Concerning the "Sweet and Salty Days" audiobook, there are new roles up for auditioning: Riku, Naminé, Terra, Aqua, and Jiminy Cricket. Check out my Twitter, Tumblr, or Deviantart for the link, or you can message me here if interested.

Kingdom Hearts (c) to Disney and Square Enix!

Aria © to Minttea!

Lina and Peony © to Joekeybladeaura!

Koral © to YamiChaos27!

My OCs (c) to me!

Chapter 19: Masters

Smiling, Terra watched as a gummi ship landed outside the castle. He waved to Mickey who sat in the cockpit as Riku exited the ship.

"Hey there."

Riku smiled, but the bags under his eyes betrayed something more. "Hey."

Mickey waved again and the ship took off as the two walked inside. Terra stretched. "You doing ok? You don't look like you've slept well."

"I haven't. I… I've honestly been feeling pretty useless. There isn't much I can do to help find Sora. All of you are helping, but I'm not sure what to do. And… Kairi is asleep. Both of my best friends are out of reach…"

Terra nodded. "I actually understand completely."

…

Letting out a sigh, Riku rubbed his eyes, changing the subject quickly. "So, I actually had a question that's on the topic of why you asked me to come."

"What?"

"What exactly does a Keyblade Master do? I've never had the full details explained. After I became a master, we jumped right into trying to save Aqua. Master Yen Sid and Mickey didn't give me many other details."

"Let's get inside. Aqua and I can explain." They walked into the castle and into the library.

Ven sat there with Chirithy, reading a book. "Oh! Hey Riku."

"Hey there." He blinked. "Who is that?"

The dream eater hopped closer. "Hi there. I'm Chirithy. It's nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too, Chirithy."

"He showed up one day." Aqua came into the room. "It seems he knows Ven from long ago. He's been staying here." She reached out and shook Riku's hand. "Nice to see you."

"You too."

She narrowed her eyes slightly at his more haggard appearance but didn't say anything.

"Apparently Riku hasn't been given the full job description of a Keyblade Master and wants to know."

Aqua's face broke into a bright smile. "Oh, of course!"

"Time for Keyblade Master 101!" Ven put down the book, sitting up straight as Riku took a seat nearby.

After all, his exam wouldn't be that far away.

"As you know, after taking the Mark of Mastery Exam and passing, a wielder can be named a master. After that, what you do is up to you. Some masters choose to travel the worlds and learn more, not really settling down for long periods. Others choose to settle down, going out to defend the worlds when they are needed to do so. That's mostly it. You keep doing what you're doing, but you're not beholden to a master then, you can choose your own path, and you have the choice to take on a student of your own."

Terra nodded. "Some, like Master Yen Sid, retire and take on new ventures. Others travel and become heroes and legends. Some become scholars and researchers, traveling the worlds to learn and chronicle their journeys and what they learn. Some simply become teachers. What you do after, as long as the worlds and their safety are one of your priorities, is really up to you. And anyone who is a Master, no matter what they choose, can take on a student if they wish, but it might look a bit different from the traditional teaching methods."

Riku nodded slowly. "What about you two? Or is it considered rude to ask?"

"It's not." Aqua smiled. "I want to continue to safeguard this land."

"And I want to rebuild the old order that my master, father, and grandparents were a part of." Terra nodded. "We'll probably be staying here and turning this into a place for Keyblade wielders to come learn. There actually used to be a place like that, long ago. It was called Scala ad Caelum."

"What happened to it?"

"Don't know. I know there was an incident where a lot of wielders died about eighty years ago, but that's all. I don't think Master Eraqus wanted to remember that time since he was one of the few survivors. He mentioned once that after the incident, his own master became a shell of his former self and gave him and Xehanort the Mark of Master exams not long after the incident."

Riku leaned back, sitting quiet for a few minutes.

Lost in thought.

