Hey everyone got some snippets of the final chapter of the Regretful Keys to Rechained Memories arc titled Starlit Strelitzia‘s and the search for a x for you. first the beginning and part of the middle of the first Ven portion.
Plain italics once again represent a characters thoughts. While italics within regular quotes represent something said in a flashback.
Ventus
I awaken at my station, shining with new faces. I had just come from another batch of dreamily magical memories but now my heart has brought me here. Why now? Am I waking up? I wondered. A peculiarly familiar female voice answers my question “Your heart brought you here because I asked it to and I followed the red string to get here.”
A red string where?
I look to my hands and find it, a small red string tied around my left thumb. Footsteps come closer tugging the string towards the left. Then I spot it in my periphery, the flowery frills of a white dress outlined with a slightly glitchy and ever spirit like blue hue. Recognition and bewilderment shines in my voice as I ask.
“Are you?...”
A small chuckle like mine makes my eyes go wide as she answers “Yes I am. It’s nice to meet you again, Ventus.”
My surprise turns into a melancholic and regretful smile “Wish I could say the same… Strelitzia. But I’m not the one you should be visiting. I'm not worth it. You should-”
“I should be visiting my brother right, don't worry I already have granted in a different form than this but still a visit nonetheless and plus I wanted to see you like my brother did without the well you know…”
I nod “yeah I get it. That wasn’t my finest hour by a long shot, a very very long shot.” She chuckles again “you could say that again.”
Silence washes over us and my eyes suddenly start to burn and well up as I state “nothing will erase it I know but I still wanna make it up somewhat.”
“He already forgives you ya know.”
“I know but I’m talking about you…” she goes silent as I turn pensive. An idea then pops in like a lightbulb as we meet each others gazes my station beautifully reflected in her emerald iris “Lauriam tells me you like good views is that still true?”
“Where I am, nothing of yours ever changes, it only festers. I am technically dead after all.”
I wince at the word choice thinking you're dead because of me. She smiles with a small flicker of forgiveness allowing me to shake the regret off at least a little. I smile. What is it about you two that always seems to put me at ease? I would say it’s the fact that I’m younger than the both of you but that's not accurate anymore is it? I break the silence with a question “You’ve probably seen all the good views in town already though right?”
She nods “yeah I have.”
“There’s one view though I think you haven’t seen one that I owe you. Do you mind if I bring you there?”
She chuckles again before saying “Of course not. But if you think this gets you out of the earful I’m gonna have to give the both of you when we reunite then you’ve got another thing coming.”
“Believe me I don't.”
The forgiveness flickers again as she says “good.”
Memories flash across my station now soon settling in on the Leopardus Welcome Center. The memory won’t budge. “Looks like my heart wants to take the long route.”
“Well a little tour won't hurt right?”
“True… shall we?”
She nods and chuckles, taking my hand “yes we shall.” We jump into the memory.
“Hey is that Neilios?”she asks.
“Yeah he showed me around Daybreak Town the first couple days. You know him?”
“Yeah he helped me transfer unions.”
“Transfer? I didn't know you could do that. What union did you choose the first time?”
“Ursus. Mostly because my brother picked it. I was only seven at the time so I thought we should stick together but once I hit double digits I found that I fit better in Leo so I switched.”
“I see…” The memory then flashes to the fountain square and recognition flashes in both of us. Neilios is there showing my 8 year old self the mission board and soon after my Chirithy appears. I smile fondly as I see my younger self pet her and scoop her up as Neilios says he wants to show me something but before the memory switches Strelitzia points toward a building. “That was my favorite perch. The day you arrived I was on a raid mission with Elrena.” The clock tower rings 12 times “I think we might’ve just missed you.” I nod as the memory comes to the market “I remember this the first time I ever had a jelly tart. Aqua’s recipe tastes the same. I wonder how it survived. Master Eraqus liked the snack too; maybe the baker’s descendants survived.” I take two from the counter mirroring Neilios by saying “here my treat.” She smiles, “thanks Ventus.”
I smile back “please call me Ven.”
Another chuckle. “Will do.”
The memory switches again to the bridge by the clock tower. The Union Leaders and I entered the tower for the first time. She recognizes her brother and I straight away but turns curious at the sight of the other three. “Who were they, the other Union Leaders?”
I light up “You mean Skuld, Ephemer and Brain? Oh they… were amazing both as leaders and friends.”
“So, tell me Ven how were they as friends?”
I smile. “Well Skuld was compassionate, fair and strong with both her mind and her key. When not on duty she was fun and full of stories. She told us some about a magic fox full of trickery, some about heroes solving all sorts of mysteries and some were of her folks' tales and family history. Once she told us she was named after a goddess who weaved the threads of the future and gave wisdom and strength to brave soldiers who sought it. When I first heard it I believed wholeheartedly that she lived up to her namesake but when I told her about it she shook her head and smiled saying ‘Well I try and that's what matters. No one can know everything or see everything from every angle Ven. But it's always nice to have something to strive for and to dream about a future where we are all safe and content with our knowledge finally able to share it with others… Still, Ven cherish what you have now as building forward is sometimes not as easy as you think it’ll be.’ Skuld thought deeply about others and worked hard to make everyone happy, helping anyway she could. She’s definitely still out there and I know she’ll be happy to meet and see you.”
“You mean see all of us.”
I nod “Yeah all of us.”
A silence comes over us briefly as our past selves just stand there in front of the door wondering who would dare to take the first step. Everyone shared unsure glances but after one Ephemer was done the next glances were friendly and determined. He was done waiting. He rubbed his hands against his scarf, took a deep breath and then opened the door without his key. He turned back to us with a warm but small smile and soon one by one we all stepped inside with both wonder and weight.
