Will Master Xehanort use Aqua for his evil plan on KH3?

[Hillboy]

The way her will didn't break in the RoD I don't think she'll be a pawn of his. It is an interesting idea though

[maggosh]

Moving to Spoiler section because spoilers are fun fun fun~

That's like moving a bunch of people you don't like out into the wilderness to perish because hey, camping's sometime's fun.

[Radar]

I don't feel like Aqua could ever be evil/bad. She's so pure and that happening I never heard of before.

[Sora2016]

If Aqua doesn't learn how to accept the darkness she could become good "enemy of light" material, I can say that much. I think their setting her up to follow in ME's foot steps, up to the point where it could become her penitential demise if she doesn't change her mentality. At least, I'm sort of hoping they take it that way.

I sincerely hope she changes her mentality before that happens... Please :(

[Ruran]

I sincerely hope she changes her mentality before that happens... Please :(

I doubt they'd actually be ballzy enough to kill her off. She's too well liked. Not to mention important.

[Sephiroth0812]

This again?
*sigh*
What's suddenly with all the deliberations and eagerness to turn Aqua into a villain?
There is absolutely no base for that, not in her character, personality or her mindset, especially when keeping in mind her devotion to Terra and Ventus.

The way her will didn't break in the RoD I don't think she'll be a pawn of his. It is an interesting idea though

Exactly, she will neither be "controlled" by Xehanort nor suddenly slip of into villainy. She isn't Riku who was tempted by power or Terra who could not really deal with his insecurities.

Even if she "follows" Eraqus footsteps that wouldn't make her suddenly a villain. Master Eraqus is also not a villain, who says as such is overexaggerating by quite a margin.
Sure, he was an asshole that tried to kill Ven (and I despise him for that), but that was more along a desperate action rather than true malevolence since he apparently was too stupid to think about alternatives (i.e. rather killing Vanitas and MX, perhaps?).
Unlike DiZ, who really treated Naminé and Roxas like trash because he wanted to, Eraqus was not truly malevolent.

[Ruran]

This again?
*sigh*
What's suddenly with all the deliberations and eagerness to turn Aqua into a villain?
There is absolutely no base for that, not in her character, personality or her mindset, especially when keeping in mind her devotion to Terra and Ventus.



Exactly, she will neither be "controlled" by Xehanort nor suddenly slip of into villainy. She isn't Riku who was tempted by power or Terra who could not really deal with his insecurities.

Even if she "follows" Eraqus footsteps that wouldn't make her suddenly a villain. Master Eraqus is also not a villain, who says as such is overexaggerating by quite a margin.
Sure, he was an asshole that tried to kill Ven (and I despise him for that), but that was more along a desperate action rather than true malevolence since he apparently was too stupid to think about alternatives (i.e. rather killing Vanitas and MX, perhaps?).
Unlike DiZ, who really treated Naminé and Roxas like trash because he wanted to, Eraqus was not truly malevolent.

No one's really "anticipating" it? It's more of an interesting thought than down right hopes or dreams.

[Sephiroth0812]

No one's really "anticipating" it? It's more of an interesting thought than down right hopes or dreams.

Well, not anticipating it is pretty reasonable because such a move would undo much of the character development Aqua had over the last third of BBS when she finally choose to place her friends above her duties => hence her saving Terra-Xehanort and trying to "bring out" Terra again instead of destroying him for the threat he represented.

My first comment on it was also more because I read this stuff more often the last three months or so and I really don't get where people dig up the justification for her suddenly turning into a villain and betraying her friends. After Sora and Ventus, Aqua is probably the biggest "friendship-freak" in the whole series, not a crazy megalomanic like Xehanort.
That's almost like saying that Sora is to blame for Roxas' physical existence being erased in order to awaken him when it was really Naminé's fault for messing with Sora's memories to begin with.

[Horizon's Knight]

Well, not anticipating it is pretty reasonable because such a move would undo much of the character development Aqua had over the last third of BBS when she finally choose to place her friends above her duties => hence her saving Terra-Xehanort and trying to "bring out" Terra again instead of destroying him for the threat he represented.

