plumedesimili

[plumedesimili]

Not fic related but please look at this amazing art @littlesat made. This is the most amazing Strelitzia prop I could ever dream of

Family Portrait

Here the commission I made for @plumedesimili. I always wanted to draw them and when she asked me for a family portrait I was so excited since I really love do fanarts that look like old photos!

[plumedesimili]

Oath

Challenge : #TerraquaWeek Day 7 Word count : 700 Read on FFNet - AO3

***

"She's late, isn't she?"

"She's not. Stand still, and no peeking."

Terra hated that feeling. His back on the door, he couldn't even see when Aqua would come in. And Ven didn't hesitate to nudge him anytime he was trying to have a look. What could take so long?

And then, the piano started playing. It was a beautiful song Naminé wrote, an ode to beloved ones. The music meant Aqua was actually here. At last. Terra was starting to think she had changed her mind and ran away. He was so worried he considered running away too.

But the second he saw her, all of his fears and doubts vanished. He understood what took that long - he had never seen her with makeup before, and her hair was beautifully done too. Delicate lace dressed her arms, and her dress was absolutely stunning. She was the most beautiful creature he ever met. He had known long before that day, but today it felt like he was falling for her again. She was holding Riku's arm, and the young man took her to Terra. She gave her bouquet to Kairi who smiled at them both.

"You really look like a prince," Aqua whispered to him with a smile. Her eyes were shining with tears - or were the tears in his own eyes? Hard to tell.

"You too. Err, I mean, you look like a princess. Not a prince. I mean-"

"Shut up and get married, you two," Ven sighed while rolling his eyes, making the audience laugh.

"I meant you look perfect," Terra quickly whispered to Aqua, desperate to make sure she understood what he meant. The light blush on her cheeks told him she did.

"We are here today to unite these two souls," Yen Sid said sternly, "Master Aqua, and Master Terra. Are you two ready to tie your lives together, whatever may happen?"

Terra suddenly worried again. What if she said no? What if he forgot his lines? He knew them so well Ven actually complained he'd sleeptalk them, but what if under the pressure he got them all wrong?

"Aqua. In times of weakness, I shall be your strength." Way to go, Terra. You got that one right.

"Terra. In times of doubt, I shall be your faith."

"In times of darkness, I shall be your light."

"In times of sorrow, I shall be your warmth."

"Aqua, I pledge you my heart. I will love you until my very last breath."

"Terra, I pledge you my heart. I will love you until my very last breath."

"My life is yours, until the end of times."

"My life is yours, until the end of times."

"Although the two of you walked very close paths up to this day, are you willing to leave these paths, and to stand on a unique one, together?"

"I do."

"I do."

"If no one here has any objections, I therefore declare your fates intertwined, until the end of times, may it never happen."

The crowd cheered, and Aqua threw her arms around Terra, their lips finding their way to each other. Ven was laughing and crying, and Terra grabbed him to include him to their hug. It didn't matter that the two of them were married now - the three of them were family, and Ven would always be their precious little brother.

And they knew that somewhere, their Master was proud of them.

[plumedesimili]

Stormy Weather

Challenge : #TerraquaWeek Day 6 Word count : 700 Read on FFNet - AO3

***

"Now that was very clever of you, thank you very much, Terra."

"Oh, don't you start blaming me! Who found this shack to keep us safe? Let me tell you, Aqua. It was me."

"Congratulations on finding the shed! But could you remind me who said we should ignore the big, threatening clouds and go out there? Let me tell you, Terra, that was you too!"

The kids glared at each other, hissing. They were now stuck inside a tiny wooden house until the storm calmed down. And given how dark the sky was, the rain was probably not about to stop anytime soon.

"It's your fault anyway. You are the one who lost her stupid scarf."

"Well, I never said that we needed to get it back now! You're the stupid one!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

They crossed their arms, turning their back to each other. Lightning struck not far from their hideout, and Terra's hand rushed to Aqua's as a reflex. He looked at their hands for a second, and angrily let go.

"Don't you think I am scared. I did that only because I knew you are scared."

"I am."

He thought that perhaps he misheard. After all, the thunder was really loud out there.

"What did you say?"

"I said I am scared, you big, stupid…. Idiot! We are stuck in a tiny house at the top of a hill in the middle of a storm. The Master doesn't know where we are. I am ten and I am going to die. Of course I'm scared!"

How could he ever stay angry at her? He sighed, sitting on the floor, burying his face into his hands.

"You are right. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have let you come. But you're not going to die, Aqua! I will protect you!"

"From lightning? How?" She frowned at him. "I forbid you to protect me from lightning. It can only end very badly."

"I know. Everytime I try to do something nice… I just make things worse. I'm sorry. I don't want you to die because of me, Aqua. I don't want you to get hurt because of me. I'm really sorry."

She sat next to him, bringing her knees to her chin.

"...No. It's not your fault. I should have insisted it was a bad idea. I should have told you we'd get my scarf later. It's even my fault I lost it in the first place. You did nothing wrong, Terra. You were only being kind. I'm the sorry one. And you're not stupid."

"I'd say I still am stupid."

The girl stayed silent for a second, then giggled. "Yes, maybe you are. A bit. Sometimes. But so am I."

"We're just kids, after all." Thunder echoed not far from them, and this time, when their hands met, they didn't let go.

"The Master is going to be worried sick."

"He's going to be so mad at us."

"I don't think I mind him yelling at us, honestly. I don't mind anything, as long as we can see him again."

They squeezed their tiny hands and huddled up.

"Terra?"

"Yes?"

"If we survive this storm, and if the Master doesn't kill us, let's have some cake together."

Terra laughed.

"Of course. This will be the best cake ever."

And for hours, they waited for the storm to calm down, holding hands, sitting in that very tiny shack at the top of a hill that could be struck anytime, waiting for the scolding and the cake waiting for them.

[plumedesimili]

Dreams

Challenge : #TerraquaWeek Day 5 Word count : 700 Read on FFNet - AO3 

***

He woke up to the shrieking sound of her scream, and he ran.

She was sitting on her bed, beads of sweat rolling down her forehead. Her eyes were wide open, haunted, and she was panting. He turned the light on - why was it off to begin with? She hated the dark. - and called her.

"Aqua? Aqua, can you hear me?"

This could have been an odd question, given he was a few feet away from her. But he had been right to ask. She didn't answer. She was here, sitting in front of him, but he could tell by her eyes that she was worlds away.

"Aqua. It's me. It's Terra." He sat by her side, taking her hand. She looked at him, and he had the feeling she was looking through him instead. She looked all around her, panic written all over her face.

"Aqua. You are home. You are in your room. I am here, sitting next to you. Ventus is sleeping in his room, a few doors away. The moon is shining by the window, and we can even see the stars tonight. Can you see the stars?" He squeezed her fingers. "Aqua, where are you now?"

"...Alone." she answered in a week voice. "I am… alone. I am always alone."

"You are not alone. I am right here with you. Do you want me to get Ventus too?"

"There are houses… They're all in ruins. I can see a fountain, but there's no water. Where did the water go?"

"There is no fountain. You are looking at your bookshelves. Do you want me to read you a book?"

"Something… Something is moving. Is someone there? Please! Please, help me!" she started crying, her hand reaching out to someone he couldn't see. Someone she shouldn't see. "Please, help me, I am so lonely… Please…" Her sob turned into a gasp, and she summoned her keyblade. "You are no human. Heartless! Leave me alone!"

Sensing she was about to attack, Terra grabbed her wrist. "I'm sorry, Aqua. I'm sorry. You need to let go." And by pressing a very specific point on her wrist, he made her drop her weapon with a cry of pain. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry… There is no monster. Can't you see? You aren't there anymore. You are out of this place, Aqua. You are free. The monsters are gone, and we are back by your side." He had wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly, tight enough to prevent her from summoning her blade back to her hand.

