Kingdom Hearts: Friendship's Turmoil

Chapters

Chapter 2: Fitting In
Chapter 3: More to Go
Chapter 4: Friends and Enemies
Chapter 6: Dusk at Dawn
Chapter 7: Brave Return
Chapter 8: Repeated Events
Chapter 9: Admirers
Chapter 10: Impact
Chapter 11: The Complications of Love
Chapter 12: Dreams of the Lost
Chapter 13: One and Done
Chapter 14: Before the Fun
Chapter 15: Party Time
Chapter 16: Unexpected Darkness
Chapter 17: Reunion
Interlude: Surrounded by Light
Chapter 19: Peace with Conflict
Chapter 20: Feelings
Chapter 21: Power of Deceit
Chapter 1: Arrival
Chapter 5: Gathering Hearts
Chapter 18: Thoughtful Thoughts

Chapter 2: Fitting In

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship's Turmoil
Chapter 2: Fitting In

The hallways of the school were not very confusing for Sora, but since he was completely new, he had a hard time navigating through them. Each hallway branched to more hallways, and everything looked the same no matter where he went. Still, with Principal Celestia’s directions, he knew he would find his destination. What kept his mind occupied was the meeting with Rainbow Dash, not two minutes ago. A feeling in his gut told him he should meet her again, and he wasn’t sure why.

Perhaps he was simply worried about her, or maybe he just enjoyed her company. Whatever it might be, he hoped he would see her again. Making a friend always made him happy, and in this new world, she could help him find what he was looking for. Smiling to himself, he put his hands behind his head as he made his way to the counselor’s office. After he paid his visit, he would get to work on finding that special magic. He still had to protect it, and it would be far easier to defend it if he knew what to defend.

“Second door to my right,” Sora muttered to himself as he walked to the door that he was heading to, stopping short of entering. “Here we are.”

The door he stood in front of was different from any other door in the building for one simple reason: the window on the door was in the shape of a heart. It didn’t bother Sora though, and he rapped his knuckles against the wood of the door three times, waiting to be allowed permission to enter.

“Come in,” a feminine voice called out, and Sora did so. As he closed the door behind him, he saw the counselor, who was sitting behind a large wooden desk, and she wasn’t too different from everyone else he saw in this world. She had pink skin, and her hair was violet, magenta, and pale gold that looked incredibly soft and gentle. She wore a royal purple jacket similar to Principal Celestia’s, and light green pants.

The counselor was mildly surprised to see Sora, shown by her studying him with a tilt of her head. “Are you a transfer student?” she requested nicely.

“Yeah,” Sora answered, his smile instantly appearing, “Principal Celestia told me I had to come to you for orientation.”

The counselor smiled back, putting any worries Sora had at ease. “Ah, I see,” she said, then gestured to the seat in front of her desk. “Please take a seat so we may begin.”

Sora nodded and strode over to the indicated seat as the counselor sorted through papers. As Sora plopped into his seat with vigor, the counselor found the sheet she was looking for, grabbed a nearby pen, and faced Sora.

“First off,” the counselor started, “I’m counselor Mi Amore Cadenza, or just counselor Cadence for short.”

“I’m Sora,” he introduced, putting a hand over his chest with a confirming nod. “So, exactly how does orientation work?”

“Well, one part is knowing your name, which you’ve already given me,” Cadance chuckled, writing down on the paper before looking back at him. “But the rest is just getting to know you for the school record.”

“Okay, I see,” Sora nodded, but then a quizzical look came over him. “Principal Celestia said that new students have to go through orientation after something happened here. Do you know what she meant?”

Cadance rubbed her chin in thought, putting the pen down for the moment. “Not all the details,” she admitted, “From what I was told, a student was turned into some sort of monster during the Fall Formal dance.”

“Monster!?” Sora blurted, his mind going straight to the one’s he had faced before and he leaned forward. “Was it a Heartless, or a Nobody!?”

Cadance raised a brow, bewildered, “Heartless? Nobody?”

Realizing his slip up, Sora relaxed his posture, giving a sheepish chuckle as he rubbed the back of his head. “Never mind,” he said, “So, what happened with the monster?”

Sora hoped she would take the subject change, but how he had suddenly shouted strange names was cause enough to question further. Cadance was conflicted on whether she wanted to know what he meant or not, but luckily, she reluctantly answered his question, ignoring the previous outburst for the time being.

“Apparently, a group of friends used some type of magic to take it down,” she continued slowly, still curious by the words Sora mentioned. “You would have to ask someone else for the details.”

“Gotcha,” Sora said, “What else do you need to know?”

Cadance asked question after question while Sora answered as much of the truth as he could. He made sure to keep all information that would paint him as a world-trotting hero secret, but all in all, it was an easy and rather fun process. He told her where he moved from, where he currently resided - which he was able to avoid by saying he hadn’t memorized it yet - and what classes he would like to join. Considering that Sora wasn’t going to stay for very long in the world, he decided to just go with the regular curriculum. With the short amount of questions, it should have been a quick session, but Sora couldn’t help but describe in detail his old home. In the end, Sora gave a yawn from sitting in one place too long, stretching his arms out, which Cadance noticed.

“That should be all, Sora,” Cadence concluded, writing down the last bit, “Now, classes have already ended for the day, but you are welcome to explore the school to familiarize yourself with it until it officially closes.”

“Thank you very much,” Sora said, rolling his arm around in its socket to get the blood moving again. Orientation had taken longer than he had expected, and now he was really hungry. He hoped he could find some left over food back at the cafeteria. Leaping out of his seat, Sora made his way out, giving a wave to Cadence as he left, which she returned.

***

As Cadence sat there, looking over what she had written during Sora’s orientation, she couldn’t help but give a wide smile at his optimism. No matter what was thrown at Sora, he always found a way to overcome it, and come out with a smile on his face. It was an attribute that she hadn’t seen at all while she was at Canterlot High, and she wished more students shared his enthusiasm. He was definitely an interesting person.

“Well, I’m done for the day,” she said aloud, cleaning up the cluster of papers that littered her desk. After all, she had to check in with her sister-in-law to make sure she wasn’t overworking herself, again.

***

As Sora made his way through the hallways of the school, he tried to go the opposite of the way he came. It worked, to an extent, as he found himself in a hallway just off from where he was heading to. With a shrug, he ran the rest of the way, and threw open the doors, entering with his continued running. The room was empty, seeing as there was no point in sticking around school after hours.

Making his way past the tables and chairs to the serving station, Sora was a bit surprised to see the same old woman from before still there, like she hadn’t moved at all. He also noticed that all the food that was placed around was now gone, leaving him with nothing to eat, much to his grumbling stomach. Stepping up to the counter, Sora asked, “Do you have any food left? I kind of skipped lunch.”

“Sorry, sonny,” the old woman apologized, still remaining where she stood. “All out.”

“But you didn’t even look!” Sora pointed out.

“Don’t need to look, I already know!” the old woman shot back with a laugh, causing Sora to sigh in exasperation, slumping his body. A soft giggle was heard by the entrance, causing Sora to perk up from the sound. Turning to the door, he saw a pink-haired girl cover her mouth in embarrassment, lightly blushing, and quickly bolt out the door that she had apparently just entered through.

“Huh,” Sora muttered, staring at where the girl had left, “Who was that?”

“Oh, I guess we do have some food left,” the old woman restated, looking through a refrigerator a few feet away from the counter. Turning his head to the old woman, Sora could clearly see that there was more than ‘some’ food left. A lot of apples that he didn’t even bother to count, nor would he get the chance as the old woman closed the door of the refrigerator with an apple in hand.

“Here ya are,” she said, giving the apple to Sora’s eager hand. “Don’t eat too fast now, ya hear?”

“Don’t worry,” Sora said, already taking a bite from the apple, which was absolutely delicious, “I won’t.”

Then, he quickly made for the door, wanting to meet the girl that he had seen. It looked like she was the only other student in the school at the time, and Sora wanted to see if she could help him out. When he re-entered the hallway, however, he was disappointed to see that she was no where in sight.

“Where did she go?” he asked himself, taking another bite of the apple as he thought of where to look for her. She could have went to any place in the school, and because of its layout, Sora wasn’t sure if he could find her again. Sighing in defeat, he simply walked through the hallways, hoping to find his way around by the time school actually started the next day.

***

Fluttershy put a hand to her chest as she tried to calm her racing heart, resting against the lockers, since she had to run quite awhile until she felt like she was far enough. All she wanted to do was grab an apple for a light snack before she started her detention, but now it seemed she would be unable to. The transfer student was there, so she was about to leave him be so as to avoid meeting him. But Fluttershy overheard the conversation he was having with the lunch lady, and couldn’t suppress a giggle at his antics.

She couldn’t believe she had done that. She laughed at the transfer student! She knew he wouldn’t want to be near her now. This was exactly why she stayed away from the other students - it always ended up with her making a fool of herself. The transfer student wasn’t even here a day and she already messed up. Suppressing a sob, Fluttershy pushed off of the lockers and walked towards Vice Principal Luna’s office. Maybe she could cheer herself up later by visiting the animal shelter, unless she was bogged down with detention.

“I should have taken Rainbow’s advice,” Fluttershy said to herself sadly. Even after three more classes, she still couldn’t muster the courage to ask someone for help. Who was she supposed to ask besides her friends? Now she could be cleaning the halls for days before she would be finished. Thinking back, Fluttershy had skipped a lot of classes. She was surprised she wasn’t punished sooner.

Eventually, she found herself standing before Vice Principal Luna’s office, and with a timid fashion she gently gave a single knock on the door. “Enter,” Luna said from within, causing Fluttershy to jump slightly from her sudden voice. With a tinge of fear, Fluttershy opened the door, peeking inside to see Luna waiting for her at her desk with a raised brow. Vice Principal Luna had light blue skin, and dark blue and light purple hair. She wore a purple shirt with dark purple pants

“Ah, Fluttershy,” Luna noticed, “You have arrived.”

Fluttershy entered the room fully, giving a small nod to Luna’s statement. “You already know what you must do to make up for your classes,” Luna said walking around her desk to the corner of the room, where a mop and bucket sat. “But as a refresher, you must clean all the halls of the school by next week, starting now.”

Handing the mop and bucket to Fluttershy in each hand, Luna backed away, looking around with surprise. “Did you bring another student to assist you like I had suggested?”

“No, ma’am,” she whispered, feeling guilty. Luna had given her two days to find one other student to help her clean. But her friends had already made plans for the time she would be serving detention, and she would do anything besides ask some random classmate to help.

Giving a disappointed sigh, Luna simply said, “Very well. You may start immediately.”

Gently pushing Fluttershy out of her office, Luna closed the door, leaving her to start her detention. Fluttershy looked both ways of the hallway, unsure where to even begin. Deciding to start in the library, and maybe see if Twilight was still there, she began lugging the bucket and mop towards her goal.

As she walked, she came to realize just how much she would have to clean, and it dampened her mood further. It would take a lot longer than she originally thought. As she rounded a corner, her eyes glued to the floor in hopelessness, she accidently bumped into someone, causing her to stumble back, lose her footing, and fall on her rear, the objects in her hands clattering to the ground.

“Oh, sorry about that,” a young voice apologized, making Fluttershy flinch. She had messed up again! Fluttershy was too busy rubbing where she had landed to look at who she had bumped into. “Hey!” the voice continued with a happy tone, “You're that girl I saw!”

Fluttershy froze where she was, too afraid to see who she had walked into, but with a gulp, she did so anyway, coming face to face with the transfer student. She had not gotten a good look at him the first time he presented himself, but now that she was a few feet away from him, she could easily see his childish face with brown spiky hair.

Fluttershy whimpered, looking away as she hid her face from view. Out of all the people she could have bumped into, it had to be the transfer student. “S-Sorry, sorry!” she quickly apologized, hugging her legs in fear. “I didn’t mean to laugh at you, or bump into you! I just… w-well, umm, I..”

“Hey, you don’t have to apologize,” the boy interrupted, taking her by surprise. “I probably shouldn’t be deep in thought in the middle of the hallway anyway.”

Taking a risk, Fluttershy glanced at the boy again, who had a smile on his face. It took her a moment longer to see that he was holding out a hand to help her up, while his other hand held a half-eaten apple. She took the hand hesitantly, unable to tear her eyes away from his own, which were ocean blue. With the boy’s help, she was standing once again, and bowed her head, trying to hide her face away from him.

“T-Thank you,” she squeezed out, playing with her hands nervously.

“No problem,” the boy said with a shake of his head. “The name’s Sora.”

“I’m…” she started, then whispered the rest of her name, which Sora was just barely able to make out.

“Flutter what now?” Sora requested with a confused expression.

“Fluttershy,” she said just a bit louder, but it was enough for Sora to hear.

“Oh, nice to meet you,” he expressed, eating his apple contently. “What are you doing here anyway?”

Instead of answering, Fluttershy simply glanced at the objects she had dropped, and Sora took the hint when he saw the cleaning supplies. “Your cleaning the hallways?” he asked for confirmation.

She nodded, still averting her eyes. “All of them?” he continued on, disbelief evident in his tone.

Again, Fluttershy nodded. “Well,” Sora said, looking around him, “I’ll help you out.”

The statement caused Fluttershy to finally look at Sora, who still had his kind grin on his face. “Y-You want to help me?” she asked timidly, still not believing that a transfer student would suddenly come and assist her.

“Yeah, why not?” Sora said simply, picking up the items that Fluttershy had dropped. “With this many hallways, I don’t know who wouldn’t want to help you.”

Fluttershy could name a few, even a lot, of people who would say otherwise. But she still smiled at his generosity. He was willing to spend the time to clean the halls with her, and she was very glad of it.

“Thank you, Sora,” she said, causing Sora’s smile to grow even wider.

“Don’t mention it.”

***

A man, cloaked in a black coat with a hood over his head, stood in the center of the lobby of the school. Holding his hand up to where his chin would be, he silently contemplated how to proceed with his orders. At the same time, he glanced at the area around him with a hint of interest. He pondered how people could decorate a building in such a fashion. In fact, he questioned the school as a whole. If it wasn’t for the powerful magic his master had felt, not a single soul would know, or even care, that this place existed. It was a trivial thought, however, and he focused back on his objective.

At that point, a Corridor of Darkness appeared behind him, with its oval shape of pure black. Another figure, clad in the same black coat with hood up, walked through, stopping a few meters from the first person. “So,” the second figure said, having a laid-back tone. “Are you going to get started or what?”

The first figure looked over his shoulder, the hand still on his chin. “You do not understand the magic that is at work here,” he said with a stern and calm voice. “It takes a delicate touch to find and destroy the magic of friendship.”

“As if,” the second figure waved off, “You act all high and mighty, but in the end you’re just too soft to deal with things like this.”

“And you act like an imbecile,” the first figure snapped, walking away from him.

“Hey, hey,” the second figure called, causing the first to halt to hear what he had to say. “If you think you can handle this all on your own, then I guess there’s no reason for me being here.”

“Exactly,” the first figure agreed, about to continue his walk before the second figure cleared his throat.

“But you know,” the second figure said, dramatically looking at the ceiling as if deep in thought. “It sure would be difficult with that keybearer running around.”

The first figure remained still, thinking over the other’s words. “He has already arrived then?” he asked nonchalantly.

“Sure has,” the second figure answered, “I’m surprised you didn’t know yet. You’re slipping.”

The first figure fumed over the other figure’s words. His master had explicitly ordered him to take care not to draw attention until the time was right. But time was short if the keybearer had already arrived. “Very well then,” the first figure gave in with a small nod. “We’ll do it your way.”

The first figure raised his right hand and snapped his fingers. In an instant, Black blobs formed on the floor, and monsters began to emerge from them. They were about waist high, with two, long antennae that stretched to their lower back. They were humanoid, but had large claws on their hands and inhuman, round yellow eyes.

The second figure chuckled, his whole body shaking from his laughter, “Yeah, this is more like it!”

“If this fails, you’ll have to answer to our master,” the first figure explained plainly as he turned towards him.

“The old coot?” the second figure scoffed, “As if. He sent you to do this. I just tagged along for the ride.”

“Then you can stay around to see if your little plan works,” the first figure said in a bout of anger. A Corridor of Darkness enveloped him, and he disappeared without a trace.

The first figure looked at the Heartless the first figure had summoned and crossed his arms with a shake of his head. “Spoilsport,” he muttered, before he too was gone in a Corridor of Darkness. The Heartless in the lobby, growing restless, began to shamble down the hallways of the school, hungry for hearts.

***

Having found another mop, Sora was busy cleaning the floors with Fluttershy, who seemed much happier that he had offered to help. Between the two of them, they were cleaning the floors fairly quickly, but they still had a ways to go. They were quiet as they stood by each other with mops in hand, pushing against the floor to scrub the muck. Feeling slightly bored, Sora decided to strike up a conversation.

“Say Fluttershy,” Sora started, gaining her attention as she turned to him, stopping in her work, “Have you seen a guy named Riku around?”

“Sorry, Sora,” she apologized as Sora stopped his work as well to face her. “I haven’t heard anyone by that name before.”

Sora sighed, but nodded in thanks. “Are you looking for him?” Fluttershy followed up, curious as to Sora’s question.

“Yeah,” Sora answered with a smile, “He’s a good friend of mine that went missing a while ago.”

“Oh, I hope you find him then,” Fluttershy said sincerely.

“I know I will,” Sora said, looking off to the side in thought. “I won’t give up until I find him.”

Fluttershy smiled at his bravado, and continued cleaning the floors. Sora was about to do the same thing, but he caught movement from the corner of his eye. Looking over, he didn’t see anything besides the empty hallway. He glanced over to Fluttershy, but she behaved like she hadn’t seen a thing. Facing the hallway, Sora jumped back from the sight: A Neo Shadow was standing there, tilting its head quizzically.

Narrowing his eyes, Sora saw the Heartless dash out of sight into another hallway. If Heartless were here, then that meant that they were hunting for the magic of friendship. He had to stop them before they could find it and destroy friendship as he knew it.

“Fluttershy,” he called, and she looked towards him with a smile. “I, uh, have to do something. Do you think we can call it a day?”

Fluttershy was confused, a frown emerging, “I guess we can stop for now. What do you-”

“Thanks, Fluttershy,” Sora said, dropping his mop and bolting down the hall where he last saw the Heartless. He ran around the corner, seeing the Heartless go through another hallway. When Sora reached it, he was met with many Heartless, waiting for his arrival. He screeched to a halt, wondering how the Heartless were able to plan an ambush. He didn’t have the time to stick to the thought as the Heartless charged towards him.

His face turning serious, Sora threw his arm out to the side and summoned his keyblade, Kingdom Key, in a flash of light and got ready for battle. The first Heartless took a swipe at him, but Sora ducked and sliced right through it, and it disappeared in a black mist. Three more tried to leap at him, jumping into the air for a pounce. Sora saw it though and jumped back, readying his keyblade. When they landed, he surged forward, swinging his keyblade three times, one for each Heartless, and they all disappeared.

Sora saw two more zig-zagging down the hallway towards him, and he readied his keyblade once more. The closest one swung its arm at him, but he jumped up and landed on its arm, rendering the Heartless useless for a moment. The other Heartless jumped over the other to catch Sora off guard, but Sora simply swung his keyblade vertically and swiftly destroyed the two of them in one blow.

Seeing that there was still more Heartless to take care of, Sora gripped his keyblade tightly, and rushed forward. With each Heartless that came by, Sora swung his keyblade and destroyed it. He was very successful, able to take down each enemy as he ran through the hallway. When he reached the end, he found the lobby was full of Heartless, each wanting a chance to take his heart.

Undeterred from the sight, Sora jumped into the fray, swinging his keyblade down on top of a Heartless. With the Heartless destroyed, he swung in a large arc, taking out a lot of the remaining Heartless. The surrounding enemies charged for him, and Sora couldn’t see a way out using conventional means.

Sticking his keyblade in the air above him, he shouted, “Gather!”

A vortex of light emerged from the end of his keyblade, and it began drawing the Heartless from around the room, forcing them to orbit the vortex in Sora’s Magnet spell. With the Heartless occupied, Sora jumped up and took swipes at any passing Heartless, and eventually the area was clear of enemies.

After looking in each direction for any more Heartless, Sora relaxed, his keyblade disappearing in a flash of light. He wondered who could have summoned the Heartless. They weren’t smart enough to organize a trap, so someone must have used them.

“It must be Xehanort,” he said to himself with a shake of his head. “He must have thought he could knock me off.”

Then, with a smirk, he crossed his arms triumphantly. “Guess I showed him,” he remarked with a chuckle. He turned his head to the hallway and gaped, seeing Fluttershy standing there, looking frightened as she quivered where she stood. Did she watch him battle the Heartless?

“Fluttershy?” Sora called gently, taking a step towards her. Fluttershy flinched and ran for the door with eyes clamped shut.

“Wait!” Sora exclaimed, running after her. He only got outside before he decided it wasn’t worth chasing her, and he watched helplessly as she ran down the sidewalk and out of sight. She feared him now, and Sora dipped his head low at the thought. He had made and lost a friend that day, and he hoped he could make it up to her later.

Sora walked back into the school, noticing that it was late afternoon. Wanting to get to bed early, he made his way back up the way he came to the Gummi Ship on the roof, entering it and closing the platform behind him. He climbed into his bunk, but as he was lying there, with his hands behind his head, he found that he couldn’t drift off to sleep, still feeling bad that he had scared Fluttershy.

***

A man in a black coat was pacing furiously in the lobby that once held the battle between Sora and the Heartless. He couldn’t believe his plan didn’t work, though he should have known that Sora would have easily slain the Heartless.

“So it failed?” a figure said, stepping behind the first figure who froze from the voice. “Can’t say I’m surprised.”

“Look, you,” the first figure snapped, whipping around as he pointed at the other. “I’m sure you wouldn’t have done any better.”

“Oh really?” the second figure asked, “You forget who’s in charge here. And besides they were only Heartless, they can be replaced.”

“Whatever,” the first figure said, waving a hand dismissively. “So what did the old coot have to say?”

“Our master does not care that the keybearer has arrived ahead of time,” the second figure informed with a hint of surprise. “In fact, he thinks of it as an opportunity to eliminate him ahead of time.”

“Doesn’t he need him to make that fancy weapon he always goes on about?” the first figure questioned.

“Yes and no,” the first figure explained, walking over to the display case full of trophies. “He needs seven wielders of the light, but that does not mean he needs the keybearer. He can find a suitable replacement in due time.”

“Okay then,” the first figure said with a chuckle, his old mood returning swiftly. “What does he want us to do then?”

“To simply observe,” the second figure said, glancing over to the other. “And await for the time to strike again.”

The first figure groaned, “He knows I hate waiting around.”

“Then maybe you should attend the classes held here,” the second figure said, his calmness never wavering, “You might learn a thing or two.”

The first figured chuckled, “Gee, I just don’t know.”

Silence was all there was for a minute before the second figure spoke again. “Keep an eye on the keybearer,” he ordered, a Corridor of Darkness appearing before him, “I shall continue my search for the special magic here.”

When he stepped into the portal, he disappeared along with the portal itself. Leaving the first figure alone again. “As if,” he said to no one as a Corridor of Darkness took him out of the area.

Author's Note

I listen to all suggestions, so feel free to give me some ideas!

Chapter 3: More to Go

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 3: More to Go

All Sora could feel was nothingness. Pure darkness was all around him, and though it didn’t consume him, it also didn’t allow him the element of feeling either. Then, he found himself floating, slowly falling towards whatever was waiting for him below. Groggily, he was able to regain movement, and even sight in time; but it was still too dark to make out anything. In a few seconds, he was righted so he would be standing, and landed gently on a solid surface.

On instinct, Sora looked down to see a glass surface, one that was very familiar, yet not. It was mostly purple with circles all along the rim, and a smaller circle - taking the upper-half of the pillar - held seven equal circles inside of it. He had seen those glass pillars, sure, but the design was empty. There wasn’t anything to signify what it represented.

Before Sora could hope to think on it further, a voice spoke in his head. It was empty, like the words were simply appearing in his mind, rather than being spoken. “There is Darkness in Light,” it said, causing a chill to run down Sora’s spine. “And Light in Darkness. There cannot be one without the other.”

Sora looked around the darkness that surrounded him, as if he could find the one that said these words, but to no avail. “Six elements are what oppose the Darkness.” It continued, “Six elements, but one meaning.”

Sora had no idea what the voice could be talking about, but remained silent. He knew there was no point in trying to reply, as he didn’t even know if the voice would respond. “Do the six make up the one, or does the one make up the six? That is for you to find out.”

Sora frowned at the voice’s riddles. They had never made much sense, even when he first found himself here. One of the circles in the smaller circle glowed cyan as an image appeared. Sora walked over to it with curiosity, and the light faded away to reveal Rainbow Dash, wearing a different outfit than what he saw her in.

“Loyalty…” the voice echoed ominously.

What exactly would that mean? Is Rainbow loyal to someone, or is it just her personality? Confused, Sora shook his head, and awaited for something else to happen. Inevitably, another light, this one yellow, glowed in another circle across from Rainbow’s image. Looking over, the image showed Fluttershy, wearing the same outfit Rainbow Dash had on.

“Kindness…” the voice said.

First loyalty, now kindness. Sora couldn’t understand what these meant or what those two girls had to do with it, but felt like it would reveal itself in time. When that would be, he didn’t know. It couldn’t be something bad, he felt confident of that, but he knew that not finding out could lead to dire consequences.

“Find the rest,” the voice said, “And the meaning will become clear.”

“The rest of what?” Sora finally asked, looking up at the nothingness above. He was tired of being left clueless. The voice didn’t reply, nor did he really expect it to, as Sora was left to his thoughts. Did it mean find the other people that filled these circles? And if that was the case, how would he know where to find them? A few seconds later, Sora felt himself sink into the ground. Alarmed, he flailed about, trying to pull himself out as he saw that the entire platform had disappeared, leaving only the darkness that he felt before. As he slowly sank into the abyss, he heard the voice speak again, only this time it was difficult to make out.

“You are the key to the end. How it will end shall lie with you.”

With those words ringing in his ears, Sora sank faster, his efforts to escape becoming futile. Soon, only his hand was left, reaching out for whatever it was worth. To his surprise, he felt a hand grasp his, but when he thought about it, it wasn’t really one hand. It was six hands. With the hands tightly grasping his own, they pulled, and brought him out of the Darkness.

***

Sora’s eyes shot open, and he instantly sat up in his bed. Though he regretted doing that, as he banged his head against the roof of his bunk. He was back in the Gummi Ship, back in reality, and it was painful. Rubbing his sore head, Sora climbed out of bed, still feeling sleepy as he walked to the cockpit.

“What was that about?” he questioned, shaking his head slowly. Sitting in the pilot’s chair, he gazed outside to the rising sun, his mind drawing a blank from finding a conclusion. What did Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy have in common? And why were they referred to as ‘loyalty’ and ‘kindness’? It was a peculiar mystery. Knowing there was no way he was going to find his answers from sitting around, Sora jumped up from the chair and stretched his arms.

“Time for my first day of school,” he reminded himself. He hadn’t been to school in years, and it would be refreshing for him to return after so long. Flipping a switch, the ramp under the Gummi Ship lowered, and Sora ran down it, heading over to the edge of the roof.

Peering down, Sora could see all the students milling about in the front yard of the school, either heading inside or talking with friends. He found it relaxing to stand up there, high above the ground with the sun shining on him. It gave him a sense of belonging, like he had experienced it many times before, even though he hadn’t. It also gave him a craving for sea-salt ice cream.

Focusing back to the ground, Sora saw Fluttershy standing in front of the statue of a horse. She looked to be holding a piece of paper in one hand, with a stack of papers in her other arm. She was conversing with Rainbow Dash, whom he had met the day before, and a white-skinned girl, who had dark purple hair. The girl had on a purple skirt with a very light blue blouse. Fluttershy must have been friends with them.

Turning back to Fluttershy, Sora remembered how he had involuntarily scared her away. “I need to talk to her.” Sora muttered, for he knew it was the right thing to do, even if she didn’t want to see him again.

How Sora would bring up the subject and get her to forgive him would be a challenge, but Sora knew that he could do it. Wanting to get to her quickly, Sora looked directly below him to judge how far he would have to jump. It was only two stories down, and he had fallen from higher places without trouble. Satisfied with his analysis, he took a step back, and leapt off the building.

***

Fluttershy was having her typical Wednesday morning. As in, she was handing out fliers for the local animal shelter, and she was being ignored. Though she tried valiantly, it was only a repeat of last week, and the week before that, and the week before that. Holding out a flyer was hardly working, but what else could she do?

“Canterlot’s animal shelter needs more volunteers,” she called out rather desperately, “Won’t you help an animal that can’t help itself?”

However, everyone continued on their way, barely giving her a second glance. Sighing, Fluttershy continued waving the flyer in her hand. She promised herself that she would do this every week, and she was sticking to that, even if she felt like she would break down into tears.

With the extra time, Fluttershy thought back to the scene involving Sora and those black creatures. She was really frightened to find them there, disappearing in a black mist every time Sora hit one. Not only that, but the weapon he was using was so bizarre. In truth, she didn’t really know what to think of Sora. Why would he be fighting them? And why did he use a weapon that looks like a key?

“Fluttershy!” Rainbow Dash’s voice exclaimed happily, knocking Fluttershy out of her thoughts as she jumped. When she looked over, she saw Rainbow approach with another of her friends.

“Oh, hello Rainbow, hi Rarity,” she replied with a smile. Rainbow simply waved back, but Rarity looked very relieved and cheerful, practically skipping with joy.

“Handing out fliers again, I see?” Rarity said, sounding like the whole idea was wonderful, and when Fluttershy nodded, she let out a loud, “Marvelous!”

“You sound happy today,” Fluttershy said, glad to see her so relaxed. Because of Rarity’s work, Fluttershy rarely saw her outside of school, and other times, she would be so tired that she could barely utter a word.

“Yeah, no kidding,” Rainbow commented with a smirk, gently elbowing Rarity in the gut. Rarity giggled at the gesture, which was uncommon in that type of situation.

“I most certainly am happy,” Rarity revealed, hugging herself as she explained, “It took me days, but I finally finished the dress I’ve been working on.”

“That’s good,” Fluttershy said, her mind involuntarily going back to Sora again, causing her smile to falter. Rainbow was the first to notice and she frowned with a raised brow.

“You okay, Fluttershy?” she asked, “You look kind of down.”

Rarity was able to snap out of her happy mood to see what Rainbow meant, looking at Fluttershy with concern. Fluttershy felt pressured as she hugged her fliers, unsure on how to respond to the question.

“Y-Yes,” Fluttershy stuttered, but seeing their faces, she quickly added, “Well, I mean, not really.”

“Come on, you can tell us,” Rainbow said reassuringly, giving her a worried look. Fluttershy hadn’t told her friends about the incident with Sora, and she wasn’t really sure why. Probably because she didn’t want to bother them with something she didn’t fully believe herself. Plus, she didn’t know how the best way to describe the scene.

“W-Well,” Fluttershy sighed, searching for the right words to use. “Do you remember the transfer student, Rainbow?”

“Yeah, the spiky-haired guy,” Rainbow recalled, as she crossed her arms with a hint of impatience, “What about him?”

“Transfer student?” Rarity asked, looking between the two, “When did we get a transfer student?”

“Just yesterday,” Rainbow said, looking irritated, “Now, what about this guy?”

“His name is Sora,” Fluttershy kindly reminded, making Rainbow sigh in exasperation.

“Can you just tell us what he did?” Rainbow groaned, sagging her body.

“Um, you see, he sort of-” she started slowly.

“Did this ‘Sora’ hurt you!?” Rarity exclaimed, drawing stares from passing students. Just like Rarity to jump to the worst conclusions.

“N-No,” Fluttershy stammered, suddenly feeling like she was tattling on Sora. He hadn’t done anything wrong, but her friends really wanted to know, otherwise they would pester her until she told them. “He just… scared me.”

Rarity and Rainbow glanced at each other with concern before turning back to Fluttershy, who was staring at the floor pitifully, a few fliers slipping from her grip and onto the ground.

“Why didn’t you tell us sooner, darling?” Rarity requested, putting a hand on Fluttershy’s shoulder.

“I didn’t know if you would believe me,” she revealed, feeling embarrassed about the whole thing.

Rainbow sidled up to Fluttershy with a genuine smile, wrapping an arm around Fluttershy’s shoulder. “We’re your friends, Fluttershy,” she said, “You can tell us anything!”

Rarity smiled as well, stepping to Fluttershy’s other side to wrap her own arm around her. “Besides,” she added, “after the whole mess with the Twilight and the crown, I think we can handle anything.”

Fluttershy looked up at Rarity, seeing the sincerity on her face, and Rainbow’s was no different. How could she doubt her friends like that? She should have had more faith in them.

“Thanks,” she whispered, feeling glad she had friends like them. She looked to the sky, her mood having lifted considerably, and when her eyes passed over the roof of the school, her smile quickly faded into confusion. “Oh, why is he on the roof?”

Puzzled, Rainbow and Rarity gave her a funny look before seeing what she was talking about, and they saw Sora hanging out on the roof, just standing there. Many other students had stopped in their tracks to stare at him as well, already muttering amongst themselves.

“At least it’s easier to find him,” Rainbow growled, releasing Fluttershy as she took a few steps forward.

“I concur,” Rarity said, also letting Fluttershy go as she stood beside Rainbow. “We shall teach this transfer student not to scare our-”

He had jumped off the roof. The whole courtyard was taken by surprise as they saw him falling to the ground. “What is he doing!?” Rarity shouted, her jaw wide open. Rainbow was just as taken aback, simply standing in shock. Fluttershy was completely speechless, her mind going blank as she watched Sora grow closer and closer to the ground. She couldn’t process why Sora would do such a thing, but turned away, too afraid to see what would happen when he landed.

After a few seconds, she peeked again, and her surprise had doubled ten fold. Sora had stuck the landing, and was running over to them like it was nothing. He had jumped off a two-story building, landed, and simply walked it off. To say that she, or everyone who had seen the stunt, were shocked would be an understatement.

***

After sticking the landing, like he always did, Sora headed straight for Fluttershy, ignoring the stares he had earned. As he neared her, he tried to think of what exactly to say to her, but was coming up with nothing. He hoped she would accept a simple apology, because that was all he had. Rainbow and the purple-haired girl were gawking at him the entire time, until he had stopped a ways away from them, uncertain if they would want him near them.

Looking over to Fluttershy, he saw her hide her face from him using her hair. He rubbed the back of his head as he waited for the words to pop in his head like he hoped they would. Knowing he had to say something, he opened his mouth to at least say hello, but didn’t have the chance.

“How did you do that?” Rainbow questioned, her eyes wide in disbelief.

Distracted from his objective, Sora turned to her with a raised eyebrow and tilted head. “Uh, do what?” he asked back, not understanding what she meant.

“Jump off the school,” the purple-haired girl explained pointing to the building, which Sora faced to fully comprehend their meaning.

He shrugged, “I always do that.”

“Huh!?” the two exclaimed simultaneously.

Shaking his head at their behavior, Sora turned his focus back to Fluttershy, who still hadn’t looked at him since he had arrived. “Fluttershy,” Sora started with a guilty frown, making Fluttershy take a quick glance at him before hiding again.

Rainbow and the purple-haired girl were quickly knocked out of their stunned demeanor and furrowed their brows at him. They stood between Sora and Fluttershy like a wall, as they bore down on him like a kid caught stealing from the cookie jar. “How dare you come see Fluttershy again, you ruffian!” the purple-haired girl shouted, making Sora jump back. He didn’t think he scared her that bad, but maybe he had frightened her more than he had thought.

“I just wanted to say I’m sorry,” he tried to explain, waving his arms in front of himself.

“Right,” Rainbow drawled with a roll of her eyes, crossing her arms. Sora sighed, his shoulders slumping. He didn’t think apologizing would be this hard.

“You… want to say you're sorry?” Fluttershy said quietly, earning a look from Rainbow and Rarity.

Sora gave a friendly smile, “Yeah. I mean, I didn’t do it on purpose.”

“I guess not,” Fluttershy admitted, blushing slightly at Sora’s kindness. It’s like he cared about everyone he met, even if he hadn’t truly met them yet. “Thank you, Sora.”

Sora sighed, glad to have that off his chest, and nodded at her. Rainbow looked between the two as Rarity looked Sora over, studying his outfit.

“What exactly did he do to scare you anyway?” Rainbow asked at last, making Sora suddenly nervous. He didn’t want to force Fluttershy to lie to her friends, but he didn’t want too many people knowing about everything that had happened. Fluttershy was evidently indecisive herself, as she backed away from the tension.

“Um, he… he just…” she said weakly, trying to stall for whatever it was worth, but knew deep down that there would be no way out of an explanation.

It was at that moment, that the three heard someone yell, “Get out of my way!”

When they looked over, they saw Sunset Shimmer shove her way past the other students, and a few jumped out of the way in freight. Rarity scoffed at her attitude and looked the other way, obviously unhappy with the way Sunset treated others. As Sora watched her move away from them towards the entrance of the school, he found himself asking, “What’s her problem?”

