Search Results

Okay, that hurt a little bit. But not as bad as she was expecting, honestly. "Okay, now..." she coughed a little, getting back up. Ananta glared forward at Mizrabel. She then ran forward, swinging her keyblade hard. She aimed at Mizrabel's hat, hating how stupid it looked.

Ananta attacked Mizrabel!

Ananta jumped back to only find herself falling into a chest. "Oh great." she grumbled, struggling a little. She accepted her fate soon enough and waited her turn to be freed. Finally, she heard a knock on the wood and popped out, taking Stratos' hand and stepping out. "Thanks Stratos." she said, wiping herself a moment to see if there were any chests near her. Of course there was a chest. She KNEW there was a chest. She watched Kel get sucked up, so she moved over and kicked at his chest and freed him,

Ananta freed Kel!

Ananta looked at the people curing the injured and she sighed in relief. "Well at least Stratos is ba-" she said this and watched Mizrabel slap Stratos like the boy he is. "OH COME ON!" she yelled, grumbling in frustration and rushing at Mizrabel.

Ananta slapped Mizrabel with her keyblade!

"Stratos!" Ananta yelled, running over and trying to heal him. She looked at him and saw how badly he was injured, but she just couldn't get her magic to work. "I'm sorry, Stratos....please...please hold on just a moment, okay?" she said, nodding and turning towards Mizrabel. "You're going down, you witch." she snarled, rushing forward and doing a combo, feeling like she did more damage.

Ananta dealt 27 damage.

Ananta sighed at seeing Beuce's...chest talk. Like, legit, it talked and she swore she could taste the salt in the air. Shrugging and deciding the effort wasn't worth it, Ananta decided to run up to Miserable Mizrabel and slap her around with her awesome new keyblade.

Ananta finally gave up on Karina. She tried her best, but knew Karina was set in her ways. She turned to try and head for somebody else, but started to gag on the smoke. Soon, she found herself in a chest and started to knock on it, freaking out. It didn't take long for her to be freed, and so she sat up and took a deep breath. "Stratos!" she said, smiling at him. "Thank you. But I better save that one." she said, looking over at the chest to her right. She climbed out of her own chest carefully and walked over to the one near her. On the chest was a keyhole. "Easy enough." she smirked, summoning her new keyblade, tossing it up and dropping it onto the chest accidentally, freeing whoever was inside.

KEL WAS FREED.

Ananta looked at Stratos and frowned. Sure she could bother someone else, but right now, Karina probably needed the most help. Besides, Ananta felt like she was getting somewhere with Karina....probably. She pretty much ignored Stratos telling her to leave. Instead, she listened to Karina and closed her eyes to consider what she needed to say. Karina had lost everything. All that strength she used to have is gone and now, Karina was left powerless and feeling utterly useless. It reminded Ananta a tiny bit of herself, but her pathetic feelings paled in comparison to Karina's feelings.

"You can hold onto your friends." Ananta said, standing up and holding her hand out. "Your friends are your strength and we are always here for you. Just as you are our strength, Karina. We help each other and thus are able to rely on the other in dire times of need."

Ananta heard Kaida and frowned. She didn't want to be so forceful with Karina, but still...it was worth a try. Too bad that didn't work and it just looked like Karina started to wallow more and more in her own self-pity. That started to annoy Ananta, though, and it made her almost want to smack Karina for being this weak and being so sad.

So she did. She smacked her and glared at her. "Karina, that's enough. You look so pitiful and so not like yourself. You used to be so angry and so ready to beat the crap out of me just because I got on your bad side. Now, you can look at me for more than ten seconds and you haven't even hit me yet. What the heck happened to you?" she said, watching her.

Ananta listened to Karina's whole story in silence. She could tell that Karina was spiraling down and was not stopping. She was far too gone for her words to reach her, so she just didn't speak. She stayed silent as Karina recounted what had happened. She stayed silent and tried to think of what to say. It took her a bit, but she looked up at Karina and gulped. "Karina. You're right, it was your fault. You failed the room and didn't come over your fears. Your fears are far too great to be overcame by reliving them. You overcome them by leaving them behind and not fueling the fires that are those memories. This trial just...wasn't for you. It was not in your favor from the start, and that's completely unfair to you." Ananta said. "I'm sorry we don't exactly understand what happened, but we're willing to understand if you're willing to give us time and patience."