"You know, it's funny. When I was younger, I would've given anything to get off the islands." He looked at Terra. "You know that. Now, all I want is to stay home and have my friends there." Terra nodded as he continued. "So maybe… maybe I'd like to stay there and set up a school like this there. That way there wouldn't be just one." He laughed a little. "Sora will go off and explore every world he can find, and Kairi will probably go with him one day. But, I think I'd like to stay home."

Terra nodded with a bright smile. "I understand. If you want, you and I can go scout out a location and talk with the mayor about it. You are a master, so if you want to do this, then you should start setting up soon."

"And you mentioned students?" He looked at Terra.

Aqua spoke up. "We visited Traverse Town and found three children who have the potential to wield the Keyblade. I am planning to take on one as an apprentice, if they accept. We were curious if you might connect with one as well."

"Could we go see them?"

"Sure." She smiled. "We can take a glider out in the morning."

…

Riku blinked. "I… don't have one."

"Armor?"

"Nope."

"Well, that's first then!" Terra laughed, pulling Riku out of his chair. "Follow me." They went down the hall to a room full of chests. "It should be right… down… here!" Pulling open a chest, he grabbed a strange chunk of metal. "Here."

Riku took it. "What is it?"

"This is your armor. Or it will be at least, once you connect with it." He dragged Riku back out into the main hall. "Alright, put it down here." Riku did as he was told. "Now, use your Keyblade on it and your heart will forge it into armor. The metal will do the rest."

Blinking, Riku set it down, stepping back a few steps before summoning his Keyblade. Holding it out, a beam of light shot from the blade to the chunk of metal.

It glowed, flashing a few times before it raised off the ground.

The metal shifted, becoming consumed by the light before it shot toward Riku. It landed on the glove on Riku's left wrist. With another flash is connected with the glove and the light faded, revealing the glove was now a gauntlet made of blue, yellow and silver metal.

"There you go."

"Whoa…" Looking over the gauntlet, a smile crossed the boy's face. "This is awesome."

"Activate it! Like this!" Ven hit the pauldron on his shoulder, activating his own armor. "See."

"Huh!?" Riku blinked.

That armor.

He'd seen it before.

"What?"

"I fought… your armor."

"What?" Ven dismissed the armor. "What do you mean?"

Riku looked down at his own armor. "When I used the Power of Waking to enter Sora's heart as he was almost drawn into the Abyss, I found him inside a suit of armor. The armor attacked me… but Sora was inside, safe from the darkness."

Ven blinked.

…

Gasp!

A memory struck his mind.

…

Ven felt Sora's heart slip into sleep. And darkness reached up to pull his heart deep into inky blackness.

Willing his heart after Sora, Ven followed him down into the darkness.

He would not let this boy who did so much for him, fall like this.

With all the strength he had, he reached out.

He would save him.

FLASH!

Ven found himself… his armored form, around Sora.

Enveloping him.

Guarding him.

But now the darkness tried to reach through the armor.

That was fine.

He'd take it all.

Take it into the armor and keep it from Sora.

He felt the cold darkness over the armor, puppeting the armor around.

This was annoying, but at least Sora was safe.

And then he saw him… Riku.

He witnessed Riku fighting his armor.

Until it shattered in a burst of darkness, and Ven felt Sora's heart waking up.

…

"I remember that… I didn't until you mentioned it." A warm smile crossed his face. "I guess, I did save Sora once. After all he did to save me, I saved him." He laughed. "When he gets back, we'll have to tell him."

"Yeah… we will."

Ven bounced forward. "Now, activate your armor! Let's see it!"

Shaking his head, Riku gently hit the button on his wrist. A flash filled the room.

Riku looked down at his armor. Pale yellow and silver accented navy blues and blacks. Looking at his own reflection in the visor of Ven's armor, he saw two wings similar to the one on his old Keyblade, sticking out of the top of the helmet on either side.

"Whoa! Awesome!"

Aqua and Terra grinned. "It looks nice."