“The question is,” Rainbow corrected with a huff, “What isn’t her problem.”

“She was always so mean before Twilight Sparkle came,” the purple-haired girl elaborated, “Practically ruling the school, come to think of it.”

“So, what exactly did Twilight do?” Sora asked, becoming interested in the tale.

“She brought everyone together,” Rainbow said, a huge grin on her face. “It was awesome! Especially when she used magic to take down Sunset when she became a monster!”

That got Sora’s attention, as he leaned forward with a concerning face. “Monster!?” he blurted, before crossing his arms while facing the ground, thinking over what he had learned. Cadence had told him that a monster had appeared during a dance. Perhaps they were one and the same. Facing forward, Sora was startled to see the purple haired girl right next to him, examining his clothes critically.

“What are you doing?” Sora asked with a chuckle, finding it a bit amusing to find her so attentive to his outfit.

The purple-haired girl jerked up slightly from being addressed, and slowly looked up towards Sora’s bemused expression. With a slight blush, she jumped back with an embarrassed smile. “N-Nothing at all, darling,” she laughed nervously, facing away from him.

“What’s your name anyway?” Sora asked, suddenly feeling rude for not asking earlier.

The purple-haired girl turned back to him with a gasp, “We haven’t been properly introduced! Oh, please excuse me for that, but I am Rarity.”

“It’s alright,” Sora waved off, “We can call it even for chewing me out. Oh, and I’m Sora.”

Rarity giggled, “Splendid.”

“Anyway,” Sora chuckled, before turning serious, “Someone told me that a monster attacked the dance. Was Sunset that monster?”

“Yep,” Rainbow answered with a sigh, “She nearly destroyed us too, if it wasn’t for those-”

The bell suddenly rang, alarming everyone that classes were to begin soon. As the students in the front yard began to file into the building, the four blinked in surprise. Time had passed faster than they had thought.

“Oh, man, I can’t be late for Algebra again!” Rainbow shouted, sprinting for the school as the other three watched. “I’ll catch you guys later!”

Rarity brushed her skirt, “I guess Fluttershy and I should be off for Chemistry.”

Fluttershy nodded in agreement, quickly collecting the pieces of paper that had fallen. Sora remembered he had his own class to get to, but for the life of him, couldn’t recall where it was.

“Will we see you soon, Sora?” Fluttershy asked sweetly, smiling. Sora had made a good impression on her, even though he had made messed up.

“Yeah, of course,” Sora answered with a firm nod, knowing he would keep his promise. “But… do you know where Miss Cheerilee’s room is?”

“Oh, that was where Rainbow was headed off to,” Rarity said, already heading out herself. “You should ask her before it’s too late.”

“Thanks,” Sora said, running for the school. Fluttershy and Rarity walked with each other towards the entrance, catching the last glimpse of Sora as he swung open the doors and went inside.

***

As Fluttershy and Rarity entered, they both talked briefly about the exchange with Sora.

“He certainly is different from everyone else I met,” Rarity commented, looking over to Fluttershy, who simply nodded. “So childish, yet responsible! How did you two meet?”

“He helped me with my detention,” Fluttershy answered, playing with the flyers in her hands.

“Really?” Rarity said in mild disbelief, gazing out in a daydream. “How noble! And his clothing is so elegant and stylish; It fits him perfectly!”

As Rarity continued saying remarkable things about Sora, Fluttershy thought back to how Sora had apologized to her. He had seeked her out, even jumping off a building, just to say he was sorry. How he went through such lengths to help out someone he had barely known was truly fantastic. With a small smile, she hoped she would run into him again soon.

***

Sunset Shimmer was aggravated to no end. It wasn’t really from something that happened to her that morning, as she was actually having a normal day, but it was the gossip she heard when she got to school. Gossip about a certain spiky-haired boy.

As she stormed through the hallways, Sunset let her mind wonder how that boy was getting so well-known so fast. After the incident at the Fall Formal, she had to lie to get Twilight Sparkle off her back, pretending like she wanted to make friends. She still couldn’t believe how oblivious Twilight and her friends were that she had ‘reformed’ so quickly. And when Twilight left back to Equestria, the pony world, she instantly went back to her old habits, wanting to rebuild her status that the princess had destroyed in only three days.

It was a slow process, as the students hadn’t forgotten what Sunset had done at the dance. But over the last few weeks, she had reminded them why she was in charge of the school to begin with. Blackmail worked wonders. Even though the Twilight of this world enrolled in this school, Sunset knew she was no threat, and she was basically unopposed. However, with the arrival of that boy, everything she had been working on was crumbling as the students only talked about him. Sure, it may just start off with a small rumor of him jumping off a building, one that she doubted happened, but eventually he would become more famous, and knock her off her pedestal.

As she stopped at her locker to collect her things for her next class, she heard someone running down the hallway. Turning her head, she saw the same boy run past her without a glance at her, intent on going where he needed to get to. Just seeing him go by made Sunset grow even angrier. She would have to put that boy in his place, show him who the real talk of the school was.

“You are going to wish you never came to this school,” Sunset sneered, a grin appearing on her face as she slammed her locker shut. She was already coming up with a plan, and in time, she would implement it.

***

Gasping for breath, Lea put his hands on his knees as he desperately tried to regain his breath. He never imagined being a keyblader would be so much work. Of course, it was much harder for him than Kairi, as he was so used to wielding his Chakrams. Using a keyblade was so different: the fighting style, the magic, everything. It had taken its toll on him.

“Come on, Lea,” Kairi called out from the other side of the yard in front of an abandoned mansion, holding her keyblade, Destiny’s Embrace. “You can’t be tired already!”

Lea couldn’t help but chuckle at her behaviour. She had been so dedicated to her training that she probably ignored the fatigue over all. She wanted to be at her friends’ sides in battle by the time she was done.

Taking a deep breath, Lea said back, “Why don’t we take a break. I could use one after all the beating I’ve been taking.”

Kairi giggled and nodded, making Lea instantly fall into a sitting position with a sigh of relief, resting against his hands as he leaned back. Walking over to him, Kairi sat beside him as Lea observed his surroundings. He was still a bit surprised that the King would hold their training in Twilight Town. It felt so long ago when he was last here. It reminded him so much of his best friend, Roxas, and the times they had shared together.

“Hey, Lea,” Kairi said, gaining his attention as he turned to her, “You never told me why you're still wearing that black coat. Couldn’t you get something else to wear?”

Looking at himself, Lea certainly did have the same black coat he had been wearing for the longest time. “Well, yeah, I could if I wanted to,” Lea answered, with a smile, looking back at the sky. “But I make this look good. And it’s quite comfortable.” He faced Kairi, tapping the side of his head, “Got it memorized?”

Kairi nodded, her smile growing at Lea’s catchphrase. She herself looked up at the sky with Lea, her mind drifting off to other things. “I wonder how Sora’s doing,” she commented out of nowhere, making Lea look at her strangely.

“Why suddenly bring that up?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Just thinking out loud,” she replied, and Lea rubbed his chin in thought.

“Well,” he started, sticking a finger in air matter-of-factly. “He’s probably making more friends. Knowing him, he’ll probably have twice as many as he had before.”

“But he won’t forget us,” Kairi said her smile never wavering, “Right?”

“Yeah,” Lea said, punching the palm of his hand, “Or else he’s going to have to answer to me.”

Kairi laughed at his joke, just as King Mickey came through the woods over to them, holding something behind his back. Seeing his return, Kairi stood up and met him halfway, while Lea remained where he sat, looking over nonchalantly.

“I see ya two are taking a break, huh?” King Mickey said, looking over to Lea, who gave an idle wave to him.

Kairi put her hands on her hips as she turned towards Lea, “Only because Lea begged for one.”

“Hey!” Lea exclaimed with a smile, pointing a finger at her. “If I wasn’t so new to this keyblade, I wouldn’t be half as tired.”

Kairi rolled her eyes as King Mickey smiled warmly. “Well,” he started, standing on his toes, “It’s a good thing I brought these then.”

As Lea and Kairi gave him confused expressions, King Mickey showed them what he was hiding behind his back: three bars of sea-salt ice cream. The sight made Lea give a bark of excitement as he jumped to his feet and walked over to him. King Mickey handed one to Kairi and Lea, keeping one for himself, and the three simultaneously licked the ice cream.

“It’s salty…” Kairi said, giving the ice cream an odd look.

“But sweet,” Lea finished, licking it again before realizing something. “Oh, this is the first time you’ve eaten sea-salt ice cream, isn’t it?”

When Kairi nodded, Lea gave a quick chuckle, “Well, just don’t eat it too fast, and enjoy it while it lasts.”

As the three ate their ice cream contently, they each gave the same thought of how delicious it was. As Kairi glanced up, she caught sight of a cluster of gold dust heading straight for them. “Hey, what’s that?” she asked the group, pointing directly towards it.

Though Lea had no clue, King Mickey knew exactly what it was. “That’s Master Yen Sid’s magic!” he said as the gold dust neared the ground a few meters away from where they stood. The dust swirled amongst each other and two figures fell out of it, one landing right on top of the other

“Donald! Goofy!” King Mickey exclaimed happily.

It truly was Sora’s companions, Donald and Goofy, though they didn’t look nearly as heroic while Goofy was sitting on Donald. Goofy looked up from his position and smiled broadly. “Hello, your majesty!” he said, and looked over to Lea and Kairi, “Oh, and hello to you too, Lea and Kairi.”

Lea and Kairi held back their laughter as they waved at him, and Goofy returned the wave. Donald, on the other hand, was still on the ground with Goofy right on top of him, drumming his fingers on the ground irritably.

“Get off me, you big palooka!” Donald shouted, making Goofy look down on where he landed. As soon as he noticed Donald, he instantly got off, though a bit sluggishly.

“Oh, Sorry Donald,” Goofy apologized, scratching the back of his head, “I didn’t know you were there!”

Donald grumbled to himself as he pushed himself to his feet, wiping the dirt off of his sleeves. Lea had missed these two considerably, as they were not only courageous, but also funny to be around. “What brings you guys here?” he asked, causing the Donald and Goofy to face him, with a look of worry, as Donald crossed his arms and Goofy played with his hands. That made Lea a bit nervous, seeing as they were hardly ever like that.

“Master Yen Sid sent us,” Goofy explained, “He has an important mission for you guys.”

“A mission, huh?” Lea said with a shake of his head and a grin, crossing his arms, “Where would you guys be without us?”

Author's Note

Here's a question: what would you guys want to see in this story? I'm searching for some good things to implement, since I'm starting to draw a few blanks.

Chapter 4: Friends and Enemies

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 4: Friends and Enemies

A Corridor of Darkness appeared in the front lawn of the school directly in front of the statue. A man, clad in a black coat with a hood up, stepped through, facing the statue’s high foundation where a solid, concrete wall was. He could feel a small amount of magic seeping through it; the magic of friendship. Though the world held its own magic of friendship somewhere, there was no denying that a small part of the magic was coming through this wall.

He wanted that magic to be destroyed.

However, for the time being, he needed it, as ironic as it sounded. A plan that his master had crafted was brilliant, but without this magic, it would not be able to come into play. He despised the magic of friendship as any of his comrades would agree, but he liked the idea that it would work in their favor.

Without further ado, he threw his arms to his sides as he focused on the wall, since the extra push he needed was right where he stood. In a few seconds, sparks began to fly between his hands and the wall. The sparks began to increase rapidly until there was a constant stream of electricity. He could feel the pressure building, with the magic all around him, and without a thought of what would happen, he clapped his hands together, causing the sparks to sink into his hands, creating a small shockwave that made his coat flow back as if a large gust of wind had swept by him.

As the burst died down, he waited a few moments before opening his hands. There sat a rough, purple crystal, that had an eerie glow to it. Smirking under his hood, the figure tossed the crystal to himself, snatching it out of the air.

His master would most certainly be pleased.

***

School was a lot harder than Sora remembered. Back when he was still attending, before his adventures truly began, he wasn’t terrible in school, and was able to keep up good grades. But in Canterlot High, he was completely lost. All he could do, besides listening to the teacher’s lesson, was sit there and act like he understood what was going on.

When the bell finally rang for the end of class, Sora gave a sigh of relief as he leaned back in his chair to relax. One thing he had also forgotten about was school supplies, but he figured he would be long gone before he would actually need them, same went for learning his subjects. As Sora pushed himself up, he saw Rainbow approach him from the corner of his eye, and he turned to face her.

“That class was boring,” she commented as she stretched her arms, “Are the classes back at your old school more exciting?”

Sora looked at the ceiling as he tried to remember back, “I don’t think so.”

“Heh. Well, see ya,” she said, stepping past him towards the door. “I gotta get to practice.”

“Practice?” Sora asked, following her out of the room and into the hallway, “For what?”

“Soccer!” Rainbow said, with a swift kick to the open air for emphasis, “I’m the captain, so I have the team practice every chance we get.”

Sora thought back to the last time he had seen the sport, but couldn’t recall a moment. He was familiar with soccer, but he hadn’t watched a game himself. “Mind if I tag along?” he asked, causing Rainbow to turn to him with a smirk.

“Sure, why not?” she laughed, “Pinkie Pie will probably be there, too, so you can meet her while you’re there.”

“Who’s Pinkie Pie?” Sora asked as the two walked side by side, heading for the back exit of the school.

“She’s a friend of mine,” Rainbow explained, “But, uh, she can be a bit… random.”

“I can’t wait to meet her then,” Sora chuckled, and Rainbow rolled her eyes at him.

“I’ll meet you at the field,” Rainbow said, stopping in her tracks as Sora looked back at her. “I have to change into my uniform.”

“Okay, I’ll see you there,” Sora said with a wave, and he ran down the hall, quickly passing by students. Though he was new to the school, he didn’t have a hard time finding the exit, and the next thing he knew, he was standing outside, looking over to the soccer field. There were already a few students warming up before practice started, stretching and kicking the ball between each other.

In the bleachers, Sora could see another student sitting there looking a bit over enthusiastic, what with her yellow foam finger and small, blue flag. Even from this distance, Sora could clearly see that she was pink, prominently so, and assumed that she must have been Pinkie Pie. Walking around the field to avoid interfering, Sora approached the bleachers, and when he did, Pinkie suddenly noticed him, jumping up from her seat.

“Oh!” she exclaimed, hopping down the bleachers cheerily until she landed in front of Sora. He didn’t know what to think of her yet, but she was quite whimsical to say the least. Pinkie’s skin was pale pink, and her pink hair was large and frizzy. She had on a white and blue shirt with a pink heart on it. The pink skirt she wore had three balloons on one side. “Are you the new transfer student named Sora?” she asked, leaning in excitedly, giving him a large smile.

“Yeah,” Sora answered with a smile of his own, before tilting his head at her, “How did you know that?”

“I know a lot of things,” she whispered to him as she glanced around her, though he didn’t know why. She then brightened up as she said, “That, and Rarity texted me about you.”

“So you’re friends with Rarity?” Sora asked.

“Yep!” Pinkie said, then started counting her fingers as she said, “And Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Twilight Sparkle.”

Sora laughed, honestly not expecting Pinkie to be this nice to be around, and also that she was friends with almost everyone he had met so far. “You’re friends with Fluttershy, too?”

Pinkie nodded, before a thought crossed her mind and she saddened a bit. “Not all the time though,” she admitted, looking ashamed of the prospect itself.

Seeing her mood switch so abruptly made Sora himself feel bad, as if whatever she felt reflected how everyone else around her felt. Frowning, he asked, “What do you mean?”

“That meanie Sunset Shimmer tried to break us apart,” she explained, a moment of anger breaking out on her face before turning back to sorrow. “If it wasn’t for Twilight, I don’t think we would never ever be friends again.”

That made Sora think for a minute. Why did Sunset try to break them apart to begin with? It didn’t make sense for him, but he figured he could think more on it later, as Pinkie wasn’t faring so well. She looked very upset with herself that she had, for a short time, not been friends with Fluttershy. Why Pinkie would suddenly be so sad about it confused him, but it must have just been something that she hadn’t truly dealt with.

“Hey, don’t be sad,” Sora said in an effort to cheer her up, and Pinkie looked at him. “My friend Riku, and I weren’t friends for a while too.”

“Really?” she asked, a smile growing back on her face.

“Yeah,” Sora said, taking a seat on the bleachers, and Pinkie followed suit, “He did something bad, but he made up for it. And as long as we’re friends now, it doesn’t matter what he did. The same goes for you and Fluttershy.”

“That’s super!” Pinkie said, instantly erupting into happiness, “You must have some great friends! Just like me!”

Sora was baffled that she had changed her mood on a dime like she had earlier, but remembered that Rainbow had said she was random. “You know it, Pinkie,” Sora said with a nod.

“Where’s your friend now?” she asked curiously, smiling at him innocently.

That time, Sora hesitated, scratching the back of his head as he looked away. Noticing this, Pinkie frowned a bit with a puzzled expression. “I don’t really know,” Sora answered, “I’m looking for him right now actually.” He then perked back up as he turned to her, “You wouldn’t happen to have seen him around, would you?”

Pinkie shook her head, “Sorry, I haven’t a clue where he is.”

Sighing, Sora looked at her with a grin, grunting to himself, “No worries, I’ll find him eventually.”

“That’s the spirit!” Pinkie cheered, throwing her arms to the air as the school doors opened. Rainbow Dash walked through them with her yellow and blue uniform on, looking very confident. Seeing her, Pinkie jumped up from her seat with newfound excitement, pointing a finger over to Rainbow. “Oh! There’s Rainbow! We gotta watch her now!”

“Yeah,” Sora agreed, nodding for emphasis as he also stood up, climbing the bleachers with Pinkie to where she was originally seated. Though he had a mission to do, he thought he would have time to watch at least one soccer practice session.

***

The library at Canterlot High was large, holding a vast amount of books for anybody to access. The internet was also available to them, allowing the students to find whatever they needed if the library couldn’t provide it. Unfortunately for Twilight Sparkle, it might come down to that. As she sat at one of the desks on the lower level, reading through another book about astronomy, she hoped that she wouldn’t have to use the computers. She never liked the internet, as it wasn’t as reliable as a good, old-fashioned book.

Closing the book she was holding, Twilight sighed, placing the book down on a large pile of other books, while reaching to a smaller pile for another one to look through. Her project was due in a few days, and she had nothing to show for it. She figured it would be easy to find something on what laid beyond their world, but ended up at more dead ends than she would like to admit. Hadn’t anyone else done research about the worlds above besides star constellations?

As she flipped through the book, beginning to grow bored of reading for the first time in her life, Twilight’s mind began to wander to other things that have happened over the last few weeks. She had transferred from her old school after a recommendation from her sister-in-law, Cadence. Over time in the school, she heard many things that had happened before she arrived. Some rather bizarre things, like how she had showed up this girl named ‘Sunset Shimmer’ at the school dance. She had never been to this school in her life, and had no recollection of ever standing up to another girl before.

Twilight was even nearly assaulted by five specific girls when they saw her, calling her ‘pony princess’ and such. When Twilight explained that she had no idea what they were talking about, they instantly took back what they said and became friends with her. It was all really peculiar.

She was brought back to reality when she heard a strange, unearthly noise behind her, one she couldn’t describe in the slightest. When she turned around in her seat to see what it was, she found nothing as the noise was instantly cut off.

“Hello?” she called out nervously, glancing around. Whoever or whatever had made that noise was gone, but she was becoming uneasy and paranoid. Was someone watching her? As she turned back to her book, she heard the same noise again, and when she whipped around, she only saw something silver hide behind the computer center.

“I know you’re there,” she said as bravely as she could, standing from her chair. Nothing responded, making her play with her hands nervously. She heard a small bark from her backpack laying on the ground, and when she looked down, she saw her faithful dog, Spike. He was sticking out of her backpack while glaring at where she thought she saw someone, giving a low growl.

“I know, Spike,” she said, crouching down and petting her dog on the head. “I don’t think we’re alone either.”

She gave the room one last sweep before turning back to her books. Maybe she could stop her studying and pick up later, when she wasn’t being involuntarily watched. She heard the strange noise yet again, but this time, when she turned to see if she could catch whatever was making it, she came face to face with a scary being in a silver suit.

Yelping in shock, Twilight jumped back, bumping into the table, sending a few of the books tumbling to the floor. The thing in front of her was nothing she had seen before, as it stood there, moving around like it was made of rubber in the middle of a dance. Its hands were nothing but long spear-like appendages, and it’s legs were no different. It’s head was like an open mouth with a zipper along the edge. The last thing she noticed was the strange symbol on the top of its head.

Spike was barking madly at the thing in front of her, but it was unfazed by him as it kept staring, even though it had no eyes. She didn’t know what to do: run, communicate, or just wait until it left. Unfortunately, it took the choice out of her hands as it charged towards her head first.

Twilight ducked just in time as the thing flew over her head and slammed into the bookcase, falling to the ground as books cascaded on top of it. Breathing heavily, Twilight snatched her backpack, with Spike still barking at what had attacked her, and bolted for the exit, slinging her backpack on.

Twilight risked a glance back, and saw that the thing had already recovered, stretching its legs in a strange walk. Facing towards the double doors that led out of the library, she was shocked to see two more of the beings blocking her path. Veering off course, she headed to another part of the library, thinking of any other exit she could go through. It was at that moment that a large thing that resembled the previous monsters, landed in front of her.

It was much more different, with arms and legs that were huge. It even had its own weapon - a big, T-shaped claymore with a long, black handle - resting on its shoulders. As quickly as it appeared it swung its weapon back to prepare to swing down on her. Thankfully, Twilight saw it and dived to the side with a cry just as it landed, creating a small crater.

On the ground, Twilight hastily picked herself up, backing away from the brute cautiously. However, when she twirled around to run, she saw that two more of the brutes were in the way. In fact, when she looked in all directions, she could see that she was completely surrounded by them. Scared beyond belief, she looked desperately for a way to escape, but found none.

“W-What do you want?” she asked, hoping to at least know why these things wanted her gone. The monsters did not respond, or even move. They only stood and silently watched her, making Twilight even more frightened. “I didn’t do anything wrong, did I?”

Without an answer, one of the brutes brought its weapon to the side to attack her. Seeing it, Twilight shut her eyes tight, waiting for the inevitable, but instead heard a metallic clank as if it was blocked. Looking over, Twilight saw another weird sight: a boy, with spiky, golden blonde hair, wearing a black coat. In his each of his hands were two giant, key-like swords. One was white, having a flower-like design, and other other was black, going for a gothic look.

The boy looked over to her, and flashed her a smile. Who was this guy?

***

One moment, Roxas couldn’t feel a thing, then the next, he could feel himself materializing, just coming into existence. It was an odd feeling, like every nerve in his body suddenly came alive, piece by piece.

He knew he was hovering in the air - his body facing away from the floor - for the time that he could remember. But once he was entirely in existence, he fell to the ground, causing his eyes to shoot open in surprise. Landing painfully on his head, Roxas groaned as he sat up from his position, rubbing the back of his head.

“Where… am I?” he asked himself, examining his surroundings. It appeared to be a library of some sorts, with the walls covered with shelves of books. The ceiling above had a glass dome, and based off the railing not to far away, he must have been on a higher floor.

“How did I get here?” he asked, standing up as he looked himself over. He was wearing his old Organization coat, but that hardly mattered when a thought struck him. “Wait a minute,” he said excitedly, his face lighting up as he patted himself down, “I’m back! Ha! Wait ‘till Axel see’s this!”

With a smile on him he looked at his hands. “I wonder if I can…” he muttered, sticking out his hands, summoning the weapons he had grown to know. In a flash of light, his two keyblades, Oblivion and Oathkeeper, each appeared in his hands.

“Well, I still have these,” he said to himself, dismissing the two keyblades as confusion crossed his face. He rubbed his chin as he said, “But how am I here? Shouldn’t I be with Sora?”

Speaking of him, Roxas realized that Sora was nowhere in sight, as he looked around the area with more intention. From his time within Sora, Roxas couldn’t really tell what Sora did or where he went. Rather, he could feel something within him when Sora was around certain people or places. Like knowing someone is in another room, but unable to actually go inside the room.

He remembered many beings drenched in Darkness at one point, which he assumed was Xemnas, though he hadn’t a clue why there was so many. He also remembered being in a world where Light was quite abundant. Maybe Sora being in this world somehow made him come into existence? Shaking out these thoughts, Roxas knew he could figure out how he came back when he found Sora.

Before Roxas could decide where to start his search, he heard a cry from a girl, coming from the floor below. Running over to the railing, he was met with both a familiar and unfamiliar sight. Nobodies had surrounded a girl, who was dreadfully afraid as she glanced around. Her skin was light purple and her hair was plum purple with pink streaks. She had on a light blue shirt and a purple skirt with a starburst emblem.

The girl was talking with them, but all Roxas could focus on was the Nobodies themselves. It was just Berserkers and Dusks, nothing too major, but he thought Sora had taken down Xemnas a year ago. Who was ordering these Nobodies around? And why were they ganging up on this girl?

He suddenly saw one of the Berserkers pull back its claymore, preparing to strike the innocent girl. Instinct kicking in, Roxas narrowed his eyes as he jumped over the railing, summoning his keyblades as he landed between the girl and the attacking Nobody. He had made it just in time, blocking the attack with one of his keyblades just as he landed. Already, his mind was wondering if he still had his fighting abilities, planning on how to approach this battle.

Then, he briefly remembered why he was doing this in the first place, and glanced behind him to the girl, who was staring at him with both confusion and wonder. He gave her a reassuring smile, one that he hoped would tell her that he would help her, before turning back to the Nobodies with a determined expression. It was time to get to work.

Roxas pushed back on the claymore that he had blocked, causing the Berserker to stumble back slightly. With the opening, Roxas spun on the spot, allowing his keyblades to pass through the Nobody effortlessly. With the Nobody bursting into gray matter, returning to the nothingness from whence it came, he turned his attention to the other nobodies around the girl. He was almost daring them to attack first.

They did, expectedly, attack first, as two Dusks charged at him with their heads. He swung his keyblades horizontally outward, taking them out instantly. He then jumped up, twirling the keyblades until he wielded them underhanded, and sunk them through a Beserker. As the Nobody disappeared, another Berserker took advantage of the opening, and swung its claymore.

Roxas was only able to swivel on the spot midair and bring his keyblades up to block in an ‘X’ formation. However, when the attack connected, the inertia from the claymore sent him flying back. He flew through the open double doors, exiting the library, and slammed into the hallway wall. Grunting in pain, he landed on the floor as the keyblades were knocked out of his hands, clattering to the ground. He pushed himself to his feet with a groan, nursing his stomach, and then heard sounds from both ends of the hallway. Looking to each side hastily, he saw four or five more Dusks and Berserkers coming from each side.

“Oh, great,” Roxas muttered, summoning his keyblades again as he got ready to fight. “Why do I have to fight as soon as I’m back?”

The Berserker from the library, who had ignored the girl, thankfully, was approaching Roxas through the doors. Surrounded on each side, Roxas decided to go through the weakest link and work from there. He leapt forward, swinging one of his keyblades upward at the Berserker, who had the foresight to block it. However, the attack was stronger than it thought and it knocked the Berserker off balance. With the opportunity, Roxas spun around and swung his other keyblade upward as well, destroying the Nobody.

Quickly, Roxas dashed into the library to funnel out the Nobodies that were coming. He whipped around when he felt like he was far enough away, and already saw a few Dusks hovering his way. Thinking fast, Roxas threw each keyblade, and both of them destroyed many of the incoming Nobodies. Before he could retrieve his keyblades, a Berserker came charging towards him.

With a smirk, Roxas easily jumped over the Berserker and landed just behind it. It was at that moment that his keyblades flew back at Roxas like boomerangs, and he caught them effortlessly, slashing through the berserker afterwards. Suddenly, Roxas was hit from behind, as one of the Dusks was able to sneak up on him. He quickly dispatched it with a quick spin-and-slash.

Roxas could feel himself growing tired as he was breathing hard. He had only come to exist for a few minutes, and he was growing sloppy because of it. He needed time to recuperate, but the Nobodies weren’t going to give it to him. So, sucking it up, Roxas growled and went all out, running around the room and taking out each and every Nobody while dodging any attacks they dished out. The battle was incredibly fast, and Roxas was able to clear the room in a minute.

After finishing off the last Nobody, Roxas stood still for a moment, his breathing intensifying. He was feeling quite woozy as the room was spinning, and without warning, he collapsed to the ground, his keyblades falling with him before disappearing in a white light. He might be exhausted, but at least he had saved a life.

***

Twilight wasn’t sure what she saw. Every form of logic she had ever known was thrown out the window. First these monsters tried to take her out, then this boy came out of nowhere and destroyed them instead. And those weapons he was wielding, he was amazing with them. It was like the weapons were made for him.

She simply stood in a stupor as she stared at boy as he finished off the last one. She wanted to say something to him, but was unsure on what exactly to say. Before she had the chance, the boy fell to the ground as his weapons disappeared. Though Twilight was curious as to how they did that, she had more important business to attend to.

“Oh my gosh,” she whispered, covering her mouth in shock as she quickly made her way to his side. She placed her backpack to the ground as she knelt beside the boy, turning him over to lie on his back. He was still alive, but was very tired, though he did have a bit of strength left as he looked over to her.

“Roxas,” he got out, putting a hand over his chest, his eyes droopy.

“T-Twilight Sparkle,” she said hastily, in case Roxas fell asleep before she could tell him.

“What a weird name…” he commented with a smile, as he drifted off to sleep. Despite the heroics of Roxas, Twilight couldn’t help but roll her eyes at his words. He said her name was weird, but his own name was just as strange. Spike, who had climbed out of her backpack, sat by Roxas’ head, watching him sleep with a tilt of his head.

“We need to get him help, Spike,” Twilight said to him, causing Spike to bark in agreement, nudging Roxas with his nose. “I hope my family doesn’t mind if I take him home…”

***

Sora had watched Rainbow play Soccer for the remainder of lunch, and was able to keep his stomach full thanks to Pinkie pulling a bunch of cupcakes from out of nowhere. When the bell rang, signaling the students that class would begin shortly, he stood up from his seat, feeling sore after sitting around for most of the day.

“That was super-ific!” Pinkie cheered one last time, jumping to her feet as Rainbow and her other teammates headed inside. Before she left, though, she waved over to Sora and Pinkie, and Pinkie jumped up and down, returning the wave. “Rainbow Dash is so awesome!”

“Yeah,” Sora agreed, climbing down the bleachers with Pinkie, “She’s pretty good.”

“Pretty good?!” Pinkie scoffed playfully as they made it to the ground, “You mean super-mega-ultra-epicly good, right?”

Sora laughed at her antics, and nodded, turning to her. “I wish Riku and Kairi could meet you guys,” he said, “We could all hang out together.”

“I know who Riku is,” Pinkie stated, tapping a finger on her chin as she looked to the sky, “But who’s Kairi?”

“She’s another friend of mine,” Sora explained as they entered the school as he put his hands behind his head., “She’s, uh, not in town right now.”

“Maybe you can promise to bring them here sometime,” PInkie said as she put her hands behind her back.

“Hey, I can do that,” Sora said with excitement, stopping in his tracks with Pinkie.

“Do you Pinkie Promise?” she asked, looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

Sora blinked a bit before lifting up his right hand, sticking out his pinkie finger. “Yeah, okay,” he said, a smile forming, “Pinkie promise.”

“Not that, silly,” Pinkie giggled, causing Sora to look at her funnily, putting his hand down. “It goes like this.”

Clearing her throat dramatically, Pinkie said, “Cross my heart, hope to fly; stick a cupcake in my eye.”

She even did the appropriate gestures, making Sora chuckle again. He was really liking Pinkie Pie. “That’s great, Pinkie,” he said with a nod slowly redoing what she had done. “Cross my heart… hope to fly…” His smile grew as he finished loudly, “Stick a cupcake in my eye!”

“Now you’ve got it!” Pinkie exclaimed happily, “So you promise to show us your friends someday?”

“Pinkie Promise!” Sora said, bumping a fist against his chest.

***

The library was dead quiet after the battle with Roxas and the Nobodies, but many people would call that normal. However, that silence was broken when a Corridor of Darkness appeared, and yet another man in a black coat walked through. He looked around the room a minute before crossing his arms.

“Oh dear,” he said with a very snide and stilted voice. “That did not go according to plan at all.”

“We had no say in the matter,” said another voice, this one sounding younger and more uppity. The first figure looked over to the side and saw another man in a black coat, stepping out of the shadows. “Roxas was an unknown variable. Now that we know he has come back, it shall be easier to arrange another plan.”

The first figure grunted in amusement, “I’m still surprised you were able to locate the origin of the magic of friendship.”

“I have told you before,” the second figure snapped, agitated as he gave a wave of his hand. “That girl has the magic we seek, yes, but it is not complete. As if she is only part of something much grander.”

“In any case,” the first figure said, turning away from the other, glancing around the room. “We need a new approach to our strategy, what with Sora, Xemnas, and now Roxas in the mix.”

“What do you propose we do?” the second one asked, walking up to the first figure.

“Before we try another attempt at taking the magic of friendship,” the first figure sighed, smirking under his hood, “We should see the full extent of our control over the Nobodies.”

“My illusion can only go so far,” the second figure warned darkly, “Do not trifle with those beings when you are no longer one yourself.”

“Yes, yes, so you keep telling me,” the first figure said with a bored tone, waving his hand dismissively, “Just whip something up for our… presentation tomorrow.”

“Very well,” the second figure said, turning around. He lifted an arm in front of himself, and summoned a Corridor of Darkness. Before he could leave though, the first figure spoke up.

“Oh, and don’t alert Xemnas to our presence,” he said without moving, “We don’t need the trouble.”

“Of course,” the second figure agreed, walking through the portal. As it disappeared, the first figure gave a very creepy laugh, his body shaking because of it. He was going to enjoy a show and get what he wanted at once, and he was giddy with excitement.

Author's Note

Thanks everyone for the suggestions! I have a very good explanation on why Roxas is back, so be patient!

Chapter 6: Dusk at Dawn

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship's Turmoil
Chapter 6: Dusk at Dawn

Roxas was very comfortable wherever he was. It was warm and soft, and he wished he could snuggle ever deeper into the pillow he rested on. That was when the memories before his unconsciousness flooded back into his mind, causing his eyes to shoot open as he sat up instantly. The blanket that covered him fell to the floor, but he paid it no mind as he glanced around his surroundings.

Roxas appeared to be on a three-seater couch in a living room he found unrecognizable, yet cozy. He still wore his Organization coat, but his shoes were taken off, and he looked around for them. As soon as he looked down, he found them right beside the couch, and hastily put them on, preferring to wear his shoes than not.

After one more sweep of the room, Roxas pondered how he got there to begin with. He had been sleeping on the couch, evident by the blanket and pillow, but who brought him there? When he thought about it, he knew it had to be Twilight. He couldn’t think of anybody else it could have been. That raised another question: Why had she given him a place to sleep? He may have saved her from those Nobodies, but he was still a stranger to her.

After that, he had a strange dream involving that girl. She looked like someone he knew long ago, but his memory was blank. It was like his heart knew what his mind didn’t. But how special was she to Roxas? Was she a good friend, or just someone he met on a single occasion? He couldn’t figure it out, and it made his head hurt.

Groaning, he swung his legs and placed them on the floor, pushing himself to his feet. He should thank Twilight for the hospitality nonetheless, and continue on his way. He still had to find Sora and figure out how and why he had returned to physical form. Before he could head towards a place to find her, he heard a small bark from behind the couch.

Curious, he leaned over the couch, putting his arms against the back for support, and peeked over it. On the other side, he saw a small purple dog, with green ears staring back at him with its own eyes. Strangely enough, the dog’s eyes were vaguely reptilian, though Roxas hardly noticed.

“Uh, hi there,” Roxas greeted with an awkward wave, “You wouldn't happen to know where Twilight is, would you?”

The dog barked again, and ran around the couch towards Roxas. He watched the dog do this as it ran up to his leg and rubbed his head against it affectionately. Roxas wasn’t sure why the dog was behaving that way, and it caused him to crouch down and pick it up. Holding it an arms distance away, he looked over the dog until he saw his tags.

Reading them, he muttered, “Spike… Is that your name?”

Another bark from the dog, and Roxas took it as a confirmation. Before Roxas could reply, he saw movement from the corner of his eye, and when he looked over, he saw a door opening. Twilight emerged from the door, closing it behind her quietly, and when she turned to face the room, her face lit up in recognition. “Oh, you’re awake,” she said, walking over to him.

Roxas shrugged, “I guess so.”

When Twilight was close enough, she took Spike away from Roxas, holding him close to her chest as she smiled. After seeing her hold Spike, Roxas figured he was holding him the wrong way, and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. He wasn’t used to dealing with pets, and it showed quite plainly to Twilight.

“I never got a chance to thank you for saving me,” Twilight expressed, making Roxas smile. It felt good to be appreciated, especially when he wasn’t used to it to begin with.

“It’s no trouble,” he said with a shake of his head, “I’m just glad those Nobodies didn’t hurt you.”

“Are those what attacked me?” she asked, setting Spike on the ground, having a quizzical expression. “What are ‘Nobodies’?”