Ananta saw the way Karina was acting and she thought about a way to try and get her to calm down. Even if only for a moment, so Karina wouldn't burst an artery.

So, she sat down in front of Karina and looked ahead of her. She looked straight at Karina and took a deep breath. "Karina. Look at me. I want you to look and see my face. See I am calm. Take a deep breath. In." she breathed in. "And out." she breathed out. She repeated this a few times, still trying to get Karina to just calm down.

Ananta listened to Karina and nodded at her, watching her sink to the floor. "Karina, who died? I'm sorry, but you haven't said who...." she said, trying to stay quiet so others wouldn't be able to listen. She then looked around and wondered if there would be something to cover her up with. She then looked by the door Karina had left and saw a red, tattered cloak. It was just...laying there and looking pretty sad. But it was better than nothing, so she grabbed it and wrapped it around Karina.

Of course, now Karina has two cloaks. "Kaida..." Ananta said, smiling at her.

Ananta listened to Karina and understood she was dealing with loss. She put her arms around Karina and gave her a hug as comfortingly as she could. "Tell me what happened. Please....." she said. She then tried to heal up the scratches with some magic, hoping they'd start to go away or at least lessen in pain for her. "If it hurts too much to think about, then tell me later."

Ananta reappeared back in the hallway in time to see Beuce poke some girl's cheek. She was about to say something when she heard another door open. Ananta turned to see Karina standing at her door, looking absolutely broken. Knowing this was probably not the best thing to do, Ananta stepped towards her and held a hand out. "Karina, come here.." she whispered, trying to hide the girl's bare body. "Let me help you, please. I can try and see if my magic can give you some clothes..." she suggested, standing between Karina and Beuce. "I'd hate for him to see you naked, after all." she chuckled.

A smiled was on her face that seemed to emanate helpfulness and the true want to make sure Karina was alright. Because clearly, she was not alright and clearly needed some kind of help right now. She didn't know what, but she knew she just had to help her.

Why was she following along with this memory of her Grandmother to do a prayer? Why wasn't she trying to figure out what to do here? Ananta didn't know and she didn't want to think about it at the moment. Deep down, she was happy to see her parents and Grandmother again. She had missed them dearly and didn't want to leave this memory. It hurt knowing she probably would have to leave them and be without them once more. That wasn't helped by the fact that she seemed to be reliving that day that her world ended. Everything was lining up perfectly and it scared Ananta. She knew what she needed to do to try and stop the world from ending, but what if she didn't do enough? What if she just disappointed her Grandmother and parents again and watched them die in front of her?

She was snapped back to reality when her Grandmother turned around and stared at her. "Lost in thought?" she said, smiling softly. "Don't worry, we aren't really going to pray anyway. We're going to....talk. There's something important I want to speak to you about."

Ananta remembered this. She already knew what Anta wanted to talk about, but she was going to ask and answer differently, to see if her memory would work with her and fill in some gaps that had been eating at her. "Okay, Grandmother." Ananta said, smiling back to her. The pain in her voice was obvious, but Anta chose to ignore it and keep walking.

They arrived at the Mother Crystal shortly after and both moved to a spot to talk. Anta stood close the railing and stared off over the world that they lived on. Ananta looked down at the world as well and sighed to herself, slouching against the rail. It sure looked beautiful on Crystallis tonight. As it always did, even when she was little. The world had a wonderful mish mash of building types and architecture was a renowned art. No matter what, if you could build it, it was easy enough to do with a little hard labor. That's what made Ananta appreciate her world. The fact that anything was possible if you set yourself to it and used your magic correctly. There were only so many who would use their magic for evil and they would ultimately be judged by the Mother Crystal upon their deaths. But even they played a part in this world working and spinning at a steady pace.

~Dive into the Heart~​

It was no surprise when Anta cleared her throat and looked at Ananta. "What's most important to you?" she asked.

Hearing that question caused Ananta to gasp and remember that weird dream she had while she was passed out from her world's destruction. Ananta turned towards the Mother Crystal and stepped forward. She reached out and found herself falling down the middle, falling straight towards the pool of water that flowed from the Mother Crystal. She splashed and held her breath. She kept falling. Falling...falling....falling....darkness surrounded her, but the bright light above her gave her hope that she wouldn't suffocate in the water. Of course, her lungs could not handle it and she gasped. Ananta was surprised to find herself able to breathe under the water.

