#daughter of darkness fic

I still can barely believe that my first Kingdom Hearts series - my first fanfic series, period - is over! The good news is, I finally get to share the moodboard I made for the third story a long time ago.

A’ninsi & Meli - Cry for Help

(Alt. Prompt 3 for Angstpril 2022)

This is a collab piece! Meli is my Kingdom Hearts OC, A’ninsi is @hopepetal ‘s FF14 OC. So why not throw them together and see what happens? We came up with all kinds of things that could happen to them in this AU, so it’s possible there will be a continuation in the future.

Warnings:referenced loss of limb, death mention

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The Light burned.

A swirling, raging storm inside of them, that could not be quelled by any force… but it could be briefly suppressed, thanks to Ryne’s magic. Although… it wouldn’t matter in the end, would it? if A'ninsi kept the Light, they’d be turned into a lightwarden. If they let it break free, all their work would be undone.

Not to mention the very minor detail of their lost leg. It turned out to be incredibly difficult, finding their sense of balance on one leg and a crutch. They had gone back to their room to rest when suddenly…

…they were somewhere else.

A'ninsi’s first thought was “The Echo?” but they quickly dismissed the thought as they practically collapsed against the nearest thing- a large boulder which they had been lucky enough to appear next to. Leaning on it for support, A'ninsi looked around. “By the twelve…” they murmured, “what…?”

A familiar voice- an irritating one at that- rang out in their mind. “Oh, do calm yourself. You should be used to traveling the rift now.”

Their eyes narrowed. They would’ve snapped back at him, had it not been for the pain that shot through them. “Twelve-”

“I simply transported you to another world. And I was even kind enough to give you a friend.” They could practically see the smirk on Emet-Selch’s face as he continued. “You’ll find she’s in quite the opposite predicament to you. Have fun~”

A'ninsi gasped as heat built in their body, the Light straining to break free. A soft cry of agony made its way past their lips, and their grip on the boulder loosened. No- gods, not now! Keep it together, A'ninsi! Their vision went blurry, and they squeezed their eyes shut. After a moment, they slowly opened their eyes. It seemed the worst had passed… for the moment.

Once again, they looked around, now searching for the “friend” Emet-Selch had dragged into this. As if summoned by the thought, a purple-haired girl stumbled into view in the distance. One hand gripped what looked to be a strangely-shaped sword, while the other pressed up against her side. She didn’t seem to have noticed A’ninsi yet.

A'ninsi swallowed hard, steeling themselves. They didn’t think they’d be able to fight if it came to it. After a moment, they called out.

“Hello?”

They looked down at their chakrams. There was no way they’d be able to fight as they were right now. Gods… Emet-Selch really had the worst timing, didn’t he?

The girl spun around at the sound of their voice, sword held out towards them. A beat of silence passed before she called out, “Who’s there?”

A'ninsi’s breath caught in their throat. “I’m not going to hurt you!” they called, “in all honesty, I doubt I could even if I wanted to.” They were half hidden behind the rock, so they waved slightly. Their relaxed tone and movements didn’t match the fear and apprehension shown by their ears flattening against their head, their tail flicking back and forth.

Hesitantly, the girl lowered the sword just a bit before starting to walk slowly toward them. She stopped before getting too close, but was still close enough that they could see the distrust in her narrowed eyes.

“Who are you?”

A'ninsi smiled wearily. “My name is A'ninsi. I was teleported here by someone- I have no idea what this place is or why you are here, before you ask.” They took a deep breath, trying to calm themselves. “Who are you?”

After a moment, the girl lowered the sword to the ground. “Teleported, huh?” She shook her head, glancing around as she muttered to herself. “Just what I need, someone else yanking me around to do whatever they want…”

Sighing, she turned back to them. “I’m Meli.”

A'ninsi sighed, their eyes briefly flicking to the sword before returning to the girl- Meli. “I’m sorry about this, Meli.” A pause. “He said you were struggling with a condition opposite of mine. Are you having trouble with Darkness?” they ventured. This was probably a sensitive question, but… they needed to know.

Meli stiffened, mouth dropping into a scowl. “I’m not struggling with Darkness,” she spat. “I chose the Darkness I have.” An aura of it rose from her body, swirling around her as she spoke.

The Light inside of A'ninsi flared to life, a burning anger. They cried out as it began to escape, desperately trying to pull it back. Their vision turned white at the edges, everything becoming blurry.

They lost their grip on the boulder, collapsing with a cry. The Light continued to rage inside them, pulsing out around them in small bursts. A'ninsi coughed up liquid Light, their whole body shaking. “No…. gods, please… help me,” they begged, feeling tears well up in their eyes.

Meli stepped forward, arm outstretched as if to help, but hissed and quickly stepped back, a grimace on her face. “Ugh. S-sorry. Sorry, I…” She made a pained sound in the back of her throat and stumbled a few more steps backwards. “I didn’t mean to.”

