Of Fairytales and Blood Bonds

[Reno]

Mickey couldn;t help but laugh slightly at Axel's sudden enthusiasm. As if THAT didn;t make it painfully obvious how involved the two were.

Aqua watched the five - Axel passes by her - okay SIX people walk off tpwards the beach. "Crazy sons of-" She grumbled before hurrying after them, taking up the rear of the group.

Sora smiled as he walked next to the silverette, laughing softly as the elder teased the former imp.

Roxas smiled a little as Axel joined him, bravely reaching out and clasping their hands together. Hey they WERE dating right? They had to ACT like it. He blinked however as he saw the ther panic and rolled his eyes. "Whats so scary about a dragon compared to like me? I think I'm like eight times stronger then her."

"And eight times cuter!" Sora cheerfully intoned, grinning up at Riku. "Right Ri?"

Terra just ignored there talk, walking next to the blonde quietly, crossing his arms some. They all stopped at the beach watching as Ven took out the stone. It glowed with an inner light and then suddenly a very thin beam shot from the ball and towards the ocean.

Way off in the distance, something large and snakelike rose from the waters. She was silk and beautiful and very very blue. She turned her large head towards the beach, golden eyes gleaming as she zeroed in on the group standing there.

[Rikugurl]

Axel blinked but smiled as their hands met. He smiled proudly but gulped again as Roxas stated that he was much more powerful than her. He hoped she didn't here that!

Riku looked down and grinned a bit. "If he's eight times cuter, you must be nine times."

Ven rolled his eyes as the brunette and silverette started blushing. What a bunch of crap.


His blue eyes widened though as he saw the beam be delivered to the ocean and suddenly... a large creature came from the water. He had seen Regole from a distance... but never this close.

He swallowed but slowly pulled away from Terra and took a deep breath.
Suddenly, his back started to glow and his fire wings appeared once more.
He slowly walked into the water more and spread his wings, giving a large flap and he was up in the air.

He still had a hard time believing that he could FLY. If he knew that... he wouldn't of bugged Bryna so much about riding a hot air balloon! He gave a glance to his brother's down below before flying off towards the dragon.

[Reno]

Sora chcukled at Riku's words, a blush dotting his cheeks. He ignored the backwards look Ven gave then - he bet VEN wouldn;t mind Terra saying some of that romantic crap to him.

When Ven took off though Sora smiled, stepping away from Riku and his own blue wings appeared. This would be his first time actually flying! Well okay he flew in the fight but he didn;t count that. He glanced back at Riku, giving him a wave before flapping his wings once and taking to the air, hurrying after his blonde brother.

Roxas sighed, but shrugged, letting go of Axel's hand. He glanced at him, smirking. "Wish us luck!" Before his own black and white wings appeared and with a flap he took off after both pf them.

"You know... I'm beginning to see a flaw here." Terra said dully, indicating how they were supposed to be the guardians of those three - yet unable to cause of course they couldn;t FLY.

Sora beat his wings until he was level with Ventus, and soon Roxas joined them on Ven;s other side and together the three met the dragon who was silently and patiently waiting for them. When they finally approached, Sora straightened out, hovering some, flapping his wings in large cirles to keep himself afloat as his brothers did the same. It was strange how... natural it was.

The dragon seemed to scruntize each and eevery one of them, before zeroing in on Ven.

[Rikugurl]

Axel tilted his head and gave a dull look. Well... he USE to be able to fly!

Riku didn't seem moved at the bit. "I really don't think we're their guardians anymore. They've all broken their seal... and found their true power. I think... we're friends now... but friends can be even more protective than guardians."
He smiled proudly as he watched the boys fly off.


Ven smiled as he saw both his brothers next to him. When he reached the dragon, he stopped in front of her snout. His wings balanced him out as he positioned himself up right.

His blue eyes looked into the larger ones and he took a deep breath. "Guardian Regole... I'm sure you know who and what I am. I would think so since you have chosen me to be the next Dragoon." He talked loud and clear but frowned as he thought.
"It's an honor that you trust me with your life... but.. I'm no guardian. I'm just a boy who misses his parents... his friends and his world."

He flapped his wings once more and tears slowly started to form in his eyes. "Is there no one else?"

