"He's perfectly fine! We did it Master Yen Sid!" Sora jumped slightly where he stood in excitement.

Yen Sid nodded with a smile of relief then turned to look at Aqua.

"I suppose your trip to the Chamber of Waking went seamlessly."

Aqua nodded with a bow.

"Yes Master, Ven is finally awake." Aqua replied with a shaky smile, still overwhelmed with happiness.

Without realizing it her eyes moved on their own to look at Ven, who was sitting against the wall talking with Donald and Goofy. Ven felt her eyes on him and when he turned in Aqua's direction she immediately turned back to face Yen Sid.

"I am aware that we can't waste any time to fight Xehanort." Aqua continued. "But I really recommend Ven takes some time to get used to moving around."

Yen Sid nodded, noticing how she and Ven continued meeting their eyes briefly.

"I agree. Besides, we still have to think of a way to bring Terra back to us."

Aqua softened her eyes and sighed sadly. She really was beyond relieved that Ven was finally awake, but bringing Terra back wouldn't be easy either. It would still be a while before the three reunited.

Sore smiled reassuringly in Aqua's direction.

"Don't worry Aqua leave it to us!" Sora said confident before resting both of his arms behind his head with a sheepish smile. "Right now I think you should be with Ven instead. We'll definitely call you if anything comes up."

Aqua smiled in gratitude, discreetly looking back at Ven longingly.

"Thank you Sora."

Aqua bowed politely at Yen Sid to excuse herself and made her way towards Ven. As she approached him Donald and Goofy hurriedly said goodbye to Ven and walked away, more than aware that they needed to be alone.

"Ven." Aqua called softly, crouching to meet his gaze.

"Hey, Aqua." Ven replied with a weak smile.

Aqua briefly looked around them and noticed that Sora, Donald and Goofy were still close enough to hear their conversation and smiled sheepishly as she caressed Ven's hair.

"Would you let me cut your hair?"

Sitting down on a chair with a towel covering his chest Ven closed his eyes and relaxed against his seat, enjoying the feeling of Aqua's fingers maneuvering between his hair as she brushed it.

It wasn't the first time Aqua cut his hair, but it had been so long that Ven forgot what it was like. It was soothing, relaxing and almost comforting. Had he not been sleeping the last decade he would have fallen asleep right then and there.

Ven was enjoying the silence, but there were so many things he still wanted to tell her.

He wanted to thank her again, a couple thousand times more until he felt satisfied and certain that she understood his feelings.

He wanted to apologize to her for leaving her alone for so long. For leaving her to endure such a terrible fate by herself with no one at her side.

He wanted to cry his heart out and let her know how much he missed her, how happy he was to see her again safe and sound, and how much he didn't deserve her as a friend.

And most of all, he wanted to tell her how much he loved her. He loved her so much it was almost suffocating. He couldn't start to imagine what she must have felt and gone through without being overwhelmed by guilt. If he really loved her so much shouldn't he have found a way to help her?

But there was nothing he could have done, nothing but watch helplessly how Aqua struggled to fight the darkness.

The gentle sound of scissors snapping brought Ven back from his internal conflict.

There were so many things he wanted to say, but he had no idea where to start. And even if he did he wouldn't be brave enough to do it.

"Your hair didn't grow as I thought it would Ven." Aqua suddenly pointed out. "But it doesn't hurt to cut it after all this time."

Ven hummed distantly, not really wanting to delve too much on the fact that his body did not age at all because his heart had been absent.

Aqua brushed hair off Ven's shoulders and walked around to stand in front of him, crouching down just a few inches away from his face and holding Ven's hair to see if she had cut both sides evenly.

With Aqua's face so close to his Ven felt his cheeks slightly grow warm, but still remained calm.

He took a moment to slowly take in all of her features, from the shape of her face all the way to her hair. She was just as beautiful as ever.

Ven's eyes softened sadly.

She looked exactly the same.

"You haven't changed at all."

Aqua's eyes finally met Ven's, and the two looked at each other quietly.

She smiled sadly and took the towel off Ven as she dusted it off above a trash can, allowing Ven to stand up and check his new haircut out on the nearest mirror.

His hair still stopped just a bit below his ears, but the locks that stood above his head where significantly shorter. It almost made him look younger.

Content with the result Ven sat down against the wall, watching Aqua place everything she had used back to where she had taken it from. Hopefully she'd stay to talk with him a little longer before they went back with the others.

As soon as she was done Aqua sat down next to Ven, bringing her knees close to her chest.

"Well… time passes by differently in the Realm of Darkness." She finally replied.

Ven dared to scoot a little closer to Aqua and brushed the tip of his fingers against hers.

"That's what I heard." He murmured solemnly.

Aqua breathed softly at the warmth of Ven's fingers. How many times had she seen him in the Realm of Darkness only for him to disappear? It happened a lot, so many times that she lost count. But there she was with the real Ven right next to her. She could feel his skin and listen to his voice; he was real.

Aqua rest her cheek atop Ven's head and moved her hand to fully intertwine her fingers with his.

If only they could stay like that forever.

"I missed you." Aqua whispered, her voice threatening to break had she spoken just a little bit louder.

Ven closed his eyes with a soft sigh. There were a lot of things he wanted to say, but maybe it was best for them both to just stay together.

"I missed you too."