A'ninsi gasped for air as tears began to fall. The pain spiked sharply, causing them to let out a warbling cry of panic. A moment later, the pain began to subside, leaving A'ninsi to fully collapse against the ground, panting heavily. They closed their eyes, pressing their face against the cool earth. “…sorry about that,” they mumbled, barely able to keep conscious. “…the Light doesn’t exactly… like Darkness.” They opened their eyes and slowly pushed themselves up to sit against the rock.

“N-no kidding.” She was bent over, one hand on her knee while the other still held her side, panting. “Give me a second, I’m just gonna try to…”

She shut her eyes, breathing deeply through her nose, though pain kept flickering across her face with each inhale. After a moment, the navy and black bodysuit she’d been wearing dissipated into a dark mist, leaving behind a more normal outfit.

She straightened stiffly. “That should help, hopefully.”

A'ninsi sighed, feeling the tension leave their body. “Ugh…” They looked up at Meli, tilting their head slightly at the outfit change. An unspoken question. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend earlier. It’s just…” They gestured vaguely at themselves. “…well, you saw what I was struggling with. When he said you were the same…” they trailed off, shaking their head.

“Yeah,” she huffed. “I’d definitely say you’re struggling a lot more than I am.” The words were undoubtedly sarcastic, but still, there was a concerned look in her eyes. “Who is this he, anyway?”

A'ninsi sighed. “Emet-Selch. The man who teleported us here. It’s… a long story, not to mention a confusing one. He’s the reason I’m like this… why I lost my leg… he’s a real pain, certainly.” They looked around. “I don’t know why he brought us here, but I doubt it’s for anything good.”

“Yeah, okay, no.” Meli began digging in her jacket pocket, and pulled out a small mirror. “That settles it. I am so completely done with crazy psycho men dragging me into their plans. I’m getting out of here, feel free to join me if you want.”

She placed fingers from both hands on the mirror, closing her eyes. Nothing happened. Her eyebrows furrowed, and after a moment she opened her eyes with a frustrated growl. “Why isn’t it working?”

A'ninsi watched curiously, shrugging at Meli’s question. “Well, if he summoned us here, I doubt he’s going to let either one of us leave until we’ve done what he wants.” They crossed their arms, leaning back against the boulder. “Good luck with that, Emet-Selch,” they muttered.

They looked down at their leg. “Couldn’t even be bothered to give me a crutch, could you.” This was going to be a nightmare. Gods, the others must be so worried… “I’m sorry, Meli. You were dragged into this because of me.”

Meli was staring down at the mirror still, hands trembling just enough to barely be noticeable. She finally clicked it shut harder than necessary, clutching it tightly in one fist while the other went back to the spot on her side. Her breaths were coming quickly, chest heaving.

But she squeezed her eyes shut again, jaw tight, and a moment later seemed to have calmed. The mirror returned to her pocket. She looked back over at A’ninsi, offering a small smile.

“Well…we might as well make the most of it, I guess. Probably should look around some, see if we can find anything useful. Um…I can help you walk? If I can…actually get near you now, that is.”

A'ninsi couldn’t help but feel concerned at how upset Meli seemed to be. They didn’t know how to help, so they just sat there, watching. Their eyes followed the mirror until it was put away, and their gaze returned to Meli’s. “…yes, I think that would be best. You should be able to come near me as long as the Darkness doesn’t… come out, I suppose?” They sighed. “Gods… any moment now I’m going to wake up and be back at home and everything will be all right…” Trying to convince themselves was a futile attempt, but an attempt they made all the same.

Meli laughed without humor. “Yeah, in my experience that doesn’t ever happen, unfortunately.” Slowly, tentatively, she walked closer to them, as if waiting for it to start hurting again at any moment. When she made it all the way to their side without incident, she breathed out a sigh, and crouched down.

“Here, put your arm over my shoulder.”

A'ninsi took a deep breath slowly reaching out and putting their arm over her shoulder. They winced slightly at the pain the movement brought- it seemed they had hurt themselves when they had fallen. No matter. “Ah… sorry, I may be a little heavy…” They let out a breathy laugh, unsure if it was because of shock or fear. “…I haven’t had to be helped like this in a long time,” they murmured.

“I doubt you’ll be that heavy, you’re actually smaller than me. I’m not used to that.” She adjusted her position, ready to stand. “Okay, here we go. One, two, three!” A pained whine left her as she pulled A’ninsi up to their feet.

A'ninsi gasped, their ears twitching at the whine. Concern flashed across their face, but they didn’t press- wouldn’t press- for now. They leaned against Meli as little as possible, trying to support most of their weight on their one leg. They became concerned once more when they saw the bandages on their stump bloodied, but didn’t mention it. It could wait until later.

Now that they were standing again, they could get a better grasp of their surroundings. Their eyes scanned the field and the forest beyond it, searching for something- anything- that would provide shelter. “…it wouldn’t do us much good to be caught out in the open,” they muttered, half to themselves.