"But the Heartless… They will…"

"They won't do anything. They can't harm you where you are. You are all safe now, and the monsters aren't real. I promise you that. The monsters aren't real."

Little by little, he felt the muscles in her back relax. She put her cheek on his shoulder, resting her head for a minute. Her posture changed a bit, in a way he couldn't really explain, but he knew she was back.

"Terra? What are you… I had the scariest dream."

"I know, Aqua. I know. But it's over now."

"But your voice… Your voice brought me back. You brought me back home, Terra." He could feel her hands grab the back of his shirt, her whole body shaking.

"I did, Aqua, and I always will. Dreams are just dreams. They soon are over, and they soon are forgotten. Try to get some sleep, now."

"Wait, Terra. Stay. Please."

He smiled at her, and lied next to her, his arms still around her. He knew how strong she really was, but she looked so fragile at this instant, ready to break anytime. He squeezed her gently, whispering to her ear.

"I will always bring you back home."

But she was sleeping already.

[plumedesimili]

Dance

Challenge : #TerraquaWeek Day 4 Word count : 1000 Read on FFNet - AO3

***

"I thought the Master said we would be fighting."

"Don't sound so disappointed, Aqua."

Terra chuckled at Aqua's pouting face. The Master had summoned them to the main hall, for something, he said, "could win many battles".

"I don't see how dancing is more efficient than a spell, Master."

Eraqus laughed, too, at his student. She was fifteen now, looking truly beautiful, but sometimes lacking some manners.

"See, child, fighting is not the only way to win. Sometimes, the best way to win is to not start a war. Keep peace, and you will win always. Today, Terra, Aqua, we are learning more about etiquette, diplomacy, and, you will have guessed, dancing."

"And when is that going to be useful?" Aqua was actually nervous. She never danced before. She thought this was something for princes and princesses, not something a nobody like her would have to do. She would never be gracious. She would never be elegant. Terra looked like a prince, and he would do just fine, but her? She looked like nothing. She would only be ridiculous.

"As peacekeepers, you might be invited over, sometimes, for balls. When I was still a young man, I was invited by the King of Corona, that I once saved from a terrible accident. You should have seen Xehanort and I! We had a competition to see which one of us would dance with the most beautiful lad-"

"This has nothing to do with a battle, Master." The young woman was hoping she could escape somehow. Make her Master realise that is was a stupid idea to ask her to dance. She didn't know how! She couldn't do it. She would rather perform some really difficult spells than just look like a fool.

"Aqua, when you help people, you bond with them. And it is important to keep these bounds strong. Now, let's start our lesson. Stand in front of Terra. Now, Terra, bow just like this, and offer your hand. Aqua, you should curtsy, and take his hand. Terra, your other hand goes on her hip, Aqua, yours goes on his shoulder."

She couldn't even look at Terra. She couldn't look at anything. The Master was showing them how to move, and she was so stiff she stepped on Terra's foot three times within five minutes. She wanted to cry. She was no princess. She was a knight, she was meant for fighting, she didn't deserve to attend balls or celebration. She wasn't fighting for people's gratitude, but because it was the right thing to do. She wanted to be out of here.

"Aqua, may I have a moment with you?" And now the Master had noticed how stupid she looked. How, if anything, she would be a maid hiding in the shadows, serving champagne and toasts, not a glowing princess catching everyone's eye.

"I'm sorry, Master. I don't think I can…" She was looking at her feet, her cheeks burning. But when she felt the Master's hand on her head, she looked up to see him giving her the warmest smile.

"Tell me, Aqua. Are you nervous?"

"Of course I am! I know nothing about dancing. Terra's a natural, while I'm just… This isn't for me."

"Ah, that's what I thought," the Master said, nodding. "I knew you had not noticed. That makes sense."

"What does, Master?" She frowned. His words made little sense.

"Aqua, I want you to go back there, to do what I taught you, but this time, I want you to look at Terra. Trust me. You will understand. And if after doing this, you still don't feel like dancing, I will cancel that lesson. Can you do this for me?"

"I… Yes, Master. I will do my best." She walked back to Terra, shoving her anxiety in a corner of her heart, and curtsied the way the Master taught her.

"My apologies. It seems we have been interrupted. May I have this dance?"

Terra took her hand in silence, and the music started again. And this time, rather than looking at her feet, at the curtains, at the ceiling, she looked at Terra. And as the Master predicted, she understood.

If she had been nervous, Terra looked like on the verge of breaking down. His face was bright red, his moves had not an ounce of grace. She wasn't dancing with a Prince. She was dancing with a robot. What a pitiful sight the two of them should have been!

"Terra? What's the matter?"

"No-Nothing", he stuttered, still not looking at her. She stepped on his toe, but this time it was no accident.

"Terra. Look at me. What's wrong?"

He looked at her, and she could read shame in his eyes. His face got even redder. When he spoke, it was more of a grumble than actual words. Good thing she was fluent in Terra.

"How can he expect me to look elegant? It looks like the Princess is dancing with the stable boy! This lesson is perfect for you, but I don't belong. I'm clumsy, I'm awkward, I'll never be a good dancer. No one would dance with me."

Aqua stopped dancing, raised herself on the tip of her toes, and put her lips on his cheek.

"I would. Over and over again. A stable boy? Look at you. More handsome than any prince ever. I would dance with you, and I will dance with you, Terra. All these princes better watch out, because you set the bar fairly high."

"Then I feel sorry for all the princesses," he said with a smile, and she could feel him relax, "because I don't think I'll ever meet anyone as beautiful as the princess I'm dancing with right now."

She giggled, and he put a kiss on her forehead, and they started dancing again.

And to this day, no realm had ever seen a clumsier, but happier couple dance.

[plumedesimili]

Seasons

Challenge : #TerraquaWeek Day 3 Word count : 750 Read on FFNet - AO3

***

Even though he knew Aqua hated it, Terra loved Winter. He loved the crispiness of the cold wind when he went out for a jog, he loved the desolated look of the naked trees, he loved the muffled sound of his footsteps on the snow. But more importantly, he loved spending time in the reading room, Aqua reading next to him, the two of them cuddled up under a blanket. He loved the hot cocoa she'd make, with a hint of vanilla and tons of whipped cream. He loved she made his not too sweet, he loved she made hers overly sweet. He loved these times she'd read out loud and he loved being transported to lands filled of Dragons and Knights and Mermaids, he loved falling asleep to her soft voice, and he loved waking up to her gentle snores on his shoulder. He loved that when night was the darkest, she'd knock at his door and not say a word. He loved that she would run into his arms and let him tell silly stories until she'd fall asleep, all lights on, under the safety of his blanket.

Even though she knew Terra had little interest for it, Aqua loved Spring. First of all, it marked the end of that dreaded winter. She loved seeing the trees getting covered in their brand new green mantle, seeing flowers bloom everywhere, making bouquets to decorate the castle. But what she loved more were the picnics in the garden, Terra secretly setting everything up to surprise her, the taste of juice, the flavours of sandwiches. She loved he'd always bring a blanket for when the nights got chilly, she loved he'd stay with her and look at the stars all night long. She loved listening to him telling story of his youth, and she loved seeing him trying hard to learn to make flower crowns with her. She loved when he'd put his hands on her eyes and take her to some beautiful places that he had just discovered. She loved when he picked a flower he thought was pretty and placed it onto her hair before nodding, satisfied by his choice.

