"The Keyblade Graveyard. Doesn't sound like a friendly place."

Riku fiddled with the Gummi Ship's controls, probably doing something very important. Aqua wouldn't know. All of the buttons and levers seemed impossibly complicated to her; she couldn't blame Lea for crashing the thing before.

"It isn't," she answered, then pointed to a bright world as they flew overhead. "There's the Castle of Dreams. We're headed the right way."

She had to be in front to copilot since neither Riku nor Lea had ever visited the world before. Mickey could have driven, if he were here. He had used his star shard to return to Disney Town after receiving an urgent message from Queen Minnie. She wasn't sure what the message was; she had still been unconscious at the time.

"Are you sure you're ready for this?" Riku asked her. "We don't know what will be down there, and you still haven't recovered all your strength."

"I've recovered enough," she asserted.

She'd agreed to rest one more night after her walk outside. While Riku was right—she still wasn't back to full health—her renewed faith had given her strength. Or maybe that was just the nutrition of solid food again. Either way, she was feeling well enough to keep going. She feared that if she stopped for too long, it would only give her darkness more time to twist her mind.

"No one lives in the Graveyard, anyway," she continued. "I don't think even Heartless would bother with it."

"If it's as important to Xehanort as you say, I wouldn't be so sure." Riku's mouth flattened.

That was a possibility that Aqua hadn't considered. Would Xehanort really want to form a fortress in that wasteland? She honestly wasn't sure where he had lived before, but it hadn't been there. She only knew that because of Van, who had lived in the Graveyard. In his own words, "the old geezer was fine with making me sleep in the dirt, long as he didn't have to."

"If we see any signs of life, we'll turn around," Aqua said. "If Xehanort is there, then that actually helps you, doesn't it?"

He thought for a moment, then nodded. "Finding him would be a good step in making a plan. But be sure to stick to that plan. We won't engage."

She nodded back, and they fell into a comfortable silence. Well, almost silence. Lea was reclining in one of the back seats, snoring away. Several smaller worlds had drifted below them before Riku spoke again.

"There's something I've been wanting to ask you," he said.

"Yes?" Aqua pushed aside her sudden nervousness. It was ridiculous, but her mind immediately jumped to worrying that he was going to ask her on a date like Lea had.

"When I dove into your nightmare, I saw a version of Sora there. Do you know why?"

Oh. That was a perfectly normal question, if one that didn't make any sense. "Sora wasn't there. That's probably Van you're thinking of."

Their resemblance must still be uncanny, if Riku noticed it too. They would be about the same age now, wouldn't they?

"You're kidding," he deadpanned. "Are we talking about the same person? The guy with the black hair and gold eyes?"

"That was Van. A nightmare of him, at least."

Riku didn't often show surprise, but now his eyes widened.

"Your friend… looks just like Sora."

She nodded.

"And he's been in there with you for twelve years?"

Again, she nodded.

"Please tell me Sora isn't his replica."

She shook her head. "I don't think so. I'm not sure how they're connected, but I did notice the resemblance when Sora was young."

Riku took a hand from the controls for long enough to massage his forehead. "I swear, if Sora has any more people hiding out in his heart…"

"...What?"

"Nevermind. It's a long story." He sighed. "I suppose it's worth asking too—the shadow in your heart. That wasn't a replica of you, right?"

She wished he wouldn't bring up that nightmare, but this whole replica business sounded important to him, for some reason.

"No. If I had to guess… I'd say she was me. A part of me, anyway."

"Good. I mean, not good that your darkness was talking to you, good that—nevermind." He sighed as he steered the Gummi Ship out of the way of a pockmarked asteroid. "If you're still worried about that, I've got good news. I can tell that your light is getting stronger."

"What?" she asked in surprise. "How would you know that?"

"I can smell it," he answered, as if that were the most normal thing in the worlds.

"You—you can smell light too?" She grinned. His head snapped to her, almost making him swerve into another floating space rock. Lea let out a loud snore in the background.