Roxas suddenly realized his mistake, his eyes widening as he tried to think of something to say. He knew it was important to keep worlds ignorant of each other, and he couldn’t believe he had let that slip. Despite how hard he thought, his mind was drawing blanks, and he began to sweat slightly.

“What’s the matter?” Twilight asked innocently raising a brow.

“Uh, well…” Roxas hesitated, turning his head to the side to avoid her gaze. Then, Twilight gasped, making Roxas glance back at her with confusion. He caught her looking at a clock, but he didn’t know why she would be worried about that.

“We’re going to be late!” she exclaimed, her hands clenched together. “No wonder you’re so uneasy!”

“Yeah,” Roxas chuckled sheepishly, “We’ll be late.”

What they were late for, Roxas had absolutely no idea.

“Before we go to school,” Twilight said, taking a step back as she looked over Roxas, a hand on her chin. “We need to get you some new clothes.”

Roxas took mild offense to that, “What’s wrong with the way I look?”

Twilight’s eyes widened as she waved her hands frantically in front of her. “N-Nothing!” she said loudly, “It’s just, well, what you’re wearing isn’t exactly… normal.”

Roxas would have argued that no one had said it was out of the ordinary before, but this was a different world, and didn’t know what ordinary was here. So he held his tongue and gave a reluctant nod. “What do you suggest then?” he asked.

She thought for a moment, looking up at the ceiling before facing Roxas again. “Do you have any other clothing with you?” she asked, wanting to start with what he had.

Roxas’ first reaction would have been to say ‘no’, but when he thought about it, it did feel like he was wearing clothing underneath his coat. Ignoring that someone was watching, he gripped his coat and tore it off, revealing his old Twilight Town garments. He released his grip on his coat as he looked himself over, the memories in the simulator coming back to him. He wasn’t very fond of the clothing, but it was all he had besides his Organization coat.

“How long have you been wearing that?” Twilight asked, pointing at his clothes.

Roxas looked at her and said, “I really don’t know.”

Twilight would have continued with her questions if she wasn’t instantly reminded that they were going to be late. “We’ll talk more later,” she exclaimed grabbing Roxas forearm, “We have to get to school!”

Before Roxas knew it, he was practically being dragged out of the house by Twilight as she grabbed her bag in her other arm, heading out the door. Spike wasn’t far behind, following behind the two as he barked happily.

***

Sora was walking through the empty halls of Canterlot High once again, turning his gaze in every direction. His search to find at least one of his friends at the school wasn’t going so well. He figured it would be straightforward to find them, considering it was fairly easy the last few times, but at that moment, luck was not on his side. He was surprised at how early he had awoken, as he wasn’t much of a morning person. Though, he had forced himself up to see if he could catch one of his friends before the other students made it to the school.

“Fluttershy!” he called down the hallways. “Rarity! Rainbow?”

He stopped at an intersection in the hallway as he took a short break, crossing his arms as he looked both ways. “I gotta see if they know anything about the magic of friendship,” He said to himself, “If they’re linked to it, then I may be one step closer to my mission.”

“Oh, howdy, Sora!” a girl with a country voice said behind him. Looking over his shoulder, Sora saw a girl with a green and white shirt, a denim skirt, and brown boots. He also noticed that she had blonde hair in a ponytail, with a brown cowboy hat on her head.

“Hey,” Sora said back slowly, turning to face her fully. He didn’t recognize her, for he had never met her, but with depictions of apples on her clothing, there was only one true guess at her name. He rubbed his chin, “Applejack, right?”

She chuckled lightly, “That’s me!”

Sora smiled, glad to finally run into one of the six friends. One of his other friends must have told Applejack about him. He didn’t know her very well, but if she was anything like the other girls, then he could trust her. “Do you have a second?” he asked kindly, “There’s something really important I gotta ask.”

“Sure,” Applejack said, walking past him while still facing him, “Let’s walk and talk, I need ta see Rainbow before school starts.”

Nodding, Sora walked beside Applejack, wondering how to word his question. “So, care to elaborate about the dance and that monster everyone keeps mentioning?” he asked, putting his hands behind his head.

Applejack looked at Sora with surprise, shocked that he would bring something like that up so bluntly. She thought for a moment, as she hummed to herself, and Sora worried for a split second that he should have eased into the question. His worries were squandered when Applejack spoke. “It was a few weeks ago, I reckon,” she started, facing forward away from Sora, “Durin’ the Fall Formal. Sunset Shimmer put on the crown that was supposed ta be Twilight’s, and this magic show started.”

“Magic show?” Sora inquired with humor in his tone.

“You know,” Applejack sighed, giving him a look of both amusement and frustration. “A lotta lights and such. Anyway, Sunset turned into this monster. I can’t say exactly what it was, but it was pretty scary. She nearly destroyed us, but it was stopped by the power of friendship, or that’s what Twi said. Then… well, it was kinda fuzzy, but what I remember was that we were floatin’ and this magic chained between us and turned Sunset back to who she was.”

Sora remained silent, sorting out the new piece of information he was given. It all went back to Twilight in some way, whether it be involved with her friends or the special crown that turned Sunset into that monster. As far as he could figure, the best course of action would be to find her, and see if she had the magic of friendship his enemies were after.

Sora faced Applejack again with a genuine smile, “Thanks for telling me.”

“Ah, it was nothin’,” Applejack waved off, smiling herself as she turned to Sora.

“It wasn’t nothing,” Sora declared, his expression as honest as his words, “You helped a lot with that. And I really appreciate it.”

“Oh, well…” Applejack said, taken aback by his kindness, “You're welcome then, Sora.”

“So,” Sora said, hanging onto the word in a way to change the subject, though not by much. “Do you know where I can find Twilight?”

“I’m not sure,” she replied with a shrug, “She’s been in the Library lately, finishin’ up a project. I bet you’ll find her there.”

She then stopped abruptly, turning to Sora with a questioning gaze, “Why are ya so interested with what happened at the Fall Formal?”

Sora hesitated a moment, halting in his tracks as well. He brought his arms down and scratched his cheek sheepishly. He knew he couldn’t keep up his lie for long, and actually wanted to say what he was really in their world. He had already explained it to Fluttershy - or at least part of it - so what was holding him back?

Sora sighed, facing away from Applejack. “I’ll tell you everything,” he started, turning to her with a hardened expression. “With your friends. I’ll… explain everything.”

Applejack was surprised by his boldness, a bit flustered in a response. “I, uh, can’t wait then,” she said, unsure what to make of his attitude. “But what exactly are you going to explain?”

“You'll see,” Sora said, giving a quick wave and a smirk before running off, heading for the Library. He meant what he said; they had helped him a lot since he arrived at Canterlot High, and they deserved the truth. Even if it would come a bit late.

***

Roxas couldn’t remember the last time he had run so far, so fast. There may have been a few instances during his time with the Organization, but those memories were as hazy as the rest of his past. It didn’t help that Twilight was practically dragging him the whole time, his footing on the verge of tripping. He couldn’t even see where they were going, as he was too busy keeping himself balanced.

It wasn’t until Twilight slowed to a stop that Roxas bent down in exhaustion, resting his hands on his knees as he breathed heavily. Roxas was a capable fighter, but he was still getting used to having a body again. “Was that… really necessary?” he asked in between breaths.

“Of course it was!” Twilight retorted as if it was a silly question, as Spike trotted up to him, his tongue hanging out comically as he took a seat on the ground. Glancing up at her, Roxas saw that she was hardly winded from their travel, and he wondered how many times she had been nearly late to begin with. Taking one last deep breath, Roxas stood back up as he looked at where they had arrived.

It was a school, fairly basic, though Roxas had nothing to compare it to. He may have been given the implication of a school in the simulated Twilight Town, but he truly had no memory of attending any school. The yard he stood in front of was bare of anybody at all, and the rising sun indicated they were far earlier than they needed to be. His staring caught the attention of Twilight who looked at him with a raised brow.

“Is something wrong?” she asked, putting a hand on Roxas’ shoulder and shaking him.

Stirred from his thoughts, Roxas faced Twilight, seeing her concern. He quickly put on a forced smile, shrugging off Twilight’s hand. “Just thinking,” he stated, looking at the building again. “I’ve never really been to a school before.”

“Never been to school?” Twilight questioned with curiosity, “What have you’ve been doing then?”

Roxas scratched his nose, a mischievous grin appearing on his face. “It’s a secret,” he answered rather honestly, causing Twilight to look at him exasperatedly.

“Fine, don’t tell me,” she said, walking away from him towards the entrance of the school. “But could you at least tell me about those monsters?”

Roxas’ smile sank to a frown as he grew worried. There was no way he would be able to persuade Twilight to drop the subject. She just didn’t seem like the type. Of course, he had never been good with lies either, from both inheriting it from Sora and lack of practice. Briskly walking to match Twilight’s speed, Roxas hesitated in a response, hoping that remaining silent would be a good enough answer for her.

“Well?” Twilight pushed, sounding impatient. Roxas shook his head, failing to come up with anything to say to her. The Nobodies had attacked her and nearly destroyed her, she had a right to know what they were, especially if they came after her again.

In the end, Roxas knew there was only one thing to say. With a hint of reluctance in his voice he said, “They’re-”

A loud crash reverberated through the earth, causing Twilight and Roxas to sway where they stood. Spike whimpered from the sudden quake, and hid behind Twilight’s legs, poking his head out frightfully. Roxas was already in high alert, quickly scanning the area for anything that had caused it. It wasn’t until he looked at the roof of the school that his jaw dropped. A very large Nobody, one that was taller than the building itself, was standing on the other side of the school. A Nobody that Roxas could recognize anywhere. A Twilight Thorn.

It still looked the way it did when Roxas had fought one. From what he could see, it still had its pointed shoulders and four long, blue tentacles wrapped around its neck, moving around like they had minds of their own. Why a Nobody of this caliber was here was unknown to Roxas. After all, Twilight was with him, and the Nobody wasn’t near them at all. What could it be after, and who sent it to begin with?

“W-What is that?” Twilight asked shakily, pointing a finger at the gargantuan monster.

“That would be a Nobody,” Roxas explained rather calmly, glaring at the monster, “I need to take it out before it hurts someone.”

“You mean with those giant keys you have?” Twilight asked hesitantly, still in the dark about his weapons.

Roxas gave a small nod, and sprinted straight for the school, ignoring his aching muscles as his drive to take out the Nobody fueled his mind. Twilight was startled that Roxas would run head first towards the large Nobody, and wondered if he would hurt himself because of his selflessness. Eventually, she chased after him, with Spike following behind with less enthusiasm.

***

The soccer field had more activity than Fluttershy thought there would be, though not by much. Rainbow had invited herself, Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie to come see her practice. More for having all of them together than boosting Rainbow’s ego. Fluttershy wasn’t too surprised that Twilight hadn’t joined them, though she was growing very worried for her; it wasn’t like her to miss a friendly get together. Applejack hadn’t arrived either, though she probably was held up with something.

It was nice chatting with everyone as Rainbow practiced with the soccer ball. The thoughts of Sora and his mission to slay Heartless was still at the front of her mind, but she tried to avoid them the best she could. Struggle as she may, her friends were able to see that something was on her mind, and Rarity had a better guess as to what then Pinkie did.

“Something on your mind, dear?” she asked, causing Fluttershy to shake out of her stupor. She had been so deep in thought that she had forgotten that she had her friends around.

“Oh, uh, just… Sora,” she answered, surprisingly honest, dipping her head low.

“Do you fancy him?” Rarity asked slyly,causing a small blush to appear on Fluttershy’s cheeks.

“That wasn’t-” Fluttershy tried to say, facing away from Rarity. “I mean, it doesn’t-”

“Fluttershy has a crush!?” Pinkie exclaimed, catching Rainbow’s attention as she stopped her practice. “She hasn’t had a crush since… ever!”

“But I’m not saying that-” Fluttershy said before being interrupted.

“Fluttershy has a crush?” Rainbow asked, walking over while holding the soccer ball. “With who?”

At that moment, the doors at the school burst open, and Applejack walked out briskly, waving a hand over to them. “Sorry I’m late,” she apologized with a sigh, “Just helpin’ someone out.”

“It’s fine,” Rarity waved off as Applejack gathered around with everyone else. “We were just taking about Fluttershy’s crush!”

“A crush?” Applejack asked, “With who?”

“I was just thinking-” Fluttershy started.

“Sora,” Rarity said dreamily.

“Hey,” Applejack recognized with a smile, “I just saw him. Said he had something to tell us.”

Fluttershy’s eyes widened, she knew that Sora was going to tell them about the Heartless and his keyblade. She wondered what brought him to reveal the truth, but couldn’t think on it for long before Pinkie gasped sharply.

“He’s going to tell us that he likes Fluttershy!” she said with a wide smile, nearly leaping for joy.

“I don’t think that-” Fluttershy said, almost drowning in their words.

“How romantic!” Rarity swooned, and as the friends talked excitedly with each other Fluttershy got up and walked a few meters away. They were jumping to conclusions and hardly listening to her. It wouldn’t be the first time this happened, but this time it was far too personal to simply drop. She wasn’t even sure if she felt that way about Sora!

“How did I get mysef into this situation?” she asked herself, taking a seat away from the girls. She placed her head in her hands as her elbows rested on her lap as she simply watched the sky. That was when she caught sight of grayish thorns twisting and disappearing in the air. She had seen nothing like it, not even from the Heartless that Sora had described to her.

Then, out of no where, a monster appeared, the thorns disappearing entirely as the behemoth landed on the ground, causing a large boom to shake the stands. The four others stopped in their chatting to see what caused it, standing up from their seats as they gazed upon the large monster.

They were all stricken by fear, unable to react in any way. Fluttershy was both terrified and confused; it looked nothing like a Heartless, so what was it? As it stood there motionless, the monster finally moved, turning its head in Fluttershy’s direction, as soon as it did, Fluttershy could only do one thing.

Scream.

***

Roxas was already half way around the school when he heard the scream, picking up his pace more than before. He could hear Twilight behind him, but it hardly bothered him as he reached the corner, his eyes landing on the monstrosity that loomed over the group of girls on the bleachers. It was looking straight at one particular girl, however, who was cowering away from it.

Growling angrily, Roxas yelled, “Hey! Pick on someone your own size!”

Roxas kept his glare solely on the Twilight Thorn, which turned towards him as well. He could see the skin of the Nobody waver once its gaze fell on him, and Roxas made his way to the field to stand before the Nobody. He summoned his keyblades and twirled them in his hands, bracing himself for another fight.

The images of his last battle with a Twilight Thorn flashed in Roxas’ mind, causing him to smirk. “If I can beat you once, then I can beat you again,” Roxas remarked confidently, giving his keyblades another twirl as if to point out his extra weaponry.

Then, another crash behind Roxas made him flinch as the girls gasped in fright again. He really didn’t want to see what caused that noise, but he did so anyway, turning his body around dramatically. What stood in front of him was another Twilight Thorn, not so different from the one that stood right behind him.

Roxas slumped his shoulders as he sighed, “You gotta be kidding me.”

“Watch out!” A rainbow-haired girl shouted, causing Roxas to whip back around and jump out of the way, dodging out of the way of a fist slamming into the ground. He performed a quick roll and ended up on his feet, charging straight for the Thorn that first appeared. The Thorn cupped its hands together and slammed down on the ground. Roxas had dashed out of the way, and hopped onto the hands, running along its arms as he made his way to the head.

When he was within range, he prepared to swing, but was cut short when the other Thorn grasped him tightly and tossed him high into the air. He had remembered this move from his past, and was ready to do an air dodge like before. Unfortunately, he couldn’t predict that the other Thorn would meet him preemptively in the air. Before Roxas could do anything, the Thorn swung its arm down, smashing it into Roxas as he landed on the ground, hard.

“Roxas!” Twilight cried from the sidelines, having already ran around the battle to join her friends.

Roxas lied there for a second, his breathing amplified, before pushing himself to his feet with his keyblades. “That all you got?” he questioned, putting one keyblade on his shoulder as he threw his other arm out. “I’m just getting started.”

He was only putting up a facade as he was running plans through his head. It would be difficult to fight two Twilight Thorns at once, considering they were already nimble by themselves. Unexpectedly, the two Thorns were flying circles around him, their bodies stretched to make it look like a seamless circle had encompassed him.

Roxas tried to keep his eyes open for an attack, but they were moving so fast that he wasn’t sure that he would be able to catch it in time. His thoughts brought truth as a fist shot out of the circle hitting his front briefly before retracting. The hit only made him stumble, but he was still injured from the strike. Then another fist came out, and Roxas was ready for it as he jumped over the fist, only to be struck by another, sending him to the ground. He quickly got to his feet, and was able to strike away another fist with a keyblade, and another, and another.

Soon, a flurry of fists was coming his way, as he tried desperately to knock them all back. He was thankful that he had two blades, and couldn’t imagine deflecting these attacks with a single weapon. The Thorns stopped their attacks suddenly and broke off from their flying circle, and instead went into the air. They hovered there for a split second before stacking each of their fists into a column and swung down. Roxas eyes widened, knowing he was unable to get out of the way in time, and instead brought his keyblades up in an attempt to block the attack.

It worked, to an extent. When the force of the attack made contact with his keyblades, Roxas’ legs nearly buckled as he gasped out from the pain from his arms and legs. The Thorns moved their hands out of the way to observe their work, only to find Roxas barely standing on his feet.

Roxas was swaying back and forth, holding his keyblades loosely in his hands. He never expected this fight to be so difficult, but he had to hold on. He had to fight them off. If those Nobodies were after Twilight again, he knew he had to do whatever it took to defend her. He wasn’t going to let someone be taken out by these monsters.

Suddenly, someone slashed through the knee of one of the Thorns causing it to tip forward and fall to a knee. In that same brief moment, another slash was made across the other Thorn, which fell onto its back by the force.

Roxas could have seen who it was that helped him out, but his vision was a bit blurry as he tried to keep himself awake. He heard someone land by his side as Roxas looked over, still feeling tipsy. He shook his head as he regained his visibility, only to find…

“I don’t know how you got here,” Sora quipped, extracting a potion from a pocket as he gave a smile, his keyblade firmly in his hand, “But it looks like you could use a hand.”

Roxas couldn’t stop a wide grin from emerging as he chuckled quietly, “About time you showed up.”

***

“Oh, come on!” Sora shouted in the Library, scratching the top of his head. He had been searching every nook and cranny for Twilight, as Applejack had suggested, but he couldn’t find anyone at all. He really did wake up too early.

Sighing, Sora took a seat on the ground, “The first time I get something about my mission and I can’t find the one person I need to talk to. I wonder what Donald and Goofy would do.”

That’s when he felt a vibration in the ground as the school shook, causing Sora to glance around in puzzlement. “Was that an earthquake?” he asked aloud, standing back on his feet. When he did, he waited for something else to happen, and a couple seconds later, he felt another quake that lasted just as long as the one before.

Something didn’t feel right to Sora, but he didn’t know if he should investigate. It really could have been an earthquake, and he was simply over thinking it. But if it wasn’t, and it truly was something dangerous, then he needed to find it, and fast.

“Sora,” a feminine voice in his head said, causing him to flinch, “Roxas needs help.”

“Who’s there?” he asked, glancing around and wondering if it was someone spying on him. “And what about Roxas?”

The voice was very familiar to Sora, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. He may have run into this person before, but only for a moment. And when he thought about it, she kind of sounded like Kairi. “Roxas is at the back of the school,” the voice explained hastily, “He’s in trouble, hurry.”

Her voice was desperate, and Sora knew he couldn’t waste any more time. “Right,” he said, and charged out of the Library, sprinting down the hallways for a way out of the school. He didn’t know why Roxas was in this world, or who was telling him this information, but he knew he had to help his former Nobody. After all, he had his own heart, right?

***

Sora finally found the exit of the school, and burst outside, scanning over the field that presented itself to him. He was instantly met with two large Nobodies that he had never seen before, both identical to the last detail. He also saw Roxas, staggering where he stood, and knew he must have been fighting them for a while.

Sora’s jaw dropped, his mind reeling over the fact that Roxas was there, really there. He snapped his attention to the six girls on the other side of the field, standing next to the stands. They were the friends that he had made over the last two days, and he knew that they were in trouble too. Sora glared at the Nobodies defiantly as he grew angry at these monsters for hurting his friends. It didn’t really matter how Roxas appeared, they had to take out these Nobodies first and foremost.

Sora ran straight for the first one on his right, his keyblade appearing in his hands. He jumped and slashed through its knee, and then pushed off its leg to launch himself over to the other Nobody. With the added momentum, Sora was not only able to slash through the chest of the other Nobody, but also knock it back. When Sora made the cut, he again pushed himself off of the Nobody, sending him flying into the air.

After doing a flip, Sora landed easily next to the hurt Roxas, who had Oathkeeper and Oblivion in his hands; the two weapons he used when he fought against Sora.

Despite the situation, Sora gave a small smile as he extracted a potion from his pocket with his free hand. “I don’t know how you got here,” he quipped, “But it looks like you could use a hand.”

Roxas gave a small chuckle, “About time you showed up.”

“Why wouldn't I?” Sora responded, throwing the potion into the air. It teleported over Roxas and dispersed its green healing magic, rejuvenating Roxas as he took a deep breath of relief.

“That feels better,” he commented, rolling his shoulders. The two Nobodies, at that point, had picked themselves up, preparing to attack the two keybladers. Sora and Roxas got into a fighting stance, back to back, as they each faced a different Nobody.

“We have to work together on this,” Sora said firmly.

Roxas grunted, “You got it.”

Momentarily, Sora and Roxas turned to each other and bumped wrists together before they each charged towards a different Twilight Thorn.

Sora threw his keyblade at the Nobody as he ran, lodging it into the chest of the Nobody, though it didn’t react to it. The Thorn threw back its hands and struck the ground, but Sora leapt out of the way, and bounced off each arm to arrive back to his keyblade.

Meanwhile, Roxas had done the same, throwing both of his keyblades into the Thorn as he dodged its attacks and meeting back with his weapons again. The two looked to each other and gave a quick nod. Swiftly, Sora clutched his keyblade and tore it out, as did Roxas with his keyblades. Then, the two pushed off each Nobody like a rocket towards the school. With their inertia, they were made contact with the wall and ran along it towards each other.

They only gave glance at each other in a sign of acknowledgement before focusing back in their run. When they got to a certain point, they pushed off of the schools and cut through the opposite Nobody that they had initially fought against, staggering both of them.

As the two keybladers simultaneously landed on the ground, beside the stricken Nobodies, they built up power in their keyblades as they brought them back for a very powerful attack. When the power was at its peak, the two keybladers swung their keyblades horizontally, sending a powerful wave to land on the Nobodies, sending both tumbling to the ground.

“Roxas!” Sora called with a wave, gaining his attention.

Seeing it, Roxas knew exactly what Sora had in mind, “On it!”

As Roxas rushed towards him, Sora had his keyblade disappear as he cupped his hands together, waiting for Roxas. When he was close enough, Roxas hopped onto Sora’s hands, and with each others might, sent Roxas high into the sky. Afterwards, Sora jumped up to meet him. Readying himself, Roxas had his keyblades disappear as well, just as Sora re-summoned his own keyblade. They caught each other’s hands just as their momentum was gone, then Roxas twisted his body around while holding on to Sora, and whipped the other straight towards the fallen Nobody.

Sora was heading towards it like a bullet, his keyblade at his side as he waited for the right moment to strike. When he felt like he was close enough, Sora did a quick flip as he twirled the keyblade to wielded it underhanded, and stabbed the Nobody as he landed. The force was so immense that the Nobody dispersed into nothingness as soon as the keyblade made contact.

Roxas landed beside Sora as the two exchanged a high five before focusing on the other Nobody, Roxas summoning his keyblades again. The Thorn was already standing up, unfazed by its comrades death. It tilted its head at the two keybladers before turning to face the girls, who flinched from its blank stare.

It quickly slinked over, not really taking a step as it dragged its feet, and reached over with a hand. It was so fast that the girls didn't have time to react, and the Nobody caught hold of Fluttershy who gasped, whimpering as she struggled in its hold. Sora gaped at the scene, wondering how a Nobody would be smart enough to take someone hostage. He shook that thought out, choosing to keep his mind on what was happening.

“Its got Fluttershy!” Sora stated plainly as Roxas narrowed his eyes.

“We have to be careful, Sora,” Roxas warned, knowing it would be difficult with the Nobody holding an innocent.

“Yeah,” Sora said slowly, “And I may have an idea. Follow my lead.”

Sora raised his keyblade as he ran for the Nobody, which sent out a plethora of thorn-like strings. Roxas watched as Sora reversal-ed the strings, gliding around them easily as he made his way to the head. Roxas face lit up as he figured out Sora’s train of thought, giving a small mischievous smile as he ran after the Nobody as well, charging up his keyblades. He only wondered who would catch Fluttershy when the Nobody was defeated.

Sora had made his way over the Thorn’s head, waiting for Roxas to do the next move. On cue, Roxas had his keyblades charged up and ready to strike, sprinting over to the immobile Nobody. When he felt like he was close enough, Roxas tossed his keyblades over to Sora, who hopped onto the Nobody and pushed himself over to the keyblades. Lining himself up, Sora kicked each keyblade swiftly as they both passed through the Nobody and lodged into the ground behind it, which staggered from the dual attack.

Then, as a final move, Roxas slide underneath the disoriented Nobody’s legs, retrieving his keyblades as they were still charged up. In the blink of an eye, Roxas swung his keyblades in an ‘X’ fashion, suddenly appearing in front of the Nobody again. Nobody made a move except for Sora’s falling form, and when he stuck the landing, the Nobody disintegrated to grayish magic, relinquishing his hold on Fluttershy.

She screamed as she plummeted to the ground, but Sora was fast enough to spring into action, sprinting over to where Fluttershy would fall. At the last second, Sora leapt forward, twisted himself in the air, and caught Fluttershy in his lap he slid along the ground for a while, Fluttershy holding tightly.

When they finally came to a halt, Sora breathed a sigh of relief, glad that he was able to destroy both Nobodies and save his friends. Letting go of Fluttershy, he made to get up, only to find that she was still clutching to Sora, causing him to blush a bit.

“Uh, Fluttershy,” he said, “You can let go now.”

She opened her eyes slowly to find herself safe and sound, and flinched when she realized what she was doing. Hastily, she let go of Sora, standing to her feet as she looked away in embarrassment.

“Oh, sorry, Sora,” she apologized right away, “I didn’t mean to-”

“Don’t worry about it,” Sora said, jumping to his feet with a broad smile, “I’m just glad you’re alright.”

Fluttershy smiled very slightly as she nodded in thanks, and then came the other friends. As soon as everyone was within range of Sora, they bombarded him with questions, and he found himself unable to say anything at all. He looked between each girl, baffled by the many words being spoken as he tried to figure out how to at least get a breath of air. Meanwhile, Roxas stood a ways away, chuckling at Sora’s attention as he put a hand on his hips.

“Glad that’s over,” he remarked to himself.

“Oh, and it was just getting good,” somebody unfamiliar whined, causing Roxas to recoil as he glanced around for the origin. The girls had stopped from hassling Sora, also wondering who had spoken. Roxas didn’t need to look far, for when his eyes looked to the roof, he found his culprit.

Two figures, clad in the old Organization black coats, stood there, looking down upon them like unrightful kings. Spike was giving his opinion of the two by barking non-stop as Sora and the girls saw them as well. Sora Walked over to Roxas and stood by his side, each giving a glare at the two figures. Anger was coursing through both their veins, though more so in Roxas.

“Are you working with Xehanort?” Sora questioned, pointing a finger at them.

The taller one gave a very despicable laugh that only annoyed the two keybladers. “Xehanort?” he asked back with humor in his voice, “Please, we have a more personal venture in this world.”

“Then who are you?” Roxas shot out.

“You mean you don’t remember?” he said acting like he was hurt, “How disappointing.”

In an instant, the tall figure threw back his hood, revealing long pale blonde hair with a wicked smile on his face that creeped out
everyone that saw him. Sora tilted his head to the side as he didn’t recognize him, but Roxas knew right away.

“Vexen!” he shouted, throwing his arm out.

“Yes, that’s right,” Vexen drawled, “And what about you, Sora? Ring any bells?”

“Who are you again?” Sora asked, causing Vexen’s jaw to drop in sheer shock. He shook his head as he gave a loud growl.

“How can you not remember me!?” he shouted angrily, “We fought each other in Castle Oblivion!”

“Castle… Oblivion?” Sora repeated blankly, looking to Roxas for help.

Seeing his lost attitude, Roxas simply said, “I’ll fill you in with what I know later.”

Nodding, Sora faced Vexen again with the same glare, “What do you want, Vexen?”

Taking a deep breath to quench his anger, Vexen’s smile returned in full as he gestured to the girls. “I just want to perform experiments on the magic of friendship like any other scientist. Is that so bad?”

The girls all shivered, not wanting to know what he meant by experiments. “You leave them alone!” Roxas yelled.

Vexen grunted, “Like that’ll stop me. With the Nobodies at my command, I doubt you two will be much of an obstacle for long.”

“What have I said about underestimating our opponents?” the other hooded figure scolded, “It shall lead to your downfall.”

Vexen turned to him with a judging gaze, “And why haven’t you paid your respects to the keybladers, Zexion?”

The figure looked off to the side, “To keep my identity a secret, you imbecile. But… I suppose it does not matter now.”

The figure pulled back his hood much slower than Vexen did, showing a man with purple hair that covered the right side of his face. “I am curious as to why Sora has forgotten you,” Zexion commented, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

“We can think on that later,” Vexen waved off, “We have work to do, especially after those two keybladers destroyed our top Nobodies.”

“Agreed,” Zexion nodded, and the two were enveloped with a dark portal.

“Wait!” Sora shouted, but it was too late, as the Vexen and Zexion disappeared from view. Sora stomped a foot in frustration, “We lost them.”

Roxas looked to Sora, his expression serious. “They’ll show themselves eventually,” Roxas stated, “And when they do, we take ‘em out.”

Sora smirked as he nodded, but then really looked over Roxas leaning in slightly. Roxas backed away, holding his hands up. “How did you get back anyway, Roxas?” Sora asked.

Roxas sighed as he shook his head, “I have no idea. And if you don’t know, then its something we have to figure out.”

Sora didn’t respond, thinking back to the voice from his dreams. It said to expect more from his heart. Was this what it meant? And the female that spoke to him only fifteen minutes ago, how did she know Roxas was here? Whoever it was, it just showed that there was still much to figure out.

“Can someone please tell us what the hay is going on?” Rainbow asked in exasperation as the six walked over to Sora and Roxas. The two looked to each other, staring as they cracked up a bit. They sure had a lot of explaining to do. After all, they felt like they deserved to know at that point.

Author's Note

A big thanks to NightmareKnight for getting around to editing this chapter! And if anyone has some tips for writing combat scenes, I'd like to hear them. Thanks!

Chapter 7: Brave Return

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 7: Brave Return

A figure in a black coat stood inside of a room on the second story of the school. With his hood up, he watched out of the window as Sora and Roxas gathered everyone onto the stands and talked with them. Though the figure couldn’t hear a word that was spoken, it didn’t take an expert to figure out what they were telling them.

“So, did those two imposters fail?” another figure said as he walked up to the first and leaned against his shoulder.

The first figure growled and shoved him off without so much as a glance, and the second figure took a few steps away to give him space. “Yes, it would appear so,” the first figure said with a hint of interest. “Though it is odd that they would come back to search for the magic of friendship.”

“I know, right?” the second figure said with a shake of his head, his hands on his hips. “I mean, weren’t they with Ansem’s other assistants?”

“It must have been something that we missed,” the first figure commented, gazing at the group of friends just outside. “And though they’re an irritance, they have shown us where we can find the magic of friendship.”

“Those six girls?” The second figure scoffed, “As if. They don’t even look like they can take care of themselves.”

“Yes, they do seem like insignificant girls,” the first figure agreed, crossing his arms, “But you and I both know how well Zexion can find someone. I am surprised that we didn’t see it sooner.”

“Early bird gets the worm, and all that,” the second figure quoted.

“True,” the first figure agreed, “And I believe it’s our turn to test an experiment of our own.”

“You mean…” the second figure trailed off, waiting for confirmation. The first figure looked over his shoulder and gave a nod, causing the second figure to give a deep laugh. “My, my, you really are rotten.”

Then the second figure perked up suddenly, “Oh, and that reminds me. Somebody paid us a visit, and they weren’t too friendly. But they did leave us a nice gift to use. You might even recognize him.”

The first figure grunted, turning back to the window. “I shall have to see it for myself,” he said, “But in the meantime…”

The two turned around to see another figure standing in the shadows, almost completely unseen in the darkness. “Eliminate them,” the first figure ordered, and the third figure nodded, stepping away from the two.

***

“Wow,” Twilight said quietly, sitting with her friends on the stands. Sora and Roxas stood in front of them, having explained everything about the Nobodies, Heartless, keyblades, and the other worlds. It had taken up most of the morning, and Sora was sure they had missed a class or two. Hopefully they wouldn’t be in too much trouble because of it.

“Wow indeed,” Rarity followed up, putting a hand against her forehead, looking a bit faint.

“Alright,” Rainbow said aloud, waving her hands exasperatedly while catching everyone’s attention, “You told us about all that stuff, but what about you guys? Why are you here?”

The other girls faced Sora and Roxas, curious to the answer as well. Sora took a glance over to Roxas, who did the same, and then the two faced the girls. “I was sent here to defend the magic of friendship,” Sora answered.

“Magic of friendship?” Twilight questioned with a tilt of her head, and the other girls suddenly became nervous, looking between each other.

“Yeah,” Sora said with a shrug, then pointed to Twilight, “I thought you would know about it, since you-”

Sora was suddenly stopped when Applejack ran over to him, clamping a hand over his mouth. “Heh, heh,” she chuckled anxiously, “We’ll explain all that later. For now, why doesn’t Sora go on?”

Applejack released Sora, who didn’t know why she stopped him from talking suddenly. Nonetheless, he shook it off and planned to ask about it later. “Well, I’m defending the magic of friendship from this group that calls themselves Organization XIII.”

“That’s a weird name!” Pinkie interjected, “Who names themselves with a number? Nobody that’s-”

She gasped suddenly, “They’re actually Nobodies!”

Sora suppressed a chuckle and continued when Pinkie had finished. “Anyway, they’re really determined to destroy this magic, and if they win, no one can be friends with anyone!”

“W-Wait, what?!” Rainbow exclaimed, jumping to her feet. “You’ve gotta be joking! There’s no way that could happen… right?”

Sora frowned and shook his head, “Sorry, Rainbow, but it’s the truth. That’s why it’s really important that I find this magic before they do. And I think you guys can help me do just that.”

“How so?” Rarity asked for the group, as Rainbow cooled down enough to sit back in her seat.

Seeing as Sora was still unsure about finding out about these six girls through his dreams, he hesitated a second before pounding a fist over his chest. “Just a feeling,” he said nonchalantly. “All that I know for sure is that you guys are connected to the magic of friendship.”

The girls were in deep thought after that, though less so for Twilight. For some odd reason, she was more confused than anything. Sora thought she’d understand this the best, but the other five behaved like they had more experience on what was being discussed. Twilight, after a moment of thought, glanced over to Roxas, and realized something, her eyes lighting up.

“What about you, Roxas?” Twilight asked, shaking the rest of the group out of their thoughts.

Roxas rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, facing the ground, “I’m not really sure why I’m here. I just… appeared. But I think it’s safe to say that, well, I’m Sora’s Nobody.”

The girls were oddly silent about that little piece of information, for they knew what the Nobodies were like from their stories. However, they didn’t give judgement straight away, their eyes showing evidence that they were in thought.

“Used to be my Nobody,” Sora corrected, crossing his arms with a grin.

Roxas turned to Sora with a confused and irritated expression, annoyed that Sora would either forget about who Roxas was or make fun of him because of it. “What do you mean by that?” he asked harshly.

“Well, you’re not a Nobody anymore,” Sora explained simply with a shrug, his smile falling when he saw Roxas’ expression. “From what my friends told me, Xehanort said that Nobodies could grow their own hearts in time.”

“Wait, are you serious!?” Roxas shouted, surprised as he took a few steps back.

“Yeah,” Sora said slowly, his smile returning, “It’s not something I’d make up.”

Roxas put a hand on his head, digesting what he had just heard. He was his own person. A unique individual that wasn’t attached to someone else. Growing his own heart, however, irked him for reasons he didn’t know. If he had his own heart, then why had he been stuck inside Sora?

“Roxas?” Twilight asked gently, walking over to him and shaking him out of his revery.

“I really am my own person,” he whispered, a cheesy grin on his face. Sora nodded with enthusiasm, glad to see Roxas finally knowing that he had a heart. He deserved it. And though the others didn’t know what Roxas went through, they were glad that he was smiling.

The sound of a burst of flame being shot off was suddenly heard, causing Roxas and Sora to look over curiously. That was when a blue fireball hit Roxas in the gut, sending him sprawled to the ground. Since Twilight was nearby, she stumbled a little from the blast, but was able to catch herself.