Opening her eyes, Ananta saw below her a stained glass platform. On the platform, Ananta saw herself with her crystal in her hands. Behind her head were circles with the faces of her family members and allies from her journey, all smiling at her. The backdrop behind her was that of her homeworld. Around the edges were circles with objects of importance in them. A generic keyblade shape and an odd symbol she didn't recognize.

Body straightening, Ananta stepped onto the platform and felt her clothes wash away to the outfit she had previously changed into. She looked around and wondered what she was supposed to do now. That was when she heard her Grandmother's question echo around her again.

"What's most important to you?"

Ananta looked up at the light in the sky. She thought about the question and soon smiled to herself. "Everyone is important to me. Nobody is less important than the next person. I cherish everyone and feel like they are family." she answered. Ananta looked over and saw some steps starting to appear.

"What do you want out of life?"

Thinking long and hard, Ananta remembered her original answer. She had grown since then and felt like her new answer would be more fitting to the current situation. "I want to help as many people as I can. I can't stand seeing somebody get hurt because of another person's actions." she replied, looking to see more steps appear.

"What are you afraid of?"

She gulped and thought about this one harder than the other questions. She didn't want to admit her fears and it was showing on her face. Instead of ignoring it, she looked up and took a deep breath. "I'm afraid of failing everyone and not living up to what they believe of me." she replied, seeing the steps finish and another platform light up.

Not wanting to waste any time, Ananta hurried over and climbed the steps. Behind her, the steps disappeared one by one until she was on the other platform. She looked forward and saw three pedestals all rising up from the platform. Each one had an item on the top, symbolizing different paths. A sword, a staff, a shield, and a spear. She immediately walked to the staff and grabbed it. "This is the power I want." she spoke out, watching the staff shatter in her hand.

She turned and looked at the other three. "But which do I cast away...?" she asked herself. The sword symbolized strength. Ananta already knew she needed strength to defend herself, so she ignored it. The shield symbolized protection. Definitely something she needed to keep. Lastly, there was the spear. It symbolized speed and the agility to get things done quickly. She felt like taking her time with things was better than being quick about it. So, she stepped forward and grabbed the spear. "I cast away the spear!" she said, watching it shatter again in her hands.

As that happened, the platform beneath her, which was the same as the first one, shattered and Ananta started to fall through. She watched the shards fall around her and disappear. She swirled around and looked down to see a platform that looked similar to the two before, but on it, Ananta was holding the Kingdom Key. "The keyblade!" she gasped, reaching forward and smiling. She landed on the platform upright and looked around.

In front of her, standing on the middle circle, was Anta. She had a solemn look on her face, causing Ananta to gulp and falter a little. She didn't want to fight Anta, but from the look on Anta's face and a keyblade at her side, she knew she had to fight her for the keyblade.

"You've gotten this far, but you've got to fight me now. You have to show me you're worthy of this keyblade. Here." she said, tossing a wooden blade to Ananta. "That's all I give you."

Ananta took the wooden sword and watched it change to the shape of the staff from before. She then wielded it like she did her keyblade. She rushed towards Anta and started to swing, trying to land a few hits. Anta was able to parry the hits fairly easily, landing her own hits into Ananta. The strikes stung and Ananta wanted to try and use magic, but she knew that would probably be frowned upon, so she refrained from it.

Anta continued her assault, causing more and more injuries to Ananta. Eventually, she used a close range fire spell on Ananta. Ananta shot backward and skidded on the pillar, stopping short of the edge. Rough spots and bruises littered Ananta. She stung in places she never thought she could feel that sensation before. But she didn't back down. She stood up and held the wooden blade tightly in her hand. She looked singed, but she knew she'd be fine.

"Not backing down? Do you really feel worthy of this blade? It's a burden, Ananta. Do you really want to take this burden after already ridding yourself of it? Don't you feel relief knowing you aren't a keyblade wielder any more?" she asked, tilting her head at Ananta.

Not realizing it, Ananta thought about it and noticed that deep down...she did feel some relief. It felt nice not having the keyblade and not having to worry about defending herself or anybody else with it. She looked down at the ground with guilt, knowing she did feel that way. Or at least, she felt that way at some point. There were many times she wished she didn't have to use the keyblade any more, but now....now was not a time to wish that. Too many people were depending on her and her allies to protect them and the worlds. Ananta looked back up at Anta.