Looking himself over, Riku laughed lightly. "This is pretty cool, I can't deny it."

"This will protect you from darkness." Terra walked over, tapping the armor. "And, it'll make travel much easier. And now, let's get your glider." He headed downstairs, Riku following, dismissing his armor. "Your glider is just another Keyblade transformation. It can be changed in multiple ways, and the glider is just another one."

"I've actually never done a Keyblade transformation." Riku shrugged. "Not that I didn't learn how, but I just never really wanted to. So, I'm probably out of practice."

Terra smiled as they entered the courtyard. "Just focus on your Keyblade and will it to take the shape you want it to. And if you don't have a specific look in mind, let your heart do the design. Watch." He summoned his Keyblade and threw it into the air. In a flash it transformed into a glider, flying back down to his side; the young man grabbed it as it flew down, throwing himself onto it. "See."

"That is so cool."

"Now you try."

Riku closed his eyes, concentrating on his Keyblade before he pulled his arm back and threw it.

FLASH!

The Keyblade changed, flying down. The glider looked like a motorcycle with handles further down, so Riku would have to lean forward to drive it. Two circles, where the wheels should be, lay horizontally, hovering above the ground.

"That looks awesome!"

Riku mounted the bike, looking it over. "In the dream worlds, I rode something called a light cycle. It was the closest thing I could think of."

"Well, it looks cool."

Ven and Aqua summoned their own gliders. "Let's fly around so he can get used to it."

"Sounds good!"

The four gliders took off into the sky.

Riku fell behind at first, not entirely sure how to handle it, but he caught up quickly.

"Hey! Riku!" Ven called over. "Ready to have some fun?"

"What kind of fun?"

WHOOSH!

His glider shot straight downward into a collection of close cliffsides. "Race ya!"

"Oh it's on!" Diving after him, Riku followed close behind.

"Be careful!" Aqua yelled after them.

Weaving through the cliffs, Riku laughed as he caught up to Ven. "This is awesome!"

"I know!"

Diving down toward a river that snaked through the cliffs, Ven skidded along the surface, kicking up a spray of water behind him.

Riku just laughed, continuing to fly. When Ven flew back up, he yelled. "Last one back to the castle is a rotten egg!"

Skidding to a stop mid-flight, they turned around and shot back to the castle.

Terra and Aqua watched the two rocket back toward the castle, Ven skidding to a stop just before Riku.

"Yeah!"

"Nice job!"

Terra laughed. "I think you've gotten the hang of it."

"I think you're right." Riku looked up at them, his face much lighter than it looked when he first arrived. "So, Traverse Town?"

Aqua glanced over at Riku as they shot through space.

He seemed a little tense, but he hadn't traveled this way before. He'd get used to it.

As they landed on Traverse Town, Riku took a deep breath.

"You ok?"

"That was kind of intense."

"It does feel that way the first time. They darkness outside looms very close all around you. But you do get used to it over time." Aqua, now holding a box of cupcakes, began walking. "Follow me."

Riku nodded, and they walked to Edea's House.

"I know this place." Riku smiled. "But it wasn't a place like this before. A family of dogs lived here."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I think they had a bunch of puppies. Sora said there were 99 of them, but I don't know if he was exaggerating or not."

"That many?"

"That's what he said."

Shaking her head, Aqua knocked on the door. A minute later, Edea answered the door. "Master Aqua? It's nice to see you."

"Nice to see you too. I brought the cupcakes I promised, and a friend of mine."

"I'm Riku, nice to meet you."

"Are you a Keyblade Master too?"

"… I am."

She smiled, nodding slightly. "Come on inside. The kids will be happy to see you again, Master Aqua." Opening the door to the rest of the house, they saw a large common area filled with toys and books. "Children, you have guests."

Aqua recognized the child known as Aria, who looked up with a bright smile. "Miss Aqua!"

"Miss Aqua!"

