Contemplation and confessions

"So to start with: Xigbar is apparently a Foreteller called Luxu. And from the sounds of it this isn't a recent state of affairs." Lea said back at camp.

"I take it you two didn't know anything about this?" He asked of Lauriam.

"We would have said something had we known." Lauriam said, slightly irritated of Lea's persistently suspicious tone. "Luxu knows something about my sister. And if I hadn't been so surprised by everything else we found out I would have asked him about it right then and there. So you can see I would have wanted him found as much as the rest of us. So why would I conceal this detail about his identity?"

"Dunno, admittedly." Lea replied with a shrug. "But apparently Xigbar, Luxu, whatever you want to call him, has been using Xehanort's trick to move his heart to other people's bodies."

"Except according to him he did it first." Roxas pointed out.

"Yeah, exactly." Lea agreed.

"So how long do you think he has been doing this then?" Naminé wondered.

"Could have been a while. He was referencing me taking out his eye. That was over a decade ago." Terra said.

"And it could have been a lot longer than that. Luxu would have come from our time. Depending on where in time he first arrived… at most he it might have been a thousand years or so. And if what he said about having had more vessels than Xehanort's thirteen is true then to my ears it sounds like he might have been in this age for a long time. Centuries maybe." Lauriam said.

"That long? But why?" Asked Donald.

"No idea unfortunately. He said something about watching us. He and that Keyblade of his." Xion said.

"And if he has really been here for centuries then it would be more than just us. There is plenty that a person could see in that kind of a time frame. Particularly if there is also an eye in his keyblade which according to him he passed on to another. There is no telling what he might know." Isa pointed out.

"But again the question returns to why? What is he hoping to accomplish? And to whose benefit? I assuming this would be about more than sightseeing." He added.

"I'd bet it's something for their Master. But we can't be certain." Lauriam said.

"Maybe he is using Luxu and that keyblade to observe our world from wherever he is now?" Ventus suggested.

"That could be. But I also wonder…" Chirithy said, suddenly sounding worried.

"What is it?" Ventus asked.

"The Master of Masters is said to have an eye that gazes into the future. It's how the book of prophesies was written. I never really understood what that meant but... if the keyblade is the eyeand he sent that eye into this future ahead of him…" The spirit explained.

"You… you're suggesting he also knew everything that happened in this time beforehand? But that doesn't track. As far as we know the Book of Prophesies only covered the events leading up to the first Keyblade War." Ventus said.

"As far as we know. But we have no idea what was in the book that ended up with Ephemer. Would it even make sense to give him the Book if it only had events that had already happened? I'm willing to bet the Ephemer's book talked about events that happened in this new world." Chirithy replied.

"So what does that mean in practice? Does this Master of Masters know everything that is going to happen?" Lea asked.

"It… could well be." Ventus said.

A grim silence descended as Ven's conclusion sank in among the others. Then, just for a moment, Ven gave an angry shake of his head, a hand almost rising as if to wave something off. A worried frown passed across Terra's face.

"But that's all speculation at this point. We don't know what he knows. And at the end of the day I'm not sure it changes much for us at present." Terra said.

"What? It doesn't? I mean… shouldn't it?" Xion asked, astonished.

He shook his head. "Barring a situation where we get the same information he possesses we won't have any idea what he knows. We can't choose to act differently than what he expects because we don't know what he expects. And so it's out of our hands. It is what it is. In the end all we can do… is to do what we think is right. If there is a book out there that records the future then that is what I would have it say about us."

"Well said, and true enough." Lauriam said. "If we can find Ephemer's book that might be to our advantage. But until then we can't let its absence stop us."

"Yeah! We'll just go along and solve stuff as we come across it. It always worked for us and Sora." Goofy declared.

"Let's hope that works this time around too. Things might be tad trickier now. Plus we don't really even know what the *right thing* would be at this point." Roxas pointed out.

"Right. And on that note: The Foretellers unexpectedly charged in to save us, which is totally inconsistent with how one of them wrecked Roxas and Xion earlier." Lea continued.

"The Foretellers… you can't say they are always a united front. Even back in the day every Union did their own thing, though nominally they were on the same side... until they weren't. It wouldn't be inconceivable for one of them to step out of line and do something they weren't supposed to." Lauriam supplied.

"And… it's kinda true we did provoke him. I challenged him for the hearts he had collected. Before that he wanted to just walk away." Roxas said.

