Disclaimer: I own nothing written about in this story. Also, the pic I used for this story belongs to KickBass77 on DeviantArt, all credit goes to them.

Pursuit

AN: This is a sequel to my story: Awakening, so I urge reading that first if you haven't already...

Pairing Note: There are minor pairings added to this story, though as I specified, they are minor and should not effect the enjoyment of your read should you disapprove of said pairing...

Chapter One – of Beginnings

Bright golden rays of sunlight washed over Radiant Garden's surface, bathing the land with a soft glow from the sun's slanted angle of twilight.

Terra sighed and closed his eyes for a moment, soaking in the last of the day's warmth. A slight breeze tugged lightly at his dark hair and hooded haori, something he wore to imitate his late master, much like the triangular shaped patch of hair on his chin, though he hadn't indulged in a mustache, choosing not to copy his old master completely. He felt that these little things helped to keep his master's memory alive, never mind that it made him feel more distinguished somehow.

He listened as the breeze rustled the grass all around and mingled with the joyful cries of children. He sat on a bench in the middle of one of the Keyblade Academy's parks where a playground was stationed not far away. He opened his eyes at the sound of his son's footfalls and smiled to see his old master's true legacy running toward him as a five year old boy.

The boy's bright blue eyes danced with energy like his mother's and his charcoal blue hair was taking shape like Terra's, with long bangs splitting on either side of his face. He wore a simple black T-shirt and tan shorts and his black shoes thumped along the ground as he trotted around.

"Eraq," Terra called to the boy that had inherited his late master's name. "Be careful." He frowned when he could tell the boy wasn't listening. Eraqus was laughing and looked over his shoulder to his playmate as he ran. Terra cringed when the boy suddenly tripped and fell, his knee scraping on the grassy earth.

Terra was on his feet and scooping the boy up before the first wail could escape his young throat. "I told you to be careful," Terra chided gently and returned to the bench with the boy in his arms.

Eraq's playmate, a three year old girl with soft brown hair followed and sat on the bench as well. "Don't cry Eraq," she pleaded with worried brown eyes as the boy sniffed and rubbed at his scuffed knee, fresh tears running down his cheeks. The girl looked up to Terra apologetically. "Is he ok?"

Terra smirked at her and then nudged his son. "Look at that Eraq, Marlene is worried about you, now suck it up and try to be tough, it's just a scrape." He licked a thumb and rubbed the dirt away from the injury, causing the boy to cringe and whine, though his crying had abated some.

All the commotion had even caught the rapt attention of the two year old toddler at Terra's feet. The younger boy's hair had a lighter shade of brown than Marlene's, in fact if one scrutinized enough one could detect a slight variation of red there, no doubt an element passed from his father. His blue eyes were such a soft tint that they were almost green, another influence from his father, Terra guessed.

He nudged the still sniffling Eraq again. "Look, even Denzel is worried about you." The said toddler stood up with a wobble and moved to put both hands on the bench as he peered up to Eraq, seeming genuinely concerned.

"Hurt," Denzel said simply and hesitantly held out a tentative hand to touch Eraq's shoe, causing Terra to cock his head curiously. The younger boy was quiet and withdrawn by nature, and any interaction he instigated like this was rare.

Eraq sniffled and nodded at the other boy, rubbing a fist at the tears on his cheeks. His whining stopped but his breathing still hitched and his knee still stung, but his father told him it wasn't a big deal and he shouldn't cry, so he wouldn't. He looked to Marlene when she suddenly bounced around on the bench excitedly. "I know! Uncle Terra, tell us a story!"

"A story?" Terra repeated, somewhat amused by the girl's hyperactive outburst. "What kind of story?"

Eraqus' eyes lit up and he turned around in his father's lap to gaze up at him, hopeful. "A story with a dragon!"

Terra couldn't withhold a short bark of laughter at how quickly the boy was distracted from his injury. "How do you know about dragons?"

"Uncle Lea told us," Eraq explained with a bright smile, his glossy blue eyes clearing more every second. "He said he makes fire the same way dragons make fire."

"Did he now?" Terra pondered aloud, thinking the fiery red-head's explanation was no doubt just a simple way for the children to understand his unusual ability to manipulate fire. "Well, I do have one story with a dragon, though she didn't breath fire."

The two older children gasped excitedly while Denzel worked his way up onto the bench and sat on Terra's other side, looking up to the man silently, though the toddler couldn't understand what they were talking about, try as he might.

Terra smiled at the three of them in turn and poked Eraq's side objectively. "Well, actually, you're mother got turned into a dragon once."