Sora instantly summoned his keyblade and looked for the attacker, only to see someone swing overhead at him. He brought up his keyblade and blocked the attack, and got a good view of who he was fighting.

Sora’s eyes widened as he lost a bit of his footing, “R-Riku?!”

It truly was Sora’s best friend, Riku. His unmistakable silver hair was the biggest give away, and the clothing supported it; a white vest over a black one, and blue baggy pants. As Sora looked into Riku’s eyes, he could only see an uncaring gaze devoid of emotion. Regaining his composure, Sora pushed back on his keyblade, and Riku retreated away from the group with a jump backwards, allowing them a minute to assess the situation.

Sora could only stare agape at Riku, his mind going blank at why he would turn on him. Taking a quick glance to Roxas to see if he was alright, he found Twilight helping him up. He didn’t look too bad, but he was still weak for some reason. Facing his friend again, Sora gave a hurt expression as he lowered his keyblade.

“Riku!” Sora tried, desperate for his friend to come back, “It’s me, Sora! Why are you doing this?!”

Riku didn’t respond, standing still as a statue in an intimidating way with his keyblade, Way to the Dawn, at his side. He seemed to be waiting for something, but Sora couldn’t think of what that could have been.

“Sora,” Pinkie said, bounding over to him with a pout, “I thought you said Riku was your friend!”

“He is,” Sora explained turning to facing her, “I don’t know what’s wrong with him. Unless…”

“The Darkness got a hold of him again,” Roxas finished, walking over to him, nursing his stomach with a grimace.

“No!” Sora said, looking both sad and angry, “Riku would never give himself to the Darkness again!”

“Maybe those Organization fellers are doin’ this,” Applejack put in, as the group from the bleachers briskly joined the others.

Roxas shook his head, “But what would cause him to turn on us like that?”

Sora grew silent, facing Riku again with sorrow. There was nothing in his mind that gave him an idea of what was causing Riku to be like this. There was the possibility that Riku had been captured by the enemy, and this was a form of mind control. It was a theory, but Sora had nothing to prove it.

At that moment, Riku began to walk forward, his steps even as he slowly approached the group. The distance between them was quite a ways, but that didn’t stop Sora from putting his guard up as Roxas summoned his own keyblades. However, Riku didn’t waver from his stride, making the two keybladers even more worried. Why was he just walking?

Then, they saw a dark haze walk beside him in sync. It was like a blurry human at first, but it began to solidify very quickly, and they knew exactly who it was. However, Sora and Roxas were so stunned by the figure that they were completely speechless. Not just them either; the other six girls were just as shocked, if not more.

It was Sora.

Not exactly though. His hair was black instead of brown, and his calm blue eyes were replaced with yellow ones that resembled Xehanort. He wore a black and red organic-looking bodysuit that reminded Sora of the one Riku once wore. Despite how flabbergasted Sora was, he knew he had encountered him before, back in the Dream Worlds. At the time, he figured he was just seeing things, but at that moment, it confirmed he wasn’t fake.

The two then stopped in their tracks, as if strolling towards the group was all that was needed to form the new figure. Riku blankly stared at them while the fake-Sora smirked superiorly, glancing around at them.

“Well,” he said with an amused grunt, “Isn’t this a surprise.”

Even his voice was the same as Sora’s, causing a shiver to run up everyone’s spines. It felt out of place to hear it come from someone so cold.

“W-Who are you?” Roxas asked for the group, nervousness laced in his tone.

The boy took a single look at him and threw his head back, laughing. “Oh, how I missed that clueless, idiotic face,” he said wickedly, turning back to Roxas. “It’s Vanitas, but I think you should already know that.”

Vanitas turned to Sora, not startled in the least that he was practically looking into a mirror. “Huh,” he muttered, “This is interesting.” He put a hand to his chin, “But when I think about it, it all comes together.”

“What are you talking about?” Sora asked, throwing a hand out. “What’s going on?”

“If you don’t know,” Vanitas said, gesturing to Sora, “Then I take it you don’t know why your Nobody is here either.”

Sora glanced at Roxas, his face betraying the truth as Vanitas chuckled darkly. “Do I have to spell it out for you?” he asked snidely. To have a version of himself act so mean made Sora sick to his stomach. It was like an imposter was giving him a bad name.

“This world brings out what lies in our hearts,” he explained, throwing his arms out as he turned towards the school. “The magic it holds allows it. And sometimes, if the right means are used, the magic can be manipulated, controlled. How do you think that copy-cat came here?”

Sora growled, knowing he was indicating Roxas, “He is not a copy-cat!”

“You’re special, Sora,” Vanitas announced, ignoring Sora’s outburst as he pointed a finger at him. “Your heart is strong, and it assists the magic here, allowing those that lie deep in your heart to come out.”

Vanitas gave a sideways glance at Roxas before dipping his head with a wicked grin, “And we’ve yet to meet the one person I despise the most.”

“Huh?” Sora said tilting his head to the side as he relaxed his body. What could Vanitas possibly mean? There wasn’t anyone else that could remain in Sora’s heart.

“Does the name Ventus mean anything to you?” Vanitas teased, crossing his arms.

“Ventus?” Sora and Roxas repeated simultaneously. Suddenly, something snapped inside of Roxas’ mind, causing him to double over, his keyblades disappearing as he clutched his head. He hadn’t experienced pain like that since finding out about the fake Twilight Town.

“Roxas, what’s wrong?” Fluttershy asked timidly, fearing that speaking would make Vanitas attack. Instead of answering, however, he cried out, making the others jump. In his bout of induced pain, Roxas looked at Vanitas, his eyes going in and out of focus. One moment, Vanitas stood with his snide smile, then in the next Vanitas was replaced with himself, in the very same suit as Vanitas. It was very jarring for him, and Roxas pressed his hands harder against his skull, wishing the pain would go away.

“Oh, It looks like it means something to you,” Vanitas chuckled, making Sora stomp a foot in frustration.

“Leave him alone!” he demanded.

“Not my doing,” Vanitas shrugged, lifting his right arm up in front of him , “But I might as well take advantage of it.”

A keyblade appeared in Vanitas’ hand, Void Gear, and he got into a combat pose that was scarily similar to Riku’s. Riku did the same, making the two seem like a duo in combat. Sora got ready for a battle, and though Roxas still had a bit of pain in his head, he got up as well, trying to ignore it as he got his keyblades out again.

“Are you sure you can fight?” Twilight asked, taking a few steps toward him.

“I’m fine!” Roxas snapped, making her flinch as she jumped a step back. Roxas took a deep breath. He couldn’t afford to be snippy in this situation, especially with his friends. “I’m fine.”

Sora leaned forward, just about to charge. “Sora,” Roxas called calmly, causing him to catch himself as he looked to Roxas curiously. “I’ll fight Riku.”

Sora was about ask for what reason, but remembered that the two had fought each other before. It made sense that Roxas would want to fight him again.

Sora nodded at Roxas, “Take it easy on him, alright?”

Roxas chuckled, “No promises.”

Sora gave a brief smile, and without hesitation surged forward towards Vanitas. Grinning widely, Vanitas brought up his keyblade, blocking Sora’s downward swing, and the two were quickly drawn into a exchange of swings. Riku took action as well, jumping up and striking the ground in front of Roxas. A blue wave of fire shot out like a shockwave on the floor. Roxas jumped over it, twirling in the air before swinging both of his keyblades diagonally as he landed in front Riku. Knocking the attack away, Riku ducked down and shot another blue fireball at Roxas’ stomach point blank. Unable to get out of the way in time, Roxas gasped as the air was knocked out of him, sending him back a few feet.

Landing on his back, Roxas forced himself to breathe as he tried to stand back up. He didn’t like feeling so defenseless against anyone, so nearly falling to his knees because of someone whom he held a grudge against didn’t boost his mood. When he was back on his feet, Roxas growling angrily, and rushed towards Riku, his rage fueling his mind. Unfortunately, he was also blinded by it, causing Riku to easily block or dodge his attacks. Add the fact that the pain in Roxas’ head was still prominent, and it was no wonder he was having a hard time.

After a few swings, Roxas was becoming light headed, his movements growing sluggish as his strikes became slower. Riku took the opportunity of weakness as he quickly slunk down and threw his legs out, tripping Roxas. As Roxas fell, Riku hopped back up and swung his keyblade down, hitting him in the chest.

Roxas cried out in pain as he made contact with the ground, his keyblades flying out of his hands from the impact. Now he was sore and injured, and as he attempted to get to his feet, Riku pointed his keyblade at him. Roxas bore his teeth at him, and remained there, deciding to wait for the right moment to strike.

Meanwhile, Sora and Vanitas were practically on equal grounds, jumping around the field while attacking. Vanitas always had a snarking grin on his face while Sora had a more serious expression. Vanitas proved nimbler and stronger than Sora had anticipated; he wasn’t even using any major physical attacks or magic. Neither of them noticed that Riku had taken down Roxas, but the other bystanders did.

“This isn’t looking too good,” Pinkie announced, tapping a finger on her chin, “Maybe we should do something?”

“Pinkie’s right,” Rainbow agreed, turning to the others, “We have to help them.”

“But how?” Twilight countered worriedly, “We don’t have magic powers like them.”

“Well…” Rainbow hesitated, rubbing the back of her neck, “I-I don’t know! But I can’t just leave them hanging!”

Sora broke away from Vanitas long enough to check on Roxas, only to find him on the ground with Riku bearing over him.

“Roxas!” Sora shouted, turning his body towards him.

“You shouldn’t let your guard down!” Vanitas yelled, charging forward thanks to the distraction. Just as Sora faced Vanitas, he had got a solid hit on Sora, followed by a swift side kick to the chest, sending Sora tumbling along the ground. Pushing a hand back, Sora caught himself and jumped to his feet near the girls, his keyblade ready for another attack.

Vanitas simply walked over to where Riku and Roxas was, and sneered, “And to think Xehanort said you would be an obstacle.”

With Riku looking over to the others, Roxas chose that moment to strike, summoning his keyblades in his hands. But when he swung his weapons, Riku moved out of the way, then reached out and grabbed Roxas by his shirt collar. Surprised, Roxas instinctively froze, unsure what Riku would do next. Lifting him up, Riku smacked him over the head with his keyblade before tossing him over to the others. Roxas landed on his back painfully, rolling a few yards before stopping on his stomach beside Sora.

(Stop music)

“Ah, come on,” he groaned, using his keyblades to push himself to his feet. Sora looked at him concerningly before facing the two they were fighting.

“Don’t give us that look,” Vanitas waved idly, “You should have known that defeating us was impossible.”

“Says you,” Sora shot back, “What do want anyway?”

“The magic of friendship,” Vanitas explained, making the girls grow a bit fearful. “Xehanort wants them gone, and I was more than happy to volunteer.”

“If you think I’m just going to hand them over,” Sora retorted, pointing his keyblade at Vanitas and Riku, “Think again.”

“I didn’t expect you to,” Vanitas replied with an uncaring gaze, “That’s why Xehanort summoned me through Riku. I was waiting for the time that I would be needed again.”

“Wait,” Sora said, his face softening as he lowered his keyblade a little, “You were sleeping inside of Riku?”

“My heart was,” Vanitas corrected, “A heart is still a heart, even if it’s pure Darkness, and so while Ventus took shelter in your heart, I rested inside of Riku here.”

To Sora, it made a bit of sense when he really thought about it. The fighting style, Riku’s fall to Darkness, the suit; there was too much evidence to say it wasn’t true. But who was this other person Vanitas kept bringing up? Sora had never even heard of someone named Ventus before.

“Now, make it easier on yourself,” Vanitas chided, stepping forward as Riku followed slightly behind, “and get out of our way.”

Sora shook himself out of his thoughts, “Not in your life!”

“Suit yourselves,” Vanitas said, getting his keyblade ready. Growing frustrated with herself, Rainbow nudged Applejack on the shoulder to get her attention. Rainbow nodded towards the battle, and Applejack understood what she meant. Winking, Applejack followed Rainbow as the two ran in between the heroes and villains, bringing up their hands defensively as they acted as a shield.

Nearly everyone was taken aback by their brash behaviour, uncertain if what they did was the right thing to do.

Puffing her chest out, Applejack announced, “You ain’t gonna hurt our friends without goin’ through us first.”

“What are you guys doing?!” Roxas shouted at last, “There’s no way you can stand up to them!”

“We don’t care,” Rainbow said, her eyes focused completely on Vanitas, “I feel so useless if I stand and watch while you guys do all the fighting.”

Roxas couldn’t think of a thing to debunk that argument, and simply ground his teeth, wishing it wouldn’t come to having his friends protect him. Sora, on the other hand, studied them with awe. He was so used to defending them, that he forgot that they were strong long before he had arrived. He couldn’t believe how oblivious he was of it. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were the Elements of Honesty and Loyalty respectively. It only made sense that they would feel obligated to put themselves in harms way for the sake of their friends.

He recognized their courage, their bravery.

Their Valor.

Feeling the power build up inside of himself, Sora retrieved that power and summoned it for his own use. Just as he was doing so, Applejack and Rainbow Dash saw a strange light surround them, causing them to look at themselves curiously. Sora felt the power at its peak and unleashed it, a bubble of light shooting out in all directions. Riku and Vanitas stumbled back from the wave, but the others were unaffected by the blast as it blew past them without a hitch.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash suddenly disappeared, a sparkle of light all that remained before it to dissolved away. Sora’s clothing glowed bright white as he threw his arms out, floating a few inches from the ground. It was very bright, making everyone cover their eyes, but it quickly died down, and everyone looked up again.

Sora was standing on the ground again, his clothing becoming mostly red instead of black, and he wielded two keyblades, one being his usual Kingdom Key, while the other was Oathkeeper. Everyone was surprised by his sudden change, staring at him with wide eyes and jaws dropped. But Sora was furrowing his brow at Vanitas, who for the first time, feared him.

Roxas then remembered what weapons he had and looked to his left hand, seeing it was empty. Annoyed, he turned back to Sora, and remarked, “Hey, you took my keyblade.”

Sora turned his head to him with a raised brow before lifting up Oathkeeper, as if he just realized that he held it in his left hand. Facing Roxas again, he gave a goofy grin and shrugged.

“W-Where’s Applejack a-and Rainbow Dash?” Fluttershy asked, nervously playing with her hands.

Sora faced her with a soft smile, “They’re safe, Fluttershy. Don’t worry.”

Trusting Sora, Fluttershy nodded, a very small smile creeping up on her face. Roxas stared at Sora without blinking, “I’m guessing you can take them on your own?”

Sora gave a humorous grunt, “Yep!”

Roxas sighed with annoyance, but smiled. He wouldn’t admit it, but the pain in his head was still persistent. It was a relief that he could entrust Sora to finish the fight. “Go get ‘em then,” he said with a grunt.

Instead of responding, Sora closed his eyes, giving a calm expression as he took a deep breath. Then he turned back to Vanitas, opening his eyes as his face grew serious, his brow furrowed deeply. He twirled his keyblades in his hands before sticking to a pose.

Vanitas simply frowned, his usual snarky grin gone as he stared down Sora. Riku didn’t change in his demeanor, reinforcing the fact that he was barely acknowledging his surroundings.

“Some new clothing isn’t going to save you,” Vanitas said, his voice indicating that he was only faking being brave. Sora didn’t respond, knowing that it wasn’t needed. Instead, he charged forward, the power that coursed through him making him much more confident.

Riku was the first to attack, jumping up as he sent a barrage of blue fireballs Sora’s way. Smirking, Sora leapt up to meet the fireballs, and blocked them effortlessly as they dissipated to nothingness. Landing with a forward roll, Sora found Riku already going for a broad swing, but Sora stopped it with a keyblade and attacked with the other. Sora had caught him off guard, and it sent Riku stepping back because of it.

With the timing just right, Sora was able to attack with his two keyblades quickly and fluidly, knocking back all of Riku’s attempts at retaliation while still attacking. In a final attack, Sora blocked a high swing from Riku, then swung his other keyblade to knock Riku’s arm away to leave him vulnerable. Afterwards, Sora hopped, tilted to one side, and spun like a sideways stop, his keyblades landing strikes on Riku endlessly until he was thrown back to the ground.

Landing again, Sora turned to Vanitas, who was not one bit happy. With his hands, Vanitas set them at his waist and raised them, summoning strange dark creatures to form from the ground. Sora could only identify them as small blue, pointy creatures that somewhat resembled Heartless.

Vanitas crossed his arms, content to have a small group of enemies between Sora and himself. “You like them?” he asked, gesturing towards the monsters, “They are the Unversed. A horde of fledgling-”

Vanitas couldn’t even finish his speech before Sora launched himself towards the Unversed, slashing through them like they were nothing. The Unversed tried to put up a fight, but Sora easily outmaneuvered them, predicting their moves and compensating for them all in the span of seconds. By the time he was done, the Unversed were destroyed and it was back to Sora and Vanitas.

Irritated with Sora, Vanitas summoned his keyblade again and charged, Sora simply waited. When Vanitas was close enough, he attempted an uppercut but was stopped with a block of Sora’s keyblade. With ease, Sora hack and slashed away at Vanitas who could barely even move to avoid the onslaught. Finally, Sora spun around with keyblades held out, hitting Vanitas, and then finishing with a jump, slamming his keyblades to the ground. The small wave of light that emanated from the attack sent Vanitas falling back, his keyblade splitting in half from an attempted block as it dissipated into nothingness.

Vanitas fell onto his back, his arms outstretched as they rest by his side. Sora panted heavily, hoping it was over for once, and everyone in the vicinity watched Vanitas lying on the ground for any more tricks. Instead, they heard Vanitas’ sorrowful voice sigh as his body began to erode, black balls of Darkness radiating from him.

“So this is how I go out,” he muttered, “And to think most of my power was locked up because of Ventus. I guess he got the final laugh.”

Sora relaxed from his position, glaring at Vanitas, “Who’s Ventus?”

Vanitas remained silent for a time before speaking again, “My opposite, one that is pure light. I’m what’s left of his Darkness.”

“So why do you look like Sora?” Roxas asked, stepping over to Sora’s side, his head slowly feeling better.

Vanitas opened his mouth to speak, his mouth hanging open a moment as if he thought of something else, “I don’t want to go… Don’t take me away…”

And before anything else could be said, Vanitas disappeared completely in a burst of dark bubbles, each one fading away in the air. Vanitas was defeated, and probably gone for good. Sora and Roxas watched the sky in sympathy, slightly apologetic that Vanitas had to be destroyed. They weren’t sure why they were sorry either, it was just the way they felt.

“Sora!” Rarity cried from behind them, and they both whipped around in time to see a man in a black cloak stand by a Corridor of Darkness, Riku held in one of his arms.

“It’s a shame really,” the figure spoke, making Sora and Roxas’ eyes light up in recognition. “Darkness can be nasty business sometimes.”

“Xigbar!” they both said simultaneously, and the man waved a finger in front of them.

“Now, now, kiddies,” he said, reaching his arm to his hood and throwing it back. His dark pony tail and eyepatch were unmistakable, and his scar and one visible yellow eye only confirmed that it was Xigbar. “We don’t want to wake Riku here, now do we?”

“Let him go!” Sora shouted with a swing of his keyblade, already running towards him.

Xigbar chuckled before he emphasised, “As if.”

And before Sora could reach him, he backed into the black portal, disappearing and leaving nothing behind. Sora slowed to a walk and then stopped abruptly, falling to his knees.

“No,” he whispered, his eyes trained on where Riku once was. Without noticing, Sora’s clothing reverted back to normal in a flash of light as his keyblades disappeared as well. At the same time, Applejack and Rainbow Dash reappeared, looking quite dazed and confused.

“What in tarnation just happened?” Applejack asked aloud, but when she caught sight of Sora on the ground, she knew she could figure it out later. Plus, it made her sad to see Sora so down, it was like he indirectly affected how others felt. Kind of like Pinkie.

“He’s gone again,” he said, putting his hands on the ground as he faced downward. “I couldn’t save him.”

Rainbow walked over to him and knelt down to his level. “Hey, come on, Sora,” she said, “We may not have gotten your friend back, but there’s always next time.”

Sora sighed deeply, “I guess.”

The girls didn’t know what to do to cheer him up, although Pinkie had an idea, she was hesitant to go with it. It felt like it was a time to be quiet. Spike sat on his haunches, whining sadly as Twilight bent down to pat his head.

Though Roxas didn’t like Riku all that much, he knew he was Sora’s best friend, and he didn’t like seeing his other half look so blue. Thinking quickly, a blurry memory entered his mind, and it played before his eyes.

***

“You’re coming back with us, right?” Sora asked Riku, who was facing away from him.

“I had given in to the darkness,” Riku explained simply, making Sora feel crushed as he gaped at him.

“Riku!” Sora cried out in worry, not wanting his best friend to leave again.

“How am I gonna face everyone?” Riku asked turning to Sora with a sad and angry expression.

“Like this!” Sora said, squishing his face up with his hands to give a funny expression. Riku was taken aback, but laughed nonetheless, glad to have a good friend to have his back.

***

The mere memory itself made Roxas smile, and he had to hold back a laugh. Knowing what to do, Roxas walked over to Pinkie and whispered into her ear, explaining what he had in mind. Pinkie listened critically, nodding occasionally until Roxas pulled back with a grin. Smiling widely, Pinkie nodded frantically in agreement with his plan, and the two made their way to Sora, who was still on the ground.

“Sora,” Roxas said, suppressing his chuckles as Pinkie did the same. “I think I know what can cheer you up.”

“What?” Sora said slowly, lifting his head to look up at them. To his surprise, Pinkie and Roxas were crouched in front of his face, giving the goofiest faces they could pull. While Roxas pulled his mouth from both sides using his hands, Pinkie stuck her tongue out while making antlers with her hands.

Sora was shocked at first, but his lips grew into a smile as he laughed, pointing a finger at them. The others couldn’t hold back their giggles much longer, bursting into hysterics as they all laughed together.

When everyone eventually quieted down, Sora stood up facing Roxas and Pinkie Pie. “Thanks, guys,” he said genuinely, “I needed that.”

“We all need a good laugh sometimes,” Pinkie explained simply, and Sora was suddenly reminded why she was the Element of Laugher.

Stepping up, Fluttershy gave an appreciative smile, “I’m glad you’re feeling better, Sora.”

Sora nodded, putting his hands behind his head. “It could have been worse I suppose,” he said, his eyes wandering to the sky.

“Yeah,” Rainbow shouted, slapping him in the back and causing him to nearly fall down, “But then you're awesome moves came in!”

“Speaking of which,” Rarity put in, “Would you be a darling and tell us what that was?”

“It’s a Drive form,” Sora explained, “I use my friends to boost my own abilities. The one I used was Valor Form, I use the strength of my friend, Goofy, to change into it.”

“But how did it work this time?” Twilight asked, her bookish qualities coming through.

“I guess it was the strength in Applejack and Rainbow Dash,” Sora summed up, looking towards the two in question. “If you two hadn’t stuck up for me and Roxas, I don’t know what would have happened.”

“Ah, shucks, it was nothin’,” Applejack said humbly, tipping her hat.

“Yeah,” Rainbow said, putting her hands on her hips, “It was all thanks to me really.”

Sora chuckled while the rest rolled their eyes, though they gave a small smile as well.

“So, now what?” Twilight asked everyone, and at that moment the bell rang from the building, reminding them about something they avoided, though not purposefully.

“Maybe we should get to class,” Fluttershy suggested quietly, and the rest nodded somberly, knowing they would have to make up what they had missed.

Sora looked between everyone, “We’ll meet up during lunch.”

“Sounds good,” Twilight agreed while standing beside Roxas, “In the mean time, I can get Roxas registered for classes.”

Roxas jerked back, holding his hands up, “Wait, I have to go to school?” He slumped his body, “Great.”

Everyone got another good laugh from that, and the group of friends headed for the doors, feeling better than before. For Sora, he hoped that the villains would give it a rest for a day. Fighting two different factions on the same day? Who was next, Maleficent?

Author's Note

I always get so nervous uploading these. I guess I'm trying to please too many people at once.

Chapter 8: Repeated Events

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 8: Repeated Events

Fluttershy found it hard to focus when she finally arrived to her class. The last few hours had been so hectic that she couldn’t stop thinking about everything that had happened. Not only that, but all the new information Sora and Roxas had presented was swimming around in her mind, causing her to go into deep thought. Above all else, however, she hoped the two keybladers didn’t get in too much trouble.

Sitting in her seat, Fluttershy idly slipped a hand into her pocket, fiddling with the item Sora had given her. The memory made Fluttershy smile, and even very faintly blush. She hoped that Principal Celestia went easy on them, even though, curiously, she had left herself and her five friends without any form of punishment.

***

The group of friends had entered the main lobby of the school, getting a true breather after everything happened in the soccer field. The shock of the recent events had toned down considerably, causing everyone to be very lighthearted as they spoke to each other.

“Are you sure you’re alright, Roxas?” Twilight said, fretting over him as they walked beside each other.

Roxas chuckled, “I’m fine, Twilight. You don’t need to worry.”

“You are not fine,” Twilight snapped, jabbing a finger at his side as she gave him an annoyed look. “You got beat around like a…”

“Like a piñata!” Pinkie finished, hopping behind them rather cheerfully.

“Yeah,” Twilight agreed with a smirk, “A piñata.”

“Oh, come on,” Roxas waved off with a roll of his eyes. “You saw how me and Sora took out those Nobodies.”

“Yeah,” Applejack chuckled, covering her mouth in a vain attempt to hide her laughter. “After ya became one of their punchin’ bags.”

Roxas slumped, stopping in his tracks. “You guys are never going to let me live this down,” he said. The girls gave soft laughter at him, and Roxas felt oddly better because of it. He was glad to be around a group of friends again.

Fluttershy, meanwhile, distanced herself from the others. She had gotten captured by the Nobodies so easily, and it just made her feel so useless. A frown was on her lips as she rubbed her arm, wishing she could have done something to not get in the way.

“Hey, Fluttershy,” Sora called, and she looked over to him with a curious expression. As he walked over to her, he was digging inside one of his red pouches, searching for something.

“Um, yes?” she asked, facing away in embarrassment. She may have been captured easily, but it was thanks to Sora that she was freed just as quickly. That, and she might really have a crush on him. Her friends weren’t so far off with that assumption.

Sora found what he was looking as he pulled out his hand from within his pocket. Fluttershy couldn’t see what he had, but she could guess that it was a small object with a silver chain attached to it. With his free hand, Sora lifted Fluttershy’s hand and placed the item in it, still covering it with his own. He gave a kind smile as he said, “I want you to have this.”

When Sora pulled his hands away, Fluttershy was finally able to get a good look at the object. It was an oval shaped pendant with a ukulele in the center. As she held it in her hand, she was sure that the item gave a small sparkle as she examined it.

“Why do you want me to have this?” she asked, realizing that Sora had given her a gift of sorts. Perhaps it wasn’t her place to question it, and it made her cringe from her attitude.

“It’s a summoning charm,” Sora explained, pointing at the pendant. “If you’re in trouble, and I’m not around, just focus your heart into it, and a friend of mine will help you.”

Fluttershy stared at the pendant, the feeling of uselessness building once again as she frowned sadly. “You want to give this to me because I’m weak, right?” she asked timidly, afraid of the answer as she looked away.

Sora jerked his head back in mild surprise, his face turning to confusion. “Weak?” he repeated before shaking his head. “Of course not.”

Fluttershy turned to him, shocked by his words. She played with her hands as she faced the floor, a few strands of her hair falling out of place. “Y-You don’t think I’m weak?”

Sora gave a small chuckle, before putting his hands on his hips. “Nope,” he answered, having a smile of genuine kindness. “That summoning charm only works with people who have a strong heart. And I think you have what it takes to use it.”

Fluttershy blinked at his words, playing with her hands as she gave a shy smile. “Oh, um, thank you, Sora,” she said, honestly glad that Sora had cheered her up.

“You’re welcome,” Sora said with a nod. “It’s what friends do.”

Fluttershy smiled again, and before she could respond, Twilight called for all of their attentions. As everyone gathered around her, Twilight cleared her throat before speaking.

“Alright,” she said with a nervous glance towards a hallway. “Let’s hurry and get to class. I don’t want any of us to get in trouble.”

“Ah, you worry too much,” Rainbow waved off, crossing her arms indifferently.

“I don’t know about that, Rainbow Dash,” Rarity said matter-of-factly. “Sora and Roxas weren’t exactly subtle with their fighting.”

Sora put his hands behind his head, a mirthful smile on his lips, “We just can’t hold back I guess.”

Roxas shrugged with a neutral expression. “Yeah, I mean, why would we want to?”

Sora leaned towards Roxas, cupping his hand near his mouth as he spoke, “It’s a joke, Roxas.”

“It was?” Roxas asked, looking at Sora with a raised brow, wondering if he was lying or not.

Twilight groaned loudly, silencing anybody else from speaking. “Everyone,” she said, glancing at each person in turn. “We need to concentrate here. Let’s just sneak into our classrooms before-”

“Before what, Miss Sparkle?” a voice echoed in the room, making everyone flinch. The group turned towards the origin of the voice slowly, and saw Principal Celestia standing there. Her arms were crossed as she gazed towards the group with an unamused look. For the longest time, no one spoke, unsure whether that was a good thing to do at a time like that.

“Uh, heh, hello,” Twilight muttered with an uneasy smile, giving an awkward wave at the same time. “What brings you here, Principal Celestia?”

Celestia didn’t move a muscle as she spoke. “Just investigating several reports about several teenagers fighting each other with large sword-shaped keys.”

Everyone glanced to each other, wondering how to approach this situation. That is, everyone except Pinkie, who gave a loud gasp as she nearly jumped in recognition. “Oh!” she cried, raising her hand in the air. “That must have been Sora and Roxas! They were-”

Pinkie suddenly stopped herself as she threw her hands over her mouth. Sora and Roxas turned their gazes away from Celestia, trying not to look like a guilty party. Everyone else held their breath as Celestia narrowed her eyes at the two keybladers.

“Sora, Roxas,” she ordered, and the two faced her with looks of apology. “What do you have to say for yourself?”

Sora took a moment to think before stepping away from the group. “Principal Celestia, I can explain everything,” he declared with determination. “These six had nothing to do with it.”

“Yeah,” Roxas added with a nod. “It’s our fault, don’t blame them.”

“Don’t say that!” Twilight shouted in despair, causing the two keybladers to turn towards her and the rest of the girls. “We should take some responsibility for it too.”

The other five girls nodded in agreement, even Fluttershy, though more shy than the others. Celestia rubbed her head irritably before sighing deeply. “I’m sorry, but I want to speak with these two boys privately.”

The five girls didn’t try to argue, but they shifted their weight around nervously while glancing between one another. It was clear that they were still uneasy with Sora and Roxas taking the blame. Seeing their distraught expressions, Sora turned to them with a smile. “Hey, don’t worry about us,” he said genuinely, his voice gentle. “We’ll be fine.”

“You sure about that?” Roxas questioned, raising a brow.

Sora rolled his eyes, and nodded at Roxas. “I’m sure.”

The six girls were still hesitant, but they didn’t have a chance to speak before Roxas and Sora walked over to Principal Celestia.

“You six better get to your classes,” she stated sternly, pointing a finger at them. “I’d hate to write you all up.”

And then they walked into the next hallway and out of sight. Their footsteps were still heard, but eventually they faded away, leaving the girls in a perpetual silence. At last, Twilight spoke up. “I guess… we should go now.”

“But what about Sora and Roxas?” Rarity asked, looking slightly frantic as she played with her hands. “We simply must get them out of trouble. It’s the least we could do after what they did for us.”

Twilight shook her head, “There’s nothing we can do right now.”

Everyone sagged their shoulders, their heads dipping low as they felt bad for what might happen to Sora and Roxas. With a final glance to each other, the girls split up, heading through different hallways for their classes. Everyone except Fluttershy, who was still staring at where she had last seen Sora. The charm he had given her was still in her hand, and she couldn’t help but smile at it.

***

“Did you really have to reveal yourself?” a figure in a black coat asked with exasperation, crossing his arms as he gazed across the library. Xigbar chuckled, shaking his head with a wicked smile.

“What can I say?” he said with a shrug, “I felt like they were at a disadvantage.”

“That’s because they were at a disadvantage,” the figure snapped, turning his head towards Xigbar. “And now we have lost it.”

“Ah, ah, ah,” Xigbar grinned, waving a finger in front of himself. “Did you forget about the little present that was so graciously given to us?”

The figure grunted disdainfully, “Yes, I did. And he would probably be as useful as Riku was.”

He gestured to Riku, who was laying on the ground nearby, unconscious. Xigbar, for the first time, looked deep in thought, his eyes glued to Riku. With another sigh, the figure continued. “You and I both know how difficult it is to take out the keyblade wielder.”

“Right,” Xigbar said, snapping back to his sneering self. He walked over to a nearby bookshelf and extracted a random book as he spoke. “So why don’t we just separate him from those six girls, and then take them out?”

The figure shook his head, a hand rising towards his hidden chin. “It won’t be that easy. The keyblade wielder is not as distracted as he once was.”

Xigbar chuckled at the memory of those times, flipping open the book as he looked inside of it, turning the page occasionally. A short silence filled the air, before the figure turned towards Xigbar with his head tilted to the side.

“What are you looking at?” he inquired, stepping closer to him.

“Just a yearbook,” he said, promptly shutting the book and tossing it over his shoulder, which landed onto the floor.

“Stay focused,” the figure snapped. “Let us report to our master and figure out our next move.”

“Whatever you say.” Xigbar grinned as the figure conjured up a Portal of Darkness. “This place was too colorful, anyway.”

***

The hallways seemed much longer to Sora than he remembered, as he and Roxas followed Principal Celestia. It just went on and on, and Sora wondered if it would ever end. Though it was rare, getting into this kind of trouble made Sora nervous. He just wanted to help, and it felt like he was being punished for it, even though that was not really the case. Eventually, the three of them arrived at Celestia’s office, and she opened it, quickly stepping to the side as she faced the two keybladers.

“Inside,” she said sternly, pointing a finger towards the interior of her office. Sora and Roxas winced from her tone and movement, and entered in single file, feeling worse for ware. However, as they entered, they were surprised with who was waiting for them in the room. King Mickey stood inside, facing them with a neutral expression as his hands were behind his back. Sora and Roxas were frozen in place, unsure what to say or do. As Celestia entered the room herself with a small smile, she shut the door closed, knocking Sora out of his shock.

“K-King Mickey!?” Sora balked, leaning forward while tilting his head left and right, seeing if it was some sort of trick.

“Hello Sora, Roxas,” King Mickey said, nodding to both in turn.

“You know who I am?” Roxas asked, leaning forward beside Sora, staring at the shorter Mickey with confusion.

“Riku has mentioned you before,” Mickey explained, a smile emerging briefly, “This is the first time I’ve met you.”

“Uh, it’s a pleasure, I guess,” Roxas said, standing back up as he rubbed the back of his head.

Sora shook his head, his face slightly desperate. “Your majesty!”

King Mickey whipped his head to Sora, his face turning from mild shock to a frown. “What are you doing here?” Sora asked without a hint of malice, “I thought you were with Lea and…”

Sora’s jaw dropped as his breathing stopped, jumping back as if he was struck. “Did something happen to Kairi?” he asked desperately, “Is she okay?”

“She’s fine, Sora,” King Mickey answered, holding his hands out to calm Sora down. “I left her with Master Yen Sid.”

Sora breathed a sigh of relief, taking a step back as he placed his hands over his heart. Celestia walked around them and sat in her office chair behind her desk, speaking up and catching everyone’s attention. “The reason I called you here is because King Mickey requested your presence.”

Sora wondered how Celestia knew Mickey, or even about everything else. Although, some leaders of worlds knew about the worlds outside their own, so it shouldn’t have been too much of a surprise.

“Sora, Roxas,” Mickey said, his face growing serious as his brow furrowed. “Lea has been taken by the Organization.”

“Lea!?” Sora shouted, right before he glanced towards Roxas, who had a puzzled expression.

“Who’s Lea?” Roxas asked, looking between the Sora and King Mickey.

Sora crossed his arms, worry dominating his features. “Lea is… Axel.”

“Axel!?” Roxas exclaimed, his eyes wide as he looked to Mickey with a frantic expression. “Why is he called Lea? And what happened to him?”

“I know you two have a lotta questions,” Mickey said, his voice calm as began to pace in front of the two, “But we need to take this one step at a time.”

“Okay,” Sora drawled, nodding a little bit. “Let’s start at the beginning. How was Lea captured?”

King Mickey cleared his throat before answering, “Master Yen Sid contacted us, having discovered the Organization’s new hideout. I still can’t believe I hadn’t checked there sooner, but they were at the Keyblade Graveyard.”

“Keyblade Graveyard?” Sora questioned looking slightly baffled. The place sounded familiar to him for some reason. He was instantly shushed by Roxas, who was listening to every word to see what had happened to his best friend.

“We were told to scout it out, and see if his information held truth,” King Mickey continued, ignoring their brief exchange as he went deep into the story.