"You can smell light?"

"Not me," she corrected quickly. "Van can smell darkness and light. He thought it was some sort of power from being a heart of pure darkness—which he isn't anymore. The ability faded as he began to learn how to use light."

"Huh." Riku faced ahead again. They could see the Enchanted Dominion pass by below; they would reach the Keyblade Graveyard before too long. "Mine has faded a little since I've learned to keep the darkness in check, but it's still here. It was strongest when I needed to wear the blindfold."

"Was that how you were able to get around?" Aqua asked, and he nodded. "That still must have been difficult. How long did you need to wear it for?"

"Almost a year," he answered quietly. "I got used to it."

"I hope I'm not prying too much... but how could you fight like that?" She couldn't imagine. Traveling in the dim Realm of Darkness had been one thing, but not being able to see at all? How could you keep your darkness contained when it was all you could see?

"Fighting was the easiest part, actually." He shrugged. "The Heartless give off a distinctive enough smell to target, and I learned to listen for movement as well. It was the little things that were the most difficult. Grocery shopping, keeping things clean, reading."

"You wouldn't have been able to read at all," she realized.

"Right. That made navigating certain worlds difficult. I did have some help, though." He smiled.

"Oh yeah?" Lea's head suddenly popped up between their chairs, and Aqua bit off a scream.

"Lea!" she shouted instead, wondering how she hadn't noticed that the snoring had stopped.

"Help from who?" Lea ignored her, grinning all the while. Riku shot him the intense glare that Keyblade Masters were somehow known for.

"Oh look, we're here," he said, and took them into a steep dive towards the desolate world.

XXX

"Coast is clear." Lea stuck his head back in the Gummi Ship after scouting the area. "No Xehanorts that I can see."

"I didn't smell any either," Riku added. "Are you ready, Aqua?"

She took a deep breath to steel her resolve, but she only succeeded in getting dust in her lungs. Even inside the Gummi Ship she could feel the oppressive air of this world, like a predator holding its breath before the attack. It was likely all in her head. She gave herself a good shake and rose from the chair to follow her friends.

The light outside pierced through the dry air, seeming hotter and brighter than any other world she'd visited. The intensity of it brought her back to that day, nearly twelve years ago now, but so much closer for her. The day she lost her Master and her two best friends all at once.

"You don't look so good," Lea noted. "You sure you're up for a stroll in the desert?"

They both kept asking her that. It was still strange having anyone take so much thought for her, when she'd been the responsible one for so much of her life.

"I'll be alright," she said, hating how her throat already felt hoarse.

He shrugged. "If you say so. Keep that water with you, though."

She went back for the thermos she'd left in her cupholder. While it wasn't the heat that was really upsetting her, there was no harm in staying hydrated. Eventually she'd get used to needing physical nourishment again, but for now it was still difficult to remember to eat and drink on a regular basis.

The heat and light assaulted her again, but she held up an arm against the rays, and recited a mental mantra against the memories.

Xehanort is not here. This is just an empty world, nothing more. No Kingdom Hearts, no X-Blade. I can do this. I can do this.

She looked to Drizzle for reassurance, but of course he wasn't there. Instead Lea was giving her a thumbs-up. She forced a smile and stepped the rest of the way out from under the ship's shadow.

"You weren't kidding about the name." Riku stared out at the expanse of keys protruding from the ground, each of them an unnamed tombstone. Somehow, somewhere, did those fallen warriors still have someone who remembered them?

When she fell, would she have anything more than a lifeless key to prove she'd existed?

She shook the morbid thought off like an unexpected cobweb. She wasn't planning on dying for a good time yet.

"Sooooo… you got any idea where to start?" Lea asked as his gaze swept the graveyard.

They had landed close to where Xehanort had started that catastrophic battle, but not too close. Empty dirt paths crossed before them between the field of blades, but the man-made mountain of platforms was far enough behind them that the Gummi Ship could block it out if she stood at the right angle. Which she did.