Even though he knew Aqua missed the gentle breeze of Spring, Terra loved Summer. He loved of vibrant and bright everything looked, how cheerful the chirping birds sounded like. He loved that the afternoons were sometimes too hot to practise and they'd instead go swimming. Saying he didn't love how Aqua looked in a swimsuit would be a lie, too. He loved how she's splash water at him when he wasn't looking and then look completely innocent when he would look at her. He loved how that would often end up in water fights with magic involved, how they would only stop when the Master would start yelling at them or when night started to fall. He loved these even hotter days when they would stay in a completely dark room, trying to keep the heat out, cutting out shapes into fabric and then wrapping it around the light of a candle, letting flowers and stars dance on the walls. He loved the strawberry tarts she'd make and then sneak up in the kitchen at night to eat some more, waking up with her lips tainted red.

Even though she knew Terra would catch a cold every time, Aqua loved Autumn. The colours of the falling leaves, and their smell, offered a wonderful show for all of her senses. She also loved spending whole afternoons collecting hazelnuts, mushrooms and chestnuts with Terra, throwing burrs at each other and getting one point for every burr staying firmly gripped to their coats. She loved when she forgot to bring a scarf and then Terra would let her borrow his, or take her hands in his when she was getting cold. She loved the smell of butternut soup, and she loved seeing Terra forcing himself to eat the broth she made when he was sick even though he wasn't hungry. She loved how he'd let her sit on his shoulders so that she could grab that box of winter clothes she kept high up in the dresser, she loved he never suggested she'd used a chair or a ladder instead.

Seasons came and left, one after another. Some they liked, some not so much. But it didn't really matter to them. As long as they had each other, any season was a good season.

[plumedesimili]

Future Masters

Challenge : #TerraquaWeek Day 2 Word count : 1000 Read on FFNet - AO3

***

"Terra, is your dream still the same?"

They were eight that day, playing cards in the library. Aqua was bored out of her mind, Terra could tell that, but she kept playing for him. He owed her to entertain her while they were playing.

"Of course it is! I will become the world's greatest Keyblade Master, just you watch!"

"Even better than our Master?"

"Heh! Even he will be asking me to teach him things! Once I'm a Master, there will be no more geography, no more maths."

"More cake?"

"Cake at every meal!"

Aqua giggled. "And what about me, Terra? What will I be?"

"Well, of course, Aqua, you will be a Master too. An amazing Master."

"Amazing?"

The boy smiled, revealing a mouth with a missing tooth. "Yeah! Just a bit less than me. But still really good! And together, we will be unstoppable!"

The little girl clapped her hands, laughing. "I can't wait to see you become a Master."

He looked at her, and her hopes in him meant the world to him.

***

"Hey, Aqua, you remember about our dream, right?"

They were fifteen that night, lying under the stars, their keyblades at their sides. They had to escape Master's Eraqus's vigilant eye to get outside, knowing every creaking wooden plank on the floor for a silent escape. They had an exam early in the morning on the next day, but the weather was too nice to stay indoors. They weren't kids anymore, but they didn't feel like adults either. They were changing, and they were well aware of that - even without the horrifyingly disturbing speeches from their Master. They just wanted to stay young forever - careless, believing in their dreams.

"I do. One day, you will become a Keyblade Master. The greatest one."

"You and me both."

Aqua quietly laughed, her voice almost muffled by the ruffling of the wind in the trees. "I guess so. I don't know if I have what it takes to be a Master, though. I'm probably too kind. You can't just frown at evil for it to go away."

"Don't say that!" Terra took her hand, then realised he did and let go, looking away and blushing. "Temperance is a wonderful trait. I will need someone by my side to keep me on the right path."

"Then I'll be there," she whispered. "I'll always be by your side."

***

"How long before we make our dream come true?"

They were eighteen that time, sitting by Ventus's bed. The boy had been asleep for days, and they were worried sick. They barely ate, they barely slept. And when they did, it would be together, in that room. Waiting for Ventus to wake up.

"Once we are Masters, we will be able to visit so many new places," Aqua said in a hushed voice. As if she didn't want to wake Ventus up. Even though all she wanted was for Ventus to wake up. "To help people. Whatever he's been through - we will be able to prevent that from happening again. That's why Masters exist, right?"

Terra looked at her, replacing a lock of hair behind her ear. Why did Masters exist? He didn't even really know. When they were kids, Darkness spread, destroyed worlds. His, hers, many more. And the Master saved them. But from that day, nothing really happened, nothing he was aware of. The Master would spend most of his days teaching them. Training them to train people after him. In a world at peace, there was no place for Keyblades and for Masters. But he couldn't share his doubts with her, so instead he just smiled.

"Of course. We'll be the keepers of the peace. Together. The greatest ones."

And maybe he, too, still believed in that dream.

***

"What's left of our dream, huh?"

They were twenty now, or perhaps were they older. They didn't really know. They didn't really care. They were sitting in the middle of the garden, surrounded by colourful flowers he couldn't name. He was supposed to be training. She was supposed to be training him. It didn't matter.

"... I'm sorry."

"Don't. Aqua, please, don't."

She lowered her head, escaping his gaze. "You were supposed to be a Master before I did. That was our dream. You, being the greatest Master ever. Me, being…" she chuckled, but there was no joy in that. Only sadness. "The amazing sidekick. That was our dream."

"No, it wasn't." Terra took her hand. They weren't fifteen anymore. They had spent so long without one another that the three of them could probably hold hands and never ever let go again. "You were never meant to be a sidekick. I don't want you to say that again. And I don't want you to apologize because I failed the Exam. Our dream was to be Masters together."

She said nothing, staring at the flowers. Terra gently put his fingers on her chin, turning his head towards him.

"I don't see anything stopping me from that dream. I will train harder, study harder, and I will become worthy of being a Master. We have all the time in the world. And one day, we will both be Masters. As we promised."

"The greatest ones." She was finally smiling. He smiled back.

Truth was, he didn't care much about this dream anymore. He had found another one, one that became true. When did his dream change? In these ten years spent away from her? From that time when they kept an eye on Ven? That night when they were fifteen and could barely allow their skins to brush against one another? That day when they were playing cards even though she didn't want to? Or had his dream always been the same, and he had been too blind to understand it fully?

Master or not, it didn't matter. The only thing important to him was to wake up every morning and having her by his side. It was to see her smile, to hear her voice. To spend time with her, to train with her, to learn with her.

Becoming a Master was just a secondary dream.

She was his dream.

[plumedesimili]

Gummiphone - Terraqua Week 2019

Challenge : #TerraquaWeek Day 1 Word count : 1200 Read on FFNet - AO3

***

Aqua’s messages were the surest way to brighten Terra’s day. Like a child with a brand new toy, he’d check out his phone every minute to see if she had written to him. So, obviously, as soon as he heard the device buzz, he rapidly unlocked it.

“DO.YOU.THINK.WE.SHOULD.REDECORATE.THE.CASKET”

He smiled. The phone buzzed.

“???”

He gave her another couple of minutes.

“CASKET.”

“CASKET.”

“CASTLE”

“I.MEANT.CASTLE.I.SWEAT.”

“SWEAR”

He bit his lip to not laugh. Since Riku gave them these phones, explaining how convenient it would be for them to communicate with everyone, even if they were worlds apart, Aqua had been trying her hardest to understand the device. Terra was sometimes a bit slow at writing messages (why wasn’t the keyboard in alphabetical order? That made no sense), Ven was a natural who could switch between posting pictures, playing games and texting everyone, but Aqua was… struggling would be an understatement. Ven had put shortcuts for her to call Riku, Terra and himself, and had taught her how to send messages ; but not only she always wrote in capitals with dots rather than spaces, her worst enemy was now autocorrection. Which meant it was Terra and Ven’s greatest joy. The would never confess to her how much fun they had at her messages, as they didn’t want to embarrass her, and Terra suspected Ven knew exactly how to turn autocorrect off and simply never offered to. But Aqua would send them messages even if they were in the same world, and every single one of her text was really dear to Terra - or DEAD, as she once wrote. “YOU.ARE.MY.DEADEST.FRIENDS.” . Terra had laughed for a whole week. Suspecting she might be in the hall, he put the phone back in his pocket and slowly started to go there.