***

“I’m telling ya,” Mickey said, walking in front of Lea and Kairi, “They gotta be here. Master Yen Sid is rarely wrong.”

“And I’m telling you,” Lea yawned from the back of the group, his hands behind his head, looking quite bored, “There’s nothing here. So he got some misinformation, big deal. We still have time to take ‘em down, don’t we?”

“I don’t know, Lea,” Kairi responded with a shake of her head, her eyes furrowed as she strode along. “The sooner we find them, the sooner we can all go home.”

“Home…” Lea repeated idly to himself, glancing around the wide, arid canyon they were walking through. The closest place that Lea had come to calling home was the old castle in The World That Never Was. Even then, it was still hollow, and rather unwelcoming. Without Roxas there to lighten things up a bit, Lea probably would have become more of a Nobody than before.

“What’s the matter, Lea?” Kairi asked with a look of concern, slowing her pace to walk alongside him.

Lea lowered his arms, shrugging as he did. “Eh, just thinking about what it’s like to have a real home.”

The smile on Kairi’s face brought a smile to his own. “You can call Destiny Islands your home if you want,” she said, giving a small hop for emphasis.

Lea thought over that proposition, looking up at the sky in thought, before facing Kairi again. “Thanks. That sounds nice.”

Kairi giggled, nodding in agreement before focusing on the situation at hand. Lea, on the other hand, wondered if any place could be considered home without Roxas. He really missed that guy.

At that moment, King Mickey halted, his eyes wide for a brief moment before throwing a hand to the side. “Wait,” he ordered, and the other two did so immediately, searching for what had caught Mickey’s attention. Silence was all they were greeted with, everyone holding their breaths for whatever could come.

Suddenly, Neoshadow Heartless emerged from the ground, instantly surrounding the group of three. They all summoned their weapons, though Lea retrieved his Chakrams, as he was more proficient with them. There was an innumerable amount of Neoshadows, more than they could count. And one thing was for sure; they were waiting for them.

“Well,” Lea smirked, glancing around, “I guess this mission got a lot more exciting.”

“Something’s still off,” Mickey said, his head looking around the top of the canyon.

“There’s more?” Kairi asked, gripping her keyblade tightly. Since they were surrounded from all sides, they were cut off from Mickey’s Gummi Ship. They would have to fight their way through, and it was already bad enough with the Heartless.

“So much more, keyblader,” a grave, low voice echoed in the canyon. Everyone flinched when they heard it, knowing exactly who it was. King Mickey focused on a spot near the ledge of the left side of the canyon, where a figure in a black coat stood.

“Xemnas!” he exclaimed, but the figure did not react. Instead, he brought his hands up to his hood, pulling it off fluidly to reveal that it truly was Xehanort’s Nobody: Xemnas.

“Indeed,” Xemnas said monotonically with a nod. He gestured to the group. “How quaint it was to have you fall so easily into an ambush. And here I thought you were much more cautious than this.”

“Time’s ticking,” Lea shouted at him, twirling his chakrams in his hands. “We were on a tight schedule.”

“As am I,” Xemnas agreed, nodding again. “We have no use for any of you, just like the other keybladers.”

Kairi gasped, her expression one of pure shock. “Sora… Riku…”

Lea looked at her sympathetically. Having made friends with the two, he was worried as well for them, and hoped nothing happened to them. “Get ready you two,” Mickey said. “We’re gonna have to fight our way out.”

Lea and Kairi looked at each other and nodded in determination, turning back to back to face the hoard of Heartless. “How futile,” Xemnas grunted before leaping off the edge and landing in front of the Heartless a few yards away from Mickey. “Allow me to destroy you, and erase your existence.”

Without a word, Mickey charged towards Xemnas, Kingdom Key D in his hand. The Neoshadows tried to intercept, but Mickey swung his keyblade while hopping around, taking them out before they could get an attack in. Then, when they were out of the way, Mickey jumped towards Xemnas, ready to swing down on him. All this time, Xemnas remained still with a confident smile, but right before he could be struck, he called upon his Ethereal Blades, knocking the keyblade aside. Mickey was able to recover from the deflection and hop back a bit to give himself space.

Meanwhile, the other Neoshadows had begun their attack on Lea and Kairi. Kairi was able to bat them away with her keyblade, and since Lea had months of experience with his chakrams, he had no problem in taking out the Heartless. He threw his chakrams when the Neoshadows attempted to pounce on him, and when he was without his weapons, Lea would jump out of the way.

“These guys are way easier than Nobodies.” He smiled, lacing his chakrams with fire before throwing them out. They arced in a circle, wiping out any nearby Neoshadows before returning to Lea.

Kairi raised her keyblade into the air and summoned a storm of lightning to shower on the Neoshadows, taking out a good chunk of them. Though Kairi wouldn’t brag about it, she knew she was almost an expert in magic, more so than Riku or even Sora. She wasn’t sure why that was, but she didn’t question it, and just rolled with it.

Striking another Neoshadow down, Kairi turned to Lea. “We need to get back to the Gummi Ship!” she yelled, her tone desperate. Lea could tell she was growing nervous at the predicament they had gotten into, and he was no different. He was growing tired, and he didn’t want to have to sacrifice himself again.

After retrieving his chakrams again, Lea forced a lot of energy into them, and they glowed orange with power, fire surrounding the weapons. When they were ready, he threw his arms back and hurled his chakrams down the way the group had come through, taking out any Heartless in its path and carving an opening for everyone.

“Get to the Gummi Ship!” Lea shouted, his face serious as he pointed a finger at the lane he had created through the Heartless. “I’ll keep ‘em busy!”

Kairi made to argue, mainly because she hardly knew how to handle a Gummi Ship, but stopped herself, knowing there was no time for a rebuttal. She gave a curt nod and bolted down the path, striking at any Heartless that tried to swipe at her. For his part, Lea shouted at all the Heartless, gaining their attention.

“Hey! Over here, you dark freaks!” he shouted with a smirk, and his plan had worked, as a large number of the Neoshadows ignored Kairi and headed for him instead. Unfortunately, that meant that he had to fight twice as many Heartless. Lea sighed, “I really need to think over my plans.”

As Lea battled with more Heartless, Mickey was fighting Xemnas, but neither of them had much ground over the other. Ethereal Blades clashed with keyblade as the two never got a chance to land a hit. When they locked blades with each other again, Xemnas took a glance at the other two and gave a confident smirk.

“It seems one of your friends has abandoned you,” he said, and when Mickey pushed away from him, he took the chance to look over as well, seeing Kairi disappearing from around the canyon walls while Lea fought alone.

Xemnas took advantage of the distraction, rushing forward and hitting Mickey’s back. Mickey tumbled forward and then stopped in front of Lea, who was starting to become overwhelmed. Glancing down, Lea saw who had landed near him, and grew even more worried about the situation they got themselves into.

“Your majesty!” he yelled, kneeling down next to him while keeping a watchful eye for any Heartless hoping to get him unaware. “Are you alright?”

Mickey pushed himself to his feet, shaking off the little amount of pain that had remained. “I’m fine, Lea,” he said with a nod, as if confirming to himself as well. Mickey faced Xemnas, furrowing his brow as he saw him smirk triumphantly. “Where did Kairi go?”

Lea took the hint that Mickey didn’t want to be troubled over, and put his back to him, tightening his hold on his chakrams. “I told her to get the Gummi Ship,” he explained, seeing a Neoshadow leapt towards him. A quick throw of his weapon dispatched it quickly enough.

Mickey swiped at two other Neoshadows before turning towards Lea, his eyes wide. “Lea, Kairi doesn’t know how to pilot a Gummi Ship!” he nearly shouted, but Lea simply shrugged his shoulders as he looked over them.

“I don’t really think things through, okay?” he admitted, a small smile on his lips, “And besides, she’s a fast learner, isn’t she?”

Just when Lea finished that question, the Gummi Ship came around the corner of the canyon. Though it was swaying slightly, the vessel remained on course until it hovered over Lea and Mickey, who were mildly surprised that Kairi was able to fly over so quickly. Even Xemnas was slightly astonished by the ship’s appearance, though only showed it with a raised brow. The ramp underneath the ship opened, and Lea and Mickey knew it was their chance to escape.

When the Gummi Ship was low enough, King Mickey jumped up to the canyon wall, pushed off of it, and landed on the extended ramp. All the while, Lea was fighting tooth and nail, elegantly jumping to and fro while tossing his chakrams. Eventually, the Gummi Ship was low enough for Lea to jump on, but he was too busy to really notice.

“Lea!” Mickey called from the ramp, waving an arm around while the other held on to the supports that extended the ramp. “Come on!”

Lea grunted in understanding, and with another quick toss of his chakrams, he jumped up to the ramp with mickey, clinging to the other support. With a flick of his wrist, Lea summoned his own Keyblade. The Heartless, seeing their prey attempting to escape, jumped towards the Gummi Ship. Most latched onto the sides of the vessel, while others were killed quickly from the two keybladers on the ramp.

The ship rose away from the ground, and Mickey concluded that Kairi knew they had jumped on. However, just before the Gummi Ship cleared the canyon, more Neoshadows leapt onto the ship, putting more weight on it than it could support. The ship lurched downward as a result, catching Lea and Mickey off guard as they held on tighter to the only things that were keeping them from falling back down.

“I’m going to help Kairi,” Mickey announced, disappearing into the ship and leaving Lea to fight off the Heartless.

Lea glanced around, seeing more Neoshadows waiting to jump on and pull them down. He knew that there was no way they would be able to escape without someone jumping onto the canyon ledge and taking them off.

Lea sighed, “That person is going to have to be me, isn’t it?”

He grunted in amusement, a smile emerging, “Well, I guess it was destiny. And I shouldn’t argue with that.”

Then without another thought, he pushed off of the ramp, leaping the distance towards the canyon wall and landing on top, quickly taking out the heartless with his keyblade. When he had a bit of room, he dropped his keyblade and summoned his chakrams, throwing them at the Neoshadows clinging onto the Gummi Ship. The weapons did their work efficiently, taking out loads of them in one throw, and with a couple more tosses, Lea had cleared the Gummi Ship of Heartless.

In the cockpit, Mickey and Kairi stared at him in shock, not sure what to do. If they tried to go back and save him, the Gummi Ship would get swarmed again, but they couldn’t leave a friend behind.

Lea saw their distraught expressions, and his smile wavered for a second before he put both chakrams in one hand, and with the other hand, gave them a two-finger salute. With his small farewell, he turned to focus on the Neoshadows that were jumping amongst themselves, as if waiting for something to happen.

“What’s the matter?” he shouted, twirling his chakrams, “Afraid?”

“Heartless do not have fear,” Xemnas said, stepping out of the dark horde nonchalantly. “But you do, Axel.”

Xemnas was right. Lea was experiencing a bit of fear, but anger was growing, shoving the previous emotion away. “It’s Lea!” he shouted. “I’m not your lackey any more!”

Xemnas grunted, “We’ll see.”

With a battle cry, Lea surged forward as Xemnas summoned his Ethereal Blades. Though Mickey was confident in Lea’s abilities, he believed that Lea wasn’t capable of fighting off Xemnas, the Superior of the In-Between.

***

“Then, well… I think ya know what happened next,” Mickey finished up, bowing his head slightly. Roxas was speechless from the tale he had heard, unsure exactly what to think as he took a few steps back. His best friend was gone, and it made him feel distant as the conversation continued without him.

“Lea,” Sora muttered, remembering when he had used up all of his power to help Sora get to The World That Never Was. Lea was just the kind of guy to do something like that again.

“Me and Kairi took off after Lea was defeated,” Mickey continued. “We couldn’t go help him without all of us being taken down. We didn’t want to waste the opportunity Lea had given us.”

“What about the guns on the Gummi Ship?” Sora asked desperately, crouching down to Mickey’s level. “Why couldn’t you use them?”

Mickey shook his head. “There were too many Heartless, Sora. They just kept coming. I’m sure there were way more than there were at Radiant Garden.”

At the mention of that world, Sora’s eyes lit up in remembrance and he sighed. He had to fight off a thousand of them by himself, and if there was more than that at the Keyblade Graveyard, then Sora couldn’t fault Mickey or Kairi for being unable to help Lea.

A thought struck Sora as he stood back up, crossing his arms. “Why couldn’t Kairi come, your majesty?” he asked, “I wouldn’t mind seeing her again.”

“Master Yen Sid is training her until I get back,” Mickey explained, walking past Sora. “We all need to be at our peak as soon as possible. Speaking of which, I need to return to her, since I told you fellas what happened.”

Mickey glanced sympathetically at Roxas, who was leaning against the wall, his eyes trained to the floor. When he arrived at the doorway, Mickey turned around and faced Sora. “Keep doing what you’re doing,” he said with a curt nod. “I’m having Principal Celestia watch over both of ya, so don’t mess up.”

Sora stood to attention. “You got it, your Majesty.”

With a final nod, Mickey opened the door and left the room, leaving a perpetual silence in his wake. After a moment of thought, Sora eyed Roxas, who was still in a sort of trance. “Hey,” Sora called, causing Roxas to jerk awake, facing up towards him. “You alright?”

“Yeah,” Roxas answered, stepping closer to Sora. “It’s just… a lot to take in.”

“I know how you feel,” Sora said with a reassuring smile. “Kairi was taken by the Organization one time. I’m sure Lea is just fine.”

Roxas took a deep breath, forcing a smile of his own. “I guess. Still can’t believe Axel is Lea now.”

Sora chuckled at the remark, but was quickly silenced when a soft cough turned their attention to Principal Celestia. “I’m sorry to break up your little talk,” she said with a look in her eyes, “but I’m still responsible for you both.”

“Right,” Sora nodded, lifting his hand to his chin while his other hand supported his elbow. “By the way, how do you know about the other worlds out there?”

Celestia smiled, as if a fond memory had passed by. “It’s… fairly complicated. All I can say is that it took a princess to set things straight for me.”

Sora looked to Roxas, seeing if he understood her subtle explanation. However, Roxas just shrugged, not knowing either. “Now then,” Celestia spoke again, sitting up in her chair as her voice took on a tone of authority, “I still have to discipline you for using your keyblades in public.”

“What were we supposed to do?” Roxas asked rather harshly, “Let them hurt those girls?”

“Of course not,” Celestia replied, her voice never wavering. Sora knew she must have been a refined leader to be able to do that. “But I believe that a little detention wouldn’t be so bad. Especially for boys such as yourselves.”

Sora looked up in thought, an embarrassed smile emerging. “I guess that makes sense.”

“Excellent,” Celestia said, “Now, Roxas, I would like you to watch Twilight Sparkle.”

Both Sora and Roxas were taken aback by that, confusion laced in their expressions. Roxas shook his head to regain his composure before he spoke. “Pardon me for asking,” he said with a hint of sarcasm, “But why do you want me to watch her?”

“For a few reasons,” Celestia explained, standing from her chair as she walked around the desk. When she arrived at the front, she leaned back and sat on it comfortably before continuing. “The one reason I’m allowed to tell you is because she’s working far too hard on the project miss Cheerilee has assigned. Her friends are awfully worried about her, and I have a feeling you’ll be able to assist her.”

Roxas sighed; he didn’t like babysitting, but maybe it wouldn’t be so bad, especially since he was just watching a friend. It might even get his mind to forget about Axel, or Lea.

“And Sora-” Celestia began.

“Excuse me, miss,” Sora interrupted politely. “Is it alright if I make a request?”

Celestia tilted her head a bit, an eyebrow raised before she nodded. “I’d like to help Fluttershy with her detention,” Sora said, scratching the back of his head. “If that’s alright.”

Celestia thought about it a moment before something dawned in her head, and she broke out into a grin. “Very well, Sora. I will tell Vice Principal Luna that you are in detention with her.”

Sora was slightly put off with her smile. Maybe he was a bit obvious with his request. After all, he just felt like he should protect Fluttershy even more than the others… even though he had given her the means of protecting herself not thirty minutes ago. A small blush appeared on his cheeks, despite the fact that no one had said a word that would provoke such a thing as his gaze fell to the floor,

“I’ll sort out the details,” Celestia said, either ignoring Sora’s blush or not noticing it. “For now, I want Roxas to head to the chancellor's office for orientation. Do you think you can do that for me, Sora?”

“No problem,” Sora answered with a determined nod. “I think I can navigate around this school much better than I used to.”

“Then you both are free to go,” Celestia finished, gesturing to the door behind him. Sora and Roxas said their goodbyes before walking out the door with Sora leading. As they walked down the hall, Sora didn’t hear Roxas’ footsteps and stopped as he turned his head with a hint of puzzlement.

He saw Roxas with a forlorn look, his shoulders sagging. Seeing him in such a state, Sora frowned and faced him fully. “Roxas?” Sora called, but it didn’t snap Roxas out of it.

“Sorry,” Roxas apologized with a small grunt as he faced Sora. “I guess I’m-”

He stopped himself, his eyes widening as his jaw dropped. The girl from his dream, the girl with the Organization coat and black hair, was standing right behind Sora at the end of the hallway. She just stood there with a neutral expression, not doing anything at all as she stared right at Roxas.

“Hey, what’s the matter?” Sora asked, crossing his arms, and making Roxas look to Sora in his stunned behavior.

“It’s the girl!” Roxas shouted, pointing a finger at the girl as she turned and walked up a staircase out of sight, just as Sora turned to see the empty hallway.

“What girl?” Sora asked, but didn’t receive an answer. Instead, Roxas ran right past him, and Sora jumped a bit in surprise.

“Come on!” he yelled back at him before quickly heading up the stairs. “She went this way!”

Sora didn’t waste another second, bounding off after Roxas, curious as to what Roxas had seen. The two ran through a few hallways, with Roxas saying she went a certain way, though Sora had no clue how he knew, since Sora didn’t see her at all.

With one last turn, the two of them ended up in the library, looking every which way for the girl Roxas had spotted. But no matter where they looked, there was no sign that anyone had been there, except for the book on the floor.

“Where… where did she go?” Roxas asked, before a bit of anger flared up inside of him. “Hey! Where are you!?”

“Roxas, calm down,” Sora said, gesturing with his hands for emphasis. “There’s no one here.”

“But I saw her,” Roxas said with a stomp of his foot. “She ran in here, and…”

Sora sighed, wondering what Roxas had really seen. It could have been a trick from the Organization, or Vexen and Zexion, but there was no trap or ambush waiting for them. What could it have been?

While in thought, Sora walked up to the open book on the ground, seeing that it was a year book of some sort. He crouched down, picked it up, and brought up to look at it. He saw multiple pictures of the students, and when he turned a few pages, his face lit up in recognition.

“Oh,” he said, causing Roxas to stop in his search for a moment, “This must have been those girls.”

Curious, Roxas briskly walked over to Sora, looking over his shoulder. He saw a picture of the girls they had befriended in this world, though without Twilight. They all sat together happily, and it was somewhat obvious that they were a few years younger than they were. If Sora had to figure out how old exactly, he’d say that they were about as old as when he was first whisked away from his island.

“Heh,” Roxas said, a real smile emerging for the first time in a while. “They sure do look happy.”

“And we need to keep it that way,” Sora declared, his face hardening as he closed the book. He walked over to a nearby cart and placed it on it before facing Roxas again. “We have to protect them, and save the magic of friendship.”

Roxas was about to remark how weird that sounded when it was said aloud, but kept his mouth shut, nodding instead. With another nod from Sora, he waved for Roxas to follow him, and the two walked out of the library, not seeing the black haired girl that stood behind them. She had very faint smile on her lips as she watched the boys leave.

Author's Note

I know, I know, it has been way too long. I need to play a bit of KH2 to get myself back into the groove. Anyway, what music would you like to hear in future chapters?

Chapter 9: Admirers

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 9: Admirers

After the scene at the Library, Sora and Roxas made their way over to the counselor's office. Roxas still needed to go through his orientation, even though he really didn’t want to. He may not have been through school, but he didn’t want to start, if having to do homework in the fake Twilight Town was anything to go by.

While Roxas was inside the office, Sora waited outside right next to the door, leaning against a wall as he crossed his arms. He was trying to figure out how to best deal with the problems that were piling up. Not just with Xehanort, Vexen and Zexion, but with the girl that Roxas had seen as well. What did it mean? And would the girl pop up again? Sora knew that Roxas wouldn’t make something like that up, nor would he be going insane. That would just be crazy.

Sora was shaken out of his thoughts when the door opened beside him, and Roxas stepped out, sighing as he did. Closing the door behind him, Roxas glanced at Sora, who held his fists up in anticipation for Roxas’ next words.

Facing him fully, Roxas put a hand on his hip. “I apparently got the same classes as you,” he stated like it was a new trivial fact. “Cadance said it would be better to have classes with the same transfer student.”

“That’s great,” Sora cheered, jumping up a bit, and causing Roxas to give a small smile at his enthusiasm. “Rainbow Dash is in the same home room. We can all hang out together.”

Roxas gave another sigh while shaking his head. “That’s great and all, but what about the Organization? They’re our main priority.”

“Actually,” Sora said slowly, putting a hand on his chin, “I’m supposed to protect the magic of friendship while searching for Riku. And the best way to do that is to have classes with them.”

“What about Riku?” Roxas asked.

“I can’t leave this school,” Sora explained, feeling saddened slightly from that statement as he rested his arms by his side. “So the only way to find him is if the Organization uses him again.”

Roxas raised a brow, eyeing Sora with scrutiny before looking off to the side. Roxas knew how important Riku was to Sora, and in a way, Roxas kind of missed him too. It was probably because of some shared feeling with Sora, but he still had it. Sure, Riku had beaten him with darkness, took him away before he could defeat Xemnas himself, and stuck him in a simulated Twilight Town, but he was willing to look past that. It was all for a greater good, right?

When Roxas thought about it, why did he want to fight Xemnas so badly at the time? It was obvious that he wanted to stop him before he created the artificial Kingdom Hearts, but… it felt like there was another reason for that course of action. A deeper, emotional reason.

“Roxas?” Sora asked, standing mere inches away from Roxas’ face, causing him to jump back and return to reality. “I lost you there for a second. Everything okay?”

“Yeah,” Roxas answered a little too quickly. “I’m fine. Let’s just get going.”

He stepped past Sora and walked down the hallway. Sora stared at him for a moment, wondering what was going through his head. Maybe it was the girl that he had seen, and if that was the case, what did Roxas know about her that caused him to act like that? Deciding not to go too much into it, Sora took off after Roxas, slowing his speed when he caught up to walk beside him.

“You know,” Roxas said, his eyes looking to the ground, “I never found out what happened to Axel.”

Sora blinked at Roxas, facing forward as he brought a hand up to his cheek to scratch it idely. “It’s kind of a long story,” Sora admitted with a small chuckle.

“Well, I’m not heading to class any time soon,” Roxas said with a shrug, and Sora didn’t really have any obligations either until classes ended. With that, Sora delved into what Lea had gone through after Sora had awoken from his year long sleep.

***

“No, no, no!” Sunset Shimmer shouted as she paced back and forth in the empty gymnasium, flipping through the pictures she had taken of Sora on her phone. She could not find anything discriminating over him that she could use to her advantage. The most she was able to get was a small crush that he had with Fluttershy, and that wasn’t enough to be able to effectively smash his reputation into pulp.

With a grunt of frustration, Sunset closed her flip phone and stuffed it into her pocket. She wouldn’t be able to take down Sora the same way she did with Twilight Sparkle, though admittedly she only partially did it, as she was able to bounce back up. There was only one option open to her: lying about him. With a new kid like him, it wouldn’t be hard to make something up. Plus, the students in the school were pretty gullible when it came down to it.

As Sunset thought over what she could do, a small wicked smile grew on her lips. The details were falling into place as she worked a plan in her mind.

“That’ll put a stop to that no good kid,” she said to herself, rushing through the double doors and out of the gym. When the doors shut, silence reigned inside of the room, the only noise coming from the hum of the lights.

***

“Axel got a keyblade!?” Roxas exclaimed with surprise, leaning away from Sora as if he had gone mad.

Sora laughed, his hands behind his head as they both walked down the still empty hallway. “I keep telling you, Roxas,” Sora said with another chuckle. “It’s Lea now. He’s not a Nobody anymore.”

Roxas was still reeling over the fact of his best friend’s new weapon, but he was still able to calm himself enough to respond to Sora, rolling his eyes at the same time. “When you spend a year with a guy,” he said with a bit of sarcasm in his tone, “you tend to stick with his old name.”

“Point taken,” Sora nodded with a smile.

The two of them entered into the main lobby, glancing around and observing the area with boredom. They didn’t really have anything to do, and their minds were running blank with what to talk about. After a few seconds, Roxas took a deep breath before turning to Sora.

“Do you know when classes-?” Roxas started before a bell rung through the hallways, causing the two to jump in surprise. Students poured out of the nearby rooms, chatting amongst themselves instantly as they crowded the once empty lobby. Sora and Roxas were bumped around, becoming separated from the mass of people moving around.

Sora found himself swiveling every time someone brushed by him, and he apologized each time. “Excuse me,” he said with his usual overly cheery grin. “Pardon me, my mistake, sorry, didn’t see you there.”

Then Sora lost his footing, and with all the chaos that was around him, he tumbled to the ground easily. Instead of trying to get up and possibly get knocked down again, Sora lied down on the ground, his arms splayed out beside him as he gave a tired sigh. His eyes wandered to the ceiling as everybody around gave him a wide berth. Luckily, the area was clearing after a few minutes had passed, everyone leaving to wherever they were going. The area grew relatively quiet at that point; not completely silent, but not really loud either. Before Sora could make any sort of movement, somebody stood over him, looking down at him with a smile.

“What are ya doin’ down there, partner?” Applejack laughed, bending down with a mirthful smirk, putting her hands on her hips.

“Oh, you know,” Sora joked with a small grunt of silliness, “Just laying around.”

Applejack giggled for a moment before extending a hand towards Sora, who took it with a hand of his own. As Applejack pulled, Sora pushed himself to his feet, standing once again. He briskly wiped his shorts, wanting to keep them somewhat presentable as Applejack spoke.

“So how’d it go?” she asked, her face turning worried. “With Principal Celestia, I mean.”

Finished with his quick cleaning, Sora shrugged. “It went okay. She just gave us detention. Roxas needs to keep an eye on Twilight, and I’m helping Fluttershy clean the hallways.”

“Well, that’s right kind of ya, Sora,” she said with a smirk. Applejack found her mind drifting off, wondering if the time Sora and Fluttershy spent together would get them together, but quickly shook those thoughts out. “And I’m glad Roxas is watchin’ Twilight. She’s been workin’ on that project of hers so long it puts Big Mac’s work ta shame.”

“Big Mac?” Sora questioned with a curious look. He always loved learning about his new friends, and other relatives were no exception.

“Yeah.” Applejack nodded. “He’s my big brother. Also have a little sister named Apple Bloom.”

“Oh yeah,” Sora remembered, his face lighting up, “I ran into her at the library. She was working on some music with her friends.”

Applejack chuckled, “Sounds ‘bout right.”

It was in that moment of silence between the two that they heard hushed whispering behind Applejack. Sora leaned to the side, peeking past Applejack to see two girls giggling with each other as they pointed towards Applejack. Applejack gave a brief sideways glance at them before looking off to the side with her head tilted down, rubbing her arm for comfort as she frowned in sadness.

Sora was able to put two and two together, and looked sad as well as he turned back to Applejack. “Hey, are they…?” Sora trailed off, not wanting to finish his sentence in hope that he was mistaken.

“It’s nothin’, really,” Applejack played off with a wave of her hand, her voice breaking for a very short moment. Sora wasn’t so sure, but didn’t really explore the topic, unsure whether it was right to press Applejack. Sora and Applejack stood awkwardly with each other, not sure what to say to each other. Eventually, Applejack shook off her demeanor, grabbing a hold of Sora’s arm as he lead him away from the gossiping girls, who only laughed quietly at their behavior.

Sora allowed Applejack to lead them away, and she let him go when they stopped near the trophy case. Applejack brought her hand up and lowered her hat down to cover her eyes, though Sora could still see the sorrow that was on her face. But he didn’t want to upset Applejack further by questioning her about what that was about, and this was taken further when Applejack cleared her throat, pushing her hat back on top of her head.

“So, uh, where’s Roxas?” she asked, changing the subject as she gave a forced chuckle.

Sora gave her a sympathetic look for a moment before responding. “Not sure,” he admitted slowly, still put off by his friend’s sudden misery. “We got separated when the bell rang.”

It was at that moment that Applejack’s phone vibrated in her pocket. She slipped her hand into her pocket and pulled out a green-colored flip phone. With a swift move, she flipped the phone open as she looked at the screen with slight bewilderment. However, as her eyes went back and forth on what the text said, her face broke into a grin.

“What is it?” Sora asked, quite glad that Applejack was able to give a real smile as he walked over to her. Sora looked into the phone, and upon seeing the text message himself, he blinked in bafflement. “Nurse’s office?”

***

Roxas was pushed and shoved by the students all around him, and he was starting to become angry because of it. He tried to get through without resorting to violence, but had only little success. He was able to make a break to a hallway, finding it slightly empty, especially when compared to the overcrowded lobby.

Roxas took a few deep breaths, appreciating that he had a bit of space to move around. He turned towards the group of mobile people, glaring at them as he muttered, “I almost miss the castle.”

He turned right around and bumped into someone by accident, knocking the person to the ground with a cry, books dropping to the floor in a large mess. Roxas caught himself before he could fall to the floor, and because of his mood, he was uptight about someone running into him as he looked at the person at fault with a furrowed brow. All he saw was Twilight, rubbing where she had landed as she groaned. His face instantly softened, feeling guilty for what he unintentionally did and felt.

“Oh, Twilight,” he said, kneeling down and collecting a few of the books that were laying on the ground. He wondered where Spike was, but figured Twilight had him in his backpack. “Sorry.”

Twilight, let out a quick release of breath and smiled, swiveling to her knees to pick a book up. “It’s alright, Roxas. I should have seen where I was going.”

“What was stopping you?” Roxas asked, handing her a book, not noticing how rude he sounded. That’s when he read the title of a book he had in his hands, which was actually pertaining to astronomy. He brought the book closer to himself, studying the cover with contemplation. “You’re studying other worlds?”

Twilight, with an arms full of books in a stack, took the book from Roxas’ hand, adding it with the others. “Yeah,” she answered, her eyes twinkling as she stared off in wonder. “After you and Sora told me all about those other worlds, it made me want to know more. So I gathered all the books I could from Miss Cheerilee about other worlds.”

The two stood back up to their feet, and Roxas saw how many books she was actually carrying. She had her hands extended down to her waist, and the books were built all the way up to her head.

“Do you need any help with that?” he asked, gesturing to the immense amount books, but Twilight shook her head.

“I’ll be fine,” she said, walking past him. “I just have to watch my- Ah!”

The books leaned in a certain direction, causing Twilight to try to save it, only to fall back. Roxas took action, catching Twilight before she fell again by wrapping his arms around her waist. Of course, all the books fell to the floor, and Twilight gave a sigh of relief.

“Thanks, Rox…” she started, but when she looked up at him, she trailed off as her mouth remained agaped. She was close enough to feel his breath against her face as he looked down at her. He looked so cute to her suddenly. What really encaptured her were his eyes, with their light blue color and innocence. It was like she was looking up at the sky itself.

“You alright, Twilight?” Roxas asked, and she was snapped out of her trance, jumping out of Roxas’ arms with a blush on her cheeks.

“Uh, y-yes, I’m fine,” she hastily said as she brought her hands together and intertwining them. She didn’t know what to think as she swallowed nervously.

“That’s good,” Roxas said with a nod, walking past her towards the still very crowded lobby. “I’ve gotta find Sora before he gets himself into trouble.”

“Oh, wait!” Twilight called, putting a hand on Roxas’ shoulder. He looked back at her with curiosity, and Twilight realized she was touching him. She jerked her hand away, nursing it like it had been struck as her blush intensified. She wasn’t this jumpy before when she helped Roxas back to her house, though she had help from Shining in carrying Roxas. Even still, she never noticed how… lonesome he was.

Roxas waved a hand in front of her face, once again knocking her back into reality. “Are you sure you’re alright?” Roxas questioned, and Twilight turned away. “Your face is awfully red. Maybe you need to see the…” Roxas rolled his hands as he tried to think of the word before pointing at Twilight when he thought of it. “nurse. Do you need to see the nurse?”

“That…” Twilight started, but changed her answer on the fly, not realizing what she said until she said it. “Would be nice.”

“Okay, I’ll take you there,” Roxas said, quickly picking up a couple books that were lying on the ground. He remembered Twilight’s response before, and looked up at her, who was still blushing. “You don’t mind me helping this time, do you?”

“N-No!” Twilight replied, giving an anxious smile as she played with her hair. “Why would I mind? I don’t mind.”

Roxas opened his mouth to remind her what she had said before, but thought better of it. Instead, he closed his mouth, smiled, and picked up the rest. “Come on, then,” he said, standing tall on his feet, shifting the books in his hands to have them sit more comfortably. “Let’s get going.”

***

Sora and Applejack walked down the hallway, heading for the Nurse’s office where Roxas and Twilight were. Sora had his arms crossed, still confused about something. “So why are they at Nurse’s office?” Sora asked, his stomach rumbling at that moment as he placed a hand over it. “During lunch?” he added with a touch of sadness.

"Well, the message didn't say," Applejack explained with a smile, "but Twi was pretty desperate to talk with us.”

"Who else are we meeting with?" Sora asked, glancing around. The hallway was completely empty; everyone must have gone to lunch.

"Rainbow's practicin', as usual," Applejack said with a grunt. "Rarity and Fluttershy are somewhere or other. As for Pinkie Pie, she’s-”

“What’s wrong with this stinkin’ contraption!?” a male shouted from a room up ahead, causing Sora and Applejack to stop in their tracks. Applejack didn’t really react to the yell, looking over with a blank expression. For Sora, however, he was balking over the voice, for he found it recognizable the moment he heard it.

“Is that Pete!?” Sora exclaimed, bolting for the door.

“Get away from us, ya wierdo!” the voice of Apple Bloom shouted, making Applejack’s heart nearly stop.

“Apple Bloom!” Applejack shouted as Sora reached the doorway, sliding to a halt the rest of the way. The room was completely empty except for the familiar fat cat that was Pete. Sora knew at least Apple Bloom was in the room as well, but Pete was blocking his view. Applejack was beside him at that point, her expression a mix of anger and fear.

“Maleficent gave me this thing, and it don’t even work!” Pete grumbled, shaking what looked like a red colored radar with a handle where he gripped it and a short antenna on top. “Humph, if she weren’t so much more powerful than me, then I’d…”

“Just leave us alone!” the voice of Scootaloo shouted, making Sora angrier, knowing that Pete must have been holding all three of the girls. “What did we ever do to you?”

“Aw, shut your trap,” Pete said with a wave of his free hand. “I just need to find this magic using this doohickey and then-”

“Stop right there, Pete!” Sora shouted, rushing towards him with his keyblade.

“Wha?” Pete said turning around just in time to widen his eyes at seeing Sora. Before he could do anything, however, Sora leapt forward, and twirled around with his keyblade, smacking Pete and sending him tumbling to the ground off to the right. He miraculously missed any desks, which littered the entire room. With his presence gone, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were revealed standing there, awestruck at seeing Sora using a giant key as a weapon.

“Whoa,” the three said simultaneously, their jaws dropped. Sora didn’t really notice, getting into a fighting stance as he kept an eye on Pete, who was picking himself up while rubbing his head. Applejack, meanwhile, made her way to the three girls, standing in front of them protectively.

“Dag nabbit!” Pete cursed, stomping a foot as he gazed over to Sora, “You had to get involved in this too? Of all the rotten luck.”

Sora didn’t respond, and instead faced Applejack. “Take the girls and get Roxas. I can handle him.”

“You got it. Just be careful, ya hear?” Applejack replied, gently pushing the girls out of the room. They obeyed, but still stared at Sora as if he would do something else that was awesome at any moment. Sora nodded at Applejack’s words before turning back to Pete, finally speaking to him as the girls left the room.

“What are you doing here, Pete?” Sora growled, gripping his keyblade. He knew the reason, of course, but he was going to hear it from him first.

“Probably the same thing as you, kid,” Pete shot back, pointing a finger at Sora. “I’m going to find what Maleficent sent me here for, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

“Did you already forget what happened last time?” Sora smirked, relaxing a bit as he remembered who he was dealing with.

“You bet I did,” Pete laughed, making his hands into fists and putting them on his hips. “Just you wait.”

Putting his pointer finger and thumb in his mouth, Pete whistled loudly. Dark orbs quickly appeared in between Sora and Pete, dropping off a group of heartless, some of which landed on desks, before disappearing as quickly as they appeared. The Heartless were completely foreign to Sora, or at least from what he could see. Large kite shaped shields were held by whatever heartless stood behind them. The edges were blue, with a gray front and the ever present Heartless symbol in the center.

Sora raised a brow at the new enemies as one of them peeked around its shield, allowing Sora to get a good look at it. It was actually quite small, maybe a head taller than a Shadow Heartless, but it had a boxed helmet on with a mailslot-like hole in the middle, showing it’s glowing yellow eyes. On the spot, Sora called them Shielders for the time being. The heartless hid behind its shield again as Pete threw his head back to laugh.