"I might have felt that way before...but....but I can't just let those feelings take me over. I've got to accept that, yeah, it felt nice without it. But now, I've got to get back to work at protecting people. I've gotta protect people again. Even you and my and dad. I may have failed you once, but I won't fail you again." she said.

Ananta ran towards Anta and gave her one last slash across the torso. Anta dropped the keyblade, it disappearing, and fell forward onto Ananta. Ananta held onto her, hugged her tightly. "You've grown up..." Anta smiled. "I'm glad...you were able to do that. Now, you can leave and can go back to your friends. You can forget about this and return to them."

"I won't forget. Don't worry, I'll remember what has happened and what was said. I'll always remember." she said, feeling Anta shatter into lights and float away. All she left was a crystal in Ananta's hand that shimmered and shone like the tip of Anta's keyblade. Ananta stood up and saw a door in front of her.

"It's time for me to say goodbye Jose." she said, looking at her bird friend.

"Apologies for not being around!" he chuckled, tipping his hat. "But, you really didn't need me after all."

Jose was happy with himself as he hopped off Ananta's shoulder, landing on the ground. "Go, go home. Hurry now." he shooed, watching Ananta walked forward and disappear through a door.

Her footsteps echoed on the floor as she walked through the fairly empty halls of the Academy that surrounded the Mother Crystal. By the looks of the sky, night time had begun to settle and classes were over. Ananta was thankful for that, because it gave her time to think of things. From what she understood, she'd be undergoing some type of trial in these memories. Perhaps she'd gain her keyblade back if she passed the trials. Perhaps not. Either way, she was determined to try and change things this time. She wanted to try and prevent the fall of her world, even if only in a memory. Maybe if she were to save it, the real world would return and she'd be able to go home to it some day. That's what Ananta was hoping for and it's what made her step forward through this place.

"Oh but what will my Grandmother think of me..." she stopped, sighing and staring at the front door. "She's gonna see these clothes and she's gonna freak out that I'm not wearing my usual training clothes...but I like my clothes now, they're cute...."

Ananta knelt down and stared at her hands. "She's gonna be so disappointed that I don't have my keyblade...maybe she won't remember me gaining it?" she seemed a little optimistic in that moment, but she didn't hold onto it for long before she sighed deeply. "Regardless, I've still got to go home and I've still got to face her. And my parents...." she stared up at the glass ceiling. "They'll be proud of me anyway. That's what they do. They stay proud and smile at me."

"You have good parents, I'm sure they'll be happy." Jose complimented from under his hat. Ananta jumped when she heard him, only because she forgot he was actually there. "Thank you, Jose..." she smiled, standing back up and walking hurriedly out the building.

Towards her home she walked, smiling to herself and passerby who stared back. This was the happiest Ananta had ever appeared before, seeing as she always acted so solemn and scared before. The journey has made her grow as a person, at least she thinks so, and she's not so scared of being thought of as different anymore. If this was the same old Ananta from long ago, she'd be shivering and looking down at the ground, fearing somebody would try and torment her for her hair. Instead, her hair was shown off brilliantly and beautifully, braided and twisted around. That was one thing that made Jose smile. He was proud that Ananta was able to flaunt her individuality so readily now. He may not have known her long, but he knew from her memories that she was scared of how she looked.

Finally, she reached her house and saw the lights were already on outside. She ran forward and almost didn't open the door before she stopped and looked around for the spare key. She unlocked the door and walked inside. "I'm home!" she called out, shutting the door behind her. Udbadhi walked from the living room and smiled. "What has you so worked up? Oh, your clothes! They're quite different from what I usually see you in." he said, reached forward and patting her head. "My, you are growing so beautiful as a person, Ananta."

"Now now, don't spoil her dear." Manini said, stepping away from upstairs and hurrying down. "Ananta, I thought you were lost. You didn't come in with Anta, so I was scared maybe something happened. But Anta told us you'd be alright. So I'm happy to see you. Ah! New clothes! But what will Anta think...?" she tilted her head, looking at Udbhati.

"I think she'd best changed back into her traditional clothes. We have a prayer session to attend and she's late." Anta said, grumping at the door behind Ananta. Anta looked far older now, almost like she was shriveling up. It made Ananta jump at first, but she had tears in her eyes from her memories flooding back of that fateful night.

The last images of her world were of Anta fending off the heartless and trying to protect Ananta to the very end. She smiled sadly as the heartless engulfed her. She pushed Ananta off at the last moment, sending her off into the unknown with nothing but her keyglider and the clothes on her back. Ananta fell to her knees and covered her mouth, choking back tears and digging her fingers against the floor. "Crying won't make you get changed any faster." Anta said, sighing. "But are you alright? Suddenly crying like that means something's upset you."