He had missed this casket-castle- a lot, but the whole place would have been meaningless without his friends by his side. Ven could lighten up any situation, any moment of tension, with a joke, a story, or a smile. And Aqua… Terra had never met someone so strong. She had spent years, over a decade, all by herself, with no certainty she would ever come back. Ven had been sleeping, and Terra’s experience had felt somehow like a dream as well, but she had memories of every single day, and yet she still would get up in the morning, she would keep on living as she always did, she would smile and laugh and smile some more, as if being back with them fixed all the bad things that had happened.  He admired her so much.

And currently, he was admiring her staring at the empty wall of the empty hall, noticing the crease between her brows as she was frowning.

“So, whose casket are we talking about? Not mine I hope? I wish to apologize for anything I did wrong, please don’t bury me yet.”

Starting, she looked at him. “I meant castle. I don’t understand this darn thing. How can Ven say it’s faster?”

“Wow, Aqua swearing? I must be dreaming.”

“Oh, be quiet, you. I need practise, that’s all. I’ll get the hang of it somehow.”

Terra smiled, walking to her. “Of course you will. Redecorating, you said?”

“Yes. I was thinking about putting Master’s Eraqus’ portrait here. That way, he’ll be able to overview our training. To be here when you become a Master.”

“No pressure at all,” Terra grumbled. “But of course. Anything you wish.”

“And I was thinking about removing these paintings in his study. I know he loved them a lot, but…”

“Thank goodness, I’m not the only one to think they were terrifying.”

Aqua laughed. “I used to have nightmares as a kid because of them.”

“Let’s burn them. I’m sure he won’t be mad. Any other arrangement, Madame?”

“I was thinking of more flowers. This place could use more life. And perhaps…” She nibbled her lower lip. “What about pictures?”

“Pictures? You mean like the Master’s portrait?”

Terra was surprised, but Aqua shook her head. “I meant something more… Actual, I guess? Pictures of us. Of our friends, too! Souvenirs from places we’ve been to. Memories of happy times.” She smiled sadly. “There are days when I could use that.”

Terra nodded vigorously. “I definitely agree. I need a wall full of pictures of Ven doing silly faces for every day I’m feeling down. And of course of pictures of you. This Casket’s only Master.”

“Stop it!” She laughed, gently punching his shoulder. “If you don’t I’m going to draw on every picture of you and the world will be convinced you actually are missing a tooth and have eyebrows the size of your forehead!”

They both laughed for a minute, until Aqua clapped her hands. “Now that I think of it! Ven showed me how to use the camera for… what did he called it? shellfish? selfish? selfies! Let’s take one, this will be our first picture!” She started tapping on her phone. “Now, where was it… He said to click on the camera picture… Then to click on the arrow… Ah, there it is! Goodness, how many chins do I have?” She took the camera higher, sighing. “There, better. All we have to do is… What was it again? Oh, right, touch the circle here!” Terra watched her tenderly as she was trying to remember it all. “Come on, Terra, stand next to me! This is our first picture, it has to be good!” And so the young man came right by her side, positioning himself to be in the frame.

“Ready? On three. One, Two…”

But when three came, Terra swiftly leaned towards her, putting his lips on her cheek and his hand at her waist. The click from the phone told him his timing had been perfect. Aqua’s cheeks were now a lovely shade of pink, and she was staring at Terra in great shock - but from what he could tell by her eyes, she wasn’t displeased. Of course she wasn’t. They both were well aware of these feelings they never spoke of.

“Te-Terra! What did you… What if the picture is blurry? I don’t know how many pictures I can do with this, we can’t risk having them to be bad! I didn’t even ask Ven how we develop them!”

Terra burst out laughing, giving her another kiss while taking her phone from her hand.

“See that little picture here? If you click on it, you will see your pictures. Here, look, it’s not that bad, is it?”

And it really wasn’t bad at all. On the picture, Aqua was still smiling, her eyes opened why from the surprise, her cheeks barely pink at all yet ; and Terra’s eyes did nothing to hide his love and joy to be by her side.

Aqua smiled, leaning on him with a sigh. “Let’s ask Ven how we develop this one. This is going to be my most cherished treasure.”

[plumedesimili]

Larxene with 31 yo!

Tadaa~

[plumedesimili]

To lose is to find

Word Count : 3024 Summary : In this place, to find is to lose, and to lose is to find. Worried that this might apply to them too, Larxene makes sure she remembers everything on a daily basis, because her memories are all she has left. But how do you know if you forgot something, if you cannot remember what it is...? Read on : FFNet | AO3

*********

Just use the key, and this land will be transformed. From that day forward, all who visit this land will be lost to oblivion, none ever able to solve the mystery. None, Aqua, except you.

***

Unaware of these words uttered from one Master to another a decade ago, the group of strangers stepped into the Castle.

They were five, black-coated figures contrasting with the pure white of the place, their hoods still up to protect them from the Darkness around. Ironic, given they were darkness.

"I guess this will be our new home for a while, whispered one of them, letting his hood down as the door closed behind them. Lustrous pink hair flowed around his head. Marluxia.

"I see whoever lived here before didn't really have a thing for furnitures," the only woman of the group, Larxene, noted.

"Consider yourself lucky this place is empty," sighed Vexen as he moved forward. He had no time to lose talking. He never had.

"Is it true, what they said?" Zexion shook his head, looking at the place with his only valid eye - not that the other was blind, it was just covered by a way too long lock of hair. "That this place can make one lose some memories?"

"That's the whole point, duh." Larxene rolled her eyes. "Were you even paying attention to Xemnas's speech?"

"As if you were." She glared at Lexaeus but didn't reply. She didn't want to be crushed by this living mountain.

"It appears so." Marluxia was as always the polite one, a fake smile plastered on his face as he explained. "We sent Demyx here for a whole week-"

"Now that's what I called vacations," Larxene snorted.

"-and when he came back, he confessed having forgotten quite a lot of things, mostly about his past. The older the memory, the most likely it is to vanish."

"We need to be careful," Lexaeus said.

"We need to be quick," Vexen replied. "Two days of setting up. Marluxia brings the keyblade wielder here in three days. In four days, we'll all be back to the Castle, having perhaps forgotten the name of our first pet, but nothing more."

"Bubbles," muttered Ienzo, thinking no one would hear him. Lexaeus allowed the tiniest of smiles on his face. He heard, and he remembered.

"Are you all going to spend all day standing here talking, or should we get moving?" Vexen looked annoy - but that's how he always looked. "I need to work on my puppets, and Xemnas will be bringing the witch by tomorrow morning. We'd better be ready by then."

"Sure, sure, we don't want the big boss to be grumpy, now, do we?" Larxene sighed dramatically, and Marluxia smirked. All the others hurried to explore the place, set things up and start working, leaving the two newest members alone in this big, empty hall.

"I don't want to forget anything," Larxene said, her shoulders collapsing as soon as they were alone. "I don't mind forgetting the present, but the past is all we have."

"Relax. You heard Vexen. Perhaps you'll forget about your Spirit, but that's it."

"But I don't even want to forget about Otterton! Do you have any idea how hard I worked to get his fancy little hat?"

