a-wayfounder-blog

[a-wayfounder-blog]

“Can I ask you something?”

It was a long shot, of course, but... she’d met all kinds of people here, people from her world (worlds?) and not, and she found it was hard to tell them apart in some ways. But something struck her as familiar about this woman. Maybe it was something in her air, or her style of clothing.

She knew it was awkward to lead off with a question out of the blue, as it were, so she leaned back with an apologetic smile and stretched out her gloved hand. “My name is Aqua, by the way. I was wondering if you could tell me... where you’re from. You remind me of someone I know, I think.” Not quite that, but it didn’t hurt to bend the truth a little.

@imcatholic

[a-wayfounder-blog]

[ ooc

sorry for the shit activity in the last few months, mun’s been going Thru It but trying to get back in the swing of things and fight rp anxiety.

[a-wayfounder-blog]

She had taken a wrong turn, and her phone was of no assistance in directing her to the place she needed to be, both because of its objective difficulty in pinpointing her location and because of her lack of experience with the device. With a sense of rising unease, Aqua looked around at the passing faces, pinpointing one that might be... one of the city’s helpers that she could ask for directions? (It wasn’t, but one might forgive her the guess.)

“Excuse me,” Aqua said, coming to a standing stop near the woman. “I’m not sure if you can help me, but... may I ask you for some direction?”

@techmaturgically

[a-wayfounder-blog]

“Oh!”

She’d been bustling along the storefronts with a bag nestled in the crook of her elbow; there was a sense of rhythm and routine to be found in cooking and baking, a sense of rhythm and routine she found herself dearly missing in this place. It made her homesick to make the recipes she’d so commonly used in the Land of Departure, so she had taken to learning strange “local” traditions, which took a bit more of her attention when it came to selecting her ingredients. Therefore, she found herself accidentally bumping hips with the woman next to her at the stand, and Aqua turned with her free hand flying up to her mouth.

“Oh, I’m sorry about that.” She blinked, her head tilting inquisitively.

“I didn’t expect to see someone with hair my color in Spirale. Can I ask where you’re from?”

@eyebrand

[a-wayfounder-blog]

inanum·:

Well aware of her mastery he was, but all the same…he could acknowledge she deserved it. It wasn’t her fault she’d ended up the way she did. No…

The fault may as well have lay with him, given the sum of his parts.

He began to wander; his path seeming to take him to the kitchen. Again, that nagging feeling. Wouldn’t it stop?

 “You’re welcome. Reputation….something to that effect, yes.” He stopped to turn around, looking at her once more, as if looking towards her would give him some answer he didn’t have. “What have you seen at the dark margin, exactly?”

She couldn’t figure why he wanted to know such a thing, but she owed him some forthcoming answers. Aqua relaxed and wandered further into the lodgings they shared once Xemnas had allowed her some space to do so; her fingers dragged gently against the wall, taking in the textures and sensations of being in such a place after so long in the darkness.

“Miles of nothing,” she admitted. “It’s a sad place... water and sand and flotsam. And Ansem and I, we sat there a while. We ended up on the beach the same way the driftwood did.”

Even just thinking, talking about the place seemed to suck some of the light out of the room. She was glad to be out... yet in some queer way she found she missed its haunting beauty.

[a-wayfounder-blog]

inanum·:

At this point he was simply allowing his own dexterity to serve him purpose; gliding-without-gliding-really past black ones whilst watching (and avoiding) whatever they decided to bring with them. They weren’t quite like heartless, but it definitely did fill him with a sense of deja-vu. …

“Aqua–Ah, I wasn’t given anything upon my arrival,” If he had any ability to be embarrassed, he might be, but that still didn’t stop him from going through the motions of a similar emotion. Still, he had no idea why he didn’t at least have a semblance of a sword either–was it some sort of punishment? “What happened to your blade? Did you not say you were a keyblade master?”

Something lightly bounced upon his head, a balloon, its static charge allowing some of his hair to cling yet as it tried to escape…

That was a sore subject, and Aqua shifted a little, readjusting the grip on her little swords. “I can’t summon it here,” she said quietly. She had lost it in the Dark Realm, but Xemnas didn’t need to know that -- she wasn’t too keen on announcing her failures to anyone that would listen. She’d let him believe it was taken from her, at least for now.

“Besides,” she said, perking herself up by her own efforts -- who would if she didn’t, after all? -- “this toy does the trick for now. We just have to pop balloons, as far as I understand it.” To demonstrate, she took a sudden swing at the white one that had appeared above Xemnas's head, just in range of her weapon; it popped with little effort. “If you stick with me, we should be okay.” She gave a little smile, an apology for the jump she might've given him by swinging at his head like that.