Meli shook her head. “No. If we’re gonna find anything…food, shelter, whatever…it’s probably gonna be in those woods over there. Think you can make it that far?”

A'ninsi nodded. “Yes, I believe so. I don’t like the prospect of being possibly closed in by the forest, but it’s better than out here.” They shifted slightly. “I wonder… what kind of star is this?”

They started off together at a slow, painstaking pace. Meli glanced briefly upward at the sky, then back down at their path. “What do you mean, star?”

A'ninsi tilted their head slightly. “This place. This star. Where we are?” Maybe Meli used different terms than they did, like the people of the First. “I wonder if it’s a shard…”

“Oh, right.” She looked around them, though there wasn’t much to be seen besides grass and distant trees. “Well, we’re definitely not in Kansas anymore.”

It was A'ninsi’s turn to be confused. “Kansas? Is that a city-state?” they asked. “I haven’t heard of it before.”

“No, it’s…well, yeah, actually, it technically is a state, but…never mind. That’s just…a saying. Where I come from.”

A'ninsi nodded. “…ah. Alright.” They went silent for a moment, thinking. “Sorry, I’m not really good at conversation.”

“That’s okay,” Meli replied a bit breathlessly. “Let’s just focus on getting to the trees.”

A'ninsi was silent the rest of the way, doing their best to keep their focus off the pain in their leg as they searched for something that would offer shelter. As the two traveled deeper into the forest, they spotted something. “Over there. Is that a cave?” They pointed with their free arm.

Meli followed with her gaze. “Could be.” She turned them both in that direction, picking her way carefully over roots and uneven ground.

A'ninsi was careful not to trip, leaning carefully against Meli when they needed to. As they drew closer, they could see that it was a cave. “Well… this could work, for now at least. It’s better than nothing.” A'ninsi looked up towards the sky, which had been gradually darkening as day turned to night. “Well… at least this place has a night time,” they muttered.

They made their way cautiously into the cave, and Meli helped A’ninsi to sit up against the wall. It didn’t seem to go back very far, so there was no need to worry about anything hiding further inside.

Looking around, Meli nodded. “Yeah, this should do okay. I’ll, uh…go back out and see if I can find us anything to eat or drink.”

A'ninsi groaned softly as they settled against the rock. “Thank you,” they murmured. “Call for me if you need help, and I’ll do the best I can.” They closed their eyes, the cool stone feeling nice against their skin.

Echoing footsteps left the cave, followed by the shing of a weapon being summoned. Then everything fell silent except for the distant twittering of birds.

A'ninsi sighed, hating having to just… wait. To be useless and unable to do anything. It was the worst feeling. And there was nothing they could do about it.

It was probably a couple of hours before Meli returned. She looked a bit worn, feet dragging, but she managed a tired smile at them, holding up a couple of items in her hands.

“Okay. So. I officially hate wilderness survival. But I don’t think I did half bad at it.” She settled down in front of A’ninsi, grimacing as she did so. “I found a stream. It looked nice and clean. I drank some of the water and I’m not dead yet, so…” She shrugged. “I managed to find a huge leaf and scoop some up in it, but unless I can figure out a better way to hold water I’ll have to go back a lot.” She held out the strange leaf pouch to them so that they could drink themselves.

A'ninsi laughed slightly, looking quite tired themselves despite having not gone on any long trip. “…alright, but if I die I’m going to be very mad,” they joked, taking the leaf pouch and drinking the water. They hadn’t realized how parched they were until they had practically gulped down the whole thing.

“I also got some of this.” She set down a second leaf pouch and let it fall open, displaying a small pile of various berries and nuts. “I don’t know what they are, though, so…I was hoping you might recognize some of them…?”

A'ninsi laughed, shaking their head. “No, sorry. I’m sure we’ll find out whether they’re poisonous or not soon enough, though.”

“Yay.” Meli sighed, picking up one of the berries and eyeing it critically. “Guess it’s better than starving?”

“If we do die,” A'ninsi pointed out, “at least we won’t be starving.” They popped one of the berries into their mouth. “Tastes fine.”

Meli followed suit, eating the berry she’d been holding and chewing carefully. “Yeah, pretty tasty. Not sure how well it’s gonna keep us going for…however long we’ll be here.”

“That’s fine,” A'ninsi shrugged, “I’m sure we’ll find some sort of settlement… somewhere. Unless our dear Emet-Selch put us somewhere with no people.” They crossed their arms, leaning back. “Right. We should probably set up shifts so we aren’t completely unguarded.”

“I’ll take first shift,” Meli offers immediately. “You could use the rest, and I don’t sleep much, anyway.”

A'ninsi nodded. “That’s settled, then. Wake me if you need me.” They got as comfortable as they could, closing their eyes as exhaustion dragged them down into sleep.