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Her blue eyes glitter under the chandeliers light and he can't shake his gaze from them. They crinkle slightly when she smiles. It feels like forever since he last saw her as genuinely care free and happy.
- Come on Terra, come dance!
He tries an apologetic smile.
- Idon't… maybe a bit later.
Before she can insist, and he knows she will, the trumpets blare and the room stills. All heads turn to the grand entrance, the tall, carved wooden doors and the couple standing under them.
- The prince and princess!
The royal couple gracefully tread in, all eyes on them, but one pair. Terra is looking at Aqua instead, and doesn't miss the slight blush coloring her cheeks as she takes the scene in. As their crowned heads get drowned in the sea of guests and the lively roar of conversations starts anew, he jabs her lightly in the ribs.
- Is it hot in here, or do you have a crush on the prince?
- I what? No! Of course I don't.
He goes to pinch her cheek but a merry crowd barges in, led by Ventus, and washes them away from each other.
Guys, have you seen the buffet? And the gardens? I heard there's gonna be fireworks, can you believe that? Oh, Aqua, come dance with us!
He takes her hand, not letting go of Roxas with his other one. Roxas looks bewildered and hangs on to Xion for dear life while she's laughing uncontrollably. This tornado of gremlins wisps Aqua away and they start a riot a little way away as Ventus insists on dancing in a ring. Terra looks somewhat longingly, wishing he could be as silly and free, and knowing damn well he would rather die before anyone caught him doing that.
Silent as a cat, Riku stalks next to him and hand him a glass of something bubbly and too sweet.
- Thanks.
That's a good excuse for everyone to stop inviting him to dance, even though Ventus clearly guessed that it would be a lost battle. Terra is officially a wallflower.
He stares at Aqua, still. Why is it that no matter what he does, his eyes find her in the crowd? There must be hundreds of people here, and yet, he can only see her. Blurry as she twirls in her evening dress, half hidden behind guests, shining under the soft light like a blinding sun, it's all the same to him. She attracts his gaze like a magnet.
- Mickey told me before, that she's like Sora.
Riku has been following his gaze and his green eyes are fixed on Aqua as Ventus breaks the circle and tries to dance a waltz with her. Terra adverts his eyes. The sadness on Riku's face is painful to watch.
- I did not know her then, but I think… That I see it now.
She's not even trying to teach Ventus the right steps, instead just follows his chaotic lead with her usual lightness, laughing and occasionally steering him away from the other dancers. Terra's heart feels so heavy in his chest, it's hard to breath.
- She's more like you, I think. She's calm, composed. She has a habit of sacrificing everything she has, down to everything she is, for her friends. She never stays down.
Riku starts with that.
- Like me?
He frowns, and his gaze is piercing. He's seeing right through him, reading him like an open book. Terra turns away again, just in time as the royal couple gets to the merry dancers for their round of salutations.
There it is again, that light blush on her cheeks. What is it about that prince that flusters her? He's as tasteless as they come, his blend features completely forgettable. It doesn't help that Terra can still feel Riku's gaze burning through him.
Cinderella looks delighted to see Aqua, and takes her hands in as warm an embrace as her rank allows, while Aqua tries to bow and nearly headbutts the princess.
And Riku giggles. It's not a sound Terra was expecting from him. Now that he's started he can't stop, he's crying and holding his ribcage and out of breath and yet he just goes on and on and on.
- Oh man, don't tell me you're jealous of the prince charming?
Terra's cheeks grow hot. His voice comes out too high and devolves into a grumble.
- I'm not jealous! He's just… Uninteresting.
- You think Aqua has a crush on him.
He fights the urge to pout, and remembers that he hasn't heard Riku laugh like that in ages. Maybe even ever.
- She was blushing so hard. And I guess he is charming.
Riku giggles some more, as if Terra said something hilarious. He turns away, and there she is, red as a poppy, dancing a soft waltz with Cinderella.
- Oh, you're killing me. She doesn't have a crush on the prince. She has one on Cinderella.
Terra blinks. The prince is nowhere to be seen, swallowed by the crowd. Aqua is stepping over her own feet, face beet red, as Cinderella chats and swirls. Even Ven caught on, and he's cheering Aqua on from behind the princess' back.
Terra's stomach drops like lead.
- Ah.
Riku pats him on the back, finally getting the best of his wild giggle.
- Cheer up. It's just a silly crush.
But it's not. Cinderella is a heart of pure light, while Terra is so tainted with darkness he's always expecting it to ooze from his fingertips, to rise in tendrils from his shadow, to stick to him like a second skin. Riku's expression sobers.
- I think this is why Mickey said that she's like Sora. She has a strong light, and she will never love you less if you have darkness in your heart. She will show you the right path.
- If I'm ready to listen.
So far he has not been very good at listening to others. Aqua has never given up, going after him time and time again, until she had nothing left, standing at the heart of the darkness with no armor and no keyblade. Sadness and pain still cling to her, he knows, and she hates being alone now. Every time he wakes up to find her in the kitchen, surrounded by a seven courses meal preparation for their breakfast because she couldn't sleep alone in her room, he feels like he's been punched in the guts.
Here she stands, shining softly, this warm light he had taken for granted until she was wrenched away from him. She deserves to be happy, and cherished, she deserves the purest heart as a companion. He already cost her so much.