The other kids came running, especially as she held up the box of cupcakes. "I told you I'd bring these."

"YAY!"

As the kids all ate the cupcakes, Aqua stepped back to where Riku stood by the door. "The three I mentioned are…" She leaned over and whispered in his ear. "Now, open your heart and reach out. You should be able to feel their potential, and if you feel a specific connection to one, let me know."

"Ok." Riku focused on the group of kids, his gaze hardening slightly as he concentrated. A moment later, he gasped. "Her…"

"Go say hello. Just introduce yourself and talk to her. One day, when you're ready for a student, you can come back and ask her if she wants to learn from you."

He nodded before walking over to one kid before kneeling down. "Hi there. What's your name?"

The little girl with blue skin and green hair looked up at him, cupcake smeared around her face. "Hi. My name is Koral."

"Hi Koral. I'm Riku."

"Nice to meet you!" She blinked her big purple eyes. "Your eyes are really pretty! Like the ocean!"

"Do you like the ocean?"

"I love it!" She giggled. "I'm a siren, so my legs turn into a tail, and I get sharp teeth when I go swimming!"

Riku smiled. "I like swimming too. Actually, I live on an island."

Koral's eyes shone as her smile grew. "Really!? Can I come see?"

"Maybe one day you can." He smiled, patting her head before he stood up.

Aqua smiled warmly as Riku came back. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah." He smiled. "I guess I need to find a place to set up shop in a few years, especially if I'll be teaching."

"Guess so."

On the islands, Mayor Risa looked up as the door to her office opened. "Well now, this is a surprise." She set down her pencil as Riku and Terra walked into the room. "How may I help you gentlemen?"

Terra, a smile on his face, nudged Riku forward. "He has a question for you."

"Oh?"

"Mrs. Uchida," Riku nodded, "I want to ask if it's ok if I make a place to help train new Keyblade wielders?"

Her eyes widened. "Really?"

"Yes. I'm a Keyblade Master now, and I need to start thinking about what I want to do with that title and responsibility. Terra, Aqua, and Ven live on a world where they've trained wielders; I want to make a smaller location here on our world."

The mayor leaned back in her chair with a smile. "I expect you'll need a decent-sized space for this training, probably somewhere out of the way, so there's no magic flying into town. Right?"

Riku and Terra both chuckled slightly. "Probably a good idea."

She laughed a little as well. "I get it. I'll look into that for you, and maybe," she turned to Terra, "the coalition could be informed of this as well. They might help out with some funding for this because I'm pretty sure you don't have enough in your own personal funds, Riku. Kairi said fighting monsters doesn't exactly pay the bills."

"Yeah." Riku laughed again. "And thanks."

"Think nothing of it." Her gaze softened. "And I'm glad to see you back to yourself. You've been… well depressed lately. We've all missed your smile and your passion for everything you do. And don't forget to visit your parents before you leave."

"Wouldn't dream of it. Dad said if I come back to the islands and don't say hi, I'm grounded; he even said Mom would call Master Yen Sid and see if they can lock away my Keyblade temporarily."

"Oof." Terra winced. "I've actually had that happen before. Not fun."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah. I was flying my glider around the inside of the castle, which was absolutely against the rules, and smashed through the giant stained-glass window in the throne room. It was two weeks before Master Eraqus let me use the Keyblade again."

"Ha!" Risa laughed. "You should've seen the stuff Riku, Sora, and Kairi got into when they were little."

"Oh no…"

"I won't embarrass you, Riku. I'll leave that job for your own parents." She straightened up. "Now, I do have some meetings to get to, gentlemen. But thank you for stopping by, and I'll get back to you on a location and some more details, Riku."

"Thanks, Mrs. Uchida."

The two left the mayor's office as the sun began to set. The soft streets lit up by simple electric lighting as darkness began to cover the sky and the stars came out.

A small house, a bit further inland, sat under a pair of intertwined palm trees, the lights illuminating the front yard. Riku knocked on the front door before opening it. "Mom? Dad?"