Ananta shook her head and stood back up. "I'm....I'm fine. Sorry, I just felt sad all of a sudden." she chuckled awkwardly.

"Liar." Jose whispered to her, hidden by her hair from the others.

"Anyway...I...I'll get changed Grandma." she said, hurrying upstairs. She changed quickly and returned, wearing clothes similar to the ones that she wore as a child. "I'm ready." she said, following Anta as she walked out of the house, returning towards the Mother Crystal. Ananta kept her mouth shut the whole way, knowing it wasn't her place to speak at the moment.

A few hours later....​

Ananta laid on her bed, reading a magazine and giggling at the pictures. It was a kids magazine and it was talking all about the drags of school life and tutoring that many kids went through. There were even some stories about kids being asked what they wanted to be when they grew up. Stories like that were Ananta's favorites, since her destiny was predetermined long ago. Her eyes scanned over a story about a boy who wanted to be an architect. He practiced by building small toy houses for his sister that he changed and rearranged as she saw fit. Ananta sighed unhappily and laid her arms outwards beside her. She stared at the ceiling and closed her eyes a moment before sitting up and climbing out of bed.

Since she was done training for today, she walked to her closet and grabbed some plain clothes to wear. She then hurried off to the bathroom and stripped down to take a bath. She decided a nice bath with bubbles would be pretty awesome, so she jumped in. Laying back, she stared up at the hologram of an ocean on the ceiling. In her head, she was still replaying what happened earlier that day. It worried her greatly, making her anxious about what was going to happen at dinner tonight. That's what made her sink into the bubbles and close her eyes.

By the time she opened them again, she was rather pruney. Standing up, Ananta stepped out and rinsed herself off real quick before turning to dry off. Her hair was dry in a matter of seconds with magic, so she headed for her room. Along the way, she braided her hair and was humming to herself to try and calm down. In front of her, Anta stood there and put her hands on her hips.

"Ananta." she spoke sternly. "You left long before your studies for the day were over. So you'll need to study all day Saturday instead of half a day like the rest of the young ones."

Ananta frowned and looked down at the grown, playing with her hair after that. She didn't dare speak from fear she might get yelled at even more. Or worse, she might get sent to bed with no dinner.

"Dinner's ready!" Manini called from downstairs. Not wanting to spend another moment in her Grandmother's presence, Ananta rushed downstairs and sat right down in front of her mother. Dinner went by smoothly and Anta didn't bring up the events of the day, or at least the events that transpired between her and Ananta, and dinner was over with before she could barely blink. Ananta took her plate to the sink and washed it, setting it to drain as she started on the other dishes.

Behind her, Anta stood there and crossed her arms. "Ananta, I'm sorry for earlier." she said. "I didn't mean to scare you or make you feel like I was trying to force something on you."

Ananta sat a dish down and grabbed the last one, scrubbing it slowly was she thought of a way to make her Grandmother understand that she didn't do anything wrong. It was all her own fault for running away. It was her own fault for crying to her mother. It was her fault for running away when dinner was called. Nothing was Anta's fault. It was all Ananta's fault.

She sat the last dish in the drainboard and turned to her Grandmother with tears in her eyes. She walked forward and hugged her, sniffling to herself. She then looked up at Anta.

"I want to try it again. Is that alright with you?" Anta asked. Ananta nodded with a smile.

They headed out towards the Mother Crystal, hand in hand, squeezing tightly together. When they were at the base of the Crystal, Ananta stood in front of Anta, gazing at her Grandmother in anticipation. Anta held her hand out once again, producing her keyblade and stretching out the grip towards Ananta. She even knelt down to try and make this less scary.

"Ananta, this is a burden and a curse. I know you might hate me one day for bestowing this upon you, but know that this is a choice. If you do not accept this, then I will find a new chosen. They will take the mantle and you are free to do as you please." she spoke softly. "Do you accept becomming my apprentice? To learn in the arts of magic and combat. Healing and fending off evil in any form?"

Ananta took a deep breath and reached her hand forward, grasping the keyblade. "I do!" she squeaked out to Anta's surprise. A light shown from her hand that began to blind Ananta.