"Not particularly," she admitted. "It depends on how well he wanted it hidden."

"Well, considering he built a whole flaming chamber to hide it in Radiant Garden, I'd say he wants it hidden pretty bad."

Aqua sighed, shielding her gaze again as she scanned the horizon.

"In which case, it could be anywhere. Or nowhere at all."

"Great. Looking for a needle in a needlestack." Lea clapped his hands together. "Well, what are we waiting for?"

"We should split up and cover more ground," Riku said before Lea could wander off. "What does your keyblade look like, exactly?"

"Oh. Good idea." She had thought of splitting up, but had forgotten that they wouldn't know what they were looking for.

She fished her journal out of her skirt pocket, sketched two passable representations of Stormfall, and tore them out. At the last moment she thought to use her magic to add color, as that would be its most defining feature.

"Here."

Lea nodded as he took a page. "Not bad."

"Alright. Shoot a Firaga upwards if you find anything. If no one sees the signal in an hour, meet back here." Riku gave the orders naturally, and in spite of being his senior, it felt natural to follow.

Aqua nodded, and they parted ways.

She had barely begun wading through the sea of lifeless keys when she realized the direction her feet were taking her. Towards the pillars. The unnatural monolith where her friends had effectively perished.

She gritted her teeth and turned her gaze away, instead inspecting the keyblades around her. None jumped out immediately, but she didn't expect them to. The shades of cobalt and rust blended together, all dusted over from years and years of wind and dirt biting into them. Some even looked identical to each other, but the glare must have been deceiving her. As far as she knew, each wielder's keyblade was supposed to be unique in its base state. Unless these weren't in their base state, and there had once been a way to mass-produce similar keychains…

The interesting tangent occupied her mind as she wandered the Graveyard, until she felt something warm brush her leg. She leapt back, ready to summon her blade, but the Graveyard was empty as ever.

Feeling foolish, she looked down and realized it was only her Wayfinder. Standing for so long in the sun must have heated it. She went to tuck it under her skirt and realized that not only had it absorbed the heat, but it seemed to have taken in the sun's light as well; it glowed faintly in the shade.

Wait. Was it just the sun?

She looked up, scanned the horizon, felt her heart beat fast. If her Wayfinder was glowing, then maybe…

Her eyes widened. Her body wove through the maze of dead keys before her brain could catch up. Too slow; she used Doubleflight to soar over them, sometimes propelling herself from the rusted hilts. All to reach that glint she saw in the distance, by the tower of earth: the sunlight reflecting off of the dark glass of a helmet.

The keys thinned out; she forwent jumping to sprint across the cracked earth, leaving clouds of dust in her wake.

Is it really Van…? If I came back in the Land of Departure, it would only make sense that he appeared here, if this is where he's from—

She skidded to a stop, dirt spraying up into her eyes. As she blinked away the debris, she could tell one thing for sure: it wasn't Van. Tears cleared the dirt from her eyes faster than her blinks.

"...Terra?"

A copper and bronze armored figure knelt in the dirt. His keyblade was embedded in the ground, as if it were another dead tombstone. But it was him. It had to be.

Unless her mind had somehow snarled her away into another nightmare. She didn't want to believe that, but it was more likely than stumbling blindly into her friend on this forsaken ground.

Terra's cape rustled gently in the breeze—since when did his armor have a cape?—but otherwise he was still as stone. Aqua wanted to rush up, to hug him, to sob at how worried she'd been, how she'd never expected to see him here of all places, but she held herself back.

"Terra, are you… are you in there?" she asked.

No answer but the wind. No… the wind, and—a soft, smooth metallic sound; a drawn out and distorted echo.

"Aqua…"

She gasped. How had—had he—?

The discordant echo sounded again. Somehow in her mind, she could feel the words she couldn't hear.

"Aqua… is that… you?"

"Yes," her voice answered, barely able to speak with her heart in her throat. "It's me, Terra."

His head rose slightly, the only movement he'd made so far.