[Reno]

Terra crossed his arms contemplatively then laughed a bit. "Trust me, Ven needs all the GUARDING he can get. And what do you mean friends? Aren;t we BOYfriends?"

"I'm gonna laugh if she does eat them." Aqua mumbled crossing her arms.


The dragon stared at him, unnervingly silent as he spoke, and even came close to crying. Suddenly she glanced towards Roxas, who was also hopvering there.

Roxas blinked, confused - then suddenly he realized what Regole was doing. She wanted to hear all of them speak...

The boy flapped his wings roughly as he spoke. "I know he's a shee and all and his power would greatly help protect you - but it's also dangerous to keep him here. If people like Xehanort had found us so easily, others will come too no matter how much your power masked his." The blonde trailed off, unsure of how much an 'emotional' appeal would work on a dragon of all things.

Regole therefore, looked at Sora.

The brunette smiled, "I'm sorry Regole... we just all want to go home so very much. We're only sixteen and we have a whoooole life ahead of us still and our parents miss us terribly Please, won't you let him come home with us?"

The dragon stared at each of them silently, before she turned and jumped back into the water, her whole body arching up and threw the air.

"Was... that an answer?" Roxas asked confused.

A voice suddenly enter the Holani Triplet's heads. I have no room for those who do not wish to take it seriously.

"Whoa..." Sora gasoped a bit, then glanced over to Ven - and the stone. He gasped. "It stopped glowing!"

[Rikugurl]

Riku looked over at Terra slyly and grinned. "I think I'm more than Sora's boyfriend."

Axel blinked as he looked at the silverette who had returned his view to the others. What the hell was that suppose to mean?
"WHOA!" He suddenly let out, flailing.
"Don't tell me you already had your way with him!"
Riku's eyes widened and growled, looking at the red-head. "What? What do you mean had my way with him? Is that how you put stuff like that? How old are you!?" He bonked the other and crossed his arms.

"OUCH! Hey! I was just making sure you were being a good, little guardian!" The red head snapped back.
"You were an IMP. I'm sure your head wasn't clean either!" The silverette snapped in return.
They ended up going back and forth for quite awhile, not even noting Terra's reaction to it all.


Ven glanced at Roxas as he started to speak, and then at Sora. He couldn't help but smiled at them both as he wiped his eyes. He looked back at the dragon to see what would happen... and then... she was gone.

"H-hey! Wa---"
Ven stopped when he heard the voice and blinked. Slowly he looked down at the stone, seeing the glow gone... and he could no longer see the dragon.
He looked out at Regole as she continued to swim away and sighed. That wasn't the kind of answer he was hoping to get.

Slowly he turned and gave another flap of his wings. He headed back to the shore and glided over the bickering guardians. He landed a bit unsteady in front of a tomb that wasn't too far away from them and looked down at it.

Riku and Axel stopped as they looked over at he blonde and then his brother's who landed next to him.

Ven smiled as he placed the stone down in front of Xigbar's tombstone. "This belongs to you anyways..."
He slowly stood and turned around, a soft smile on his face.
"I.. think it's time to go home now."

[Reno]

Terra rasied an eyebrow at Riku's comment but was wisely not going to say anything - of course Axel decided too instead. And Terra, being the innocent, law-abiding =, all around SAINT-like guardian he was, tried and he really did try not the evesdrop, but they were just talking so loud...

His cheeks started to redden immensely and he bit his lip, grinning triumphantly. If he was still a wolf, his tail would be wagging like razy. But the secret stayed with him. Somehow he doubted Ven wanted all their dirty acts broadcasted to the world. Cause if Axel found out, EVERYONE would find out.

Heh, he could just see the ex-imp now. 'Hey you, stranger with the the hat! You won't beliiiieve this story.' or even better 'Hey Sirocco! Guess what Terra's been doing with your SON.' He could see the shotgun now...


Roxas watched the dragon disappear, tilting his head a bit. It was the answer he had been anticipating - then again Dragons WEERE centuries old... maybe they no longer had patience for kind words. He supposaed it didn't matter, as long as she gave Ven back to them. As Ven took off beside him he turned and flew after him. He blinked as Ven took a strange direction but didn;t mind it and fell in a slope down to after him, only stumbling a little before he stopped by his brother's side. He grinned cheekily at nothing in particular. Ha, take that gravity!