My first comment on it was also more because I read this stuff more often the last three months or so and I really don't get where people dig up the justification for her suddenly turning into a villain and betraying her friends. After Sora and Ventus, Aqua is probably the biggest "friendship-freak" in the whole series, not a crazy megalomanic like Xehanort.
That's almost like saying that Sora is to blame for Roxas' physical existence being erased in order to awaken him when it was really Naminé's fault for messing with Sora's memories to begin with.

I understand what you're trying to say, and I agree with you that Aqua would never become an antagonist. However, I do understand where some people are getting that idea from.

When Aqua met AtW, Ansem tells her that his memories are slipping away, and he can barely remember who he was and what he did. Even though Aqua has a strong will, there was a cutscene that showed Aqua temporarily losing hope and considering suicide by the giant Heartless. When the keyblades of Terra and Ventus came to the rescue, Aqua remarks about forgetting how to smile.

Obviously, some of the members here at KHInsider might have taken those examples above and came to the conclusion that Aqua might forget about some of her development about "darkness must be destroyed" due to the RoD, which would cause her to go the Eraqus route. Either that, or the RoD might have taken its toll on Aqua's Heart after all, thus making her a possible pawn of Xehanort's.

Like I said before, I don't beleive that any of those will happen with Aqua to make her an antagonist. I merely understand why some fans might think that way.

[Ruran]

^This, and the idea of Aqua becoming a villain comes from many people in the fandom wanting an "enemy of light" for a long time. Despite KH logic saying that neither Light nor Darkness are truly bad/good we've yet to see an example of Light gone bad. The closest we've gotten to that is Eraqus becoming so desperate to protect the Light that he was willing to destroy his beloved students for it.

Aqua, being ME's best pupil, has most taken ME's teachings to heart and has made it abundantly clear that she hates the darkness about as much as he did. Even more so thanks to MX-

What else is Darkness but hate and rage?

-and probably even more after that thanks to being stuck in the RoD for so long. When Aqua does finally get rescued there'd be no reason what so ever for her to believe that Darkness is nothing but evil unless something drastically changes her mind.

Eventually Aqua and Riku will meet and I somehow doubt they're meeting will be all sunshine and butterflies. After years of ME's teachings, MX and Vanitas doing nothing but prove ME right about the Darkness, being stuck in the RoD for so long, and Riku being Terra's predecessor, I don't think Aqua will be initially happy with the path Riku chose.

Will it be enough to make her become a villain? Definitely not. Will it cause tension? I don't see how it couldn't. Will Aqua pull an "Eraqus"? I actually don't rule it out completely with all things considered. It depends on how things develop in KH3 so I actually think there's a 50/50 chance.

[Seighart]

Well im sure Aqua will respect Terra's decision in regards of choosing Riku as a Wielder. With that being said, she could definitely still hold some anger towards Terra for striking down her master and decide to take some kind of action towards Riku as a form of test or something.

[Nayru's Love]

Well im sure Aqua will respect Terra's decision in regards of choosing Riku as a Wielder. With that being said, she could definitely still hold some anger towards Terra for striking down her master and decide to take some kind of action towards Riku as a form of test or something.

HIT THESE BALLS OF LIGHT AND I WILL RESPECT YOU AS A MASTER

[Ruran]

Well im sure Aqua will respect Terra's decision in regards of choosing Riku as a Wielder. With that being said, she could definitely still hold some anger towards Terra for striking down her master and decide to take some kind of action towards Riku as a form of test or something.

The thing I'm concerned about is Riku's affinity to Darkness. I don't think Aqua will like that and he'll just remind Aqua of Terra and how he couldn't handle the darkness.

HIT THESE HARMLESS BALLS OF LIGHT AND I WILL RESPECT YOU AS A MASTER

FIXED!

[Sephiroth0812]

I understand what you're trying to say, and I agree with you that Aqua would never become an antagonist. However, I do understand where some people are getting that idea from.