"Why… why are you… your clothes…"

She stepped forward, pretending to huff in exasperation, though really her heart was soaring.

"Come on, Terra. This is the first time I see you in twelve years, and you're going to ask about my clothes?"

"Aqua… no. You're… him." The metallic echo somehow grew more agitated, sharper. "Van… itas."

"What? Did you go blind from all this light?" She drew closer. "Take a better look. It's just an outfit, see?"

"Can't… fool me…" Slowly, as if he were out of practice, Terra began to stand. "Van… itas…"

"Terra, it's me, Aqua! Your friend!" She held out her arms, though her fingers itched to summon her keyblade. "Can't you see?"

She wasn't in a nightmare. Terra—the real Terra—would never hurt her… right?

"Van… itas…" He repeated, as if in a trance. "Vanitas!"

He rose in a slow sweeping motion, drawing his blade from the earth's sheath. Was this another nightmare?

"Don't do this, Terra," she pleaded as she reluctantly summoned Master Keeper and took up a battle stance.

His only reply was to lunge towards her, faster than he ever had before. Aqua barely had time to throw up a barrier; it caught the shaft of his blade but exploded on impact, sending her staggering.

He didn't hesitate. His combo came fast and hard, a flurry of blows that surged with energy. She would have admired how much stronger he had gotten, if she weren't busy getting killed.

A hasty Curaga saved her from blacking out. She only had the time because he was readying some sort of shotlock. His keyblade morphed into a blighted cannon.

Well, two could play at that game.

She cartwheeled to the side and focused on him, calling light to her blade. Then, as he released his first barrage of energy, she spun.

Lightbloom exploded from her. Dozens of beams collided in midair; she felt their heat engulf her. All her thought funneled into keeping her momentum, keeping the twirl going, not thinking how she was fighting one of her best friends again and how if she hurt him for real this time the darkness might take her and—

Her momentum failed. The last of her magic deserted her in a final blast of light. Had he been any other enemy, he should have been unconscious by now. But this was Terra, and they had always been too evenly matched.

Things had changed. She had spent a few months in the Realm of Darkness; for him, it had been over a decade. Plenty of time to hone his strength, to grow stronger than she had ever imagined. Not to mention she still had yet to recover from her time in the nightmare.

All this flashed through her mind as the final volleys of Terra's shotlock took her in the chest.

She skidded across the dirt, not stopping until her back hit the pillar of earth. Her head spun, both from the blow and from the aftermath of her shotlock. Foolish. She should have known she was still too weak to attempt such an advanced move.

He… is he really going to kill me? Even after taking such a hit, she found it hard to believe. She hadn't put an end to Ven, and she hadn't put an end to Terra. She had to believe that he would show the same mercy.

Footsteps clomped towards her. They were slow, steady. If he wanted to kill her, he at least wasn't in a rush about it. She took a moment to cast Cure; she didn't have enough magic left for a Curaga. Belatedly, she realized she should have used that magic to cast Fire upwards, but by the time Riku and Lea reached her it would probably be too late.

"Terra…" she muttered softly, blinking as his armored form blocked out the sun. "Why does it feel like we're always fighting?"

He paused, looming over her, cape billowing dramatically behind him. Had he always been so tall? It was difficult to remember.

That metallic shifting echoed around her. His words again translated in her mind.

"You… used light. … Aqua?"

She breathed a shaky sigh of relief. She had used light, hadn't she?

"That's right. Took you long enough."

"Not… Vanitas?" His head tilted sideways. With the protrusions on his helmet, he momentarily looked like a confused puppy. It was enough to make her laugh, then choke on the dusty air.

"No. I'm not Vanitas." Now wouldn't be a good time to bring him up. "Terra, what's happened to you? What's wrong with your voice?"

He knelt down beside her. She couldn't see his face through his helmet—only her own battered reflection.

"Xehanort… took my body. I'm not… I'm not…" He shook his head.