[a-wayfounder-blog]

Most people she passed seemed to be fighting off the white balloons while ignoring the black ones that seemed more inclined to swarm random bystanders, and Aqua shook her head with a frown at the sight. Maybe people didn’t want to be harassed by more of them, or maybe they had other reasons for not wanting to attack them, but the black ones seemed to be the bigger danger...

A group of them swarmed around something that, as she drew nearer, revealed itself to be a fallen figure; dashing into the fray, Aqua brought her wooden sword in a huge horizontal arc, popping a group of the weird black balloons all at once. In a second easy motion, she adjusted her grip on the sword and pulled back the other direction, dispatching the last two that had dodged the first strike. A cursory glance confirmed the danger had passed, and then Aqua settled one knee on the ground, holding out a hand to the prone woman.

“Are you all right?”

@heilengel

[a-wayfounder-blog]

Weird cat-shaped balloons had sprung up all over the Ward, balloons that she had been ready to leave alone -- until she saw them starting to harass other people. All she had was a little wooden sword, a little like Terra’s practice keyblade, but it showed it was enough to defeat the creatures.

She focused on the black ones since they seemed to be more aggressive, and she wondered idly if these things were anything like Unversed or Heartless.

On her mission, she ran into her (unarmed) roommate, and Aqua jogged up to the man in question, looking around for any more of the cat balloons. “Xemnas,” she greeted him. “Don’t you have something to fight with? It’s not safe out here.” Sure, they didn’t seem too dangerous now... but it wouldn’t pay for them to let their guards down so easily.

@inanum

[a-wayfounder-blog]

inanum·:

“It would seem we would be….though how is beyond my knowledge,” The Xehanort within him was actually offering nothing in terms of information. There was no sense of urgency to figure out…though now that he was at a loss, he did have to wonder. He had no business here, but at the same time…to what end had this occurred. If he were to reappear…would it not be within the labs of Radiant Garden? 

“I believe the man you saw is…is a man named Ansem, who had a lab within Radiant Garden. His objectives were not unlike your own.”

He was aware of her gaze trailing onto him, and there was that nagging feeling again. Why was it this persistent? He knew there was nothing to do to solve it. (His coffin was nailed shut roughly ten years ago, when someone chose to place their trust their trust in the wrong place.)

“As for myself…the simple answer is that my name is Xemnas. You don’t know me, but I know you.”

It was a good thing, at least, that this Xemnas seemed ready to answer her questions. She could take comfort in that... and if he was some sort of bad guy, he didn’t seem like he knew everything there was to know. Not like Master Xehanort and his smug smiles.

“I see...” She raised a hand to her chin thoughtfully, wondering why she thought she should remember that name. It felt like it was on the tip of her tongue, the reason why... but she’d forgotten a lot of things over ten years, at least the unimportant things. “Thank you for telling me all of this.” She could appreciate that he wasn’t being difficult with her on purpose -- there were just questions neither of them knew the answers to.

She should be surprised that he spoke of knowing her, but she chalked it up to another detail she’d forgotten, though the name didn’t ring to her as Ansem’s did. “By reputation, I guess,” she proposed as an answer to herself aloud. “Since I’m a Keyblade Master and all.”

[a-wayfounder-blog]

baddestdangerboy·:

No, not even becoming of the weirdos that frequent the city, weaving in and out of their lives like some  kind of thread that tangles them all together. 

Badou takes some kind of pity on her, laying there as she is, looking delirious, and stoops down, a lit cigarette offered.

“You look like you could use this.”

The nice, fresh breeze she had been enjoying across her face was muddled by the smell of something odd, just shy of foul; it made her want to sneeze, and she sat up as the person loomed over her, looking between him and the stick(?) he was offering.

No matter how nice it was to see another person after so long, the smell of the thing made her pause in accepting it politely. Some kind of local delicacy? “What is it?” she wondered, tilting her head to the side just a hair.

[a-wayfounder-blog]

now that i've gotten my personal life in more order, i'm here to lift the hiatus on aymeric de borel from final fantasy xiv (this blog) and aqua from kingdom hearts (a-wayfounder). thank you again for the help!

Welcome back!

–Mod Lyra

[a-wayfounder-blog]

hey mods! not sure if i can do this but it's a bit of an emergency, i am being admitted to inpatient intensive care for a week and i would like to put aymeric de borel of final fantasy xiv (this blog) and aqua of kingdom hearts (a-wayfounder) on hiatus

Noted for you! Get well soon!