Riku's touch is as delicate as a bird lending on his arm. Terra tries to paste a smile back on his face.
This is a party, we are happy, I am happy.
- Terra, listen to me.
Riku chases his gaze, forcing him to look at him, into these melancholic green eyes.
- You have to forgive yourself.
- Easier said than done.
- No, you know me. You know we are alike. Trust me, you have to let it go. Accept it, do better.
The trumpets blare again and Riku disappears in the flow of the crowd as they excitedly file outside for the fireworks. Terra stares at the blurred reflection in his glass, at the blue eyed stranger in the bubbles, and downs it in one go.
The air outside is chilly, and it helps him. There's too many people, too much excitement, and he can't help being tense, alert, ready for trouble. There won't be any, he knows, but he can't help it, he's all exits memorized already.
There are carpets and coverlets on the grass, and the merry guests settle everywhere in the garden for the show. Terra spots Ven, Roxas and Xion near an ornamental pond, where Roxas looks like he's about ready to throw Ven in the water. Aqua isn't with them.
She's not with Cinderella either, who's attended by half a dozen people arranging her a seat and taking care of her ball gown as the prince charming smiles vacantly.
Terra only has to follow the light tug of his heartstrings to find her. It's an effortless act, as natural as breathing, and there she is, shrouded in darkness, standing under a tree. Her expression is impossible to read from here, but Terra has a hunch that she might want some quiet company. He strides through the gardens, careful not to step on delicate, lacy shoes or hems, navigating the small islands of happy guests with ease.
- Hi.
- Hey.
She offers him a weak smile.
- Want to sit?
She starts to shake her head, but it turns into a sad nod.
- I have nothing to sit on, and I don't want to stain my dress.
It's a lovely dress, night blue, and the fabric looks light and delicate. Probably the kind that tears easily. Terra sits crossed legs on the earth.
- Sit on my lap then.
It's too dark to be sure, but he thinks that she blushed a little. She sits. Rests her back across his chest, tilting her head on his shoulder. It's comfortable, having her like this, so close to him, so warm.
They stay in silence and in darkness, alone under the tree in the secluded corner of the gardens. He can feel her heartbeat through the flimsy fabric of their clothes, soft and regular. His body is overwhelmed with all the feels of her, the scent of her hair, the warmth, the pressure, the textures, and he wants to remember all of it, every second in all its complexity, in all its beauty. At this moment his body doesn't feel like a threat anymore, and for a minute, he loses himself in his senses.
Then the fireworks starts and blinds him. Aqua doesn't start, she stares at the show, exploding flowers of light reflected in the depth of her eyes. Terra doesn't care much for it, but as long as she's looking, they stay like this, close, closer than they've been in years.
The fireworks show comes to an end in a flourish of deafening detonations, and as the wind suddenly turns they are showered in a thick mist of ashes and cinders that quickly sends all the guest back inside. Under the tree, Terra and Aqua are shielded from it, and Aqua extend her hand to try and catch a flying ember. It's too far for her to reach. Terra wishes he could use magic, and ignite all of them again, make a meteor shower just to see her smile. Instead she gets up, and offers him a hand. He takes it.
- Thank you.
He shakes his head.
- Nothing to thank me for.
- You saved my dress.
- Or your feet. Depending.
She winces.
- These shoes are killing me. I don't know how all these ladies do all the time.
He chuckles lightly, and brushes the earth and twigs out of his pants as best he can.
- Let me help.
They've done this dozen of times. Playing around, falling, getting dirty, helping each other up and brushing each other clean. But tonight, in these castle gardens, under this tree, it feels embarrassing to have Aqua pat him like that. He shakes his head.
- I'm okay.
She doesn't answer. She waits for him to be done, turned slightly away, looking at the fast dispersing clouds of smoke from the fireworks.
- There's a storm coming.
Right on cue, the wind kicks up and ruffles the tree leaves, sending her hair whipping across her cheeks.
- It's a good thing the ball ends at midnight, then.
Aqua is rarely wrong when it comes to storms. Terra steals a look at the clock tower behind the castle, its hands showing 11:45. Aqua follows his gaze, and turns back toward him.
- This is gonna be the last dance.
He nods. Her eyes shine under the intermittent moonlight.
- Dance with me?
His stomach knots in a painful twist, but she offers her hand, she's looking at him, they're alone, together, and he wants nothing more than to be with her so he takes it in a heartbeat and lets her move his other hand to the small of her back. She leads, ever so gently, the smallest of push and tug, the easiest steps, ever thoughtful, and he lets her, follows her cues, falls in with her rhythm, eyes fixed on her, on the sliver of a smile on her lips, on the crinkle of her blue eyes. The music is distant, he can barely hear it, but he didn't need to, for tonight they're dancing to the tune of their hearts, of the wind, of the universe finally falling in place. Aqua takes confidence, she goes for more complicated steps, and Terra follows, attune to the language of their skin singing directions. He knows two steps before that she's going to stop, and instead of letting go, he tugs at her hand.
It's a spur of the moment thing, he only does it because he doesn't want to let her go. He never thought she'd actually fall in his arms. Yet here he is, Aqua against him, warm and smiling and looking up to him, so he might as well complete the motion, close the dance, and on the first strike of midnight, he kisses her.
On the second, she kisses him back.