Sora tilted his head - it wasn't the kindest wayto give up a guardian but... she only spoke with honestly so at least she knew how to be blunt... and the bright side was Ven was off the hook! "THANK YOU!" He yelled, waving to the ocean before following after his brothers. He curved his wings a bit as he flew down and tried - repeated TRIED - to touch down easily, but his large feet got in the way and he stumbled with a yelp, falling against the poor unlucky sap infront of him - which of course was Roxas. Ha, take that Shee, gravity returns.

However, triumphant landsings and comical stumbles aside - everyone turned to look as Ven started to murmur quietly to a very familar tombstone. Roxas and Sora both bowed there heads in respect to the man - he had done some very brave and noble acts - a dud in the Atterians as he would of liked to call himself.

However... at Ven's next statement, Sora's face lit up and Roxas couldn;t contain a grin - home at last!!!

~~~

Bryna sighed, holding the picture frame in her hand looking down at the last family portrait they ever took. She and Sirocco stood at the back, proud yet tired smiles on their faces. Sirocco's arm was around her shoulders - and in front of them were their three boys, the infamous Holani Triplets. Sora was in the middle, a large grin over his face, a hand around each of his other brother's waist as he attempted to bring them in for a group hug. Roxas was having none of it, his face agitated as he pushed a hand against the brunette's head, making it lopsided. Ventus wasn;t either, hands against Sora's shoulders, his body twisted as if trying to slither away like some furiosu wildcat. They had just graduated 8th grade that day.

She liked it though - she always told guests that it showed each of the boy's 'true' character. One simple snapshot - three different boys...

Now only a memory and a faint whisper in her dreams. She traced Ven's angry face.

"Mom this year?!"
"No hon, you're still too small."

"Mom, I've been real goood ALLLLL year I didn't even ask SANTA for anything. This year?"
"Ven... I'm sorry but maybe next year."

"Please please, PLEAAAASE!?"
"No."

"Mom... I'll love you forever and ever and EVER if you let me ride a balloon this year?"
"I'm your mother Ven your obligated to love me forever."
"So...?"
"So no."

"Mom if you don;t let me on a balloon this eyar.. um... um A horrible horrible CURSE will befall us! Well um... SORA will go bald and and... roxas' face will freeze in that sour look he always had and and... dad will um... throw out his back every month!! and and... i'll um... come down with a horrible, uncurab;le disease!! You wouldn't want such a horrible fate to befall this family... right?"
"...I'll take my chances Ven."

"Mom, I'm FIF-fucking-TEEN for gods sake. I'm not a kid anymore you HAVE to let me on one now!"
"If your still using language like that Ventus Holani, then no you haven;t grown up at all."
"ARGH I GIVE UP!!!" The boy stomped out of the room, but Bryna smiled, knowing he'd come asking again next year.

Except, he never did because his 16th birthday... was spent very very far away.

Next she ran her thumb over Sora's brillant smile.

"Sora... what are you doing?"
"I'm making a flower ring. The girls at school taught me!"
"...Um..."
The large ring of dandelions was lifted, each stem tied into the next, and the brunette smiled. "A crown for you mommy."

"Sora what are you... MAKING?"
"Cookies!"
"...Honey your a mess. You're got egg yolk in your hair..."
"But but it's father's day right? Daddy needs cookies."

"Sora what are you... writing?"
"It's a poem."
"A poem?"
"Yep. 'From me to you, You're there when I'm blue, You tie my shoes and you give me something new, Just so you know I love you!' Did you like it?"

"Sora what is this?"
"It's a tutoring program. I kinda... wanted to enter it. You know and teach the younger kids and all that. I'd be... going to school every wednesday for another hour extra every week until the end of school - but i need you and dad to sign it. So... can I?"

"Sora what are... maybe I shouldn't ask."
"I'm making invitations for next years party! Next year, it'll be even better! Sweet sixteen! That means we have to have a HUGE party where we invite people we don;t even know and we have games like spin the bottle and turht or dare were people actually CHOOSE dare and maybe someone'll sneak in a keg-"
"There will be NO drinking."
"Okay okay, no keg but um it'll be fun and you and dad can like... go have a nice night out alone and pretend you're completely blissfully unaware of all I just told you."

She smiled affectionately, sad that that year never came even though she and Sirocco always had a 'quiet night alone' now. She turned to the last of her boys, running a pinky through his hair.