Back in reality....​

Ananta's eyes opened and she swiped her arm in front of her, casting Aero to soften her fall as she landed next to the Mother Crystal. She looked upwards and gasped, wondering what was going on. "I thought my world was gone! What's going on here?!" she called out, hoping somebody might answer.

"Well, it's simple! You are in just a memory, my beautiful." said a voice nearby. Ananta turned to see a bird that looked rather familiar. "Hey, wait, aren't you um...." she started, trying to rack her brain.

"What? You've forgotten?" he tsk'd, hopping all the way over to Ananta's shoulder. He was actually pretty small, so he weighed practically nothing. "I am Jose Carioca and I am part of the Three Caballeros. Surely you remember me now?" he said, smiling at her and tapping his cigar.

"Oh yeah. I do remember now! Where are the others...?" she asked, taking a look around. Jose took his hat off and placed it to his chest. "They are lost in other memories. I wish I knew exactly which ones...but, I at least have you! That's all I need. A beautiful lady." he said, smiling at her.

Ananta smiled and scratched her head. "A-Anyway. Do you know where I should go?" she asked him.

"Why not home? Perhaps you're missed." he shrugged, sitting down and leaning back, tipping his hat.

"True....I...I'll do that." she nodded, turning to head down to the street and walk home.

Her feet hit the ground hard as she ran for a door. Ananta didn't even answer her Grandmother or try to say anything. She didn't even try to make a motion that she didn't accept it. Did she regret it? Not really. As it were, she didn't want to take this responsibility yet. Being that she was seven years old, Ananta felt like she had a lot more time ahead of her. Plenty of time to make a decision on this matter. So why did her Grandmother expect her to just agree to it? Did she perhaps think she could choose Ananta's future?

The reason was much simpler. Ananta was just scared of the keyblade and the suddenness of it all. As she ran through the hallways, she slipped past many people who only watched her run. They all knew who she was, but they still didn't stop her to see if she was okay or if she needed help. No, they just watched her. They watched and then went back to what they were doing. They were all afraid of the fact she was different. All because her hair was just a different color than the rest of the world's population.

Disdain and dismissal was all Ananta knew when it came to the general populace. She was ignored by most and only paid attention to by her family. It didn't hurt Ananta, she just thought it was a normal thing. She typically didn't think too hard on the intricacies of social hierarchy based on hair color. She made it through the day ignoring most things, thus, she was used to the way she was ignored.

But today, she felt more alone than she ever felt before. She finally got down to street level after running from the top of the building all the way down. Turning around, Ananta looked up at the Mother Crystal peering over the tall building. She bowed towards the Crystal, reaching for her own that was tucked underneath her clothes. Grasping it, Ananta tried to hold back tears. Sleeve wet with aforementioned tears, Ananta turned to go to her parents' house and try to find some type of solace in their company.

Walking along, Ananta looked up to see rain clouds starting to form. Luckily for her, it hadn't started to rain just yet. Still, she wanted to get home before it did rain. At least then, she'd be able to stay there until it stopped. Shaking her head, she reached back started to braid her hair as she walked. By the time she got to her parents', she had her hair braided back in two strands behind her. Though they were starting to unravel a little, so they weren't the best she had ever done.

Knocking on the door, she smiled and waited for it to open. At the door, her father looked down at her. He wore glasses and a suit with his dark emerald hair slicked back. The look on his face was of disdain and unhappiness. "Well, I certainly didn't expect it to be you, Ananta." his face softened slightly, but he was still upset that she just showed up out of nowhere. "Come inside, your mother's in the living room."

Ananta stepped inside, running to the living room. She hopped up onto her mother's lap and hugged her. Ananta's mother had a similar hair color to her father, but it was just so slightly a lighter shade. She wore a simple outfit, not caring to look as extravagant as others. Ananta's mother dropped the book she was reading and blinked in surprise. "Wh- Ananta?" she hugged her back and kissed her head. "Where's your Grandmother?"

Ananta looked up at her and had a sad look on her face That was all her mother needed before she fell silent and held Ananta. "Udbhata, you need to go to work. I'll take care of her until Anta can come back and explain what happened." she spoke, looking up at Udbhata. He nodded and closed his eyes. "Be safe, the rains are coming and I fear they won't be favorable today." he said, turning and heading to leave. He stopped and turned back to Ananta's mother. "Manini, with love, I depart."

"With love, I await you." Manini smiled at him, waving. Ananta just kept herself pressed against her mother, scared of seeing her Grandmother again.