“Let’s see how you handle this!” he shouted, bouncing from foot to foot like a boxer. Sora simply glared at the enemies he had to fight before two of them leapt forward, approaching him. Sora headed for the nearest one, and the shield glowed when he was close enough. Thinking fast, Sora jumped up just as the shield shot forward along with its heartless, allowing Sora to go over it without a hitch.

Sora landed behind it and pushed off his feet as soon as he did, slashing through the unprotected side of the Shielder easily. The Shielder dissipated, fading out of existence as a crystal heart floated out and up before disappearing itself. Sora brought up his keyblade to block another Shielder, who had done the same attack. It stumbled back from the failed attempt, and with the opportunity, Sora gripped the top of the shield with his free hand, forcing it down as he pushed himself up. With the Shielder exposed, Sora sliced through it with his keyblade.

Sora then dodge rolled toward Pete and out of the way of two other Shielders who had charged forward, missing completely. Seeing an opening, Pete put his hands together to form a blue explosive ball, then he threw his hands back and rolled it like it was a bowling ball. Seeing the incoming explosive, Sora slid towards it, putting his keyblade in front of his feet. The ball shot upward once it made contact with the keyblade, slowing to a halt midair. Sora quickly braced himself with his keyblade by swinging it back like it was bat. When the ball fell and it was at the ideal position, Sora swung, knocking the ball back towards Pete. It hit his face, causing him to clutch it as he hopped around.

“Ouch! Ow!” Pete shouted in pain.

Sora didn’t have time to enjoy it as he was hit by a Shielder from the side, sending him flying at the wall. After he slammed into it, he crouched slightly from the impact. Sweeping over the room, he spotted half a dozen Shielders still spread around. One of the shielders charged forward, but Sora simply jumped back and leapt off the wall. He slashed at the Shielder below him and did a front flip to finish off the move.

After landing, Sora noticed three of the Shielders coming at him from different sides, so he twirled his keyblade a moment before holding it off to the side. A ring of rotating flames surrounded him, burning the three the moment they got close enough, destroying them.

Sora turned to the last two, who stood by the door, but before he could take action, Roxas ran through with both of his keyblades drawn, slicing through the Shielders with each one. Sora blinked at his sudden appearance as Roxas sighed, lowering his keyblades as he gave Sora a small smirk.

“Can’t leave you alone for a moment, can I?” he said, and Sora simply smiled at the remark, shouldering his keyblade. They heard a loud and annoyed groan, and when they looked over, they saw Pete clutching his head as he stomped around in a small circle.

“Why do ya gotta be like this, huh?” he yelled, causing Sora and Roxas to glance at each other with a knowing look. That was when Applejack and Twilight ran in the room, stopping just behind Roxas.

“Who is that?” Twilight questioned, referring to Pete and making Applejack wonder the same thing, though she was still mad that he would corner her younger sister.

“He’s Pete,” Sora explained, turning towards them. “He’s working with a witch named Maleficent to take over all the worlds.”

“That’s part of it,” Pete chuckled, “We’re looking for that special magic in this here world, and when we find it, you’re gonna regret crossing us!”

“Oh please,” Roxas grunted with a shake of his head, standing nonchalantly. “Even when I faced you down, you weren’t that great.”

“Not so great!?” Pete repeated, gripping his hands tightly. “Oh, that’s it! No more mister nice guy!”

Taking a long breath, Pete rolled one of his shoulders, before clapping his hands in preparation for what he was going to do. The four friends braced themselves, waiting for whatever may appear. Lifting up a hand, Pete snapped his fingers, a burst of magic forming because of it.

A pool of Darkness appeared on the floor, sending any remaining desks to the walls, almost knocking over the four friends. A large heartless was emerging from it, going up like it was standing on an elevator. When it was completely in view, the four friends knew what they were dealing with, though Twilight and Applejack were much more frightened.

The heartless was three times as tall as the Shielders, looking much more lanky and limber. It’s main body was relatively thin, with a dark gray color that was on the borderline of black. It’s head was simply a spike, with a zigzag line for a mouth and yellow circles for eyes. In each hand was a square shield, much thinner than the Shielders own shield. Each shield was dark blue and lined with red, the recognizable Heartless symbol in the center of both of them.

“Whelp,” Pete sighed with a bored look, “I’d love to stay and see how pummeled you’ll be, but I’ve got searching to do!”

And with that said, Pete ran for the door, going around the Heartless as he tried to escape. “Hey! Not so fast!” Sora said, moving to intercept. Roxas was already in Pete’s path, readying his keyblades for some action. Unfortunately, a shield was slammed between Roxas and Pete, catching Roxas off guard. Then, suddenly, the shield pushed forward, hitting Roxas and sending him away from the door.

“Roxas!” Twilight cried as Sora was still approaching Pete himself. But again, another shield was smashed in between him and Pete, forcing Sora to halt and jump to the side, narrowly avoiding a strike from the heartless.

When Pete finally reached the doorway, he turned to the room and gave a big pompous laugh. “Later, losers!”

Sora backed away to stand by his friends as Roxas got to his feet again, staring down the heartless. The heartless stood tall before crouching low, giving a heavy roar as his spike simply bent backwards where the mouth was.

“I guess we have to deal with this guy first,” Sora announced, and Roxas nodded as his answer. Sora faced Applejack and Twilight, jerking his head towards the doorway as he said, “You guys need to get out of here.”

“I know we can’t do much to help,” Twilight admitted, facing down a moment before looking back to the two keybladers with determination, “But there must be something we can do!”

“And there is!” Pinkie said, appearing with a wide devious smile behind Applejack, causing her to jump away in shock. The others stared at her a moment before Pinkie gave a frank look, jabbing a thumb towards the door. “I walked in while you guys were talking. Duh.”

Everyone glanced to one another, silently accepting this fact and not the other where Pinkie was a teleporter. Roxas turned to the large boss, which was ready to fight. “I’ll keep him distracted,” he declared. “You guys think of something!”

As Roxas jumped forward, Pinkie stuck a finger into the air. “And we can skip the thinking of something!”

“Why’s that?” Applejack asked with a raised brow.

“Because I have this!” Pinkie said, whipping out what appeared to be a small pink cannon with two blue wheels from behind herself. “I call it the Party Cannon, trademarked! So what do you think?”

Sora hesitated a moment, not sure what to think as he rubbed his chin. “Uh, it looks great,” Sora said, gesturing to the cannon, “But how is it going to…?”

Sora trailed off, remembering when he used cannons back in another world, and a smile grew on his face. “Pinkie Pie,” Sora said, making his free hand into a fist as he held it up to his chest, “This’ll do just fine.”

Pinkie smiled widely, putting her hands behind her back. Twilight wondered what Sora could have in mind, but didn’t voice her thoughts as she moved the planning along. “Whatever you do, Sora, do it fast. Roxas is having trouble.”

One look at the situation with Roxas and the heartless boss was all that was needed. Roxas bounced around, trying to catch a weak point, but the boss blocked any and all attacks, easily moving its shields around. Roxas jumped in the air, trying to jump over the shields, but the heartless simply brought them up, knocking Roxas back with one of them. He landed on his back a few feet away from Twilight, who briskly made her way over to him, kneeling down beside him as she lifted him up.

“Come on, Roxas, Sora has a plan,” she explained as Roxas stood back up, throwing an arm around her shoulder to hold him up.

“He loves taking his time,” Roxas grumbled, digging into his pockets for a potion that Sora had given to him earlier.

Seeing that Roxas was out of the way, Sora jumped behind the cannon, pushing it slightly to aim it at the heartless. The heartless, noticing the upcoming attack, brought its shields to bare, making it look more like a wall. Sora smirked at how well his plan was going so far before addressing Pinkie.

“When I give the signal, Pinkie,” Sora instructed, “Shoot the cannon.”

“Aye aye, sir,” Pinkie said, standing to attention with a salute. Nodding, Sora ran off to the side of the boss, drawing its attention as it retracted its shields to block whatever Sora might throw at it.

Sora made for the wall, running up it a moment before saying, “Now, Pinkie!”

Without a hint of hesitation, Pinkie put all her weight into her hands as she slammed her palms into the button on the top of the cannon. A low boom resounded in the room, and a colorful cloud of confetti, streamers, and balloons shot out. Though the celebratory items did nothing to the heartless, it did change its motives as it shifted its shields to block the cannon, thinking it was being attack by that.

That left the heartless open to attack for Sora, who took advantage of it immediately. At the top of his wall run, he launched himself off, moving over to the exposed arms. With a spin, Sora allowed a bit of magic to seep into his keyblade, and with a quick swipe of his keyblade, a thin wave of magic shot out, cutting the heartless’ arms clean off. The heartless roared in anger, the shields going limp as they tumbled down.

With the heartless defenseless, Roxas, feeling much better thanks to the potion, rushed forward, jumped up and hacked and slashed at the exposed enemy. By the time Roxas was finished, Sora had landed, and with another swipe layered with magic, he cut the legs clean off as well. The heartless fell forward, along with Roxas, who landed beside Sora.

(Stop music)

As soon as the heartless touched the ground, it faded away, black wisps trailing off of it as a large crystal heart floated out, disappearing after a short time. And then it was completely gone, the only indication that a battle had taken place was the mess of desks all along the walls. Everyone took a deep breath, glad that it was over as they relaxed their bodies.

“Awesome!” Scootaloo suddenly shouted, causing everyone to whirl their heads towards the doorway, seeing the three young girls leaning into the room. They each had a look of astonishment, ignoring everything else around them, including a glare from both Applejack and Twilight.

“I thought I told ya’ll ta stay in the Nurse’s office,” Applejack said sternly, crossing her arms. However, the three girls were still staring at Sora and Roxas, their jaws dropped

“And miss all this?!” Sweetie squeaked. “No wonder Fluttershy is falling for him!”

Sora instinctively knew that Sweetie was talking about him, causing him to scratch his cheek with a single finger, looking away to seem inconspicuous. He didn't know Fluttershy liked him, and it caused him to give an embarrassed smile.

Roxas gave a chuckle at their little admirers, knowing that he and Sora would have to explain everything to them later. However, he quickly frowned as a thought passed his mind. “Shame Pete got away,” he said with a shake of his head. “Now we really have a mess on our hands.”

“Yeah,” Sora agreed, allowing his keyblade to disappear as he crossed his arms, driving out the thought of Fluttershy for the time being. “The Organization, Vexen and Zexion, and now Maleficent and Pete.”

“More meanies being mean?” Pinkie asked, her shoulders slumping.

“I’m afraid so,” Roxas sighed, nodding. They were dealing with three different groups, all vowing to get a hold of the magic of friendship. Sora and Roxas sort of wished they had some more friends to help them out a bit.

After a moment of silence, Twilight finally spoke up, “Let’s get some lunch. It’s been a long day so far.”

Everyone agreed to this, and they all headed for the doorway, leaving behind the mess caused by their little engagement.

Chapter 10: Impact

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 10: Impact

The lunch everyone shared was set in silence. The battle was still fresh in their minds, along with the knowledge that so many people wanted to get their hands on the six friends. The only talking they did was explaining to Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo about keyblades, Heartless, and such. They were actually excited to hear all the information, gushing over how cool it all was. Applejack didn’t like the thought of her sister and friends getting dragged into this business, but she didn’t have a choice, and so didn’t dwell on it for very long.

None of their other friends joined them, probably doing other things for classes. It didn’t strike the group as odd, especially after Twilight, Pinkie, and Applejack received text messages saying that they wouldn’t make it.

Eventually, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch, and all the students headed for their classrooms, even Sora and Roxas. Of course, they were lost yet again, and Pinkie Pie volunteered to show them the way. When she got them to where they needed, however, the bell rang again, making Pinkie late for her own class.

Running through the halls like a blur, rivaling Rainbow Dash in speed, Pinkie arrived to her classroom, opening the door without a care in the world.

“Sorry I’m late!” she said with a wide smile, though the interrupted Cheerilee did not take kindly to it as she stood in the front of the class with a piece of chalk in hand.

“I’m letting you off with a warning, Pinkie,” she said gravely, pointing the chalk at her with a hint of irritance. Pinkie simply nodded as she bounded over to her seat near the back. When she got there, she saw Rainbow Dash sitting next to her desk, drawing what looked like a keyblade.

As Pinkie sat down, she stared at the sketch as Rainbow Dash continued to draw. However, Rainbow suddenly got the feeling she was being watched, and turned her head to see Pinkie looking at her with intrigue.

“Whatcha drawing there, Rainbow?” Pinkie asked in a hushed voice, knowing they’d both get in trouble if they were caught.

Rainbow was a bit put off by how close Pinkie was leaning, but shrugged it off as she faced her picture in pure excitement. “This is my own keyblade!” she said with as much gusto she could muster without being caught talking. “Here, take a look.”

Pinkie got a closer look, leaning even closer with her tongue sticking out to the side as she narrowed her eyes, studying the drawing with a critical eye. Several seconds went by, with Rainbow nervously checking on Miss Cheerilee in case she saw their little exchange. Then, Pinkie popped back in her seat with a bright smile.

“That looks terrific,” she said, before giving a knowing look and a half smirk. “Are you jealous of Sora and Roxas?”

“Of course not,” Rainbow waved off, turning back to her drawing. “If those two doofuses can get a keyblade, I don’t see why I can’t.”

“I’m sure you’ll get a keyblade of your own, Rainbow.” Pinkie nodded, causing Rainbow to smile blissfully at the keyblade. Then suddenly, Pinkie gasped, her hands coming up to her cheeks as an idea struck her. Unluckily, Cheerilee heard and turned around, shushing her.

As she covered her mouth long enough for Cheerilee to turn back to writing on the chalkboard, Pinkie faced Rainbow who had raised a questionable brow at her behavior. “I still haven’t thrown a party for Sora and Roxas,” Pinkie hissed, her expression slightly frantic. “I’m supposed to be the party person, and I haven’t even thought about it!”

“Well,” Rainbow interjected, “to be honest, there’s been a lot going on since those two arrived.”

“Exactly!” Pinkie pointed out, jabbing a finger onto her desk. “They’ve saved us a few times already, and taken out loads of meanies, so it only makes sense to give them the greatest party ever, right?”

“Yeah, I suppose,” Rainbow agreed, folding her drawing up before slipping it into her backpack on the floor.

“There’s no supposing about it,” Pinkie replied as she rubbed her chin in thought. “We need a party pronto. And I think I know just the place and time.”

Rainbow waited for what Pinkie had to say, putting her elbow on her desk as she propped her head up. “And…” Rainbow drawled, rolling her other hand, “That place would be?”

Pinkie giggled. “Silly, I can’t tell you. You’d spoil it for Sora and Roxas.”

“Pinkie, what about the party you held for Twilight?” Rainbow asked, her eyes showing her annoyance with Pinkie. “You told us all about it, and we didn’t tell her.”

“Which Twilight?” Pinkie asked, looking slightly confused.

“The one from our world,” Rainbow said with a sigh, shaking her head. “Not the one from the pony world.”

“That reminds me,” Pinkie said, going off in a different topic. “When are we going to tell the Twilight of this world that she’s a pony princess in another world? It kinda seems like something she oughta know.”

“Beats me, Pinkie,” Rainbow said, crossing her arms on the desk as she laid her head on them. “But my point is that you can tell us about the party. How else are you going to get the decorations up?”

“You mean besides my Party Cannon, trademarked?” Pinkie asked slyly. Rainbow didn’t know what she was talking about, and she really didn’t want to know.

“Yes,” Rainbow answered with a sigh, “So unless you're holding the party at that new club a few blocks away, I don’t see how you-”

“Oh my gosh!” Pinkie gasped again, looking shocked with her eyes being dramatically wide. “You’re such a great guesser!”

“Wait, seriously?” Rainbow questioned, looking just as shocked. “Club Moonlight?”

“Yeah!” Pinkie nodded happily, her shock dissipating instantly. “Vinyl Scratch works there, so I’m going to see if she can get us in for a night.”

“That’s awesome!” Rainbow cheered quietly. “That place has been full since it opened.”

“Oh, this is so exciting!” Pinkie shouted, having lost control of her volume. The whole class turned towards them, as did Miss Cheerilee who was giving them a glare. Pinkie was undeterred by the stares, mostly because she herself was staring off into space gleefully. Rainbow, on the other hand, gave a nervous chuckle as she smiled in embarrassment.

“She…” Rainbow started, gesturing weakly towards Pinkie, “really likes English.”

Miss Cheerilee glared at them for a while longer before rolling her eyes, facing her work on the chalkboard again. The students followed suite, causing Rainbow Dash to sigh in relief, glad to avoid getting in trouble. With her status of being the captain of every team, she had to be careful not to miss any practice what-so-ever, which meant not getting a detention.

“So,” Rainbow started after a while, glancing over to see Pinkie still off in her own world. “When are we going to the club?”

“Tomorrow on Friday,” Pinkie replied with a content sigh. “It’ll be perfect!”

Rainbow chuckled lightly as she faced the front of the room. “You almost sound like Twilight.”

“I was thinking more on the lines of Rarity,” Pinkie argued, and Rainbow grunted in response. Pinkie couldn’t help but see through her mind’s eye how the party would turn out. Everyone would have fun, and Sora and Roxas would have their party. Plus it would be Friday, and everyone likes Fridays!

***

“Oh my,” Fluttershy muttered, a hand over her mouth as Twilight finished the story involving Pete and the Heartless. They were sitting next to each other in their History class, with Twilight quietly retelling what had happened during lunch with Fluttershy. Twilight was also able to keep up with her notes at the same time, planning on sharing them with Fluttershy later.

“Tell me about it,” Twilight muttered, leaning back in her seat. The two remained quiet a moment, half listening to the instructions the teacher was giving.

“Oh,” Fluttershy said, her face lighting up in remembrance as Twilight raised a brow. “Um, did they say how it went with Principal Celestia? I mean, if you don’t want to tell me…”

Twilight smiled, holding back a giggle from Fluttershy’s behavior. “It’s fine, Fluttershy. And yes, they did tell me. Roxas is helping me with my research project…”

She suddenly trailed off, taking a deep breath as she stared at her desk with a frown. That feeling she had when she ran into Roxas with all of her books; she knew what it was. Cadance was an expert on the subject, but Twilight tried to put a reason to her mood swing. It was probably just the heat of the moment; she couldn’t have feelings for a guy she had only met the day before. That had to be it! She simply recognized Roxas as some sort of lonely hero, and it got to her head a bit.

“Twilight?” Fluttershy questioned, putting a hand on her friend’s shoulder to shake her.

“I don’t love Roxas!” she suddenly shouted, sitting straight up as if she had been struck by lightning. All the students faced them, causing Twilight to blush as they both shrunk down to as low as they could while keeping their eyes in view. “Heh, sorry,” she said quietly.

The teacher didn’t say anything, knowing that the embarrassment of having every student looking and judging them was enough. Everyone eventually turned away, causing Twilight and Fluttershy to rise back up in their seats, Twilight with the blush still on her cheeks.

“Um, if you don’t mind me asking, Twilight,” Fluttershy questioned, sounding much more quiet than before. “What was that?”

Twilight shook her head vigorously, composing herself the best she could as she put her pencil down. “Nothing. It was nothing. Now what were we talking about?”

“How much trouble Sora got into with Principal Celestia,” Fluttershy answered, a worried look on her face.

“Oh right,” Twilight said. “Sora’s cleaning the halls with you.”

“H-He is?” Fluttershy breathed, playing with her hands as she looked away. Somehow, Fluttershy knew that Sora wanted that as his punishment, that he had requested to work with Fluttershy. The thought made her like Sora even more, but a small fraction of herself made her think she was taking advantage of him. Using him to finish her detention to get out faster. It was how they had officially met, so did Fluttershy only like Sora because she needed to get out of her detention? The mere notion made Fluttershy depressed as her shoulders sagged, her head dipping down.

“What’s the matter?” Twilight asked, her expression matching Fluttershy’s. “I thought you would be excited.”

Fluttershy swallowed as she faced away, her mood quickly declining as she continually berated herself in her head. “It’s just…” she said, finding it difficult to speak her mind. “Am I taking advantage of Sora? Do I like him because I’m using him to clean the hallways?”

Twilight blinked at Fluttershy, her mouth slightly open in surprise of her questions. “Fluttershy,” Twilight said with confusion and sorrow. “How can you think that? You're the kindest person I know.”

“I sure don’t feel like one,” Fluttershy said as she closed her eyes, accepting the hate she put on herself. Twilight wasn’t sure what to do, she had little experience with relationships and was having trouble deciphering her own feelings towards Roxas. What they both needed was an expert, someone who knew what to do in these types of situations. Luckily, Twilight knew who they could talk with.

“Okay, I know what we can do,” Twilight declared, looking a lot more determined than she was a few minutes ago. Fluttershy opened one eye, using it to glance over to Twilight, lifting her head up ever so slightly. “We can talk to my sister-in-law, Cadance. She knows everything there is to know about love.”

“And… she can find out what’s wrong?” Fluttershy asked, feeling slightly better.

“I wouldn’t word it exactly like that,” Twilight said with a roll of her hands. “But yes, she can help.”

“That’s good,” Fluttershy said, her smile returning. Twilight noticed it, and smiled herself.

“You know,” Twilight whispered, not wanting anybody to overhear her next words, “Sora’s one lucky guy to have someone like you think of him.”

Fluttershy blushed, but the smile on her face brightened even more. “You really think so?”

“Definitely,” Twilight answered with a broad smile of her own, before it slipped to a frown in thought. “But I wonder if there’s anyone else in his life.”

Fluttershy tilted her head to the side. “What do you mean?”

“Not really sure.” Twilight shrugged, picking up the pencil on her desk. “I’m just thinking-”

She stopped herself, her eyes really wide as she stared at the board at the front as if a sudden realization hit her. “I haven’t been taking notes!” she said quietly yet anxiously, and before Fluttershy knew it, Twilight was off writing furiously on her notepad, her pencil a blur.

Knowing she could get the notes later, or whatever Twilight was able to get down, Fluttershy let her mind wander as she glanced out the window, the sight of the statue in the front of the school catching her eye. If Sora was from another world, had he been to the world where the pony Twilight Sparkle had come from? Despite worrying about the many things in her head, she had to wonder what that other world was like, and if she would ever visit it sometime.

***

Rarity gasped sharply. “Sora and Roxas are simply remarkable!”

Applejack chuckled as they worked the clay in their hands. They were working together on a two-person project in their art class, which was making a pot with decorations utilizing only clay. Surprisingly, Applejack and Rarity had a bit of common ground there. Applejack, with her hard working nature, found it pretty normal, though she somewhat lacked in details for how their pot would look. Rarity, though finding the clay a bit icky, was bursting with ideas on what she wanted their pot to become, though a few were a bit out of reach with the material at hand. All in all, they were a perfect match for the team project.

With clay-stained aprons covering the front of their bodies, they sat beside each other with Applejack deciding to work the clay while Rarity made small decorations to put on after she was done. Because the whole class was working, they could speak freely, without worrying about being overheard or getting in trouble.

"They really did that?" Rarity asked, looking astonished as she formed a star out of the clay setting it beside a few other small clay stars.

“I don't know why you're so surprised, Rarity," Applejack said, a tinge of uneasiness ebbing into her voice as she molded the clay to appear like a basic cup. “And besides, aren’t ya worried about Sweetie Belle gettin' into this mess?”

The smile that was on Rarity’s lips faded out almost instantaneously from the mention of her sister. Sweetie was far too innocent to have to get involved, especially on a scale as dangerous as this. “I suppose you’re right,” Rarity agreed, slowing her movements as she played with the lump of clay in her hands. “Who did you say the large ruffian was again?”

“Sora said his name was Pete,” Applejack said with a sigh. “Workin’ with some witch named Maleficent.”

“And they’re after us as well,” Rarity concluded with a soft hum afterwards. “We’ve become quite famous rather quickly.”

“Tell me about it,” Applejack agreed with a shake of her head, the clay cup becoming thinner and curvier in her hands. The distraction allowed her mind to drift off to before the fight with Pete, when she ran into Sora. “Rarity… I was bein’ teased again.”

“What!?” Rarity shrieked, the clay star in her hand going skyward as she brought her hands to grip her head, ignoring the bit of clay that clung to her skin. The class gave them a brief glance at their sudden increase in noise, but overall ignored them. Applejack and Rarity didn’t even notice as Rarity took deep breaths to calm down, the clay star that was in the air extraordinarily landing back on the paper she worked on. “Did you ignore them? I thought everyone stopped that nonsense after the Fall Formal.”

“Well, they didn’t really,” Applejack replied, taking her own deep breath as she tried to focus on her clay. “I just didn’t bring it up. I’ve been ignorin’ them, like y’all said to.”

“Pardon me if this may sound offensive,” Rarity said, clearing her throat as she put a hand to her chest, leaving more clay on her apron, “but you should have told us sooner. I am disappointed with you.”

“I didn’t really think much of the teasin’, Rarity,” Applejack clarified, her eyes narrowing as she kept them from looking to Rarity. “I’m so used to it, I hardly notice.”

“So why bring it up now?” Rarity asked, going back to her task of making clay stars.

Applejack sighed. “Sora was there.”

“Ohhhh,” Rarity said, getting the idea almost instantly. She may have only known him for two days, but Rarity felt confident that Sora was the hero type. If Fluttershy hadn’t set her eyes on him, Rarity would have tried to romance him herself. She always wanted to be with someone like that. Pushing the thought away, she got back on track with the discussion with Applejack. “Did he do something about it?”

“I didn’t really explain it to him,” Applejack said, removing her hands from the clay pot, which was pretty much done at that point, as she leaned back as far as she could in her chair. “With Sora around, it seemed like teasin’ was more… I don’t know.”

“Apparent?” Rarity guessed, gesturing a hand towards Applejack.

“Yeah, apparent.” Applejack sighed, standing to her feet and leaning her hands against the desk they both shared. “He didn’t do anything because I guess he knew I didn’t want to make some sort a’ scene.”

Rarity stood up from her chair as well, putting a comforting hand on Applejack’s shoulder. “Perhaps the next time you see him,” Rarity said, giving her a small smile, “you can tell him. I think he’ll listen to you.”

Applejack took a deep breath, nodding at her words as she glanced up to Rarity’s face, only to give a small chuckle. “Ya got clay on your face,” she pointed out, causing Rarity to blink for a moment before bringing her hands up to her eyes, seeing the wet clay that covered them.

“Drat,” Rarity said, sagging slightly with a look of mild frustration. “Well, class is almost over anyway. I’ll just have to make a stop to the little girls’ room.”

Applejack smirked, glad to have the conversation turn to a more pleasant tone. As she and Rarity sat back in their seats, Applejack took hold of the nearly complete pot, putting the finishing touches on it. Rarity, for her part, got busy finishing the stars, her mind set on making their pot the best one in class.

***

Nothing goes exactly as planned; that’s what master Xehanort learned from his life. There would always be some minute detail that deviates from his original intention, eventually becoming a large nuisance that must be handled accordingly. A new plan would have to be created based off this nuisance, and that plan would have a small flaw as well. It was a cycle Xehanort was all too familiar.

Xehanort didn’t want the χ-blade to be destroyed as soon as it was created, yet that was exactly what happened. He wanted his nobody counterpart to create an artificial Kingdom Hearts, but the plan was ruined by a boy. His plans may not have been successful, but his secondary ones always came through. Which was why he was smiling as Xigbar gave his report about his mission. Despite knowing that Xigbar and his associate were unable to dispose of Sora and gain the magic of friendship, he already had a backup plan in play.

Sitting high in the tallest throne in the Round Room was where he was, his legs crossed and an arm leaning against the armrest as it propped up his head. Xigbar, standing at the platform at the bottom of the room, was explaining what they had figured out so far in the world.

“...And then we brought ol’ Riku here to have him recuperate,” Xigbar finished, crossing his arms in an overconfident way.

“Interesting,” Xehanort noted with his raspy yet powerful voice, his eyes half closed as if he was contemplating something as Xigbar was speaking. “It seems these six girls are very troublesome.”

“As if,” Xigbar waved off, his head going back at the mere thought of the girls being a threat. “They wouldn’t stand a chance if those keybladers weren’t protecting them.”

“I see,” Xehanort said. “And where is your partner? I thought he would join you in this riveting disclosure.”

“You mean-?” Xigbar started before being interrupted by a voice.

“I am here, master,” the voice said as a Corridor of Darkness appeared beside Xigbar, the two barely giving it a glance. A figure in a black coat emerged as the Corridor disappeared, and he faced upward towards Xehanort.

“Ah, glad of you to join us…” Xehanort chortled, his smile broadening, “Saïx.”

The figure grunted before reaching up and pulling back his hood, revealing a man with long blue hair and elvish ears. A large ‘X’ scar was directly in between his eyes as he faced Xehanort with a nearly uncaring gaze. “Has Xigbar given the report?” he asked, his tone neutral.

“Why yes, he has,” Xehanort nodded, shifting his arms and feet to sit normally with both arms on the armrests. “And I am surprised that such an easy task has taken such a long time.”

“If he has told you correctly,” Saïx said, shooting a quick glare over to Xigbar, who gave a toothy grin, before facing Xehanort again, “then you know that Sora and Roxas are intervening with our plans. And you know exactly how troublesome they are.”

“Indeed,” Xehanort said. “And that is why I am always prepared. You do remember the crystal I gave you, yes?”

“Of course,” Saïx answered, lifting up his hand and holding it up for all to see. It was small and purple, pulsing with dark energy. “And it has helped us control Riku, but Sora has learned to utilize the magic of friendship from those six girls, becoming far more powerful than before. And with Roxas assisting him, it has become near impossible to succeed against them.”

A short pause followed, where no one moved a muscle. That is, until Xehanort laughed. “You forget my favorite tactic to use,” he said, giving his devilish smile. “Have your opponents see the pieces you hold, then, when they aren’t looking, add more to the table.”

Another Corridor of Darkness appeared between Saïx and Xigbar, causing the two of them to step to the side, gazing at the short figure in another black coat. The hood was up, but everyone in the room knew exactly who he was.

“Would you kindly help them and expedite the mission?” Xehanort asked with a tilt of his head. The figure nodded, a slow one that was barely noticeable. When he did, Xehanort faced Saïx. “Give him the crystal.”

Without a word, Saïx followed the order, lightly tossing the crystal to the figure who snatched it out of the air. The figure brought the crystal up to his eyes, turning it in his hands as he examined it. “You know what to do, I presume,” Xehanort announced, and the figure lowered the crystal as he faced Xehanort.

“It shall be done,” the figure said with a young voice.

***

Sora had trouble staying awake in the last class of the day. Having to take part in three different battles took its toll on him, and the boring classes did not reverse this effect. He couldn’t even imagine how Roxas must be doing, who had taken the blunt end of all of their engagements. Actually, Sora could, as he was sitting right next to him, and with a simple look, Sora could easily see that Roxas was struggling to even stay awake.

Too much had happened in only a few hours, and the two just wished the day would end. At least Sora had many topics to think over, with the main one being the many threats that set their sights on his friends. Then there was the fact that Sora’s best friend, Riku, was still under the hold of Xehanort. He was afraid he would have to fight him again, and Sora had enough of that back in Radiant Garden. Then, finally, there was Fluttershy. Sora took a mighty big sigh at that thought. He figured out that Fluttershy must like him more than a friend, but did he share those feelings with her? Sora couldn’t simply drop how he felt towards Kairi, what with their history together, and it was beginning to form a conflict in his head. The last thing he needed was a love triangle that would end up hurting someone, but it might come to that if he didn’t do something about it.

“Hey, Roxas,” Sora muttered, keeping his voice down so the teacher wouldn’t catch on. Roxas grunted in acknowledgment, but other than that, remained silent. “What do you think of Fluttershy?”

Roxas raised his head a bit in thought. “She’s nice, I guess. Why do you ask?”

Sora didn’t answer right away, putting an arm behind his head as he scratched it idely. “She’s been on my mind a lot,” Sora admitted, “and I’m not sure what to think of her.”

“Well,” Roxas sighed tiredly, “I have little experience with people, Sora. It would probably be for the best if you ask someone else.”

Sora was a bit taken aback by the bluntness of his words, but knew that Roxas was probably far too tired to give it much thought. “Roxas,” Sora said, but he didn’t budge at his words, forcing Sora to raise his voice. “Roxas.”

Sighing, Roxas turned towards Sora, “What now- Ah!”

As soon as Roxas faced Sora, he gave a small shout of surprise, falling out of his chair and causing everyone to halt in their listening, finding it much more entertaining to see someone end up on the ground. The two paid them no mind, however, as Roxas quickly picked himself off the ground, facing Sora again with a expression of pure shock.

“What!?” Sora asked, glancing behind him, but finding nothing out of the ordinary, “Did you see something?”

Roxas took a deep breath, bowing his head as he slipped back into his seat. He mumbled a short apology, and the class turned their attention back to the teacher. Sora stared at Roxas, expecting some sort of explanation, but none came. “Well, what did you see?” Sora asked, not wanting to stay in the dark.

Roxas swallowed as he slowly turned his head to Sora, bracing himself at the same time as he squinted his eyes. When his eyes met Sora’s, he gave a sigh of relief, relaxing in his chair. “I… I saw that girl again,” he said with a shake of his head, a hand going up to it. “She took your place, like you were her. At least, for a moment.”

Sora blinked, looking to himself as if he would see that he wasn’t who he should be. Finding nothing out of the ordinary, he faced Roxas again. “Was it the same girl you saw in the hallways?” he asked, his mind racing as he tried to figure out what Roxas was seeing.

“Yep,” Roxas answered. “What could it mean?”

The bell rung at that moment, but their reaction was sluggish as they gazed up at the intercom, as if they were expecting it the whole time. Their classmates filed out of the room, but Sora and Roxas remained where they sat, thinking over who the girl was, and what she was doing plaguing Roxas’ mind.

“There you two are!” PInkie said as she burst into the room. “I’ve been looking all over for you!”

Sora and Roxas tore their thoughts away for a moment as they turned to Pinkie, both of them tilting their heads to the same side and raising an eyebrow at the same time. “But class just ended,” Sora responded.

“I know,” Pinkie sighed, rolling her head on her neck. “How exhausting. Anyway, you’re both invited to a party tomorrow!”

The simple word of a gathering of friends for a celebration instantly caught Sora’s attention as he leapt to his feet, looking very excited as he smiled brightly. “A party?” he asked for confirmation, and after the enthusiastic nod from Pinkie he said, “Who’s it for?”

“For both of you!” she exclaimed, throwing her arms in the air. Sora’s smile grew to large proportions as he jumped a bit with a small pump of his arm before twisting his waist towards Roxas.

“Did you hear that, Roxas?” he questioned. “We’re getting a party.”

Roxas was more intrigued than excited, evident by his rather emotionless expression. “Um, okay, great,” he said, causing Sora and Pinkie to gawk at him like he had gone crazy suddenly. “What?”

Sora gave a playful glare at Roxas as he stood up straight, crossing his arms. “Pinkie’s going through the trouble of giving us a party,” he explained, “and you act like it’s nothing.”

“Sora, I’m tired,” he stated plainly, giving both him and Pinkie a frank look. “I just want to catch some sleep.”

With that said, Roxas shuffled out of the room and into the hallway with Sora rolling his eyes. When he turned his gaze back to Pinkie, his smile returned in full. “We’ll be there, Pinkie. Wherever ‘there’ is, anyway.”

“Don’t you worry about a thing,” Pinkie said, patting Sora’s spikey hair like one would a small child. “Auntie Pinkie will take care of all the details. I’ll tell ya tomorrow after school.”

“Sounds good,” Sora said before stretching his arms over his head, giving a long yawn. “In the meantime, I think me and Roxas will get to bed.”

“That’s a-okay, Sora,” Pinkie cheered. “Just don’t over sleep.”

Sora laughed at her small joke as he headed for the door. “No worries, Pinkie.”

As soon as he stepped out of the door, he bumped into someone, but not so much that either of them were able to be knocked over. “Oh, sorry about that,” he instantly apologized, taking a few steps back to give the person space.

“Watch it next time!” Sunset Shimmer shouted, before seeing that it was Sora. Her demeanor quickly changed from anger to arrogance as she leaned on one foot, a hand resting on her hip. “Oh, it’s you.”

“Yeah, it’s me,” Sora said, frowning a bit as he clenched his fists slightly. Pinkie peeked out of the classroom, looking a bit mad herself that Sunset had to go and ruin the good mood she had put into Sora.

“Leave him alone, you big meanie,” Pinkie said.

“Oh, I will,” Sunset said with a sneer. Both Sora and Pinkie were both surprised by her answer, but waited for some big ‘if’ to come into play. “Until tomorrow, that is.”

“What happens tomorrow?” Sora asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

“You’ll see,” she laughed, spinning on her heel and allowing her hair to hit Sora’s face, albeit very gently.

“I have a bad feeling about this,” Pinkie said, a look of worry plastered on her face as they watched Sunset walk down the hall. “My Pinkie Sense is more than tingling.”