"And I got mad when I saw he had hurt Roxas. Charged without thinking. And then that was it." Xion echoed.

"…I did get the impression they want us alive for one reason or other." Isa agreed. "But there is one other thing that caught my ear. They kept saying that this was not the right time yet to force a confrontation. So that could mean they wish to fight us eventually, just not now."

"Which begs the question… what could they be waiting for?" Naminé pondered.

"The Master of Masters? Or Master Ava maybe? Either still hasn't shown, right?" Chirithy suggested.

"Could be. But that still doesn't explain why they seem to want us alive. To the point they stepped in to help us." Terra countered.

"…When I fought him Aced said we needed to do better to meet our destiny. Maybe in their eyes we still aren't ready." Xion said after a pause.

"The whole bunch did seem rather unconcerned about us, that's for sure. Like we weren't even a threat. And after seeing them fight I get why." Lea said.

"Would this mean they want us to be able to defeat them? Or match them at least? And they're refusing to face us until they know we can?" Xion asked.

"We did wonder why Aced declined to finish the job. Maybe this is why." Kairi opinioned. "Though… why would they want that? And how come we are so important?"

"What about Darknesses they've got inside them? With how they talked about Ven they seemed to think they were a threat. Just how do they feature into this?" Lea said next.

"Is it possible we were mistaken about the Foretellers? That they aren't the enemy?" Isa wondered.

"What? Come on, seriously? Aced still mauled our buddies, Isa." Lea protested.

"I know. And I'm not saying that's okay. But still, like we just discussed that may have been a misunderstanding. So is it possible they aren't the real problem but rather the Darknesses are?" Isa suggested.

"I would think it would be premature to say that. They still caused the war in our time. Though now that I know about this… I have to wonder what parts of their behavior might have been their own will and what might have been influenced by these shadows? We don't know when they ended up carrying them after all." Lauriam said.

"I don't know why they would allow these Darknesses into their hearts in the first place. Or why would they come to this age with them? It seems like such an irresponsible thing to do…" He added.

"Maybe they didn't know they had them before they got here? I didn't know about Vanitas for quite a while, remember. And in that case maybe they didn't fight them off because they failed to notice they had been possessed." Ven suggested.

"It's possible." Lauriam pondered. "But in that case … urgh, it's pointless to speculate about that. All these answers and it still seems we understand almost nothing."

"…They called Vanitas Darkness number eight. And there are seven of Foretellers in total. So I suppose that means even those we haven't met yet carry one?" Terra said.

"That seems probable." Lauriam said, then crossed his arms, shaking his head. "Damn. All this time worrying about the Foretellers and other Darknesses being on the loose, never realizing they were one and the same thing. I mean, for a while now we have suspected they might be corrupted by darkness. But this? This takes everything to a whole new level."

"Do… do you suppose they were serious about the part about the worlds being doomed unless these Darknesses are dealt with? Or were they making things up to get us to hand Ventus over?" Kairi wondered.

Elrena, Lauriam and Ventus exchanged glances.

"That part… I have a hunch it could well be true." Elrena said, speaking up for the first time in the whole conversation. She might have continued, but then she saw Aqua coming out of the woods, and went silent. Aqua was among them before any of them had a chance to press Elrena for details.

"Heya there Aqua. You done… talking with the King?" Goofy asked.

Aqua gave and affirmative hum and a nod. "I think you boys ought to go see him. He did say he wanted to think for a while. But honestly? I have a feeling he could use a few old friends close at hand."

Donald and Goofy nodded and left the camp.

"So I'm guessing the rest of you have been busily going over today's events?" She asked of the others.

"Indeed. I think we were just about to finish actually." Terra said.

"I see. In that case no need to go over it again for my sake. Wasn't really in the mood for it now anyway." She decided. "You can tell me about it later on."

"Such as it is. We are all just really confused about this." Terra said.

Aqua nodded. "I can believe that. But I don't guess there is much for it. We need to continue as before while looking for more clues about what is really going on. But since time doesn't matter here I think we can leave that be for a bit."

"Meaning?" Terra asked, cocking his head.

"We've been training really hard, and we had a rough day today, so I thought we might relax a few days, take a breather before getting back to work. What do you say?" She suggested.

There were a number of approving smiles and nods.

"I think we could use that." Kairi said.