Ananta was unfazed by Karina's reaction since it was something she expected. She instead nodded at her in understanding. Ananta then turned away to listen to a Mysterious Man speak and then produce two mice who then spoke to them. Having no questions so far, she just listened and watched everyone start to walk forward towards a hall of many doors. They all then seemed to just....disappear. Ananta was wary of this, considering many of her allies were just suddenly gone, but she didn't really have any other choice, did she?

Pensively stepping forward, Ananta looked left and right, wondering where her own door was. She watched the names of her allies all pass by her until she finally got to a door marked XXXI. Not wanting to wait any longer, she grasped the handle of the door and swung it open. She dove headfirst, not even looking forward to see if there was any ground to step on. Suffice to say, Ananta was surprised when she found herself falling downwards. She started to kick her legs in a futile attempt to slow her descent.

Eyes still closed, Ananta opened them again to find herself standing by the Mother Crystal. She gazed upon the soft glow of the ginormous Crystal that dripped eternally. Smiling, she ran forward and gazed upon the pool of water. Gasping, she grasped at her face. She only looked 7 years old now, but her hair was already rather long. It reached down the middle of her back and draped around her as she knelt down. She wore a traditional robe of Sage's in training that many before her wore at this young age.

Not sure what was going on, she looked around and saw all the others who were also training to be apprentices for many other things. Their ages all varied, but she was the only one in training to be a Sage. She was the youngest trainee in the history of their world, but Ananta's grandmother had good reasons. Or so she was told. Regardless of the reason, Ananta had no reason to oppose her after all. Being so young, she had no right to oppose her. She'd be in grave danger if she did.

She quickly sipped from the water dripping from the Mother Crystal before she stood back up. Looking around, Ananta tilted her head, wondering where her Grandmother could even be. Hurrying forward, Ananta looked around to see if she saw her Grandmother perhaps resting under the Mother Crystal. Indeed, she was resting underneath the Crystal. Ananta giggled and stepped towards her, kneeling down and nudging her Grandmother. At this age, Ananta remembered being unable to speak. The reason was due to a mental block that prevented her from speaking after one particular event with her parents. Just the memory brought back pain to Ananta's heart and made her not able to continue thinking of it.

"Child, what is wrong? Shaking me so heavily and suddenly tears...." a kind voice said. Ananta opened her eyes and saw her Grandmother sitting up and placing a hand on her cheek, wiping a tear away.

"Did you think of something sad? Don't cry, strong Sage's don't cry if it can be helped." she smiled. Ananta hugged her tightly and let go, standing back up and assisting her Grandmother in standing.

Her Grandmother didn't have to wear any specific clothing. She chose to wear flowing clothes and her hair kept up, pinned back. "So, I am sure you're wondering perhaps why I wanted you here today at this specific time." she started, looking down at Ananta. Not expecting an answer, Grandmother continued. "For centuries, our world has been watched over by the Mother Crystal. But she was not the only protector in all those years. She had a special person protecting her. These people are called Keyblade Wielders. They are given the rite to wield the blade in her name in order to protect the world and the countless others. You might not understand why, but you are the next in line to become a Master some day and be the one to protect us."

Grandmother stepped forward and reached her hand out. An ornate keyblade appeared in the same shape as on the back of Ananta's robes. "Nobody knows why the Sage's that fall under this specific line have this symbol on their robes but the Masters of the trainees." she said, swinging the blade downward and turning around. She turned the keyblade and knelt down, holding the hilt towards Ananta. "Grasp the hilt and take a deep breathe for me, child." she said.

Scared, she stepped backwards and shook her head. This was all so sudden and Ananta didn't know what to think of it all. The only thing that came to mind was that she needed time to think. So, she ran away.

Ananta rolled her eyes at Glen and turned to Hikaru. "There's a lot of people here now." she pointed out, looking at everyone. "I agree on heading to it now, though."

Ananta turned to Karina and stared at her. Last time she spoke to her, Karina seemed adamant in never wanting to speak to Ananta. But right now, Ananta didn't care how hard she'd get hit. She walked over to Karia and stood in front of her. "Karina." she started before giving Karina a quick hug that was really just her pulling Karina towards Ananta a brief second. "I think you needed that."

Not wanting to wait around to get socked, Ananta quickly turned and stepped forward a bit back towards Hikaru. "Got any idea where it'll go?" she asked.