"You're not Xehanort," she assured him. "Whatever happened to you, I know you can overcome it. I won't give up on you."

Not like she had before, when she had told him he'd go astray again. It didn't matter how many times he'd gone astray. There would always be a way to bring him back.

"Aqua…" Even in her mind, his voice sounded reluctant. His head turned away.

"I promise," she said, reaching out towards his helmet. He jerked back, and her hand fell short. "Is it the golden eyes? I… actually had those too, for a while."

He looked up in surprise, but his voice was slow in coming. "I'm sorry. But that's not why."

"Then what is?" She asked.

"Xehanort." His metallic voice growled. "He stole my body. I didn't want you to see me… not like this."

Like this? Like…

She gasped.

"He… still has your body?"

Terra nodded. Or, rather, Terra's armor did. She stared at his helmet, hoping to see a flicker beneath the glass, but she still only saw her reflection.

"Oh, Terra…" This time, instead of reaching for his face, she leaned in for a hug. He stiffened—as much as a suit of armor could become stiffer—but he didn't try to escape. "We'll find a way out of this. I promise."

He didn't respond for a long time, just knelt there until Aqua wondered if he was still alive, if the spirit had gone out of him. But then he dropped his keyblade and gently hugged her back.

"I always wanted to protect you and Ven," his words quietly echoed in her mind. "But look what I've done… I'm just glad you're safe." He sighed, a drawn-out artificial breath. "Is Ven with you? Is he okay?"

"He's not here," she answered truthfully. Then, less truthfully, "He's fine."

"I wish… I had been able to tell you both… how much you matter to me. I never said that enough, and I…"

"We knew, Terra." Tears pricked her eyes. "We always knew. And I'm sorry that I didn't believe in you as much as I should have. You were just trying to do what was right."

"I should have tried harder," he insisted. "But… thank you, Aqua. For believing in me now. Someone once told me… there's power in just believing…"

"There is." She squeezed him. "You keep holding on, Terra. We'll find your body again."

That was… a lot weirder when she said it out loud. But she meant it. They'd rip Xehanort out, and find a way to put Terra back in.

"You can come back with us. We can work together, this time."

He paused. Maybe he was thinking; it was hard to tell. Then he shook his head.

"I can't… not like this. I'm not always… all… here…"

"You could," she protested weakly. She could already hear his voice fading, growing distant.

"No… I can't. But… thank you, Aqua." Somehow, against all reason, his voice sounded like he should be smiling. "If you can, though… just… stay… ...until…"

"I will," she choked out. "As long as you need me to."

"Thank… you…"

She rested her head against his shoulder. It wasn't particularly comfortable, but with the sun having heated his armor for the past—well, who knew how long—she could pretend it was his own warmth.

It could have been minutes. It could have been hours. The sun beat down like fire on her back. She began to feel lightheaded again, but she couldn't just leave him, not when his mind might still be in there.

When his arms went limp and heavy around her back, she had to admit that he was gone again.

She ducked out from his embrace, propping up his arms with his keyblade so that he looked more or less in the same position she'd found him. Kneeling there, he could have been keeping watch over the Graveyard, like a silent guardian.

She briefly had a thought she wasn't proud of: Terra's keyblade, Ends of the Earth, could open portals. There was only a minimal possibility that she could use it, with him still technically being alive, but it was a possibility. Should she try to…?

No. His keyblade might be the only focus tying his consciousness together; his armor wouldn't function without it. If she borrowed it for even a brief moment, she couldn't guarantee that he would be alright.

"Terra… I'll come back for you, too," she whispered, then forced herself to turn her back on the shell of one of her best friends.

The plain of lifeless keys mocked her. Her blade wouldn't be among them. If Xehanort had returned here, Terra would have known, and likely would have killed him.

She was out of ideas, but for now, that didn't matter. Another piece of Terra was still alive and fighting. And that meant she had another reason to keep fighting, too.

With a new light in her heart, she took a swig of her water and jogged off to find her friends.