"Riku!" His dad skidded into view, holding a pan of baked fish. "What a surprise! And Terra! Great to see you!"

Akiko snatched the pan from her husband. "You almost dropped our dinner."

"Whoops."

"Nice to see you both." Terra smiled before turning to Riku. "Have a good evening. See you later."

"And where do you think you're going?" Riku's dad ran over, throwing an arm around the young man. "If you think we're letting you leave at dinner time without eating, you are sorely mistaken."

"Give up." Riku chuckled before walking to the kitchen and taking out two more plates and cups before his mom could.

"Alright." Terra laughed before coming inside. The door closing behind him.

He sat down at the table as Riku's mom served him a plate of fish. "So, what were you two up to?"

"I went to get some understanding on what a Keyblade Master actually does. And I decided I want to make an… academy for Keyblade wielders here on the islands. Well, maybe not a full academy, but a place for wielders to come learn."

"Really!?" Akiko smiled. "I'm so happy! You've… been down lately, and I'm so glad you found a direction. And that sounds wonderful. I could bring the idea up to the coalition if you'd like."

"Yes please."

Terra took a bite of the fish before adding. "And he and Aqua went to Traverse Town too. Oh, by the way, this is delicious."

"Thank you." Mamoru grinned before turning to his son. "Why'd you go there?"

"To potentially find an apprentice."

"Really?"

Riku nodded. "Yeah, I met a girl there named Koral. I felt a connection to her, like I'm supposed to teach her."

"Right now?"

"No, I'm not ready yet, but one day."

Akiko put a hand on her son's. "That's wonderful. And I'm happy to see you smiling again."

As they sat eating, Mamoru looked over at Terra. "My wife told me something interesting. You said that you were the one that gave Riku the Keyblade. When exactly did this happen?"

"You told my mom about that?"

"I did." Terra sighed. "Years ago, not long before I was possessed by Xehanort, I came to the islands, guided by a light. I saw Sora and Riku when they were little and I felt this light coming from Riku, the same one that guided me here. It was like I was supposed to meet him. We talked about how… actually, do you mind me saying all this?"

"I don't." Riku smiled. "After all, I'm not the one telling. You did say I had to keep it a secret 'or else all the magic would wear off'."

"I did, didn't I… Well, Riku told me he wanted to get stronger in order to protect the things that matter. He wanted to leave the worlds to find it. So, I granted him the power of the Keyblade. And I intended one day to come back. If I hadn't been possessed, I would have come back a few years later and asked to take him as my own student."

Riku's smile widened. "If only things had worked out that way. It would have been pretty cool."

"I know, but when I came to myself and saw you standing tall as a Keyblade Master, I was amazed and so proud. Even with everything that happened, you became an amazing Keyblade wielder and master all on your own."

Riku's parents watched the two with smiles.

Akiko stood up, collecting some of the dirty dishes. "It would have been nice if things worked out that way, but the stars had other plans. And things did work out in the end." She looked at Terra. "We aren't angry about you giving Riku the Keyblade. We know you had the best of intentions."

"And we're proud of him too. He's become strong, even if he still likes to do things on his own and not let other people in." Mamoru gently elbowed his son.

"Dad…"

Terra smiled across at Riku. "He's got plenty of friends who would gladly help him share his burdens, myself included. And he knows that. When he's ready, he'll reach out."

"When I'm ready."

"Which better be soon!" Akiko put another fish on Riku's plate. "You're looking thinner, so eat up."

"Mom, I'm already full."

"And I don't care. Eat."

"But Mom-"

"Don't 'but Mom' me, eat!"

Terra laughed before standing up. "Well, I better get home. Thanks for dinner."

"No problem."

"And don't be a stranger. You, Ven, and Aqua are welcome here anytime."

"Thank you." He turned to Riku. "And seriously, if you need anything, let me know."

"Alright, Terra."