"Yeah. And in that case I might make a quick stop in Twilight Town. If we are going for a break then I figure we could use some proper food. We've done well enough with the stuff we brought from your home and edible things we've found here. But I think we can do better once in a while. Especially after a near run fight like this and all this doom and gloom." Lea said.

"You probably mean food from the Bistro thereabouts? Sounds good, go right ahead. Just… don't only buy sea-salt ice cream. We need proper food too." Aqua said.

Lea chuckled. "No need to worry. Not about to neglect you lot. Any ice cream I buy will just be enough for us regular users, how about that? And the rest of you will get your fair share of other stuff."

"Sounds like you might need some help carrying all of this. I'll come with you." Isa said.

Roxas and Xion exchanged looks nodding at each other.

"Axel, mind if we come along too?" Roxas asked. "Hayner, Pence and Olette deserve an update on what's happened. And Xion and I have not really had a chance to meet with them for a while, so we might want to show up back home to let them know we're doing alright."

"Sure. The more the merrier." Lea said.

"You know, one of these days we should get them gummiphones of their own, so we don't need to leave them wondering." Roxas mused.

"I suppose we might. I mean they're basically already involved right? They've talked with people from different worlds and even came with us to Destiny Islands. And it would be a good idea to for us to be able to talk over distances. Maybe when thing have settled down a little." Lea replied.

"Right, let's get going." He concluded, and the four of them left.

Kairi meanwhile turned her eyes to the ashes of the campfire. "It sounds like Axel plans on starting our break with a full on party. And in that case I suppose we get some more wood for the fire. Naminé, Ventus, would you mind coming along? I think we're going to need enough to last through the night at least."

"Sure thing!" Ven said, Naminé also nodding.

"Uh… Ven? One moment." Terra said. "When you get back… I think we may need to talk."

"Oh…" Ventus responded, having heard the worry in his friend's voice. He nodded.

Lauriam glanced at Terra, grasping his meaning. "Yes. That would be for the best."

"Which reminds me… Kairi, you and I also need to speak. Earlier you were about to say something about where Strelitzia might be. The Unreality thing?" He added.

"Ah, yes. I remember. Sure thing. As soon as I get back here." Kairi replied.

"Very good." Lauriam said. "In the meantime is there anything we can do to help with the preparations?" He asked of Terra and Aqua.

"Hmm. No, nothing comes to mind. If I think of something later I'll let you know." Aqua replied, having just put her Black coat back into her tent. She then tapped Terra's arm and motioned towards another part of the forest. After a pause Terra left with her, the two walking along the stream.


"So how did it go with Mickey?" Terra asked as they walked.

"As well as might be hoped given the circumstances. He insisted he had not intended to abandon me in the darkness for as long as he did. That he didn't just forget about me. That things just were out of his control. And I do believe him when he says that. Even so… I can't help but feel there is a rift between us that didn't exist before. Maybe that is a wound that will heal over time as we talk more, I don't know. I can only hope so." Aqua responded.

"I mean, I know Mickey is a good guy overall. And on some level I want to forgive him." She added.

"But a part of you can't bring yourself to do it because he might treat that as a license to forget anything wrong happened at all?" Terra guessed.

Aqua nodded. "Mickey isn't the kind of person to dwell on things that aren't an imminent problem. If I allowed it then he would almost certainly want to drop this and move on to the next thing. He already did that by assuming I was completely fine after I returned to the Realm of Light and never questioning it again. And given the gravity of how this happened… maybe I don't want to let him off the hook quite that easily. Perhaps to let him know that while I do forgive him, it's still not ok that this happened."

"Forgiven but not forgotten?" He summarized.

"Yeah. Exactly." She said.

"But anyway, Mickey really isn't the thing I wanted to talk about." She concluded.

"No?" Terra said. The two of them came to a stop, facing each other.

"I was hoping we could talk a little about the, uh… the kiss." She explained.

"Oh. That." Terra said.

Aqua nodded. "Meant to talk about it a bit sooner, actually. But then all this happened."

She chuckled. "It's quite impressive really. We are in a world where time is said not to matter. And reality still conspires to explode in our face in the most breathtakingly inconvenient manner possible."

"Yeah, it's very strange. And frustrating to say the least. But listen, about the kiss… if I was being too forward or… I wasn't really thinking about what I was doing. It sort of just happened." He said, rubbing the back of his head.