"Mom did?" Eraq's eyes widened and he was instantly a hundred times more interested, if that was even possible. He glanced to Marlene, sharing a look of astonishment with her.

Terra nodded with a smile, his expression turning mischievous. "That's not all. The world we went to turned her into a dragon but it also turned me into a tiger." He faked a growl and suddenly seized the boy and turned him over in his arms, playfully pretending to eat him.

Eraq howled with laughter, causing the other two kids to jerk away from Terra's sudden movements with a start. Marlene had squeaked with surprise but quickly recovered once Terra relented his "attack" and Denzel relaxed once he resumed the story. Eraq continued to giggle and pawed his father's face away playfully. "We got captured by the people in that world because dragons are rare creatures there," Terra continued, adding as an afterthought, "or anywhere actually."

"I can't believe Mom was a dragon!" Eraq exclaimed, sitting up again and bouncing somewhat in his father's lap as he gazed up expectantly. "What did she look like?"

Terra put his hands on the boy's head to still him and gave him a pointed look. "I'll tell you, but only if you listen quietly."

Eraq covered his mouth with both hands and nodded furiously. "Good." Terra smiled, amused. He tapped his chin for a moment, thoughtful. "Let's see, I guess she looked a lot like a big lizard since she didn't have any wings-" he silenced his son with another look when he was about to inquire but quickly replaced his hands over his mouth again.

"She had a long snout, her scales were blue and she had blue fur from the top of her head all the way down her back and to the tip of her long tail." He paused for an instant, thinking his rendering of Aqua's dragon form was sufficient for the children. He knew they had seen various creatures in books and fairy tales so he didn't bother explaining what his tiger form looked like, since there weren't any variations to them.

"Now like I said, we got captured by these soldiers. Originally we thought they were bad people, but they didn't hurt us, so we didn't fight back." Terra conveniently avoided the part where he had lunged at a soldier for getting too close and had been admonished by Aqua for his misplaced aggression. "We were taken to a prison where we met this boy named Wentai..." The story continued for a long time, with all three children captivated by his voice until the final crescent of the sun peeked over the horizon.

Terra had reached the part in his story where they had met the Hero of China when he heard footfalls approaching nearby. His words died away as he watched Marlene suddenly launch herself off the bench and ran headlong into the arms of the blond newcomer. "Daddy!"

Without a word the blond swordsman lifted his daughter up and moved to plop down on the bench where she had been sitting previously. Terra nodded in acknowledgment. "Cloud."

Cloud's only response was a weary sigh as he leaned his head back dramatically. His daughter bounced around on his lap, her hyperactive mouth running a hundred questions a second, admittedly half of it was unintelligible.

Terra inclined his head sympathetically. He was suddenly very grateful for his son's generally calm demeanor, though he also wasn't so withdrawn like Denzel either. "You know," the dark haired man began carefully. "She's only like that around you."

Another sigh from the blond. "I know." He still wasn't answering the young girl's demanding questions which continued to spill from her mouth at a rapid rate.

"She only wants your attention," Terra offered, watching as the girl was desperately trying to get her father to interact with her.

"I know." Cloud still refused to raise his head, glazed eyes aimed at the darkening blue sky above.

Terra chuckled with a shake of his head. There was just no helping some people. He looked up to see that Lea had approached silently and stood in front of the bench for a moment, eying his contemporaries and their spawn with a passive gaze. How he managed to sneak up on virtually everyone was a mystery that Terra had long since given up on. "Daddy!" Denzel exclaimed, a rare expression of joy split the chubby toddler's face and he reached out to his father eagerly.

Terra watched with amused interest as Lea's blank expression suddenly lit up with a smile of his own. "Heya Kiddo!" The fiery haired man lifted his son into the air and spun him around a few times before collapsing onto the bench on Terra's other side. Denzel giggling and snuggling up to his father contentedly. "Yo," Lea greeted his peers with a wave before looking back down to his passive son and rigorously ruffling his hair as though he were trying to get him riled up. To no avail, the boy simply clung tighter to his father's shirt and chuckled happily.

Terra nodded and blinked at him. He looked from Lea and Denzel to Cloud and Marlene, the characteristic contrast between child and parent was truly astonishing.

The sun had finally set, only its residual light remained in the air while the first of the stars began appearing in the darkening sky. All three men sat there for a moment longer with their respective child in their lap, a common thought passing between them without words; being a father was tiring.

"My turn tomorrow," Cloud announced in a monotone as he finally lifted his head and ruffled Marlene's hair with a grin. The girl giggled at the fond gesture but pushed his hand away, her seemingly endless string of questions ceasing as she leaned into her father with a smile.