"El…"

"And what if we forget about these things too? Why you call me El? Why we are here? What if we forget about the plan? What if we forget about Strel-"

"Silence."

She had gone too far and she knew it. She lowered her head, angry at herself. "Sorry."

"I don't think this place would make us forget years of our lives. Demyx said some memories were fuzzy in his mind, that he couldn't remember what job he had before and things like that. But our childhood is the reason we're here. Strelitzia is the reason we're friends. And we worked on this plan for months. We won't forget any of this."

"Right. We find the key kid, we let him take everyone down, we use his powers to find the other dandelions."

"See? You've got it all memorized." Marluxia smiled and patted her head, and she pushed him away with a laugh.

"Axel will sue you for this, you know? Now let's get to work, handsome. Our friends aren't going to save themselves."

They both set aside the possibility that their friends might not have survived. Now that was a thought they wouldn't mind forgetting.

***

When morning came, Larxene tried to list all that she remembered. Otterton and his silly hat. The fountain plaza where she collected all the munnies people threw in the water as they made a wish. The origin of the scar on her ribs, which was not a battle scar as she always told everyone but just from when she fell riding a bike. Good. She had not forgotten anything yet.

***

"I'll get my coffee darker than your soul, thanks." she said as she stepped into the kitchen. The coffee machine had been her only request when she was told she'd be sent here. She had brought a bag full of books, ready to be bored out of her mind, and carried one with her as she walked in. Marluxia sighed and nodded towards a cup of steaming coffee on the table. She beamed at him.

"Now that's how I like my boys, always a step ahead!"

"Stop saying these kind of confusing things. One day they'll really believe something is happening between us and this will be a hassle."

"It would take a heart for that anyway, so no worries, you're safe." She winked at him and sat by his side.

"You're in a good mood." He said after a while. She nodded.

"I am. This Castle still didn't get the best of me. I still remember everything." She looked so proud he chuckled.

"El, it's only been twelve hours. Of course you still remember everything."

They were interrupted by Zexion who walked in with the haunted gaze of someone who had a terrible night.

"Had pleasant dreams, Zexion?" Larxene teased with a smirk. She liked nothing better than morning agressions. The worse their days started, the better hers did.

"I just wish this Castle worked a bit faster to erase our memories. There are some I wouldn't mind getting rid of."

"See?" Marluxia took a sip of coffee. "Only twelve hours. Told you so."

"What about you, though? Do you still remember everything?"

She knew it was a delicate topic now that Zexion was around, but she still stared at her partner in crime with suspicious eyes. He rolled his eyes.

"Of course I do. Now don't make me regret I remember you, be quiet and drink in silence."

"Yes Dad…" She pretended to pout, turning back to her drink and opening her book.

"The Superior comes today."

"Stop calling him that, Zexion. His ego will get so big he will need two portals at a time to travel." She snorted at her joke, picturing the scene in his mind.

"You'd better watch that attitude, Larxene." She frowned as Vexen walked in. "Lord Xemnas will not be pleased to hear you say such things about him."

"Oh, come on, he heard worse. I guess."

"Did you finish setting up your lab, Vexen?" Marluxia asked, more of politeness than of interest. It was too early to hear Larxene bickering with everyone.

"I did, not that you really care," the scientist answered with his usual contempt. "The puppet I made is almost ready. All that's missing is what the witch can give us."

"Let us hope that her powers are real, then," Zexion whispered, which caused Vexen to frown.

"Well, Lord Xemnas sounded quite certain of that. It might be in your interest to not doubt his words… At least so publicly."

"He's here."

Everyone started at Lexaeus's words. No one had realised the tall man was here with them.

"How can you be so big and yet so unnoticeable?" Larxene asked, staring at him. He didn't answer, but Marluxia did.

"The same way you are so tiny and yet so noisy. Let's go."

***

Xemnas was waiting for them at the main door, accompanied by a little girl with big, round, innocent blue eyes. The whole Castle crew stared at her blankly.

"She's a child," Zexion noted.

"Will that be an issue?" Xemnas asked with his deep voice. He didn't even look like he was paying attention to them. His eyes were scouring the hall, as if looking for something.

"So what are we, babysitters? That wasn't in the job description, Xemnas."

"It's okay, Larxene. She's not really a child, remember? She's just a witch." A tool for our plan, he didn't add, and yet she still heard. A long time ago, his words would have sent shivers down her spine. Now she barely blinked. Losing one's heart did such things to one's mind.

"What's her name?" Lexaeus asked, much to everyone's surprise. That was unexpected of him to care.

"I'm Naminé." So she could talk. Ienzo and Larxene had already lost their interest. Marluxia was studying her, thinking about how she could fit into their plan. Vexen thoughts were back to his puppet already.

"And what about her abilities? The ones you told us about? Could you test them?"

"I have a strong connection with Sora's heart, especially about the memories stored in them. Right now, I can feel them, and I can see some of them. He is too far away for me to be able to alter them, but if he gets closer I will be able to rearrange them, and even to extract some of them."

"How do you know you can do that, if you never tried?"

"How did you know you could breathe, the very first time?"

Larxene gritted her teeth. Castle Oblivion or not, she would not forget this insolence.

"This powers she has, do they only work on Sora?"

Naminé thought for a while before answering. "I think they only work with those connected to him. By altering his chain of memories, any chain connected to his - anyone sharing this memory, will be affected. But this only works with memories where Sora is involved, yes."

"Can she create fake memories too?" Marluxia was becoming slightly interested in her, and Larxene could almost hear the gears grinding in his mind.

"I think I can… But it's easier to alter existing memories than creating brand new ones."

"I expect you can use her abilities to their full capacities," Xemnas said. "Do not disappoint me."

"We won't," Marluxia answered, his head low. Larxene balled her fists. Even though she knew it was only a game of pretend, she never bowed to anyone. Her pride wouldn't let her. She ended up in this Organization because her life had been a succession of sufferings. Bowing would be disregarding all this pain accumulated throughout the years. It would be disrespecting all the friends she lost along the way. So instead she glared at Xemnas, and he didn't even spare her a single look, turning back and leaving the castle, leaving Naminé behind.

"Alright, back to work, everyone," Vexen said, clapping his hands. "You," he pointed at Naminé, "come with me. You too, Zexion. We still have a long day ahead of us."

"Are you hungry?" Lexaeus asked Naminé. Surprised, she shook her head. "Okay. On your way to the labs, Vexen will show you were the kitchen is."

"What a delightful idea, Lexaeus!" Larxene squealed. "Maybe we could even make some tea, and enjoy a few handmade sandwiches? Oh, and when the time comes to go to bed, how about you tuck her safe into her bed and tell her a nice little story? Would you rather have eggs or toast for breakfast, honey?" Before Naminé could even answer, Larxene snapped. "She's not our bloody guest, Lexaeus. She's here to work. She'll eat when we decide she does, and she will sleep when we decide she's of no use anymore for the day. This isn't a nursery." She turned back, leaving the room. She had things to do as well.

***

"Not in such a good mood anymore, I take?"

She barely even reacted when Marluxia stepped in.

"I'm not in a bad mood, if that's what you're asking. But it's best for everyone to realise she won't be treated as a delicate princess here. If anything, she's our prisoner."

"Of course not."

"No?" Larxene asked, remotely interested. She was busy setting up the huge crystal ball they would use to monitor all that was happening inside the Castle.

"She's our way out." She heard him chuckle, and that brought a smile to her lips. She stopped what she was doing to glance at him.

"So you were planning something. You had that scheming face, earlier. A wonder Xemnas never noticed."

"We could use her to control Sora. He will destroy everyone here, but us, and she will create memories in him that will push him to destroy the ones in the other Castle as well."