"What?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. Then she smiled, shaking her head. "Terra, I'd point out that I was kissing you right back. And at least with the same enthusiasm as you did."

"I mean, it was unplanned by both of us, clearly. But now that it did happen… I don't regret it at all." She continued.

"Hold on… you're not trying to tell me you didn't want this to happen?" She asked with mock concern.

"I… okay, I can't really say that. I may have been as stumped on what to say as you were. But at the end of the day… it was great." He admitted.

"I'm very glad to hear it. Because… I'm hoping that doesn't need to be the only time it happened." She said.

"…Truly?" Terra asked, his breath hitching slightly.

Aqua nodded. "I have had time to think. More than a little. About my feelings for you. What I want to do about them. Honestly you could say the kiss was my conclusion getting away from me."

"I love you, Terra. That's the truth. And now… I'm ready. To live by that truth." She told him.

"I may have been worried about this before. Scared even. Not of the love itself you understand, but having it and then losing it. That potential pain frightened me, held me back. But now… I don't wish to be chained by that anymore. This latest battle really made it hit home for me. Every fight we've ever fought, and every fight we are ever going to fight could end up being the last one. It might seem grim spoken out loud but that's just the way it is. That is the truth every warrior everywhere has to live with. The price we pay for this life we lead. And, understanding that, I don't want to have any regrets. And realizing that I love you and never did a thing about it? I can imagine few things that I would regret more."

"I want this to happen. I want it to be real. Even if it did not last… every moment would be precious to me." She declared.

"Anyway, that's what I want. What about you? What do you want?" She asked.

He smiled at her softly. "I have been… on a very similar journey to yours. Learning to understand how I feel. My conclusion… isn't all that different. I love you too. And actually it isn't a new discovery for me either. If I chose to wait patiently… your life has been very turbulent of late. I didn't want to take advantage of that. And while I knew my thoughts on this I didn't want to jump to conclusions about yours. If I had misunderstood something it would be just… awkward. I wished to be certain."

"Well… I suppose we've answered that particular question for each other." She said.

He chuckled. "Yeah. I guess we have. And if that is really how you see it then… maybe there is no need to go on waiting."

She gave him a playful grin. "Then kiss me again silly. You've said the words. Now show me deeds."

And kiss again they did. A longer, more involved kiss this time around, their arms wrapping around each other.


Elsewhere Lauriam had joined Elrena by the campfire. She was still being unusually quiet, staring into the fire pit like she could have the ashes reignite through willpower alone. Lauriam noted there did not seem to be anyone else around at present, the others apparently still on their errands. A moment of privacy then…

"So, how are you holding up?" He asked, finally breaking the silence.

"About as well as one might think, considering this universe is constantly working on new and exciting ways to make everything go absolutely crazy." She replied, not turning her eyes.

"On top of everything we went over with the others, we have to worry over the things we uncovered back in Scala. I don't want to withhold that information. Especially with Lea being as suspicious as he is. No need to hand him any more ammunition. They have a right to know it. And yet… how do you tell someone something like that?" She continued.

"Hope is what sustains these folks. The belief that they've been winning this war. This truth… it could end up being the dagger that kills hope. If not for you it might have done that to me. They deserve better than that." She elaborated.

"But I suppose my willingness or reluctance doesn't matter after this. I've said too much already. Sooner or later they're going to come hounding after me to find out just what the heck I meant." She added glumly. "I'm mildly surprised that it didn't happen already."

"I think they caught on to how you shut yourself up when Aqua showed. It sounded to me like you were just about to spill the beans until she showed up." He pointed out.

"I mean… yeah. Blue is a friend. The first one I've made in a long time. Had just about convinced myself I'd never be making another one either, but I have. And the last thing I would want to do to her is something that would cause her harm. I don't want her to hear about this yet."

"I understand. But eventually she has to know too. She has the same right as the others." Lauriam said.

"I know, but… dammit Lauriam. You've seen how she is as well as I. You saw how Kairi's light just flickering affected her. How being too close to the Darknesses in the Foretellers made her ill. And to add even more when things are that precarious with her? I'm more convinced than ever that my hunch was the right one."

Lauriam nodded slowly. "Well… we can start with the others. Leave her towards the end of her list. The others might even come up with a way to tell her the truth without harming her. Terra seems to know how to talk to her. Maybe he can take this out of our hands?"