I know I could have pointed it out in even more detail, lol, but I hadn't really the time to d so.
No one is denying people having ideas, yet I do think that beside the very thin reasoning, it does also not make sense story-wise since having Aqua suddenly going ax crazy would detract way too much from the actual important storyline, which is mostly a) rescue the seven people who called out for Sora, b) protect the Princesses and prevent the end of the universe (aka Keyblade War, which comically also quite a bunch of people seem to want to happen despite that would mean not only that Xehanort wins but also the destruction of the whole realm of Light and everything drowned in Darkness) and of course c) Defeat Xehanort once and for all.
That is all already pretty much stuff to cover in KH III.

When Aqua met AtW, Ansem tells her that his memories are slipping away, and he can barely remember who he was and what he did. Even though Aqua has a strong will, there was a cutscene that showed Aqua temporarily losing hope and considering suicide by the giant Heartless. When the keyblades of Terra and Ventus came to the rescue, Aqua remarks about forgetting how to smile.

Obviously, some of the members here at KHInsider might have taken those examples above and came to the conclusion that Aqua might forget about some of her development about "darkness must be destroyed" due to the RoD, which would cause her to go the Eraqus route. Either that, or the RoD might have taken its toll on Aqua's Heart after all, thus making her a possible pawn of Xehanort's.

As far as I know Ansem's memory loss came from the explosion of his Kingdom Hearts encoder, not from the RoD itself. Not to mention Ansem wears a black coat which should shield him for the most part from the bad influence of the RoD if there is one.
Yeah, Aqua had a temporarily heroic breakdown...so what? Most of the other heroes (I can remember Roxas, Terra, Ven, Xion and even Sora in one swoop) had one too and they didn't turn evil or ax crazy because of it.
Aqua also said that she almost forgot how to smile and that is immediately followed by her remembering everyone, Terra, Ven, Eraqus, all the Disney characters she met, Zack, Kairi, Sora and Riku as well.

Doesn't really bring me to the conclusion that she's forgetting, rather the other way around. Furthermore the way how she acts and talks when she finally meets Ansem. While she's exhausted and a bit gloomy, her composure does not really indicate that her mind snapped and she's hellbent on destroying all darkness she can reach.
Also, what would exactly mean "going the Eraqus route?", like said, Eraqus isn't really a villain and after looking through his quotes and interactions with characters again I realized that not even he is so stupid to believe that the darkness can be destroyed. He also speaks of Yen Sid watching over the balance between Light and Darkness and while he may be extreme in the way that he wishes that darkness may be able to be destroyed, in the end he only advocates to keep it in check...which is reasonable when we look what happened to Terra (and later Riku in KH 1) when you don't keep it in check.
Since this is the Spoiler section it can be said openly:
Indirectly, Aqua already is a pawn in Xehanort's game just like most of the other major characters considering the 7/13-stuff and her being one of the protectors of light, which also shows one of her main tasks.
As a protector of the light it is her purpose to oppose those who misuse the darkness.

Like I said before, I don't beleive that any of those will happen with Aqua to make her an antagonist. I merely understand why some fans might think that way.

Yeah, I understand that, and in my book, all these "hints" toward such a drastic turn are extremely thin, especially, again, in the light of Aqua's devotion to her friends.
The darkness itself (the element) is also not the problem but the ones using it to wreak havoc. I bet if an enemy would threaten to kill Terra or Ven Aqua wouldn't care if that enemy uses Dark Firaga or Holy, she would kick that guy's ass regardless of elemental alignment.

^This, and the idea of Aqua becoming a villain comes from many people in the fandom wanting an "enemy of light" for a long time. Despite KH logic saying that neither Light nor Darkness are truly bad/good we've yet to see an example of Light gone bad. The closest we've gotten to that is Eraqus becoming so desperate to protect the Light that he was willing to destroy his beloved students for it.

Aqua, being ME's best pupil, has most taken ME's teachings to heart and has made it abundantly clear that she hates the darkness about as much as he did. Even more so thanks to MX-

-and probably even more after that thanks to being stuck in the RoD for so long. When Aqua does finally get rescued there'd be no reason what so ever for her to believe that Darkness is nothing but evil unless something drastically changes her mind.