"That plan needs to be worked on a bit more, but I like the idea. A coup where Xemnas where never suspects us. That's smart. We might even pretend we were killed too so that he'd let his guard down."

He smiled at her. "Partner in crime?"

"Partner in crime," she smiled back.

***

When dinner came, Naminé was seated in the corner of a room. She now had a notepad and crayons, and even though no one said were it came from, they all suspected Lexaeus. Despite how silent and scary he was, it was no big news that he just couldn't be harsh to children.

"Larxene, your plate. Larxene? El. Plate." Marluxia was on the cleaning dishes chore tonight. Larxene handed him her dirty plate, frowning as he used her nickname in public, even though she had been spacing out before he used it.

"Now that I think of it, you do call her that sometimes," Zexion said, thoughtful. She winced. Of course the nosy brat would pay attention to such things. "What does the El stand for?"

She stared at him, dubious. "Really? Like, that's a real question? You're the Organization little genius, Vexen's pride, and you can't figure this out by yourself?"

"He's not my-"

"My name's Larxene, smart boy. Starts with an L? El? Or are you just good with numbers?"

"Oh, is that all? I just thought there was more to that."

She snorted, shaking his head. She sometimes wondered how he could be so smart and yet so dumb. She didn't like Marluxia to use her nickname in public, but it was no state secret either.

"Time to go to bed, boys," she sighed. "Get your brains and muscles ready. Tomorrow's the big day. Think you'll be able to bring the right kid, Marluxia? We wouldn't want you to bring us a random little boy who will be of no use to us."

"Of course." He rolled her eyes. "Make sure you get plenty of sleep so that you cannot use that as an excuse when you lose against him."

She gave him the finger, stood up and glared at Naminé. "You'd better play your part as we told you to, if you don't want bad things to happen to you. Trust me, you don't want me to be in a foul mood." And on these words, she left the room.

***

Despite Marluxia's advice, she could barely sleep that night. Something felt wrong, even though she couldn't tell what. She felt even more hollow than before. Maybe it's just that I know things are going to change, she thought. Our plan will come true and we will finally be free again. Meeting him is the only good thing this Organization brought. On these thoughts that she'd rather die than to confess out loud, she managed to close her eyes a little. When she opened them again, she remembered what that Castle was supposed to be about.

But she remembered things very clearly. She remembered the first time she wore the coat. She remembered how she hated Demyx the first time she saw him. She remembered how she was glad she had met Marluxia, and how she thought they would have been great friends if they had met as kids.

What she didn't remember, though, was why she had put a bouquet of dandelions on her nightstand. She remembered being the one putting them here, as they moved in, because it was a touch of colour in this monochrome room, and she knew she liked yellow. But dandelions? She could have taken sunflowers, at least. Or daffodils. She probably had picken them before her morning coffee - she never thought very clearly before breakfast.

She stretched, put her coat on and left for the kitchen, and managed to see Marluxia on his way out.

"Turns out Demyx was a weakling. Probably pretended to forget things so that he'd sound interesting for once. I still remember everything."

Marluxia chuckled and nodded. "I wouldn't be surprised. The only memory that will be altered here will be Sora's." He sighed, bemused. "I cannot wait for him to play his part. I must say I am jealous he can wield a Keyblade. I wonder what it feels like."

"Sure, sure, once his job is done, we'll get you a pretty little one. We'll even steal Roxas's for you, if you'd like. But for now, make sure you pick up the right kid and be back before noon or I'll tell Xemnas the Lord of Castle Oblivion is slacking off!"

Larxene watched him go as he vanished through the black portal. Her chest felt hollow. She shook her head, chasing the idea from her mind.

"In this place, to find is to lose, and to lose is to find," she said, whispering the lines they had repeated together.

She drank her coffee, unaware that time outside the Castle flowed at a different pace than within, unaware that she had lost more than she thought, and, most importantly, unaware that her chain of memories was getting weaker every second.

[plumedesimili]

Two quick fanart I made to say thank you to @plumedesimili and @tzufcallsmeshomps for their support! <3

[plumedesimili]

No fic to post for a while, so I'm doing this instead to prove I'm still alive!

Will be tagging @tzufcallsmeshomps , @lorelei-melodei , @clockworkclown91 and @mile08 👀 (no obligation though!)

Tag Game

go to this website and design yourself https://picrew.me/image_maker/9889 and then tag 4 people 

@the-erikalypse @ethan-loves-you @sugarnitwitch @fanbun (Only if u want too ) 

[plumedesimili]

Red Wayfinder - Vanqua Week

Challenge : #VanquaWeek Day 7 Word count : 900

For the first time in his life, Vanitas had learnt to look forward to something. This was the biggest secret ever, one that would cost his life if anyone found out. And yet, that was a risk he was willing to take.

His days of training with the old goat became sufferable now that he knew what would come at night.

This night, like every other night, he stepped into that place called San Fransokyo. Truth was, they changed world every week, but this one felt safer than most: there were so many people everywhere that it was really easy to blend into the crowd and disappear if they needed to.

They, that was Aqua and him. No one, not even them, would ever have believed they could feel anything but hatred for each other. And yet, after a fight he lost and a discussion she had to understand his behaviour, they started to realise that perhaps, fighting wasn’t the only way. He still enjoyed violence as much as he enjoyed quiet, he was war when she was peace. But when they were together, with no one else around, all of that didn’t matter. They would sit on a bench, under the stars, or on the highest branch of a tree, and they would talk, they would laugh, they would forget all this nonsense about keyblades and Unversed, and they would just be friends.

Sometimes, she would be really tired and just sleep with her head on his lap. Sometimes, he would feel really down and she would take his hand with a smile. They trusted each other. And sometimes, drunk by the joy of the moment, their lips would meet, tasting of forbidden things and of danger. They didn’t really mean much about this, they knew it was a luxury they couldn’t afford, but there were times when they just wanted to forget and pretend they were simply teenagers living regular life.

San Fransokyo was busy as always. Vanitas had switched his usual suit to more casual clothes, and he regretted not bringing a scarf with him. Tonight was his treat, so he’d probably bring her to a café to drink something warm. He knew how much she loved waffles, so he might get her some as well. He took his time to go to the rendezvous point, doing some window-shopping, wondering if perhaps he could get her something. She was the only person being nice to him, so he owed her that much. He finally stopped by a store, seeing a nice necklace with a star pendant, thinking it would look great on her. Probably. He didn’t know much about fashion.

His present in hand, he finally looked for the bench where they agreed to meet up. Much to his annoyance, there was already someone sitting here, a girl with gigantic glasses. She looked dumb. Everyone looked dumb to Vanitas, though, so that wasn’t much of a criteria. Decided to chase her from his bench, he sat next to her with a gloomy face that would make anyone uneasy. But instead of leaving, she smiled at him, and starting talking in a way too loud voice.

“Hi, you’re Aqua’s date, aren’t you?”

“A… date?” This wasn’t a word he was familiar with. Or rather, he was familiar with it, but had no idea of the meaning in such a context. The girl grinned and rummaged through the bag next to her.

“She said I’d have to wait for you here, and give you this. She won’t be able to come today and she apologises. Well then, my job is done here, and they need me at the lab! Good night!” She jumped to her feet and basically disappeared, jumping into the first taxi she saw, leaving Vanitas with a box and an envelope, sitting in the cold on his bench.

Even though he was really curious about the tiny box, he opened the envelope first. There was a short letter in it.

“Vanitas, I’m sorry I won’t be able to make it today. Something has come up and I don’t think I’ll be able to come for the next few days. Remember where we met last time in Agrabah? Let’s meet up there next week, I’ll find a way to contact you if I can’t make it either. We may have to be apart for a while, but I’ll never be far from you. With love, Aqua.”