"The itsy, bitsy spider ran up the water spout, down came the rain and washed the spider out, out came the sun and dried up all the rain and the otsy bitsy spider went up the spout again!"
"Very good Roxas!"

"I made this up all by myself: We are, We are We are the ballonist! We are We are the light and the proud! We are We are We are the balloonists! We making the ballons go high So say goodbye!"
"Ah, is that the balloonists' theme song?"

"Call me, beep me, If you wanna reach me! Doesnt matter where doesn;t matter when, danger or trouble i'm there on the double you know you can find me cause I'm Kim Possible!"
"Whose... Kim Possible?"
"I have NO idea. Sora made her up - said something about a girl who can do anything."

"I see friends shaking hands... saying how do you do... they're really say 'I love you!' Th- MOM!"
"Oh Roxas it sounds fine."
"I-I still don;t want you to hear!"

"I've got this PERFECT song I can sing for our sixteenth birthday mom. Here listen... but don;t tell anyone how it sounds okay?"
"Cross my heart and hope to die!"
"Will we think about tommorrow like we think about now? Can we survive it out therE? Can we make it somehow? As we gooo on, we Reeemember, All the Times we, had tooogether, and as out liiifes change, from whateeeever, we will still be, friends forever!"

Bryna sniffled, rubbing her eyes a little. Her boys... all of them... hadn;t returned yet - and an age old fear was coming back, the same day they were laid in her hands. Would they always be with her or will one day they be cruelly torn away never to be seen again?

Her babies had flown from the enst so quick... and now not even her final words to them, of stying strong and keeping hope, seemed to matter anymore. They were-

knock, knock

Bryna looked up, blinking and scrubbed her face furiously. She set down the frame, jumping to her need. That was probably Edna making sure that she was still 'taking well' to losing all three sons in one day to some mysterious accident one year ago that hardly anyone understood the details too-

She brushed off her dress, trying to take out the wrinkles, touched her cheeks to make sure her makeup didn;t run and her face wasn;t puffy, and plastered on a BIG fake smile as she reached for the knob, twisting it -

And her eyes widened as a large boquet of flowers of which by the likes Akbar had never seen - white flowers with black pistols, and brillant blues with silver outlining, and red and orange and yellow star-shaped petals - was shoved in her face.

"WE'RE HOME!" Not, one, not two but THREE voices choursed, and she looked up over the flowers to star at three matching faces, full of wide grins and hopeful eyes and oh they had gotten so tall and looked so much older - had one year away really changed them so much.

"My boys..." Bryna sobbed softly and, disregarding the flowers held out to her, the woman flung her arms around all three of them - finding it so much harder to hug them all since they had gotten so much bigger - and the flowers got crushed between them but it was all irrelvant. Ventus, Sora and Roxas... they were home. "SIROCCO! cOMES DOWNSTAIRS HURRY! OUR BOYS ARE HOME!" She cried, her voice filled with so, so much happiness.

And only feet away, three proud men stood. One was the guardian of the blonde holding the Stardusts. He was umping from foot to foot on the grass, grinning so wide one though he might split his face in half, an almost impish gleam in his eyes as he awaiting the praise he hoped would come.

The guardian of the brunette holding the Blue Comets was standing on the pathway, his face no longer hidden - silver hair moving with the wind as he smiled, also watching. He expected nothing, just wanted to see everyone happy once more.

The last was the guardian of the blonde holding the Pheonix Stars. He was lounging against one of the poles of the porch, his wolfish eyes hidden behind brown locks as he grinned, watching the scene. This time, he wanted to be invited to breakfast.

Somewhere behind them, there was a faint whisper gratidtude before a small mouse turned and left, going back to his own home. He still had a lot of work to do to make sure the Shee would have a safe life all their own from now on.

Somewhere even farther however, was something even fainter, something that had been lost for 15 years under the strain of Xehanort's power - only just finding it;s way back to the ears it was meant for. It swept over the last of the Shee, the twin voices holding no words but needed none. The two voices silently communicated all they needed to hear, and to the three boys, on the whispers of the grass and the breezes of Akbar, they could almost hear it - the final words of their father Jet and their mother Runa:

'Take care. We love you."