Eventually Aqua and Riku will meet and I somehow doubt they're meeting will be all sunshine and butterflies. After years of ME's teachings, MX and Vanitas doing nothing but prove ME right about the Darkness, being stuck in the RoD for so long, and Riku being Terra's predecessor, I don't think Aqua will be initially happy with the path Riku chose.

Will it be enough to make her become a villain? Definitely not. Will it cause tension? I don't see how it couldn't. Will Aqua pull an "Eraqus"? I actually don't rule it out completely with all things considered. It depends on how things develop in KH3 so I actually think there's a 50/50 chance.

See, and that is another thing I don't get. What's so special about an "enemy of light"? Villain is villain, regardless if he/she shoots dark fireballs or columns of Light. Barthandelus of Final Fantasy XIII also uses mainly light attacks and yet he's still a megalomanic tyrant.

KH Logic doesn't even use the "good"/"bad"-analogy in regards to light and darkness. KH Logic only says that both are at the core neutral and part of nature. An "example of light gone bad" may not even exist since going bad would mean it switches into darkness or it is really extremely rare. After all, the people using darkness for "good" are extremely rare too, so far only Terra and Riku, and out of those only Riku mastered it to really use it wihout problems (and also only in conjunction with his light). When Eraqus admitted his error in trying to kill Ven and attacking Terra he realized that the darkness in his own heart had grown.

It's true that Aqua heeds the most to Eraqus' somewhat one-sided teachings, yet in the end she still choose her friends over herr duties anyways and I see no reason why she would suddenly change that in KH III.
Beating the crap out of Xehanort, Braig, Vanitas etc. in KH III? That's not becoming a villain of light, that's doing the universe a favor and finally get rid of the bastards, lol.

That "drastic" change to her views you already mention just one paragraph later: Riku. I won't be surprised if Aqua will actually admire Riku because he can control his darkness.
Remember, Eraqus failed Terra in the MoM in BBS not because he has darkness, but because he failed to keep it in check.
Not to mention in DDD Riku also takes more steps towards the light, as some of his quotes to Ansem SoD show:

Riku: Yes. If that's my purpose, I'll consume the darkness, and dissolve it into light.

Ansem: You overestimate yourself.
---
Riku: Ansem! Become a part of my heart, and become light!

Such things will rather make Aqua proud instead of creating tension and show her Terra had the correct impression.
Oh, and btw, Terra originally choose Riku because he was drawn to the Kid's light, not the darkness.

"Pulling an Eraqus?" Like Aqua trying to kill Riku? Pfft, nope, I doubt that'll ever happen, also, again, Eraqus was acting out of desperation and fear, not true malevolence or other villainous intentions.

Also, no offense, but this quote

If Aqua doesn't learn how to accept the darkness she could become good "enemy of light" material, I can say that much. I think their setting her up to follow in ME's foot steps, up to the point where it could become her penitential demise if she doesn't change her mentality. At least, I'm sort of hoping they take it that way.

somehow rubs me the wrong way.
Maybe I'm reading it wrong (or interpreting it wrong) but, does that mean if you don't accept the darkness you become automatically an "enemy of light"? If you don't welcome the darkness you're a villain worse than Master Xehanort? That sounds suspiciously like the old man himself or a rabid darkness-fanboy trivializing the dangers darkness holds while demonizing the light.

Well im sure Aqua will respect Terra's decision in regards of choosing Riku as a Wielder. With that being said, she could definitely still hold some anger towards Terra for striking down her master and decide to take some kind of action towards Riku as a form of test or something.

I am pretty convinced she will, especially after all that development Riku made now in Dream Drop Distance.
Huh? Last time I checked Aqua was never actually angry towards Terra because of that. She acted more sad in their conversation at the Keyblade Graveyard, not to mention her reaction when Terra told her that he only battled the Master because he wanted to hurt Ventus.
When Braig actually suggested her fighting Terra to take Revenge for Eraqus she coldly brushed him off and kicked his ass instead. (Leaving out here that Braig was actually lying since Terra did NOT kill Eraqus, he only fought him to exhaustion and then they both realized their errors. It was Master Xehanort who dealt the killing blow, not Terra.)