–Mod Lyra

[a-wayfounder-blog]

inanum·:

Interesting. So the powers that be chose to put them together, how serendipitous, if fate hadn’t been so cruel to both of them. If he was under objective, this could’ve proved quite fortuitous–that was the Xehanort in him talking, certainly, and shoved that mentality aside in his mind. There was nothing to gain from that logic at this time.

His head tilted, however, at the mention of Sora in relation to his coat, of all things..There was another name there–she had no knowledge of Roxas. There were more direct paths for her to take to that path of recognition–so to where the name crossed her mind was. Ansem, that’d do it. So his teacher hadn’t died, after all. 

 “To answer your questions, first…this ward is called Golden, and this seems to be a large city, but not any world I’ve known to be connected to …..,” he gestured with a hand, trying to find the words. “I don’t think it’s connected in the way you and I would know of worlds to be connected.” 

“I know Sora, yes. Though…” Again he let his voice drift. To say he was not an ally would raise more conflict. To bring up the man Ansem’s name would also raise suspicion…and did he really have any reason to hide any of this? No ulterior motive actually came to mind, except survival. Part of him at the base level just wanted to coexist, in a…not quite friendly manner, no. Well, maybe a small neglected part of him wanted that, but he’d never admit it. “The man in the coat you met has likely stolen or duplicated that coat in his own manner. It was not gifted to him.”

“Not connected?” Her gaze fell thoughtfully, resting somewhere near the chain of the man’s hood. “Then... were we brought here?” And for what purpose? She had certainly not arrived here under her own power, at least.

She watched his gestures, his thoughtful pauses, reminded again of someone, though she could not put her finger on whom.

He didn’t seem to light up at Sora’s name the way she knew she herself had, though she wasn’t sure if that was a detail to pay attention to. It was clear they had acquaintances in common, if nothing else, which raised her hopes that maybe she wasn’t so far from home.

It was a silly thought, but -- maybe. Maybe Terra or Ven was in this city somewhere, and that’s why she had ended up here. She’d been gone so long...

The stranger made a reference to the man in the coat, and she blinked. She hadn’t said anything about him, had she? “You mean the man on the Dark Margin? Who is he?

“And I’ll ask again... who are you? You know my name, but I don’t know yours.” Her eyes softened just a bit. “Have we met?”

[a-wayfounder-blog]

inanum·:

His steps halted. Of course she’d recoil. That was fine, hearing her voice was all he needed. This really was her, and they were both in the same apartment. But Aqua remembered naught of who he was–despite her having every reason to recognize him at least as Xemnas, one of old man Xehanort’s cronies, not as….as the other one.

And this too fell into place like a puzzle piece he knew well. Of course the darkness had done it themselves, pulling forth the past and using that past to taunt the light. And so it seemed the same would occur here, but with the roles reversed. How quaint.

A hand slowly moved to his chest, his gaze just as slowly sweeping away. He knew what pieces he’d been dealt, but how he approached these were up to him. 

“I believe that’s a question…that matters most if you too were assigned to these quarters. If you’re here by mere chance…then I’m simply someone who’s caught wind of your travels.” He sounded more like himself now, his volume still soft but his cadence long. That creeping, horrible seared around the hole where a heart should be. Why did he have the need to feel this, when he knew full well Aqua reacted this way because she simply lacked information, and due to no direct act of his own? 

His golden eyes met hers, though they didn’t seem to belie any emotion in particular. “By the way…you have no need to cling to your weapon so dearly. I seek not to harm you.”

The strange man moved very slowly, almost as if trying to assure her that he wasn’t a threat. It was true, at least, that he would’ve attacked her if he had any reason to. So she lowered the weapon a little, letting it hang at her side, her gaze wandering around the room they stood in. Looked like living quarters as she knew them, even if there were some things she didn’t recognize.

She wondered how long she’d be allowed to stay here.

“Yes, I was,” she affirmed, still looking around, as she hadn’t when she first entered -- the man had captured her full attention then. “Where are we? Do you know?”

Her gaze traveled back over the man once more, a flicker of recognition sparked by the coat he wore zippered to his collar. She knew someone who wore that coat -- had spoken with him for a while on the Dark Margin. It was strange; she couldn’t remember what had happened between then and arriving here.

“That coat,” she observed aloud. “Do you know him -- ?”

She’d meant to give a name, but realized she didn’t know who he was. That man on the beach.

