all."

He let out a chilling laugh. "You're just afraid – afraid of the dark."

"No, I'm not."

Faster than she could track, Xehanort threw his keyblade at her, leaving only a split-second to cast a weak reflega. It cracked from the force of the blow, and her master's keyblade fell to the ground with a clatter. She kneeled, hand shaking as she grasped the hilt and picked it up. Her arm strained from the burden just as badly as when she'd snatched it from her master many years ago. Mira took a fortifying breath, glaring at Xehanort. Summoning all her strength, she flung the keyblade back to him, taking pleasure in the frenzied way he scrambled out of its trajectory. It rammed into the wall, lodging deep into the plaster with a satisfying crunch. "How you like that, asshole?" she muttered.

The door slammed opened behind her, and Ansem whisked into the room, displeasure written across his face. "I think that's enough for now. This was supposed to be a spar, not a serious fight." Mira glared at the king. If that was the case, why did it take so long for anyone to intervene? Did the wall matter more than her safety? Putting them both at risk like that was beyond unethical...

Xehanort's eyes glazed over, and he blinked several times. "I... apologize. I don't know what came over me..." Yeah right.

There were footsteps outside the still-open door, and the others filed in. "That was the darkness taking hold of you," Even explained. "It was fascinating to see it up close; we recorded the footage to review again later."

Braig and Dilan moved to examine the damage she did to the wall, the latter glancing at her with grudging respect. He whistled. "Damn, that was one hell of a throw."

"I told you she'd hold her own, now pay up." Braig held his hand out, and Dilan grimaced. Mira scowled at the munny exchanging hands. "Pleasure betting with you." At least Braig hadn't bet against her, but what if she'd gotten hurt? Or hurt Xehanort? This was too serious for such childishness.

"And now the wall needs to be fixed. Her being as much of a brute as you is nothing to celebrate. More importantly is that you," Even fixed a pointed look at Xehanort, "somehow, have a keyblade."

Ansem nodded. "A most curious development, indeed. Did you know you could summon it, or did it happen by accident?"

"I don't know," Xehanort muttered, rubbing his forehead.

"Can you try again?"

Nodding, Xehanort stretched out his hand, closing his eyes. Braig sidled up to her. "He was pretty pissed, are you okay?"

Now he cared. "I'm fine, lucky for your wallet." But even if she wasn't, Mira wouldn't say so in front of the others. Even gave her enough attitude as it was. Especially now that she was intruding on their great halls of science and discovery.

He winced. "Hey, it's not like that..." But she ignored him, and he rubbed the back of his neck, changing the subject. "How did you pick up the old coot's keyblade without it disappearing?

"What makes you think it would disappear just because I touched it?"

He held up his hands in a placating fashion. "The old coot told me how not just anyone can have a key to throw around. That they choose their wielders. So, I just figured that it would've disappeared since it's not yours."

Mira crossed her arms. "If that's so, then this one isn't that picky. I was able to use it during training once, a long time ago."

Braig only hummed in response, so she let the conversation die. It wasn't the time or place to reminisce. She had to stay focused. Her master's keyblade still hadn't reappeared and the growing intensity of Xehanort's expression had her biting her lip to stifle a snort. Perhaps it had only responded due to his rage? Or the darkness-?

Ansem cleared his throat. "I think we can revisit the issue of the keyblade later. Some rest may do you good. We can always wait to move onto the next phase-"

"No." Xehanort bowed his head. "I want to make as much progress as possible. If," he glanced at her, "that's amenable with you, that is."

Look at that, his manners were back. This was her chance to back out, to put off endangering herself and her master. To put off potentially waking Terra's wrath once again. But doing so would only prolong her dread. She'd come too far to back out now. "We will continue."

Ansem inclined his head. "Very well. Let us return to the observation room."

"Are you sure?" Braig asked her in a low tone. His breath tickled her ear. "You don't have to-"

"I've made up my mind."

He exhaled sharply. "You're making a mistake, Mira."

"So did you, when you didn't tell me about Aqua's armor," she hissed.

"That's not the same-"

"I have a job to do," she snapped, cutting him off. "You should get going."

Mira didn't wait for him to reply, but the door shutting behind him was answer enough. She turned back to Xehanort, half-expecting the rage to return now that everyone was gone. But there was only curiosity.

"Is everything-"

"Just... sit down." Focus. Seated and facing each other once more, Mira summoned her keyblade, pointing it at him. Her hands were clammy, and her heart slammed against her ribs. She took a deep breath and whispered, "May my heart be my guiding key." But the words rang hollow in her ears.