He smiled at her words. He wouldn’t admit to anyone, not even her, but he didn’t mind a bit of cheesy sometimes. He read her letter three times before taking the box.

It was closed with a pink ribbon, similar to the ones she wore. He untied it carefully, opening the box. And he almost dropped it in surprise.

Inside the box, glimmering under the city light, there was a wayfinder. Not hers. Not Terra’s. Not Ventus’s. It was bright red and looked brand new. Where her symbol was supposed to be, there was a delicate gold piece shaped like his Unversed symbol. He took it in shaking hands, and it felt warm. He could somehow feel it beating, and he realised this was probably her heartbeat.

She had left a tiny card with it, written in gold letters and a delicate handwriting, and just by reading them, and repeating them in his mind, he could feel both of their hearts beating slightly faster.

‘Always by your side’.

A/N : And there we are, the end of yet another challenge! Phew, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to make it, and I wrote the 4 last ones on Monday and Tuesday, talk about some rush! I’d like to thank @voidgear-and-stormfall, @revengerevisited and everyone from the Discord for creating this challenge, of course @taliaxlatia for dragging me into vanqua hell and everyone who took part to this challenge, we might be a small community but you all did amazing <3

[plumedesimili]

Inversed - Vanqua Week

Challenge : : #VanquaWeek Day 6 Word Count : 1360

---

She woke up to the squeaking of one of these weird creatures. Her first reflex when she saw it was to summon her weapon, but something stopped her.

What was that? If she didn’t know any better, she’d say it was an Unversed ; but it was the first time she saw one like that. It looked like a tiny bird, all white with light blue feet, and pink eyes. All the Unversed she knew had red eyes and dark colours. What exactly was this thing, and why was it staring at her from this tree?

Tired and slightly injured from her visit in this world, and from destroying so many Heartless, the new abomination spreading through the worlds, she had decided to take a nap under the shade of the trees - the wind was blowing nicely, carrying the fragrance of a flower field nearby. This place was perfect for a nap.

But now, she was really concerned about the tiny creature staring at her. It still gave off an Unversed feeling that put her uneasy - but if it didn’t attack her, she wouldn’t attack either.

The bird was joined by another, and then by a third one. They didn’t look unfriendly. She slowly got back to her feet, stretching. It didn’t scare them away. She smiled at them.

“Why, hello there. I’ve never met birds like you before.”

One of them chirped, and it sounded like a giggle. It was communicative, and she chuckled too.

Something moved in the bushes behind her. She tensed, ready to fight if needed ; but it was another curious creature.

It looked somewhere between a fawn and a cat, white again, its legs a nice gradient of lilac. It purred, grazing towards her. She needed to be wary of it, but it was hard when the creature looked so graceful and beautiful. It rubbed its head against her legs, and she realised it wanted to be pet. She sighed. “Fine, fine. You’re not a dangerous one, now, are you?” She scratched it between the pointy ears, and the creature closed its pastel eyes, happy. “Aren’t you a pretty one, though?” she laughed, as the creature licked her face. “Okay, enough now, enough. I need to go home.”

But instead of letting her go, the fawn (cat?) gently bit her skirt, as if trying to drag her somewhere. The birds left the tree, flying a few feet away - the direction the other ‘animal’ was pulling her to.

“I need to go over there?” Of course, there was no answer, but they looked pretty insistent. “Fine, I’m going. Show me.”

They went further and further away into the woods. What if this was a trap? They looked pretty, that didn’t mean they weren’t deadly. And the woods clearly weren’t safe.

A branch snapped behind her, and she turned around to see a gigantic Heartless - now that looked like trouble. But before she could even summon her weapon, the birds started pecking at it, the fawn charged with its tiny antlers. They took down the Heartless faster than Aqua could ever do. Did they protect her? What were they? Where were they taking her? This time, she was really curious about them.

They walked for twenty minutes, and they destroyed all the Heartless (mostly Shadows) on their path. Aqua wondered for the hundredth time what was going on. Until they stopped.

So it was a trap. There was no other explanation. She had been tricked, trusted creatures solely based on how they looked, and now they delivered her to their boss who would use that trust to destroy her.

… Or would he?

If they indeed landed to the very place where Vanitas was, he wasn’t facing them and didn’t even look like he noticed them. He was sitting in a flower field, which was unusual, and he was surrounded by loads of freshly picked flowers, which was unexpected. He was swearing a lot, which at least was something natural. The fawn gently pushed her towards him, and one of the birds perched on her head in silence. She carefully took a step, then another, until she was right behind his back. He was full of openings, so focused on what he was doing that he had not noticed her yet, even though she could almost touch him.

“What are you doing?”

Startled by her, finally noticing her presence, he jumped with a gasp, trying to go back to his feet but falling in a cloud of flying flowers.

“What are you doing? Here I mean?” he snapped, trying to look angry, which wasn’t easy when your face was covered with colourful petals.

“These little ones brought me here.” So he really wasn’t aware they did. This wasn’t a trick. Instead, he just looked at the creatures and frowned.

“Them. I knew I couldn’t trust them. They are abominations.”

“They are pretty cute, I’d say,” Aqua chuckled while petting the fawn. The bird on her head chirped, while the two others landed gently on Vanitas’s shoulders.

With all these flowers and animals, he could join the Princesses of Heart group, Aqua mused, although she didn’t say it out loud.

She looked at the flowers that were on his laps. Delicate blue ones, vibrant pink ones, and subtle white ones. Their stems had been butchered, cut, torn, twisted, but the petals had been carefully preserved.

“What is it you were trying to do?” she asked, crouching next to him. He sat up, his face a bit red.

“Nothing of your concern.”

“Are these yours?” she looked at the creatures next to them. He groaned.

“Yeah. They showed up earlier, when I saw… Never mind. They’re not like my regular Unversed, I don’t know what they are. I call them Inversed. And if they’re not attacking you, then they’re useless pieces of trash.”

“Now, now, no need to be rude to them. They brought me here, protected me, in fact.”

“Like I said, useless pieces of trash.”

She picked the flowers from his lap. Somehow, some or the stems had been knotted together. She gasped. “Could it be… Were you trying to make a flower crown?”

She tried to imagine Master Xehanort with delicate flowers crowning his bald head and had to cough to hide her laughter. Vanitas flushed.

“Laugh all you want. I was actually making a funeral wreath.”

“A wreath? Whose?”

He clicked his tongue. “Saw you sleeping earlier. You looked dead. I thought it would be fun to make a wreath and put it on you. So that you’d look even deader.”

Aqua looked at the flowers again. Blue, pink, white. And from the looks of it, it was way too small for a wreath. But the perfect size for a crown.

“You mean this was… For me?”

“But as soon as I thought about making you one, these idiots showed up.” He glared at his Inversed. “I hate them.”

Aqua chuckled, ruffling his hair before realising he was supposed to be his nemesis. But instead of pushing her away, his face turned a new shade of red, and a dozen of white butterflies started flying over them, their eyes a soft pink.

“Do you want me to teach you how to make them?” What was she thinking? He was her enemy. But right now, he just looked like a human.

“Make what?”

“Crowns. Wreaths. Whatever you want, really. I can teach you how to braid flowers together. I’d hate to see these beautiful flowers be wasted.”

He turned his head away from her, pouting. She waited with a smile. Let him decide if his pride could take it.

Then, after a while, he finally sighed, his shoulders collapsing.

“Fine. Teach me how to make these stupid flower crowns. But once we’re done, promise me one thing.”

“What is that?”

“Fight me.”