She knew the name he’d spoken, though, the name of the boy on the island, and something possessed her to give that, rather than any other. She wasn’t sure why; it just felt right.

“Do you know Sora?”

[a-wayfounder-blog]

inanum·:

He was the only one in the apartment for the time being. Multiple rooms; it’d seem as though there’d be others with him. He was no stranger to communal housing. No matter.

(It’d matter someday. Emotions were returning. Stability was questionable. Xemnas made note of this, storing it away for some other time.)

Gloved hands traced furniture as he finally came to rest in an armchair in the main living space. Its emptiness was simply observed, the absence of habitation meaning naught aside from it being suitable living quarters. Of course there was that creeping pesky something of emotion that wanted to ebb into his empty train of thought, which was met with a sigh and ignored. 

As far as he knew, he had no objective here. His initial objective was completed, Xehanort’s experiment properly pulled out, and–he tapped his fingers on the arms, a steady legato–was certain Xehanort was non-factor by now. So then what was left for him, a being made to lead with nothing to lead? 

He knew nothing of this world either. He rose, a great weighted motion, heading for the balcony to take a look onto this ‘Golden Ward’ he’d been directed to. It was …livelier than the World That Never Was. The noise of traffic below was captivating, white noise allowing him to empty his brain. He wasn’t sure how long he was there before the telltale noises of a door opening could be heard. It felt like nothing. Maybe it was longer.

What mattered is, he had company now, and he inhaled, bracing himself to meet whomsoever he had company with–

“You.” The words were quiet, they commanded none of the authority and temporal space he usually did. So this is how it would be, his strange captors had him sorted with a woman lost to him for a decade? A woman he was pitted against in the battle of light and dark? 

She looked as she did in the graveyard, having aged not a day. A distant memory while he’d been…he’d been taken and consumed and distorted by the darkness. (or was that him? It was certainly his body, but did he have any ownership to Terra, as an identity?) He walked forward, paces controlled, measured, keeping his distance but still needing the verification that it was indeed her, and he hadn’t become the source of entertainment for a sleeping world.

“Aqua?” A mask of confusion, a list of proper facial ticks to hit were activated, though he swore he could feel something more to the tug of each muscle.

@a-wayfounder

She’d awoken with a start laying on the ground with no keyblade in sight. The weapon she’d been left with was a far cry from what she was used to, but if it had to work in a pinch...

No magic, either, besides a flimsy barrier that seemed to vibrate with the force she needed to muster to conjure it. She felt new, and not in a good way -- well, yes in a good way (the sun was refreshing on her dark-paled skin) but she felt very defenseless in this new and strange place.

She could only hope she’d have no need to defend herself for now...

That was the thought lingering in her mind when she entered the quarters assigned to her (how very strange) after some time having wandered the nearby area, curious to see more of the place in which she’d found herself.

The man within the communal living space caught her attention with only a word, and when she met his eyes she found herself shaken at the sight. As if she was looking at an old, old friend, but not one she recognized.

What friend did she have whose hair grew that white?

But he seemed to recognize her, and as he stepped forward she found herself stepping instinctively back, toward the door she’d closed behind her. Her heel touched to it, and she tightened her grip on the flimsy wooden weapon.

“Who are you?” she asked steadily, her eyes searching his face for answers, planes she thought she should recognize... but that came up blank.

[a-wayfounder-blog]

Somewhere in her wandering of the Realm of Darkness, somehow, she ended up here. A strange city where buildings of metal and glass rose up and up and up toward the wide blue sky.

She’d found her way back to the Realm of Light, maybe? She didn’t know how that could be... but the fall of the winter sun upon her skin was warmer than anything she’d felt in who knew how long, and so it was no surprise to her that she let fall a tear or two, something in her chest uncoiling in relief. She even laughed a little, the sound unfamiliar to her after all this time, the muscles involved straining from lack of use.

But all that aside, she was laying on the ground with her arms splayed and a wooden weapon in her grip, giggling to herself as she looked up at the sun and the wide, wide sky.

Not a very becoming look for a Keyblade Master, was it?

[a-wayfounder-blog]

took a little longer than my reserve period, but I hope I'm still good here -- applying Aqua from Kingdom Hearts! the application can be found on link iii or /dossier. thank you!!

Welcome to scenic Isola Radiale, Aqua!

You will be housed in APARTMENT 353.

You will retain the ability to create a barrier up to five times daily and will receive a wooden sword with a keychain attached to it.

– mod pleiades.