She breaks the silence now with “Ephemer seems like a friendly guy.”
I nod “He is. He was full of adventure and curiosity and was always ready to lend a helping hand. He is a hero to me, bold, loyal, honest and hardworking. Despite his skill he was always humble and he helped me realize how vast the world really was. He taught me many things and made me feel included. Off of duty he chatted with us and the dandelions often and was also quite a prankster. He cracked jokes, played games, and told many stories, most just as adventurous as he was…” I trailed off in my nostalgia. Oh what I would give to hear one of those stories again from his own lips. My heart pangs. No, don't act like he’s gone, he would've found a way to live on. He always found his way back after long adventures after all. Snapping out of my thoughts I turned and asked “Hey, have you ever wondered why the Foretellers had animal masks?”
She nods and smiles widely “of course I did. He knew why?”
“Yeah he knew. In fact it was the first story he ever told us. There were seven animals tasked with making sure the world worked the way it should and protecting us, the Lights creation all with their own roles to play. But I really shouldn’t be the one to tell you the tale.”
She becomes more curious “Why not?”
I shake my head “Well I can’t spoil everything. Ephemer is still out there after all I’m sure of it. He's been waiting to tell it to you for a long time and I don't wanna ruin it for him.”
She nods before saying “I see…”
As the memory moves to the Foreteller's chambers and our first task. “So this is the Master’s room.” Brain says as he saunters to the Master's desk with a light unphased confidence. By moving he seemed to break the unsure spell that held me captive and I immediately burst forward taking the chance to take the whole room in. Skuld and Ephemer came in slower, Skuld calling after us “Try not to touch anything.” At this my excitement fades a bit before Brain settles himself into the Master’s chair and starts aimlessly flipping through the pages of the book on the desk. He responds back to her with “Why not? It’s ours now isn’t it?” Ephemer agrees a little half -heartedly as I carefully take a seat at the table and Brain continues flipping through the pages.
“Mysterious type isn’t he,” says Strelitzia. I nod
“Yeah, Brain was mysterious at first, always smart and confident. He was the only leader who could tell me things that I didn't want to hear. Say them plain as they were with no sugar coats…” the scene continues behind us. Lauriam enters thoughtfully asking “What now?” Skuld suggests taking care of the unions. Ephemer answers wisely but I hesitate and Brain in response says “Grow a backbone would ya?”
I turn to her “See.”
She nods solemnly but I continue saying “but Brain taught me many other things about keyblades, about synthesis his hobby and about the world around us. How it worked, how it ticked. He may have been blunt but underneath all the mystery and his confident, sharp and ever on guard mind was the heart of a hardworking teddy bear who would do anything to make sure nothing he held dear was ever taken away or broken.” The memories shift multiple times. Helping Brain with synthesis, getting bangles that he worked all night to make, delivering books and food to his always messy, always occupied desk helping his Chirithy with the blanket, the times we spared and he taught me technique in a stern, steady manner but also with plenty of patience just like Master Eraqus did and finally him closer to the endgame slumped in the control room smiling faintly when I came in to deliver his tea, spending all night with us to build that second monument and curling close and protectively that final night under the fort together. “ Brain and my master were excellent teachers but they are both long gone now. I wonder what they both think of this, think of me?”
“Hmm. I see.”
Then the memories change once again to the pier where the fireflies gathered. Footsteps turning to splashes, Whispers turning to laughter and soft smiles growing wider as flickering lights of fireflies make our hearts burn brighter. She looks in awe at the dandelions and us union leaders as we play with the fireflies. I smiled looking at the view of my friends all playing in the water, the just setting sun making the horizon blush roses. She notices it too “The sky is so beautiful and everyone looks so happy.” I nod “This was one of the moments where being union leaders didn’t matter. Where every worry could melt away. Where…”
“We could just be kids.” she finishes as I meet her gaze. I nod “yeah be kids…”
Fireflies glimmer as the memory continues, soon guiding us to the point where Lauriam and I sat on the steps to reminisce and make new memories. The audio, having been mostly echoey this entire time, turns clearer and more focused on Lauriam and I. She perks up as he says “Her name’s Strelitzia.”
“This was also the moment…”
“You first learned my name.” She finishes as I nod.
“Yeah. I remember that afterwards my heart had a lot of questions and that I tried to reach deep because I could've sworn I've heard a snippet of the name before but I couldn't find it. So I didn't say a word. Even then Darkness had a hold of those memories and it intimidated me to go into that abyss where I could sense unpleasant things." She nods and I clutch my strap regrettably. "But now that I remember all it leaves me is a deep feeling of I want to set things right." I smile sheepishly " but you already know that don't you?"
"I do…" she admits "but when I hear it from your mouth I know it's true."
"Despite this being a dream?"
"Yes. We're in your heart after all and the heart can't lie."
"True, very true." I say as the winds of change whisk the waves and led by the fireflies we head to the edge of the shore suddenly joining in on the splash fight between only us the union leaders. Catching the fireflies gathering on us as if we were their own. But all good things must come to an end as when getting out of the water to help me up Skuld runs straight through her and it's made apparent that the moment that passed wasn't as real as it felt. We sit there silent once more before I say "My heart is ready to show the view now, are you ready to see it?" She nods silently. "Alright we're going high up and I'm not sure exactly if we'll land at the edge or in the center. So can you take my hand to be safe?" She nodded again and obliged. The memory finally shifting to the top of the clock tower.