Terra and Lea nodded before all three men stood up at once, as if in response to a silent prompt, each child beginning to doze in their father's arms.

As they went their separate ways upon reaching the residential wing of the Academy, Terra found himself sighing with relief. He'd finally get a day off from babysitting tomorrow. Ever since he and Aqua had returned from their journey to multiple worlds, the Keyblade Academy had adopted an apprentice system from one such world.

Every master, Keyblade wielder or not, could take on one apprentice at a time, mentoring that one from the age of nine until they turned thirteen, or were otherwise mature enough, where they would then be tested for their Keyblade wielding compatibility. Their training would then intensify until they showed signs for the Mark of Mastery exams.

Both Terra and Ventus had finally become masters a few years ago and could thus take on an apprentice if they so desired. But neither had as of yet, each for different reasons.

Ven didn't feel experienced enough to teach yet, for one, and was waiting for the right apprentice to come along for another. Terra, on the other hand, simply just wanted to spend more time with his son, as Aqua was constantly busy with other matters. Both she and Sora were the Academy's Grand Masters, another term adopted by the same world as before, and as such they had many responsibilities. They shared the task of training and preparing the youngest students, from the age of six to nine, or until they found a master to be apprenticed to.

Cloud, Lea and their respective wives had all taken on an apprentice awhile ago, thus leaving Terra to watch the three children most days while their parents were off training the future Keyblade Guardians. Even on his rare days off though, Terra opted to keep Eraq with him, as he had no excuse not to, and he enjoyed giving him one on one time without the other two around.

Terra thought about that for a moment, wondering if maybe that was why Eraq had such a stable demeanor. More often than not, he had his father's attention whenever he wanted it.

As if his thoughts had roused the boy, Eraq peeked up at his father through sleepy blue slits. "Will I get to see Mom tonight?"

Terra's stride faltered for an instant but he quickly recovered and hushed the boy gently in an attempt to forestall a question that he wasn't entirely capable of answering. He fought off a visible cringe when Eraq opened his eyes a little wider, his sleepiness waring off in light of his concern. "Dad?" he whimpered sadly, on the verge of tears.

Terra met his son's blue gaze with his own and sighed in defeat. "I don't know Eraq, maybe, but you know how busy she is." He knew it was unreasonable to make a five year old understand that his mother was too busy for him, but he also knew Eraq was smart enough to know his mother was an important person. At the same time, he just couldn't find it in his heart to expect his son to be selfless about the matter and willingly share his mother with the world.

The boy said nothing in reply and gripped his father's shirt in a tight fist, burying his face in the same fabric out of frustration and sadness. Terra frowned deeply and instinctively held him tighter as he stepped up to their quarters and entered after shifting the boy a bit to open the door.

Eraq gave the dark apartment a quick scan and let his eyes drop to the floor with a sob. "She's not here."

Terra groaned. This was Eraq's one emotional downfall compared to the other kids. Though he really couldn't blame him. He was only five; it was natural for him to want his mother. At least the other two kids would always go home to both parents every night.

Terra was lucky though, since Eraq knew better than to throw a fit or bawl his lungs out. He simply clung to his shirt and sobbed pathetically, his cries hampered down to a whimpering. Terra smiled sadly at the boy and moved to the kitchen, flicking on lights as he went. "Hey, how about a snack?"

Eraq sniffed and nodded, rubbing at his eyes in vain as tears continued to run, though his mite cries lessened somewhat. Terra sat him down on the kitchen counter and opened the freezer nearby before fishing out a couple sticks with blue colored ice cream. The boy's eyes lit up and his whining faded, replaced by a hitched breath followed by a hiccup as he reached out for the sweet treat, licking the frozen liquid contentedly. Terra took a bite out of his own ice cream, leaned down and touched his forehead to his son's. "Feel better?"

Eraq nodded against his father's head and offered a placated smile, though his eyes still betrayed a tormented longing. Terra stepped back and watched the boy devour his unlikely dinner. They were both half done with their bedtime snack when they heard the front door open and close.

"Mom's home!" Eraq perked up instantly and looked to the doorway expectantly while Terra visibly cringed at the sound. Not good, not good! He turned just in time to see Aqua step into the kitchen with a heavy weariness in her eyes. Though she was not so delirious to ignore the crime so blatantly held in both her boy's hands.

"Terra," she sighed in exasperation, one hand massaging her forehead as though she had suddenly contracted a headache. "What have you done?"

AN: So, just to clarify, Eraq is pronounced like Eric for all intents and purposes.