She smiled, and he smiled back, and they spent the whole afternoon making flower crowns under the gentle protection of more and more Inversed. When night came, they fought, and when they both were too tired to keep going, they went each their home.

With a beautiful crown circling their heads.

[plumedesimili]

Salvation - Vanqua Week

Challenge : #VanquaWeek day 5 Word Count : 670

***

“You’ve been that way before,” he mused, and she pretended to ignore him, even though she tried another path.

“That way too.”

She sighed, sitting on the floor, burrowing her face into her hands.

“Just face it, Aqua. You’ve been there for months. Years, perhaps. You tried every path there was in this bloody place. Several times, if I may say. It might be time to give up. There is no way out the Realm of Darkness.”

“There is one, and I will find it.”

There was a fiery determination in her eyes when she looked back at him, and he crossed his arms.

“Why do you even bother trying?”

She clenched her fists and jumped back to her feet. Before he knew it, she had grabbed him by the shoulder.

“And why wouldn’t I? I want to leave this place. I want to see the sun and the sky and the world. Why do I bother? Because I won’t go down giving up. Don’t you want to feel fresh air on your skin, even once more?”

Truth was, he had almost given up himself a long time ago. He had woken up alone in this dark and scary place, with no distraction, only danger. He had been bored, he had been lonely. He couldn’t create Unversed, as if the whole place was telling him that his Negativity was child’s play next to what this world could offer. ‘You thought you knew anguish? Let me show you what it really is’, the wind whispered to him.

Oh, he had been this close to just giving up. There was nothing for him out there anyway, so even if he got out, what then? He had been this close to just curl into a ball and wait for his end to finally come. He was a coward, always had been, and he couldn’t turn his weapon on himself, but if Heartless wanted to take a bite and consume him entirely, he wouldn’t have fought back.

And then, one day, one of these long days when death wouldn’t come, he heard her voice. She was fighting a shadow looking just like her, telling her to give up, and she yelled that she wouldn’t, that she would fight until the end. His life down here had been only darkness, and suddenly, there she was, an unexpected light lighting his path. He used to hate and despise her, but after being alone for so long, any life form was more than welcome. He pretended to stick with her because he was bored, because he could torment her forever, but the truth was he wanted to believe in her dreams. He wanted her to be able to see the sky and the sea and the people she loved. There was nothing for him out there, but there was something for her, that much he was sure. He kept repeating he hated her, but he wasn’t so sure anymore, these days they’d fight together, these nights they’d hold hands to remember what human touch felt like, these morning he’d worry not to see her around, these evenings she’d come with bright eyes saying she found a new path to explore.

He pretended he hated her, and she pretended she hated him, but he could see she was checking if he was alright from the corner of her eyes, gathering potions if he got hurt, staying awake so that he could sleep at peace.

They fought, they bickered, they sometimes spent days without talking to each other, but they would always go back to each other. From a foe, she had slowly turned into the only light he could see in the Realm of Darkness, and he would be her shadow.

Despite how futile this seemed, they both shared the same dream, and every step brought them closer to it. They were looking for salvation.

They were looking for a way to get her out of there.  

[plumedesimili]

Alternatives - Vanqua Week

Challenge: #VanquaWeek Day 4 Word Count : 920

“Vanitas, there’s something you’re not telling me, isn’t there?”

He was so surprised he almost dropped his glass. That was a pretty direct attack so early in the morning. Aqua was frowning, staring at him so intensely he wondered if she could read his mind straight away. He sure hoped she couldn’t.

“Well, there are many things I don’t tell you,” he tried with a smirk.

“Like what? You know you can tell me anything.”

“Well, like… This morning, I put my left foot on the floor before my right one. My face was covered with pillow marks, and I obviously drooled in my sleep. Ah, I decided to wear bright red boxer briefs, too. Wow, you’re right, I feel much better now that I told you all that, I shouldn’t have kept this to myself.”

“Hey, stop messing with her.” Terra gently slapped the back of Vanitas’s head with a laugh. “Let her worry for you.”

Vanitas looked at him, then at Aqua. Ven was still asleep. Of course he was. You’d never see him before the sun was set high up in the sky.

“Yeah, yeah. Sorry. Nothing to worry about, Aqua. I’m fine.”

Truth was, he wasn’t fine. He never really felt fine, but he hated the idea of looking so emo and he hid these feelings deep down, using sarcasm as a mask to protect himself.

He excused himself and went back to his room in a hurry, that very familiar feeling in his chest. He had to make it in time.

He had barely closed the door behind him that the nausea attacked once more, painfully, and before he knew it, a strange creature with bright red eyes was staring at him. He summoned his weapon and destroyed it right away, clenching his jaw as the pain rushed through his body.

Creating these monsters was painful, like a piece of his soul being torn apart, and yet destroying them so that they would come back to him was just equally painful.

This was what he never told Aqua. This was what he’d never tell her. He had never been fine, but things were getting worse lately. It had been two years now since Master Eraqus saved both Ven and Van from Xehanort, right after Vanitas was born. Xehanort wanted to create some sort of weapon with them. Eraqus took them away to save them. Neither Ven nor Van remembered anything that had happened before that. And the fact that Vanitas was Ventus’s dark side was a secret well kept between Eraqus and Vanitas. This was exactly why the Master never fully trusted him, even though he kept a facade for the sake of his other students. Terra and Aqua welcomed they both as little brothers, and even though Terra and Vanitas bickered a lot, it still felt like a family and Vanitas had been able to shove down all these dark thoughts that clouded his heart.

But every day made it harder to hide it. He summoned his first monster two months ago in the middle of a nightmare. Destroying it made him sick for a week. And since then, more and more monsters kept showing, kept being destroyed, kept hurting him. He hated that, he hated them, he hated himself. Why couldn’t he be normal? Why couldn’t he be all sunshines and rainbows like Ven, dreams and hopes like Terra, love and trust like Aqua? Why did he fear of being left behind everytime?

“Vanitas. Vanitas, it’s okay, I’m here.”

How come he had not even noticed she was there? When did she open his door? When did she step into his room? When did she wrap her arms around him?

He was cold, he was in pain, he was scared. He felt trapped in a bubble of agony where no one could ever reach him. He was different, he knew that, and he knew they wouldn’t understand. So why did she make so much efforts to try to?

“Talk to me, please. Let me know what is wrong. Let me help.”

Her soft voice was like a needle trying to pop his bubble. A ray of light trying to reach the depths of his pain. She was in danger here. If he let his emotions flow like that, more monsters would show up, and they would harm her.

More monsters would show up, and she’d understand she was hugging the worst of them all. She would reject him, hate him, fear him. She would throw him out. She would be so disappointed, all her truth in him shattered into pieces. He could almost hear her voice, sad, soft, broken. How could you lie to us all for so long? To me? Go away…. you freak.

He clinged tighter to her, sobbing loudly. He didn’t want to hurt her. Out of all people… Not her.

Another voice spoke in his mind, an old, raspy voice that he knew too well and had tried to ignore for so long. You know what to do. You know there’s only one path for you. Stop repressing it and the pain will go away. It’s about time you embrace the Darkness, don’t you think?

All he wanted to embrace right now was Aqua.

But the voice was right.

Perhaps it was time to leave. To embrace his fate. To follow the path he was supposed to.

Maybe Darkness was his only solution.

“I’m here, Vanitas. I’m here.”

He hugged her as tight as he could. He hated his only solution.

[plumedesimili]

Your Vanqua week fanfics are amazing!

Thank you so much! Vanqua holds a very dear place to my heart, and I was so excited about this week. The reactions so far are making me so so so happy, I hope you'll enjoy the next ones as well 💖