[Ruran]

See, and that is another thing I don't get. What's so special about an "enemy of light"? Villain is villain, regardless if he/she shoots dark fireballs or columns of Light. Barthandelus of Final Fantasy XIII also uses mainly light attacks and yet he's still a megalomanic tyrant.

It's a fascinating concept. It's not "new" but in the age old concept of good vs. evil the vast majority of the time it's darkness=bad and light=good. Basically it mixes things up because even though it doesn't technically matter of the enemy is Light or Darkness based one element is typically associated with a "side".

KH Logic doesn't even use the "good"/"bad"-analogy in regards to light and darkness. KH Logic only says that both are at the core neutral and part of nature. An "example of light gone bad" may not even exist since going bad would mean it switches into darkness or it is really extremely rare. After all, the people using darkness for "good" are extremely rare too, so far only Terra and Riku, and out of those only Riku mastered it to really use it wihout problems (and also only in conjunction with his light). When Eraqus admitted his error in trying to kill Ven and attacking Terra he realized that the darkness in his own heart had grown.

This is sort of what I'm getting at. Darkness and Light within KH are neutral but KH it self doesn't treat it that way most of the time. Light is still largely associated with good and Darkness with bad, even though it's not. This is why fans want an "Enemy of Light". Besides being an interesting concept, it's for the sake of balance because despite what KH says about the neutrality in Darkness and Light, we've only ever seen one side of Light.

It's true that Aqua heeds the most to Eraqus' somewhat one-sided teachings, yet in the end she still choose her friends over herr duties anyways and I see no reason why she would suddenly change that in KH III.
Beating the crap out of Xehanort, Braig, Vanitas etc. in KH III? That's not becoming a villain of light, that's doing the universe a favor and finally get rid of the bastards, lol.

I doubt that Aqua will ever be a villain as well, I just understand where the whole "Aqua turning evil thing" comes from and why fans see motive behind it.

That "drastic" change to her views you already mention just one paragraph later: Riku. I won't be surprised if Aqua will actually admire Riku because he can control his darkness.
Remember, Eraqus failed Terra in the MoM in BBS not because he has darkness, but because he failed to keep it in check.
Not to mention in DDD Riku also takes more steps towards the light, as some of his quotes to Ansem SoD show:

The way I see it, Aqua might be wary of Riku at first, maybe vocal about him, but will eventually come to accept him as time goes on and he proves himself.

Such things will rather make Aqua proud instead of creating tension and show her Terra had the correct impression.
Oh, and btw, Terra originally choose Riku because he was drawn to the Kid's light, not the darkness.

I know Terra was attracted to his Light, what I was getting at was that Aqua might be initially afraid that Riku will meet the same fate as Terra since they're so closely connected and Riku already has a deep affinity for Darkness.

"Pulling an Eraqus?" Like Aqua trying to kill Riku? Pfft, nope, I doubt that'll ever happen, also, again, Eraqus was acting out of desperation and fear, not true malevolence or other villainous intentions.

I never said that Eraqus did anything villainous or out of ill intent. That seems to be something that has been greatly misinterpreted because that keeps being brought up.

That's why I said "it depends on how things develop in KH3". With MX trying to pull everyone's strings misguidance is bound to happen. With everyone preparing to fight him and his hoard it wouldn't surprise me if he tried to spread discord, not only with Aqua, but among all his enemies.

Also, no offense, but this quote

somehow rubs me the wrong way.
Maybe I'm reading it wrong (or interpreting it wrong) but, does that mean if you don't accept the darkness you become automatically an "enemy of light"? If you don't welcome the darkness you're a villain worse than Master Xehanort? That sounds suspiciously like the old man himself or a rabid darkness-fanboy trivializing the dangers darkness holds while demonizing the light.

That was me half bring up the "Enemy of Light" thing as an interesting concept, half jesting, but sarcasm doesn't translate well over text.