"Maybe. It would be relief if he could handle this. Share the load a little.

"Because in addition to all that I now have Invi to worry over." She continued.

"Tell me something: If it had come down to it, would you have done it? Would you have fought Invi?" She asked.

Lauriam bowed his head. "Ven is my friend. I could not very well let the Foretellers take him. Or let the others get hurt trying to stop them."

She nodded. "Yeah. That's about what I thought you would say."

"You know… given your background with her I would understand if you wanted to stay your hand with her." He said.

She gave a humorless laugh. "But that's just it. I can't very well do that. Not if it comes to a life and death fight. I couldn't let you face someone like her on your own. And I can only imagine how that would go with the others."

"Sorry, I don't feel comfortable fighting this particular Foreteller because I have a personal connection to her. So I'm just going to stand here and let her wipe the floor with the lot of you. Lea would just love that I validated all his suspicions about me, I'm sure." She said with sarcasm.

"…I don't want to fight her. I really don't. I owe her too much. She is someone who cared about me when no one else would. She gave me a second chance at life and a purpose. Come what may I can't forget that. I'll always be grateful for it. But all the same I can't really forsake the rest of you either. It wouldn't be right." She added seriously.

She paused, rubbing her temples. "I just feel so… torn. Like my different wants are just pulling me apart."

"We have to try to help her. To take this Darkness out of her and destroy it. We are already searching for a solution with Ven. We should try to do the same with her. Maybe then there won't be a need to fight her after all. And if it works on her too, then maybe for rest of them too…?"

"…I understand. If that's what you want then we will try. And in that case I suppose we should speak with Even when we get a chance, see what he has to offer on this." He said, nodding.

"Thanks. I don't know if I could live with myself if we didn't make the effort." She said quietly. "Those lab coats better have come up with something useable, for both our sakes. We both have people we care about on the line. Without it… what it would mean… I don't think I can take it. It would be a trap I can't get out of without hurting myself, regardless of what I choose."

She huffed bitterly, shaking her head. "Blast it all! I've really messed up. So bad. I've opened my heart too much, started caring about too many things. Now my wish to be loyal has left me in this stupid double bind."

She sighed heavily. "If you ever wondered why I wished to shut my heart so tight, there it is. Because what is the point in caring if it's always going to turn bitter? If what I care about always ends up hurting me, or I them?"

"It won't always end up like that. It won't. I promise." Lauriam said, draping his arm over her shoulders. Instinctively she leaned in, resting her head against him."

"I hope so. They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. But maybe I'll choose to be crazy and try again anyway." She whispered.

After a few moments she separated herself again. "You know what? I've had it. Enough. Enough about Invi and all the rest of it. I'm not dealing with this nonsense today. I've had a bellyful of it. Blue's got it right. We've earned a break and I'm going to be enjoying it for all it's worth and not worrying about anything else in the meantime. So until this break is done I'm declaring a ban on all topics relating to Foretellers, Darkness or the current state of our reality. Got it?"

Lauriam suppressed a chuckle. "Yes, Ma'am. Will do."

"Good." She said with an assertive nod.

There was a pause, after which she suddenly grimaced, rotating her right arm. "Augh… should've remembered to do some stretches earlier. All that fighting…. now I'm sore and stiff all over. I think my shoulders are locked up."

Lauriam thought for a moment. "I think I might have something for you that could help with that." He said, moving behind her.

"Really? So what exactly have in mi-oah-ah-ah-oh!?" She began to ask, cut off as Lauriam began to rub her shoulders.

"L-Lauriam? Are you sure about this?" She asked hesitantly. She glanced around to see if anyone else was looking, but it still seemed to be just the two of them.

"Quite sure. Unless you object?" He replied.

"I… I guess I don't." She said after a moment of uncertainty. What he was doing actually felt pretty good come to think of it. What a way to take her mind off things…

"Good. Then you can guide me to where I'm needed." Lauriam said, continuing to rub.

"Um. Alright. So… maybe a bit lower… and a bit more forcefully." She instructed.

"A bit lower. Got it." Lauriam said, adjusting the position of his hands. "Like that?"

"Okay… slightly up from there." She sad. "There. That's the spot. And- oof! Wow, certainly felt that one."

"I'm not hurting you am I?" Lauriam asked, pausing.

"No, no I'm fine, keep going." She urged. "It's just that- ah!"