“Don’t worry,” Sora said with determination. “Whatever she throws at us, we can handle it.”

Pinkie erupted back into her smile, “You’re positively right, Sora. Friends help each other out all the time.”

With a final nod between the two, they both broke out into a run to find their friends, wanting to tell them about what Sunset had said to them.

Author's Note

Not much action here, but expect some next chapter. I think you'll like it too.

Chapter 11: The Complications of Love

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 11: The Complications of Love

Roxas rested on the front lawn of the school, simply lying on his back with his hands behind his head as he stared up at the sky, the clouds drifting by soundlessly. Though he was tired, sleep couldn’t find him, what with all the chatter that was present. It did, however, allow his mind to wander to the mysterious girl. Her actions were becoming more frustrating than frightening, and her hauntings were only growing worse. He couldn’t even understand why she was doing it in the first place. Maybe she was some witch messing with his mind until he cracked. Based on how he felt about the girl, that was probably the best conclusion. But that still didn’t answer why she was doing it. And why did he feel like he knew her?

Scowling, Roxas closed his eyes, growling slightly. “Just what do you want?” he muttered to himself, gripping his head disdainfully.

“Oh, did ya want to be left alone?” the voice of Apple Bloom asked, causing Roxas’ eyes to instantly open as he looked over. He saw Apple Bloom stand to his side with a slightly bashful expression. Her two friends, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, were right behind her, looking just as sheepish.

“Oh, uh, no,” Roxas started with a hint of regret for accidently speaking to them like that. He sat up a bit, resting his hands behind him for support, “I was thinking of someone else.”

Apple Bloom nodded, bringing her hands behind her back, “We just wanted ta know if we can see some more of your moves.”

“My moves?” Roxas repeated, raising an eyebrow, “Why do you want to see my moves?”

“Duh,” Scootaloo interrupted with swing of her arm. “We want to see some more awesome tricks with your keyblades!”

Roxas cringed a bit at her volume, glancing around to see if anyone was paying attention. He didn’t feel like trying to dissuade a court full of students from learning about the keyblade. Though many people did turn in their direction, they merely regarded Scootaloo like she was crazy, giving her a wide berth. In a way, it was rather humourous, and it made Roxas give a light chuckle.

The three girls didn’t see his actions, especially Scootaloo, whose eyes were twinkling with an idea, “Maybe we can make a movie from all that jumping around and taking out monsters!”

Sweetie Belle gasped, her eyes wide as she faced her friends, “Or a music video!”

The three girls were brimming with excitement at that prospect, barely holding back their squees. Roxas, meanwhile, was having trouble keeping up as he stood up to his feet. “Sorry, girls,” he apologized, brushing off the bits of grass that were stuck to his pants, “But the keyblades are for fighting back Heartless and Nobodies, not for showing off.”

The three girls sagged their shoulders as they faced down, and Roxas instantly felt guilty for ruining their mood. He rubbed the back of his head as he tried to think of something to make up for his answer. He glanced around the area in hopes of finding something to fix the situation. That was when an idea struck him as he smiled, the thought expanding as he put a hand on his hip.

“Although…” he said, trailing off to catch the girls attention. They looked up expectantly, curiosity on their faces. Roxas looked away from them, unable to contain the smile on his lips. “If I had a Struggle Bat, I could do it no problem.”

Scootaloo raised an eyebrow as she looked at Roxas, “What’s a Struggle Bat?”

“They’re like sticks with blue foam wrapped around them,” Roxas explained, holding out his hand as if he was holding one, “They’re used to fight against others for fun.”

Sweetie Belle brought a hand to her chin as she tapped it, humming to herself. Then her face erupted into joy as she thought of something. She faced Roxas with a small smile, “We don’t have Struggle Bats, but we have Clash Bats.”

It was Roxas’ turn to be confused as he tilted his head to the side, “Clash Bats?”

“Yeah,” Sweetie Belle said with a nod, still smiling, “They were bats for this old sword fighting club in school called Clash. It wasn’t very popular though, and was canceled before we started here at school. But we still have the bats, and it’s the closest we have to a… Struggle Bat.”

Roxas didn’t know how Sweetie had all this information memorized, but his mind was on what she had brought up. Who knew that a school like this once had its own sword fighting club. Not only that, but from what Sweetie said, it was very similar to Struggle back in Twilight Town. Shaking off his mild shock, Roxas smiled back at Sweetie Belle, “Alright then, I can show you my ‘moves’ with these Clash Bats.”

All three gasped loudly as they huddled together, gazing up at Roxas like he was their idol. “Really?!” they said simultaneously, and Roxas nodded, before stifling another yawn, remembering how tired he still was.

“Well, not today,” he replied, scratching the top of his head, “I’m exhausted right now.”

The three girls deflated from that news, though not as much as when Roxas said he wouldn’t flaunt about with his keyblades. “How about tomorrow, before I head out to the party Pinkie has planned?”

Apple Bloom shook her head, “Na, we’ll be busy with... somethin'. But Monday is fine.”

“Monday it is then,” Roxas agreed as he took a deep breath, getting all the fresh air he could as he sat back down on the grass, crossing his legs. “I really need to hit the hay.”

Apple Bloom giggled, “Ya sound like my brother and sister after working in the fields for too long.”

“I bet,” Roxas said with a shake of his head, “I’ll catch you three later.”

“See ya, Roxas,” Scootaloo said as the three took off away from school, the other two girls giving quick goodbyes as well.

Roxas let his mind wander, before his face lit up in realization, turning back to the fleeing girls and cupping his hands around his mouth. “Don’t get into any trouble!” he yelled just as they disappeared around the corner of the school.

They didn’t respond to his shout, but Roxas was sure they got the message. He worried about them, especially since they knew about the other worlds. He wouldn’t know what to do with himself if they ever got hurt. Roxas rubbed his eyes; he was going off thinking about stuff like that while he still remained tired. He needed someplace to rest and fast, or he was going to fall asleep in public. Pushing himself back to his feet, Roxas slowly made his way back to the front entrance of the school, wanting to find Twilight and get his detention over with.

***

With the day officially over, Cadance could give a sigh of relief and prepare to pack up for the day. Having to keep track of many of the students at the school was tiresome, but at the same time, enjoyable. She wouldn’t trade it for the world. As she rested in her seat, she leaned her head back as she took a moment to collect her thoughts and relax.

That is, until three knocks were heard from the door. With a silent groan, Cadance sat up in her chair, brushed off any loose hairs that fell on her jacket, and took a deep breath. “Come in,” she said as pleasantly as possible.

The door opened slightly, and Twilight poked her head in, looking over with a blank face. “Am I interrupting anything, Cadance?” she asked, looking guilty for disturbing her. “I know you have the afternoons off, but I was hoping you could help a friend and I with something.”

Cadance was glad that it was Twilight and not some random student wanting out of his or her class in the middle of the semester. That was always a mess. “Of course,” Cadance answered with a nod, waving her hand for them to enter.

Smiling in appreciation, Twilight pushed the door open completely, revealing Fluttershy standing just behind her, her hair covering her face slightly. Cadance was somewhat surprised by that, and had to wonder what these two could want. The two came up to Cadance’s desk and sat in the two chairs that were in front of it. Through Cadance had no idea what could be on their minds, she could guess based off their expressions, but she’d rather not jump to assumptions.

“Is it alright if I have Spike out?” Twilight inquired quietly, lifting up her backpack. “He’s been stuck in my bag all day.”

“Yes you may, Twilight,” Cadance said kindly. She already knew that Twilight wouldn’t go anywhere without her dog, and allowed Twilight an exception for the ‘no pets’ rule. Twilight smiled back before pulling open the zipper, allowing Spike to poke his head out, looking around curiously. With both hands, Twilight lifted Spike out of her backpack and onto the floor. Spike stretched his legs a bit before bounding over to Cadance, rubbing his head against her leg in affection. Cadance reached her hand down and petted Spike a bit, scratching behind his ear as well. Afterwards, he walked back underneath Twilight and lied down on the floor, taking a nap.

Turning back to the two students in the room, Cadance waited patiently for them to start the conversation, silence filling the room. All they did, however, was fidget in their chairs, looking anywhere but at Cadance. Hoping to speed things along, Cadance cleared her throat, “So what’s the matter?”

Twilight flinched when Cadance spoke, being unsure how to state her problem. She sat up in her seat, glancing over to Fluttershy, who was equally nervous to speak. “We’re having…” she said, trying to find the right word to describe their plight, “boy troubles.”

“Ah,” Cadance said in acknowledgement, nodding slightly. She figured as much, especially since these two of their group of friends seemed to be the most fragile. They were lovestruck, plain and simple. “So, you two have fallen in love, have you?”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, Cadance,” Twilight warned with a pointed finger, though it was half hearted as she frowned, playing with her hair a little. “But yeah, I guess that’s true.”

Cadance tilted her head to the side, “What do you mean ‘guess’?”

Fluttershy muttered something, but Cadance didn’t catch it, causing Fluttershy to blush a bit as she repeated what she said, “I think I may like someone only because he’s helping me with my detention.”

Cadance frowned a bit in sadness, not liking that Fluttershy would think and feel that way. She looked over to Twilight, who also spoke about her problem. “And…” she said before cutting off, looking a bit ashamed, “Well, I guess I don’t really have a problem with a boy, but I’m just confused right now.”

Cadance nodded, facing each person in turn before standing up. Heading over to the door, she peeked around the hallway, seeing no one listening in. She locked the door and briskly made her way back to her desk, and the two girls just looked at her like she had gone crazy.

Cadance smiled broadly, sitting in her chair comfortably, “Okay, girls, time to get down to business.”

***

“And then I kicked it in for another score!” Rainbow said, giving an enthusiastic and dramatic kick in the middle of the hallway as she walked beside Applejack and Rarity. The two were unimpressed with the story Rainbow was telling, though Rainbow herself was relishing in it with a broad grin.

“We already know,” Rarity said with a shake of her head, “We were there, remember?”

“I know,” Rainbow said with a dismissive wave, her confidence evident in her tone, “I just thought I should remind you.”

“I think we’re plenty reminded,” Applejack replied, rolling her eyes. The three had joined up when classes had ended, deciding to hang out for a while before they left for their responsibilities. It was the rare time in the day where they could do so. However, Rainbow had used up some of their time talking about old sport events she had participated in. Despite the dull conversation topic, it was a relief to simply talk and not worry about some evil doer interrupting.

“So!” Rarity said aloud, changing the subject before Rainbow could go off in one of her stories. She had an excited smile on her face, “What do you think of Sora and Fluttershy?”

Applejack gave her a funny look, “I ain’t one to gossip, Rarity.”

Rarity sighed, giving Applejack a deadpan look, “Well, it’s either that or Rainbow’s tales.”

Applejack blinked before turning to Rainbow, who gave a half smirk. Applejack groaned, as she put a hand on her hat, tilting it a bit in front of her. “Oh, alright,” she grumbled before turning a small glare towards Rarity, “But I ain’t gonna hear a peep of this ta anybody else.”

“But of course,” Rarity agreed with a small giggle, “It shall be our little secret.”

“Rainbow?” Applejack questioned, making sure everyone was in agreement.

Crossing her arms, Rainbow faced away with a pout, “Yeah, yeah, fine.”

“Excellent!” Rarity said, her expression turning serious, “So, Sora and Fluttershy?”

“Uh…” Applejack said, looking to the ceiling, unsure where to start with that. “They… are cute together?”

“Most certainly,” Rarity nodded with a smile, “And to think they only knew each other for a short time. They may be a couple in no time at all!"

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, Rarity,” Rainbow said, looking very bored already, “Like you said, they’ve only known each other for, like, three days.”

“Oh, but I can feel it!” Rarity said, stopping suddenly in the hallway, causing the other two to halt as well. Rarity looked at her hands intently, holding them out as if to display something. “In one hand, we have Sora! A nice, heroic boy who puts friends before himself! In the other hand, we have Fluttershy! A kind, naturally cute girl who deserves to have someone special in her life!”

“You and Counselor Cadance would get along well, I reckon,” Applejack commented with a chuckle as she gestured towards Rarity. “I hear she likes tryin’ ta get people together.”

“Oh, I already have,” Rarity responded, closing her eyes with a short laugh, “And the conversations we have. Quite astounding actually.”

Applejack and Rainbow Dash looked to each other, containing their mirth in smiles that only they could see. It made sense to them that Rarity and Cadance would hang out like that, but to actually hear it was somewhat ridiculous, to say the least.

***

Sora lead the way as he and Pinkie ran through the hallways, closely slipping by students who were unfortunately in their way. Their destination was the lobby, figuring it would be a good place to start looking for the others. When they arrived there, they stopped for a moment to scan the area, with Sora putting a hand over his eyes.

“Where do you think they’ll be?” Sora asked, looking to Pinkie who was rubbing her chin as she stared straight ahead. Then she looked over to the entrance doors, seeing Roxas walk through. Her face lit up immediately, grabbing a hold of Sora’s arm and shaking him vigorously as she pointed towards Roxas.

“There’s Roxas!” she shouted excitedly, though Sora was a bit distracted by the erratic movement. When Pinkie let go of him, she waved her hands in the air in an attempt to flag down Roxas. Sora simply rubbed his arm where Pinkie held him, finding it sore. As soon as Roxas took note of Pinkie, he gave a tired smile and made his way over to her.

“What’s going on, Pinkie?” Roxas said as he approached, crossing his arms.

Pinkie opened her mouth to reply, but stopped short, changing her smile to a pout. “Sunset Shimmer is what’s going on,” Pinkie said with a sigh, “She’s being mean again. And she has something planned for Sora tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” Sora added, turning his gaze up to the ceiling, “and we have no idea what it could be.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Roxas said with an idle wave of his hand. “We’ve handled worse. What could a high school girl bring up that would be too much for us?”

“An entire army of Heartless?” Pinkie attempted, getting a bizarre and slightly alarmed look from Sora and Roxas. Pinkie giggled, “Just joking around.”

Giving a chuckle, Sora turned back to Roxas, feeling much more confident, though he was already quite convinced that Sunset wouldn’t be much of a threat. No matter what she did, Sora can live through it with his friends. And that’s all that really mattered to him.

“You’re right, Roxas,” Sora said with a nod as he brought his hand back. Roxas quickly caught on to what he was going to do, and did the same thing. Both of them brought their hands together and locked them in an arm wrestling hold, all the while, smiling broadly. “As long as we have our friends, nothing can stop us.”

As they pulled their hands away, Roxas gave a deep sigh, “As long as we take down the Organization, anyway.”

Sora put his hand on his face, hiding a smile underneath it, "Ah, don't be a downer, Roxas."

Roxas and Pinkie laughed at his remark, the latter much harder than the former, catching the eye the surrounding students. Then, the voice of Rainbow said, “What’s so funny?”

The three turned to see Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Rarity standing their, curious as to the source of Roxas and Pinkie’s laughter. “Oh,” Pinkie said, clutching her belly, “It’s nothing important.”

“Well, that’s good to know,” Applejack said with a playful roll of her eyes.

Sora gave an exaggerated shrug before relaxing his arms, remembering that he had been searching for everyone. “Before I forget,” he said catching everyone’s attention, “Sunset Shimmer is planning something for me tomorrow.”

“Ah, don’t worry about her,” Rainbow said as she crossed her arms, “Let that girl do what she wants.”

“Rainbow’s right,” Applejack agreed, a smirk emerging, “There ain’t nothing she can do ta get ta us.”

“Exactly what I said,” Roxas added with a nod. At that very moment, Sora knew he had some good friends. Having them nearby gave him immense happiness, and he didn't know where he would be without them. They were special to him, and he kept all of them close to his heart. He gave a content sigh, knowing what he had to do.

“No matter what happens,” Sora announced, placing a hand over his heart, “I won’t let anything happen to any of you. You’re all my friends…”

He gave a gentle smile, turning to everyone as he spoke, “And you all mean a lot to me.”

Everyone was touched by his words, sharing his smile and feeling ready for whatever Sunset may have in store for Sora tomorrow. A moment passed before Rarity blinked as she remembered something, nudging Applejack with an elbow. Glancing to her with a raised brow, she saw Rarity tilt her head towards Sora, giving her a knowing look.

A rock suddenly formed in Applejack’s stomach, knowing exactly what Rarity was implying. With a slightly shaky sigh, she spoke up as her eyes were trained on Sora. “Can I speak with ya for a minute, Sugarcube?” she asked, her face so downtrodden that it was clearly visible to everyone. And with Sora, it felt worse, especially after what he had said only a few seconds ago.

“Yeah,” Sora responded slowly, unsure about what could be on Applejack’s mind, “we can talk.”

Applejack quickly turned away from the others as she moved away towards the entrance. Sora looked to everyone else, silently asking what it could be about. Only Rarity seemed to have an idea of what was going on as she gave a shooing gesture towards Applejack. Taking a deep breath, he walked over to where Applejack stood, noticing how still she was with her back towards him.

“I was teased a lot when I was a freshman,” Applejack blurted out quietly, quickly turning to Sora with her hat down in shame. Sora jerked back with his mouth open, taken aback by her sudden announcement. Applejack glanced over to Sora seeing how confused he was, and gave a shaky sigh as she started with a question. “You remember when those two girls were talkin’ behind my back?”

Sora remembered quite clearly, the memory making him sad as he nodded. Applejack swallowed as she found herself playing with her hands. “Well,” she said nervously, “When I was a freshman, I was always made fun of for the way I am. I tried fittin’ in, but everyone kept teasin’ me anyway. It wasn’t until my friends helped me realize that I don’t need ta change who I am. Course, that didn’t stop people from makin’ fun of me. I usually ignore ‘em, but then…”

It wasn’t hard for Sora to put two and two together, making him clench his hands up at learning Applejack’s problem. “But I changed that, right?” he asked, looking up to her.

Applejack didn’t want to admit it, but she had no choice. Being an honest girl had its downsides. “Yes,” she whispered, staring right at Sora’s blue eyes. She found them very calming, but that didn’t stop her from speaking her mind, “When you’re around, I feel like I have ta keep an ear out for anythin’ suspicious, and it just makes the teasin’ much more noticeable.”

The thought of being responsible for a friend’s sadness wasn’t something Sora liked. He always strived to help as much as he can, but for the situation, it was actually making someone feel worse. Knowing what he had to say, Sora lifted his head up as if in thought before bringing it back down, seeing Applejack look up to him with her eyes watering ever so slightly.

“I’m sorry, Applejack,” Sora apologized, the finality evident in his tone, “but I can’t change who I am. I help my friends, even if it might make them a little sad.”

Applejack bowed her head a bit, understanding Sora completely. It wasn’t his fault that she was being teased, and there was no way she would blame him for anything. She had only told him so he would comprehend her minor bullying problem. Raising a hand, Sora put it on Applejack’s shoulder, knocking her out of her revery as she noticed his soft smile. “But I promise,” he said with determination, “I’ll help you through it. It’s what friends are for.”

It took a moment for his words to set in, but Applejack eventually broke into a smile. “Yeah, you’re right,” she said, feeling the knot in her guts lessen. Before Sora knew it, Applejack quickly wrapped him in a hug, resting her head on his chest. Sora, for his part, was surprised by the sudden contact, his hands hovering in the air as he stood there stunned. “Thank ya kindly, Sora.”

After the initial shock, Sora lowered his hands until he was hugging her back. Though Applejack was only a friend, Sora felt like she could use a hug, especially since she was the one who had started it. As for Applejack, she was smiling fondly, quietly giggling to herself.

Fluttershy was lucky to have a guy like Sora.

***

Cadance closed her eyes in thought, intertwining her fingers as she brought her hands up to her mouth. Thinking it over aided Cadance immensely, since it helped keep track of what she needed to say to assist Twilight and Fluttershy in the best way possible. Fluttershy met with Sora when she was serving her detention, and have bonded through that. That’s the reason she fears she may only like him for his help. As for Twilight, she suddenly found she liked Roxas, with no explanation whatsoever. It certainly was a challenge to figure out.

“W-Well?” Twilight inquired nervously, obviously on edge with how she felt about Roxas. Cadance knew she didn’t want to mess up her friendship, and so didn’t want to do something she would regret. “What do you think?”

Cadance took a deep breath, lowering her hands to her desk as she opened her eyes. “I may have an explanation for how you’re both feeling,” she said, glancing over to Fluttershy who sat up in her chair with hope. “Fluttershy, what you’re really afraid of is the unknown.”

“Um, the unknown?” Fluttershy repeated, her expression nothing but uncertainty as she bowed her head with her eyes still trained on Cadance.

Cadance nodded, “You don’t know enough about Sora to gauge his feelings, nor your own. Take the time to learn more about him. The more you understand, the better you can cope with your situation.”

Despite the sound advice, Fluttershy was still a little on edge, wondering how she would even start a conversation to know more about Sora. Nevertheless, Fluttershy nodded slowly at Cadance’s words, swallowing as she played with her hands. Satisfied that she had helped Fluttershy, Cadance turned to Twilight, who suddenly stiffened when she faced her.

“And Twilight,” Cadance started, pausing for a moment to collect her words, “There is a thing as love at first sight, you know.”

Twilight crossed her arms as she groaned, her annoyance toned down by how anxious she was. She should have expected such a response, but Twilight some how knew that Cadance was joking. And when she broke out into soft chuckles, it proved that Twilight was right.

“Sorry,” Cadance apologized, holding a hand in the air as she calmed herself down, “Everyone knows that’s ridiculous.”

The look Twilight gave Cadance showed how desperate she was for assistance, wanting the topic to remain focused. Cadance caught onto it and frowned, closing her eyes again for a few seconds before opening them.

“To be honest, Twilight,” Cadance explained, the guilt on her face causing Twilight to sag her shoulders in disappointment, already knowing what Cadance would say, “I don’t know what it was you could have felt towards Roxas. He wouldn’t answer a lot of my questions during his orientation, and he sounded like he had something on his mind. The best advice I can give you is to learn more about him too.”

Expecting such an answer, Twilight gave a deep sigh, nodding her head as her mind tried to work out what could be on his mind so much. Both Roxas and Sora did have to worry about protecting the magic of friendship, but Sora seemed to handle it just fine. Something else had to be going through Roxas’ head, and Twilight wanted to learn what that was.

"Thanks for the help, Cadance,” Twilight said, standing to her feet with a thoughtful nod. Fluttershy stood up as well, mimicking Twilight as she rubbed her arm. It was clear to Cadance that she hadn’t completely deterred Twilight’s and Fluttershy’s anxiety. However, it was the best she could do with what she had.

“It’s no problem,” Cadance replied with a wave, “But please tell me when you’re together. Shining would love to know.”

Twilight blushed, turning away as she whined, “Cadance…”

Cadance giggled at Twilight’s reaction, but Fluttershy remained silent, wondering if she could be with Sora. The thought made her heart fly, but the idea of denial made her lock up, almost wanting to cry. She hoped she could build up the courage to ask when the time came.

In the meantime, she smiled at the thought of being with Sora when they cleaned the hallways that day. It would the perfect time to learn more about him, and for her to hopefully understand him that much more.

Author's Note

That amount of Heartless I had to slay to get this single chapter done... Ugh.

Chapter 12: Dreams of the Lost

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 12: Dreams of the Lost

Sora determined that the halls were looking much cleaner, despite the many times they had been walked upon. He felt like he and Fluttershy would be able to finish up her detention that evening. With that thought, he looked over to Fluttershy, who was mopping up the floor, same as him. She had hardly faced him, or even talked with him, since they had started their detention. It concerned him quite a bit, but he wasn’t sure if it was his place to pry. She was very shy, and he didn’t know how she would react if he questioned her behavior.

With Fluttershy, she was feeling very much the same. She was so tense and nervous about asking Sora some questions that she could barely even look at him. Her hands tightened on the handle of her mop, just as much as her heart was inside of her. She had to speak to him eventually, or she may never learn more about Sora. Her breathing was becoming a bit shallow as she tried to calm herself down, failing miserably. She eventually just stopped in the hallway, lowering her mop as she took deep breaths, closing her eyes.

The sudden touch of a hand on her shoulder made her jump, giving a cute yet frightened squeak. She turned her head to see Sora looked at her with worry, holding the mop in one hand as he tilted his head at her. “Are you feeling alright, Fluttershy?” he asked, bringing his hand down since he had gotten her attention.

“Y-Yes,” Fluttershy quickly answered, “I mean, no. Well, I could be feeling better, but I just…”

She knew she was making a fool of herself, and the fact that she was doing it in front of someone she had a crush on made her blush profusely. Her gaze went to the floor, holding the mop close to her chest for support. She wished she could be anywhere else at the moment, even in front of a large audience.

“What’s the matter?” Sora questioned further, a kind smile emerging, “Maybe I can help.”

Fluttershy was really happy that Sora would be willing to assist her, but with what was going through her mind, she couldn’t stop herself as she said, “Your eyes are pretty!”

Sora blinked at her as her blush intensified, attempting to hide it with her hair as she turned away slightly. Her embarrassment was pretty high at that point as she clamped her eyes shut, hoping that she hadn’t messed up.

“Uh, thanks, I guess,” Sora responded, scratching his cheek as Fluttershy slowly opened her eyes. He wasn’t sure what brought upon her outburst, but was quickly searching his brain for something to say. Something that could be considering a compliment as well. “You… have nice hair.”

Sora had to mentally facepalm at that statement, cringing at his own words. Was that really all he could come up with? Fluttershy, however, swallowed as her hands stroked her hair.

“You like my hair?” she asked, her voice hopeful.

Snapping out of his pitiful state, Sora rapidly nodded his head, resting his mop against the lockers. “Yeah,” he said before scratching the back of his head, “I mean, it looks really good on you.”

She gave a fond smile, continuing to brush her hair like it was a furry cat. “Thank you, Sora,” she said, her eyes fixed on her hair, “Nobody really notices, but I try to make it is as nice as possible. I’ve been getting some pointers from Rarity, but I don’t think it’s as good as her.”

“Are you kidding?” Sora said in disbelief, giving a large smile that made Fluttershy look directly at him. “It looks great. From the way you take care of it reminds me how much Kairi took care of her own.”

Fluttershy gave a puzzling expression as she twisted the handle of the mop in her hands. All the while her heart clenching up. “W-Who’s Kairi?” she asked, already fearing the answer. She should have figured that Sora would already have someone special. He deserved someone as such.

“She’s my best friend,” Sora explained, catching Fluttershy off guard. “We grew up on the island together with Riku.”

“And you’re just… friends with Kairi and Riku?” she asked, feeling slightly terrible for asking a question like that.

“Well, yeah,” Sora answered, raising his brow, “Why do you ask?”

“I-It’s nothing!” Fluttershy hastily replied, turning away to finish the hallway with her mop.

Seeing that she was done, Sora slowly grabbed his mop and turned back to his own work, wondering what could be on Fluttershy’s mind. She was acting rather strangely around him, like she had some sort of…

Sora stopped himself as his eyes widened slightly. “Could she really…?” he whispered to himself as he turned towards Fluttershy, seeing her mop with her back turned towards him. “Like me?”

He gave a thoughtful glance to the ceiling before shaking his head, “No, don’t get ahead of yourself.”

He gave another sigh, turning back to his work before noticing that he was done, having reached the point where Fluttershy and he had agreed would be the finishing point. They weren’t completely finished with the school, but they were definitely making a lot of progress. “Oh,” Fluttershy spoke up from where she stood, “I’m finished.”

“Same here,” Sora said as searched the area, making sure he really was done. Satisfied, he walked towards Fluttershy, who froze up when she realized that Sora was coming back. When he reached her, he lifted up a hand, showing her an open palm, “I can put away the mops. You can head home.”

She quickly turned her eyes towards him, seeing the sincerity in his expression. She gave a smile as she gave her mop to him. “Thank you very much, Sora,” she said with an appreciative nod, “For everything.”

“No problem,” Sora said, tossing a mop into the air before catching it, “I’m just glad I could help.”

He turned away to leave but stopped short, giving Fluttershy a quick glance. He saw how sad she was, even if she was covering it up pretty well. “Is there something on your mind?” he asked nicely, careful not to tread on a touchy subject.

“It’s just… I’m scared,” Fluttershy said, half lying, “With everything that’s going on, I just hope that no one gets hurt… especially you.”

Sora stared at her with a bit of grief, knowing that some people were going to get hurt, no matter how hard he tried. But the last two words touched him deeply, so much so that he wanted to give Fluttershy a hug, and tell her it would be alright.

Instead, he gave a reassuring grin, “Don’t worry, Fluttershy. There may be times when things seem dark, but there’s always a light.”

Fluttershy gave a soft giggle at his wording, holding her hands behind her back. Sora gave a cheery smile, and Fluttershy sighed longingly. Sora really was special to her, more so than she realized before. She had to wonder why he didn’t have a girlfriend long ago.

***

“Roxas, wake up!” Twilight shouted, a book hitting Roxas in the head. He winced from the impact, sluggishly bringing a hand up to his forehead and rubbing it tenderly. “I know you’re tired but I need your help.”

Roxas rubbed his eyes, blinking away the blurriness to see that he was still sitting on a chair with a pile of books on a nearby table. The library was still as empty as ever as Twilight glared at him from the bookshelf she stood next to. His detention was becoming far worse than he thought it would be. Celestia had said that he would just be assisting Twilight with her project. She didn’t say that he would be sitting in a chair for hours staring at books.

“Come on, Twilight,” Roxas moaned with half-lidded eyes, “I’ve been through a lot today. Cut me some slack.”

“School is important to me, Roxas,” she said begrudgedly, turning her eyes back to the shelved books, searching intently. “You may not have to worry about grades, but I do.”

“Well, I have to worry about saving your world,” Roxas retorted, grinding his teeth together slightly, “So sorry if I’m a little exhausted. Even Spike is tired.”

Pointing over to the dog confirmed this as Spike laid on his back on top of an open book on the floor. He occasionally kicked his leg as if he was running, which was probably the case in his dreams.

Knowing that Roxas was right, Twilight exhaled, trying to drive off the anger that had come out of no where. “You’re right,” Twilight admitted with a shake of her head, “I’m just nervous about this project.”

Roxas grunted, “I can’t say I know how you feel, but I need some sleep.”

Twilight picked out a book, drumming her fingers on it nervously a she stared at her feet. She hadn’t really asked Roxas anything about his past, having been distracted with her work. She had to ask him while the time was right, and before he fell asleep again.

“Soooo, Roxas,” she started with a nervous grimace, “What did you do as a… Nobody?”

Referring to Roxas as a Nobody didn’t sit right with Twilight, like she was insulting him. She already knew that he was once part of Organization XIII and had turned good, but he hadn’t really spoken much about anything else.

Roxas relaxed in his chair, his eyes focused on the floor above as he spoke. “Just defeat Heartless mostly,” he said nonchalantly, shrugging a bit. Then, he sat up in his chair, a fond smile growing as he faced Twilight, “Although, I did have a great friend named Axel, or I guess Lea now.”

Finding something to discuss, Twilight walked over to Roxas, sitting in a chair opposite of him. She knew what it was like to find great friends, so she was interesting to hear what Roxas had to say. “What was he like?”

“Sarcastic is a good word,” Roxas stated with a chuckle, “He’s also pretty laid back. We used to eat ice cream together on top of a clock tower after every mission.”

“You guys must have been very good friends,” Twilight noted.

“The best of friends,” Roxas replied, “He has this catchphrase he always says. It wouldn’t be Axel if he didn’t say it.”

“Wait,” Twilight asked, tilting her head in confusion, “which is it? Axel or Lea?”

Roxas gave a contemplative expression as he rolled his hand around to try to buy time. “Well, when someone turns into a Nobody, their name is changed around and an ‘X’ is thrown in. Before Axel became a Nobody, he was called Lea, apparently.”

“Oh, okay,” Twilight said, accepting the fact, though still a bit uncertain she understood everything, “So, what’s his catch phrase?”

Roxas grunted, remembering back to all the times Lea would say those three words. Lifting a hand up, Roxas was about to point to the side of his head, before a thought struck him. His mind abruptly shifted to the girl with black hair, and it caused him to grow angry, pushing himself to his feet as he took a few steps away from Twilight.

“Roxas?” she asked quietly, hoping she hadn’t crossed some sort of line for asking her previous question. “What’s the matter?”

“It’s this girl,” he answered bluntly, making Twilight stop as she was getting to her feet too. With a saddened sigh, she got up completely, feeling like she already knew where the topic was going. “She’s been haunting me for some reason ever since I got here.”

“Oh,” Twilight said, her mind shaking off what she thought Roxas was going to talk about, “What exactly is she doing?”

“Messing with me mostly,” Roxas explained, walking over to the bookshelves to rest a hand against, “I’m the only one who can see her, and she won’t leave me alone.”

“Maybe she wants something from you,” Twilight suggested, stepping behind Roxas, “Do you know who she is?”

Roxas stiffened, raising his head a bit before turning to Twilight with a frown, “That’s the thing. I’ve never seen her before in my life until now, but I feel like should know her, like I was supposed to know her.”

Roxas put a hand to his heart as Twilight gave him a solemn expression, wishing she could do something to help him. It was quite obvious that this was what had been on Roxas’ mind. “The biggest clue I got from her was in my sleep. She said… I knew her from someone else.”

The emotions Twilight saw in Roxas were very mixed. Hatred, sadness, confusion, fear; all of it was stirring up inside of him, and all of it was caused by this one girl. She had to help her friend, but she had no idea how. Roxas dropped to a sitting position, leaning against the bookcase as he sighed heavily.

“I don’t know what I can do,” Twilight said sadly, tilting her head down as she closed her eyes, “This is obviously tearing you up, and I feel so useless.”

The impression that Roxas was having on Twilight made him learn how he had been affecting her, and he didn’t like it. With a mildly shocked expression, Roxas leaned forward and grasped her hand tightly. Twilight gasped sharply from the touch, her eyes shooting open as she blushed, but Roxas took little note of it as he looked into her eyes.

“You’re not useless, Twilight,” Roxas said, hoping he was saying the right words, “This is something that I have to figure out, but I want to be with a friend right now. Someone to keep me company.”

Twilight put her other hand on Roxas’, giving a sad smile as she stared at it. “Thanks, Roxas,” she said sincerely, “I try to help my friends with books, but in your case, I can’t do that, but I’m glad that just being around you makes you feel better. It… kind of makes me feel better too.”

She gave a nervous chuckle, “I guess I’m getting a little sappy. I hope I’m not-”

She lifted her head up to look to Roxas, only to see he had fallen asleep. Instead of trying to force him to wake up, like she had done many times previously, Twilight gave a nice smile as she picked herself up. Retrieving a blanket in one of the closets in the library, she placed it on top of Roxas, making sure his body was completely covered.

“Good night, Roxas,” she said, standing to her feet. She didn’t want to leave Roxas alone in the library all night, but she knew that her family would worry about her if she didn’t return home soon. Besides, it was already hard enough trying to lie to her parents about Roxas needing a place to sleep the first time. She felt like having him sleep in the library was right. After all, if she had the chance, she’d sleep there too. So with a bit of reluctance, she collected whatever she needed, packed it into her backpack, and slipped it on.

“Come on, Spike,” she said, kneeling down to the sleeping pup, shaking him a bit. “It’s time to head home.”

***

Sora opened his eyes to see that he was back on the glass pillar, with the familiar purple, glass stained floor. It felt so long ago since he stood upon the column, what with the battles that he had participated in one day. He hadn’t run into Roxas on his way back up to the Gummi Ship, but Sora was willing to bet that Roxas would be fine. He’d probably found someplace to sleep, especially since he was always complaining how tired he was.

Distracted by his thoughts, Sora winced when a bright light flashed on the ground in the large circle of friends.

With an orange hue, the light died down to reveal Applejack, wearing the same clothing and fake ears that the others wore. The image made Sora feel somewhat content, knowing that he and Applejack had gotten across a bump in their friendship, if it could be called that.

“Honesty…” the voice spoke in its soundless tone, making Sora perk his head with a small smile. It was strange how well honesty fit for Applejack, especially with how brutal she was with it. Her truthfulness may be blunt, but it got the point across, and for Sora, he was glad her honesty was used well.

Before he could think more upon the subject, the entire pillar lit up in a brilliant purple light. Sora was forced to bring both of his arms up to cover his eyes, but the light was so bright that it hardly mattered. And just as bright as it was, it disappeared instantly, and with cautious speed, Sora moved his arms.

The whole pillar had changed, stunning Sora as he gazed around with awe. The most notable change was that Twilight took up half the picture, in some sort of sleep. Spike had also appeared, filling up a circle alongside the other five friends. The ring of circles along the edge of the pillar had multiple pictures, most of which were either a certain star pattern that matched the one on Twilight’s skirt, or silhouettes of girls. Sora couldn’t really figure out the latter. Two circles were different from the rest, holding Sunset Shimmer and two unfamiliar boys.

As a whole, the pillar was certainly unique, and Sora could feel magic radiate from it.

“Magic…” the voice said, and Sora jerked back in shock. If Magic was referring to Twilight, what exactly would that mean? She didn’t have any sort of magical abilities, nor was she adept with spells. What could magic have to do with her?

“Magic is friendship,” the voice said, unwavering as it spoke, making Sora turn back to the dark abyss that surrounded him. “Friendship is magic…”

“So, does Twilight represent friendship?” Sora asked, more to himself than to the mysterious voice.

“Loyalty, Kindness, Generosity, Laughter, Honesty, Magic,” the voice continued, “Six elements in total, forming the one thing that matters the most. Magic is merely a part of the whole, but also the whole itself. They are separate, yet intertwined. They are presented to you; it is obvious what the whole is. However, it is locked away and vulnerable. It’s missing the key. The key that can reveal this magic. If the key is not found soon, friendship will be destroyed.”

Sora shivered slightly, turning his head back to the pillar, his eyes landing on the image of Fluttershy, “And then no one can be friends any more.”

“To succeed,” the voice continued, and Sora faced the dark sky again, “you will need another ally, one that is locked away in your heart.”

“An ally?” Sora balked, looking around as if the person would suddenly be revealed.

“He is both far off, and very, very near…” the voice said, making Sora narrow his eyes.

“Who could it be?” he whispered to himself, but as expected, he did not receive a response. Taking a deep breath, Sora closed his eyes, trying to find the ally that was locked in his heart. At first, he didn’t feel any difference from that what he usually felt, but then there was a presence. The presence was actually a part of Sora’s heart, much like Roxas was.

The bizarre presence was suddenly gone, making Sora’s eyes shoot open. The sound of someone landing behind him made him freeze his body. However, he quickly got over his shock, settling down as he turned around to face who he thought was to be his ally.

***

Without opening his eyes, Roxas knew where he was. The feeling was unlike any other, and having experienced it a few times before helped as well. It reminded him of how he had ran into the girl in the same place. It was undeniable that he would meet her again, and this time he was determined to learn about her. Twilight had driven his mind to ponder if the girl would appear again, and if she did, what she would do. It was very possible she would attack him again, forcing him to have to eliminate her to end his torment. Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that.

The deep breath Roxas took did nothing to calm his nerves, opening his eyes as he trained them to the glass pillar he stood on. It was Sora again, sleeping off to the side with pictures of his friends beside him. Roxas had to wonder why his heart would have Sora and not something related to himself. Then again, he was a part of Sora, as much as Sora was a part of him. Besides, there wasn’t anything that would be unique to Roxas besides himself and Lea. That made him sad, feeling somewhat lonely from that statement.

“You can come out now,” Roxas called, wanting to deviate his depressing thoughts as he turned his gaze to the blackness. “You don’t have to hide.”

He knew there was no point speaking. Whether she came out wasn’t determined if Roxas gave her permission or not. This was evident when Roxas looked around, seeing no sign of her. This didn’t deter him, being quite convinced that she would pop up eventually. With another turn of his head, Roxas saw a dark mist concentrating on a single point away from him. It looked to be forming a person, and Roxas knew it had to be the girl. Who else could it have been?

However, when the mist cleared, it didn’t show a girl at all, shocking him.

Instead, it was an armored boy kneeling down, his stature pointing to that conclusion. He wore an armor suit that Roxas had never seen before, with a helmet that had a darkened visor and long, ear-like fins on the sides. The person was also drenched in darkness, his armor a reflection of that, yet having a fuzzy appearance, as if it was forced upon him. It was a rather intimidating figure, and that wasn’t including the keyblade that he clutched in his hands.

For a moment, Roxas had to do a double take at the keyblade. It was similar to any other one - the teeth, blade, and keychain - but there was a large, notable difference. The bar that made up the blunt end of the keyblade was over the guard instead of the handle, making it look a bit ridiculous.

It was ridiculous, until the figure moved, standing on his feet as he held the keyblade back handed. It was a form that was completely foreign to Roxas, and the figure standing stock still as he stared at him was very uncomfortable to boot.

“Who are you?” Roxas asked, taking a small step forward. That’s when Roxas saw the symbol over the figure’s helmet, one that was just as different as the keyblade he held. Roxas didn’t have a clue what it could mean or represent, but it was something that made him question the identity of the figure. He was so different to everything he had met and faced, so why was he here in his heart?

The figure didn’t answer Roxas’ question, flipping the blade to hold it normally before pointing it at Roxas. Seeing the gesture, Roxas grunted before furrowing his brow, throwing his hands to the side to summon his keyblades. Surprisingly, only his Oblivion keyblade appeared in his right hand, causing him to balk. Facing his left hand, he put more force into it, trying to summon Oathkeeper, but to no avail.

He stared at his hand in disbelief, “What’s going on? It’s like when Sora used that Valor Form.”

The figure swung his keyblade to the side, catching Roxas’ attention again, and making him come to a realization. “Does he have my keyblade?” he questioned, but didn’t get an answer as the figure charged him, his armor clanking with each movement as his keyblade returned to its original hold.

The figure jumped in the air as Roxas took a few steps back to brace himself for the inevitable attack. Doing a flip midair, the figure brought his keyblade back for an overhead swing, and Roxas lifted his own keyblade up as it made contact.

***

No matter how long Sora stared at the girl, it didn’t change who she was. Being dressed in a black coat similar to the Organization was already putting Sora on edge, and with him having no idea who she was added to that. Her expression was neutral, showing no emotion at all. It reminded Sora of Saïx, with the stoic face staring blankly at him.

“Who are you?” Sora asked simply and rather lightheartedly. “Do I know you from somewhere?”

Then his eyes widened as he leaned forward, “Wait, I remember you from the Dream Worlds!”

The girl did not react to his revelation.

“What are you doing here?” Sora asked, holding out a hand to gesture to the pillar. “Are you connected to my heart some how?”

“Sora,” the girl suddenly spoke, making Sora stop his questions instantly. “Who do I look like?”

Sora was about to say he hadn’t a clue, but got a better look at her, noticing certain similarities. He gave a brief frown, speaking subconsciously. “Kairi,” he muttered before it clicked in his head, his eyes narrowing at her.

“Hold on,” he said, his voice raising as he tightened his hands, “You’re the girl that’s been bugging Roxas, aren’t you?”

The girl finally showed emotion: sadness. With a deeper frown, she stared at her shoes, “Yes.”

Sora didn’t say a word, waiting for some sort of explanation. The girl looked up to him, the sadness still evident in her face. “Please,” she whispered, “Tell him… I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” Sora repeated, tilting his head as his anger was replaced with confusion. She did all that, and she was just going to say sorry like it was an accident? Perhaps it really was an accident, or she was being forced by another person. Sora was about to voice his questions, but the girl beat him to it.

“I have to do this, Sora,” she said, darkness enveloping her, “For both Roxas’ sake, and yours.”

And with that, the darkness covered her like a cocoon. Sora gasped in surprise, running over to help her. Before he could reach her, the dark cocoon burst open, a larger armor like figure emerging. Sora halted as he gazed up, his jaw opening slightly at what stood before him.

A mash up of familiar things stood before him. The one that stood out the most was that the figure resembled himself. The spiky hair on the figure’s head was a copy of his own, and the clothing - if it could be called that - was also similar. The figure also had a few images of the Organizations logo around its body, most notably was the two keyblade like weapons in each hand. In the end, the girl had been replaced by a large figure that was a combination of Sora, the Organization, and possibly Roxas.

“What the?” Sora said in shock, right before the figure swung one of its keyblades. Its movements were slow, but Sora hadn’t recovered from the figure’s appearance, and the attack hit him without a hitch. Landing a few meters away Sora quickly jumped back to his feet, summoning his keyblade as he got ready for a battle.

The figure was about to repeat the attack, but Sora was ready this time. Grinding his teeth slightly, Sora surged forward, hopping over the sideways strike with ease. With a push, he launched himself towards the temporarily defenseless figure, ready to slash at it without pause.

***

Roxas was fumbling more than he’d like to admit. Though he had used the keyblade single handed many times before, he found the first few minutes frustrating as he tried to readjust to his former skills. And doing that in the middle of a fight was no easy task.

Blocking another swing from the figure, Roxas grunted as he pushed back, going for an uppercut but finding only a keyblade blocking his attack. Breaking their hold, they swung their keyblades at each other multiple times, but each time was blocked by the other. The figure’s fighting style was so unfamiliar to Roxas that he had to dodge more times than he’d like.

The figure jumped back with a twirl before leaping forward again for a stronger attack. Roxas easily saw it coming, bringing up his keyblade to block it. Unexpectedly, the figure landed right in front of Roxas, launching into the air instead. Caught off guard, literally and figuratively, Roxas stared at him as the figure was heading over Roxas. Then, with a quick sideways strike, the figure hit Roxas from the side, landing on his feet while Roxas was sent to the ground.

While on the ground, Roxas quickly turned around to face the figure, raising his keyblade just in time to intercept another strike, though just barely. They locked keyblades, the figure pushing harder against Roxas as he took a step forward to gain leverage. Roxas put his free hand on the blade of his keyblade, trying his best to hold him back. Knowing that he had move, Roxas rolled out of the way while breaking the lock, just as the figure struck the ground. Roxas pushed himself to his feet to see the figure already charging him. Unfortunately, he couldn’t stop him that time, as the figure sidestepped him and struck, unleashing a rapid combo.

Roxas was finally able to impede his attacks by holding out his keyblade, catching the other’s keyblade. Then, with the break from the attack, Roxas pushed the figure’s keyblade away as he spun on the spot. His keyblade rising over head as he gave a hard swing. Making contact, Roxas followed up with a wide swing, knocking the figure back. The figure used one hand to catch himself as he used it to push himself to his feet, landing with a twirl of his keyblade.

They stood still for a moment, Roxas breathing hard from the exertion while the figure was motionless. “Who are you!?” Roxas shouted, stomping his foot in anger. “Answer me!”

The figure slowly bowed his head, as if in thought. Time ticked on for a few seconds before he faced Roxas again, lifting his free arm as he pointed straight at Roxas. Baffled, Roxas briskly looked around him, making sure to keep an eye on the figure in case he tried anything.

“Stop messing with me!” Roxas yelled, furrowing his brow deeply, “Why are you here? Are you working with that girl?”

The figure lowered his hand as his keyblade rose, ready for round two. Roxas sighed, not liking how the battle was turning out so far. He had no idea who this person was, and he was losing. Those were two things that constantly enraged him, almost as much as that one guy in the red wrappings, the one who spoke down to him condescendingly back in Twilight Town. Roxas held his keyblade with both of his hands, wondering if Sora was having a nice snooze while he was fighting a losing battle.

***

The monstrous figure was growing faster with each swing of its weapons, and Sora knew he had to finish the battle quickly. Dodging and diverting each strike was helping to avoid getting hurt, but he couldn’t keep it up forever. He still had to figure out who this girl was, why she was attacking him, and many other things.

The large figure brought both of its keyblades up, slamming them on the ground and creating a huge shockwave. Sora easily jumped over the attack, landing on the keyblades before leaping for the chest, swinging as much as he could. The figure spread out its arms, and Sora jumped back to get some distance. Luckily he did that, as a wall of fire surrounded the figure before dying off.

The figure then, smashed both of its palms into each other, somehow linking the keyblades into a dual sided weapon. With a spin of its new weapon, it threw it at Sora, spinning in the air as it traveled at a fast speed. Sora did a backflip just as it approached, and as it traveled underneath him, Sora threw his keyblade, having it fall in between the dual sided keyblade, and locking it to the ground.

The figure’s keyblades were still spinning it its hold without any pause as Sora landed on top of his keyblade. The figure made to swat him away with its hands, but before it could, Sora jumped up and flipped midair before landing his hands on his keyblade. With a loud grunt, Sora tore his keyblade out of the ground, the dual sided keyblade coming along with it, still spinning. With a powerful swing, Sora threw the dual sided keyblade back at the figure.

The figure had no time to dodge the attack, taking it full on as it tumbled to the ground. Its dual sided keyblade separated back to two keyblades, falling to the ground with a clatter. Seeing a chance for another attack, Sora landed and rushed forward. When he was close enough, he jumped up, ready to swing downwards. However, the figure suddenly retained its keyblades, and spun on the ground as it held its keyblades out. Sora was caught in the attack, being knocked into the air. Then the figure jumped up, and slammed both keyblades down on Sora who slammed into the floor, giving a pained cry.

Sora was able to get back to his feet, and dodge roll away, just in time to avoid a down stab from the figure. Taking a breather, Sora raised his keyblade over his head as he shouted, “Heal!”

A light palette of flowers appeared overhead, spreading green magic as leaves swirled around Sora for a moment. After healing, Sora got a good look at the figure, who was already getting ready for another attack. Sora braced himself with his keyblade, but the figure suddenly froze, lowering its weapons and standing still.

“Huh?” Sora said, lowering his guard slightly. His eyes traveled slightly over head, and what he saw above made him drop his keyblade to his side, gawking. Another platform, completely upside down, was just above him, though he had no idea where it came from. It was almost a mirror of the one Sora stood upon, except instead of Twilight and her friends, it showed Sora and his friends. What was even more bewildering was that Roxas was fighting on it, with a figure that he couldn’t really make out.

That was when he felt himself floating upwards, making him gaze around in a panic. He swung his limbs around trying to break whatever was sending him up with no success.

Meanwhile, Roxas was still fighting when the figure suddenly stopped, standing tall as it waited. Roxas, not thinking about it, tried to use the opportunity to strike, but found himself floating as well. His reaction was similar to Sora’s, trying to fight whatever was forcing him upward. That’s when he looked upwards, shocked with the scene above.

Not only was there a large monster standing on another platform, but Sora was there, floating a bit as well. He was just as confused as Roxas was, and the look they shared with each other confirmed that they each were clueless with the events that were unfolding before them.

Then, they fell.

It was like gravity had reversed for both of them as they each tumbled towards the opposite platform. For a moment, they passed each other in midair, gazing over to the other with parallel confusion. To each other, it seemed like the other was falling to the sky, and to another monster.

When they neared their respective platforms, they flipped and landed with expertise, looking over to their new attacker.

With Sora, when he finally got a good look at the figure, he gasped. It matched perfectly with the description of what Riku had given him way back after the confrontation with Xehanort and his associates. It was the same figure that protected him when Riku dived into his heart to save him from his sleep. Oddly enough, it felt like Sora had known the figure his whole live. Shaking the feeling off, Sora remembered that Riku had given the figure a name, one that made Sora wonder why he and Roxas had to face him.

Nightmare Armor.

With Roxas, the monster he saw before him made him pause. The monster… he had seen it before, but from where, he couldn’t recall. The feeling of sadness was prominent, the exact same emotion when he was around the girl, causing him to come to a grim conclusion. The girl had become this monster, and he had to take it down. The thought made him remember when he had decided to defeat Xemnas himself. Did he have to fight this monster before hand? Before he even fought Riku? Whatever the answer may be, he still had to take it down, and he had a good name for the monster that he could call it for the time being. The name fit perfectly for some reason in his head.

Oni.

***

With the platform gone from above, Sora got his keyblade ready as the figure ran forward, holding its keyblade back handed. When he was close enough, Nightmare Armor gave multiple swipes to Sora, who was able to easily block them. When an opening was presented, Sora took advantage of it, knocking Nightmare Armor’s keyblade back as he wailed on him with his keyblade.

Nightmare Armor was able to recover as it jumped back, throwing its keyblade at Sora. Turning to the side, Sora pushed forward, jumped in the air, and caught the keyblade. Even in his armor, Sora could tell that Nightmare Armor was surprised by this, and since he was defenseless, Sora was able to go all out. His swings were slow at first, but he was quickly speeding up, to the point where he was almost a blur. Nightmare Armor made no noise as he was assaulted, but still reacted to each attack, letting Sora know that he was effecting him.

After a while, Sora ended his onslaught, jumping back a moment before leaping straight up. Nightmare Armor was still in a daze, allowing Sora to easily line up his keyblades. “Let’s finish this!” Sora shouted before a beam of light shot out of each keyblade. The light beams swirled around each other before colliding into Nightmare Armor, who recoiled in pain.

Sora saw the armor crack underneath the barrage of light, and when Sora was finished, he landed back on the ground, with Nightmare Armor doing the same, except he fell right on his back, and remained unmoving.

Sora waited a moment to see if Nightmare Armor would jump back up. When he didn’t, Sora let out a sigh of relief, allowing his keyblade to disappear - the other vanishing on its own accord - as he rested his hands on his knees.

“Thank you, Sora,” Nightmare Armor said, making Sora stand back up to full height with a tilt of his head, the voice sounding very familiar. Too similar.

“Roxas?” he questioned, “What are you doing in there?”

Nightmare Armor chuckled, “No, not Roxas. It is pretty confusing though, huh?”

“Yeah, I guess,” Sora agreed, still not following what was happening. “but why are you thanking me?”

“You’ll find out,” Nightmare Armor told him, “I won’t be able to remember this, but for all it’s worth, Sora, I’d say Fluttershy is in good hands.”

“What?!” Sora exclaimed, jerking back with a small blush coming through. Nightmare Armor laughed before letting out a content sigh.

“Yeah,” he muttered wistfully, “It’s going to be fun meeting you again.”

“Huh?” Sora asked, but didn’t get an answer as Nightmare Armor melted into the floor, stunning Sora, “H-Hey, wait!”

He ran forward to help him, reaching his hand out to grab his. He didn’t make it, however, just missing it as his hand met the smooth glass. Sora sighed in sadness before remembering what Nightmare Armor had said, letting out a small laugh as he looked up to the dark sky.

“You sound like a fun guy to be around,” Sora said, hoping Nightmare Armor could hear him, wherever he was. Then, a bright light filled his vision, though Sora didn’t react to it. In fact, he was happy it was there. It meant that he could wake up, and officially meet that guy.

***

Roxas was definitely having an easier time with Oni than he did with the other figure. Oni swung its keyblades, but Roxas was able to see the attacks coming before it even started. It was all bizarre, like he had partaken in the battle before.

Oni suddenly glowed a white light as it held its keyblades in front of it like an ‘X’. Roxas didn’t know what it was planning, but was ready for anything. Suddenly a ring was surrounding Roxas, shining like the light of fire. With a mad dash, Roxas was able to escape the ring just as the interior burst into flames. Getting an idea, Roxas held his keyblade back, lining his hand up with where he had last seen Oni. With an accurate throw, Roxas sent the keyblade flying through the raging fire, and when it exited, it was on fire as well. The keyblade impacted Oni’s head, causing it to take a few steps back as the ring of fire dissipated.

Seeing that his plan had worked, Roxas summoned his keyblade again as he charged forward. Oni saw him coming, madly swinging its keyblades at him, but Roxas was able to dodge them with ease until he stood right underneath Oni. With a push, Roxas launched at Oni’s right leg, slicing through it before pushing off of it and slicing through the other leg. Oni fell to its knees from the attack, and Roxas pushed off its leg away from Oni. Pointing his keyblade at Oni, he shouted, “Come on!”

A beam of light shot out, growing in intensity before it hit Oni like a missile. Its armor shattered into pieces as Roxas landed. Darkness was weaving through the air a moment before disappearing completely, revealing the same girl Roxas had seen many times before, though much more worn out from the battle.

She took a few steps to balance herself out, but eventually fell to her knees, her eyes looking droopy as she staring at the floor. Roxas was huffing from the battle, but that didn't stop his hateful glare. “You finished yet?” he questioned, swinging his keyblade for emphasis.

The girl didn’t answer, raising her head to stare at Roxas. Her mouth opened slightly, and for the first time, Roxas heard her voice. “Yes,” she whispered, “I did what I needed to do.”

The voice itself sent Roxas into a wave of pain as he dropped his keyblade to the floor, clutching his head. From what he could understanding, his mind was trying to remember something that wasn’t there. How he knew that was beyond him, but the pain eventually left, and he looked up to the girl, a sorrowful frown on his face. “I know you,” he muttered, looking at his hands, “I can’t remember from where or when. I don’t even know your name.”

The girl gave a ghost of a smile, “It’s… Xion.”

Roxas gaped at her, looking up to her, “You… You’re Xion?”

She nodded, “I’ve wanted to tell you for so long.”

Roxas furrowed his brows, his anger coming back. “So why didn’t you?” he questioned, “Why all the games? Why were you haunting me like some kind of-?”

“Ghost?” Xion finished, her frown returning in full force. “Because it was the only way, Roxas.”

Roxas blinked, his anger fading away as he relaxed his body, “The only way?”

“Yes,” she answered, “This world Sora entered… it’s special. It holds a very powerful magic. With that magic, you were able to come back. But only partially.”

“What do you mean?” Roxas questioned, taking a few steps forward, still cautious around Xion.

Giving a very small smile, she looked straight to Roxas, “I mean you’re whole now. You may not ever remember me, but I’m glad I could help you, one last time.”

Roxas stared at her in surprise, taking more steps as he grew closer. “Xion,” he whispered, “You… it was so you could make me whole?”

Unexpectedly, ice was starting to cover Xion, starting at her feet and working her way up. “I’m running out of time,” she noted, glancing at her feet. “But at least I had this chance to make things right.”

Roxas remained silent, unsure if he should run over and comfort her before she disappeared. “Will I ever see you again?” he asked, holding out a hand like it would stop the ice, which had covered her legs at that point.

“I don’t know,” she said with a shake of her head, “but make sure you keep Twilight safe.”

“Why Twilight?” Roxas questioned.

Xion giggled, the ice up to her chest, “Because I showed her what she was missing in her heart, even if she doesn’t quite know it yet.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Roxas said honestly, scratching the back of his head.

“It will, Roxas,” Xion said, closing her eyes as the ice reached her neck, “It will.”

Then she faded away into small particles of light, drifting off into the abyss. Roxas watched the particles until they were out of sight, and he closed his eyes in sadness. “Xion...” he muttered, sounding mournful. He hardly knew her, and she was helping him. What could he have done to deserve her aid? Though he was sorrowful, he broke out into a smile, a tear trailing down his cheek, “I hope I don’t forget you this time.”

Author's Note

Picture by Akili-Amethyst

Chapter 13: One and Done

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 13: One and Done

Though Sora had woken up many times before in his life, he wasn’t nearly as excited as he was at that moment. With his eyes shooting open, he instantly jumped out of his bed, slamming a palm on the button for the ramp and running right through and onto the roof of the school. Remembering how everyone reacted last time, he avoided jumping off the roof, and opted to take the stairs.

When he reached the hallways again, he was somewhat surprised to find them full of students getting ready for another day of school. That dream felt like it had only lasted a few minutes, yet hours seemed to have passed. Ignoring that fact for the time being, Sora searched the hallway intently, keeping his eyes open for the person who entered his dream, even though he didn’t really know what he looked like.

Whoever was in that Nightmare Armor would be in the school. The person had said so himself. Sora wondered if there was some factor determining when he would appear, like a certain time frame had to pass before hand. If that was the case, then he was wasting his time, but for the time being, there was still a chance to meet his new ally, his new friend.

Taking off down the hallway, Sora wondered how this person was connected to him. He had said that he would be meeting him again, but Sora had no recollection of ever meeting someone like him. A person sounding like Roxas, but at the same time, wasn’t Roxas? It was mind boggling to say the least.

Sora shook his head, knowing he was getting ahead of himself. Once he found this person, he was sure to get the answers he wanted. With his focus back on to his sprint, Sora glanced around his surroundings, and noticed a few things that were very confusing. For one, everyone was giving him weird looks, ones that ranged from mild anger and irritation to uncertainty and sadness. It was a really mixed bag, and to top it all off, everyone was giving him a wide birth, like he would strike them at any moment if they were too close.

By the time Sora reached the lobby, he was worried that something had happened as he slept, something that was very important. Standing in the center, he scanned the room, hoping to come across some clue as to everyone’s sudden odd behavior, but found nothing.

With a bit of a frown, Sora turned his eyes to the floor. “What happened?” he asked himself, “Was it something that Sunset did? She did say she had something planned for me today…”

“Darling!” the voice of Rarity said, catching Sora’s attention as he quickly turned around. Rarity ran up to him, looking short for breath as she simply stared at Sora for a moment. Sora was a bit more perplexed by this, since he expected her to speak.

“What’s up, Rarity?” he asked, worried what the answer might be.

“Sora,” she said, her tone fairly quiet, and her expression looking saddened. “You don’t… know?”

“Know what?” Sora questioned, “I just woke up a few minutes ago. And school only just started.”

“Sora, it’s lunch time,” she revealed bluntly, “You’ve been gone the whole morning.”

“What?” Sora said, his face in shock as his jaw fell open. How could he have been asleep for so long? Either he was way more tired than he had anticipated, or the dream had affected him in some way. However, if that was the case for Sora, Roxas would be in the same situation. Shaking off his bafflement, Sora leaned forward a bit as he said, “Where’s Roxas?”

“He’s in the library,” Rarity explained, still looking at Sora like she was afraid he would disappear again. “He was still asleep when we last left him with Twilight. We’ve been searching for you nearly all day.”

Sora didn’t like that he had worried his friends so needlessly. He knew if they had an idea of where he was sleeping, they wouldn’t be so anxious. With resolve, he told himself that he would show them the Gummi Ship later, and put their minds at ease, even for a little bit.

“I’m sorry, Rarity,” Sora apologized, rubbing the back of his head with a small smile, “I guess I didn’t realize that you guys would be so worried. I mean, I haven’t told any of you where I slept, but the way you acted, I figured something-”

“Sora,” Rarity interrupted, making the smile Sora had to drop instantly, turning his face to concern, “You truly don’t know?”

At that point, Sora was very troubled by Rarity’s actions, as he said, “What do you mean?”

Rarity looked off to the side, seeing the other students still looking at Sora with judgement. “It’s probably best if I show you at the library,” she said, turning back to Sora, “Fluttershy and Applejack are an absolute wreck.”

At the mention of the state of two of his friends, Sora jerked back like he had been struck, gaping at Rarity. “Well, come on then,” Sora said determinately, gesturing towards the direction of the library, “Let’s get going!”

Rarity nodded and turned to lead the way, but stopped a moment before facing back to Sora, a smile on her face. “I knew you weren’t that type of person, Sora,” she said with a sigh before taking off down a hallway. Sora was slightly stunned by those words, wondering what Rarity could mean by them. Then, he shoved those thoughts away as he followed after her, knowing he would find out soon enough.

***

Roxas wasn’t feeling so good. His limbs were heavy, and the noises around him were so disorienting that he wished they would stop. Opening his eyes slowly, all he saw were blurs, a mush of colors that strengthened his headache.

“Roxas?” Twilight asked, and suddenly Roxas was back in reality, all the blurs focusing instantly to reveal Twilight looking at him with worry. She was kneeling down next to him with a hand on his shoulder. “Are you awake?”

Roxas blinked a few times before closing his eyes completely as he shook his head. His brain wasn’t functioning properly at the moment, and he couldn’t recall where he was when he had fallen asleep. “Does that mean he’s not awake?” Pinkie asked somewhere in the room, “Because I’m preeeety sure he’s awake.”

Roxas remembered that was in that dream, and he finally knew the name of that girl…

“Pinkie,” Twilight’s voice said with surprise, “I thought you were out looking for Sora.”

Roxas’ eyes shot open, his previous thoughts erased as he frantically pushed himself to his feet. Twilight got up as well, backing away to give some space as Roxas looked around at his surroundings. He was in the library, when he was helping Twilight with her research. He saw that Twilight and Pinkie were with him, but that hardly mattered as he rounded on Twilight.

“What do you mean ‘looking for Sora’?” he questioned, his uneasiness building as he looked between Twilight and Pinkie. The former was scared, as she looked away from Roxas’ gaze, but the latter gave a large smile, though it was quite obvious that it was forced.

“Rarity just texted me,” she announced, holding up her phone as she pointed at it, “she found Sora and is bringing him here.”

“Okay, that’s great,” Roxas said, hoping his tone didn’t sound hostile, “But why was he missing in the first place?”

“We hadn’t seen him all morning,” Twilight explained, with a shake of her head, “And you were asleep the whole time.”

Roxas wasn’t really surprised by that, figuring that was the case regarding that strange dream. “Well, I’m awake now,” Roxas said, allowing a small smile to emerge, even though he was still a bit on edge with his dream, “There’s nothing to worry about.”

PInkie sighed, showing genuine sorrow, which caused Roxas to frown. “I wish that was it,” she said, looking to the side where Roxas couldn’t see, “But something else happened.”

Roxas took a few quick steps to see what Pinkie was facing, only to find Applejack and Fluttershy sitting at a table. They were near the verge of tears as their heads hung low, and Fluttershy was quivering slightly. Their hands were placed on the table, like they couldn’t figure out what to do with them. Spike sat underneath them, his head resting on the ground as he pouted adorably.

The sight was depressing, and Roxas felt a pit in his stomach as he looked at them. Eventually, he tore his gaze away, turning it back to Twilight, who must have been feeling the same as himself, if not worse. “What happened, Twilight?” Roxas asked desperately, gesturing a hand towards Applejack and Fluttershy. “Why are they acting like that?”

It was at that moment when Rarity rushed into the room, a worried Sora following just behind her. Everyone stared at him a moment, even Rarity, and Sora felt a bit uncomfortable because of it. “Is everyone alright?” he asked, “Did the Organization do something while I was asleep?”

Before anyone could reply, Fluttershy pushed off the table and ran over to Sora, wrapping her arms around his neck in a hug. Sora, blushing, was startled by the move, but didn’t push her away as she tightened her hold on him. Whatever happened must have been pretty bad to have her react in such away.

“You were asleep the whole time too?” Pinkie asked, her cheerfulness not present in her voice. “Maybe all that fighting yesterday got to you.”

“Wait…” Sora drawled, glancing around the room, “Where’s Rainbow Dash?”

“At practice,” Rarity answered, “She said she couldn’t bare to be here. But don’t take it personally, it’s just her way of dealing with her anger.”

That sounded like Rainbow, but that only made Sora and Roxas more curious about what was going on.

“Sora, Roxas,” Twilight said, stopping them before they could speak up again. When she got their attention, she took a deep breath, steeling herself for what she was about to do. “Sunset Shimmer… she uploaded a video on the internet.”

Sora’s assumption was correct; Sunset Shimmer did have something to do with what had been happening. And considering the state of everyone in the room, it must have been pretty bad. “Show us,” Roxas requested, his expressions barely suppressing his anger. Sora would have probably felt the same, if he wasn’t feeling bad for how the girls were behaving.

With a nod, Twilight went up to the computer center, which sat directly in the middle of the library. Sitting down in front of a computer, where Sora could see the screen without moving, Twilight typed and clicked a few things before scooting away, allowing the video to play. Leaning close, both Sora and Roxas payed attention to what was being displayed. Unbeknownst to either of them, Applejack rested her head on her arms, trying to keep the noise of the video out as much as possible.

The first thing that was shown was Sunset Shimmer herself, having a grin that held only evil intentions. “As many of you may know,” she said, pushing her hair back in a way to look both prettier and powerful. “A new student had joined our school, one that had sent a wave of admiration and attention towards himself.”

She scowled for a moment before pushing it to the side, her snide grin returning in full. “But all of that has been misplaced,” she went on, as the screen changed to where Sora and Fluttershy were with each other at the library, on the second floor. “Sora took advantage of an innocent girl, Fluttershy,” Sunset continued, “The symbol of kindness itself. He forced her to clean the floors of the school for whatever reason.”

The next scene shown was Sora and Fluttershy both having mops as they cleaned the hallways. It was followed by Sora putting a hand on Fluttershy’s shoulder as she looked away from him. It did seem like Sora was trying to get her to do something from an outsider’s perspective, even though the two knew the real truth.

“Another thing about this new student,” Sunset said, reappearing on screen with a hand on her hip, “is that he likes that country girl, and we all know what she’s like. Think about it; Sora, forcing one student to help him mop, while going out with a girl that is more ridiculous than any other student before.”

To solidify this claim, the screen showed Sora and Applejack hugging fondly in the lobby, neither of them moving an inch as students looked over with odd looks. “And to think,” Sunset said, as it switched back to her, having a mock distressful look. “You all thought it was so cool to have him jump off the roof of the school. But you all failed to look at him for what he really is. I hope this educated all of you. And Sora, if you’re watching this, I hope you feel sorry for what you’re doing.”

(Stop music)

And just like that, the video ended. Everyone was at a loss for words, even for those who had already seen the video. Fluttershy held on to Sora even tighter, her shoulders shaking in subdued sobs as she leaned her forehead against Sora’s chest. Applejack buried her face in her hat, hiding anything that would describe how she felt. Twilight, Pinkie, and Rarity simply stared off into space, not really looking at anyone.

Roxas was frustrated that Sunset had the audacity to make a video like that. Sora was his friend, as was Fluttershy and Applejack, and the way she projected them to the school was obviously having a negative effect on them. Clenching his hands into fists, he marched right over to the door, and he would have left if Twilight hadn’t spotted him.

“W-Where are you going?” she asked, taking a few careful steps towards him.

“I’m going to find Sunset Shimmer,” Roxas announced over his shoulder, “And I’m going to teach her a lesson.”

“As much as I’d like to see that,” Rarity interjected, stepping beside Twilight, “You mustn’t do that. Sora is already in a bad light, and having someone like you do that will only make matters worse.”

Roxas whipped around to face them, throwing an arm to the side as he shouted in anger, “I can’t just sit here and let her get away with this! How can anybody even believe this?!”

Twilight and Rarity flinched from his volume, making Roxas realize just who he was yelling at. He relaxed his body, dropping his head down as the room filled with silence. It wasn’t until Pinkie looked over to Sora, noticing that he hadn’t done a thing. For something that was directly targeted at him, Sora hadn’t really reacted as much as the others had.

“Sora?” she called, making everyone turn to her before facing Sora, who still hadn’t moved.

The quiet atmosphere continued on for a while, until Sora tilted his head up, staring at the ceiling above. After which, he looked down to Fluttershy who was still clutching on to him, a few stray tears in her eyes.

“Don’t cry, Fluttershy,” Sora requested gently, lifting up a hand and placing it on her shoulder. His soft touch and tone made Fluttershy open her eyes in astonishment, before turning them up towards Sora. She found only a smiling face, and just then, she realized how close she was to him.

With a blush, she hastily stepped back, hoping she hadn’t gone too far. Sora didn’t really mind, his smile brightening if anything. “Sora,” Fluttershy whispered, fearing that speaking to loud would make his mysterious happiness disappear. “H-How can you be smiling about this? Don’t you feel… bad? I mean, Applejack and I made you look bad, even if it was accidental.”

“But that’s the thing,” Sora said with an idle shrug, “It only made me look bad. We all know I’m nothing like what Sunset says I am. As long as we know the real truth, we shouldn’t have to worry about it.”

Applejack lifted her hat up slightly, her cheeks having a small blush as she faced Sora with a frown. Though the video clearly gave false information, the implementation that Applejack and Sora were a couple made her feel embarrassed. Maybe it was the fact that she never even thought of having a boyfriend before, and added that it was Sora made it worse. Fluttershy had a thing for him anyway, so even if Applejack was interested, it wouldn’t happen. The recent events made her wonder if she would get a boyfriend at all.

“You alright, Applejack?” Sora asked, having a concerned expression. The sudden attention made Applejack jump a little, her blush growing as she waved her hands hastily.

“No, I-I’m alright,” she answered before adding, “It’s just that… I’ve already gotten a lotta teasin’ because of that there video, and…” She tightened her hold on her hat as Sora’s sadness grew. “I guess I’m just tired of it is all.”

Everyone was saddened by that, and it prompted Sora to speak up again. “What exactly has everyone been saying about you?” he asked carefully, not wanting to upset her further.

Applejack looked away from Sora, the present blush getting even redder. “About…” she said hesitantly before whispering, “us bein’ a couple.”

Rubbing the back of his neck was the only way Sora could display his discomfort about the topic. He didn’t look at Applejack in that way, but it did make him wonder why that would bother her the most. Glancing over to Fluttershy, Sora noticed that she was in thought. In fact, everyone was pretty quiet, and the atmosphere was pretty heavy on everyone.

“Maybe we should get some lunch,” Pinkie spoke up, looking around for someone to agree with her.

“Yeah,” Roxas said, taking a few steps forward, “We’re all hungry, and some food will do us some good.” He looked over to Sora, “But I need to talk to Sora for a moment.”

“Alright,” Rarity nodded, “But during lunch, Sora, can you please explain where you sleep?”

“You got it,” he said with a pump of his right arm, “Me and Roxas will meet you there soon.”

With that said, everyone filed out of the room, with Twilight allowing Spike to hop into her backpack. When the room was empty, Sora approached Roxas, ready for whatever he wanted to bring up.

“Do you remember the dream last night?” Roxas questioned, crossing his arms.

The reminder got Sora’s brain working again, flooding his mind with what had happened only a few minutes ago, or at least that was what it felt like. The new events had been temporarily driven it out of his mind, and he faced downward as he closed his eyes. “Yeah,” he said slowly, “There was that girl and that one guy in the armor.”

“The girl’s name was Xion,” Roxas explained, making Sora turn back to Roxas with a raised brow. That’s when he noticed that Roxas was relieved of that fact. “I’m glad I still remember it.”

“You’ve met her before?” Sora asked, tilting his head to the side.

Roxas nodded, “Yeah. I can’t remember when or where, but I know her.”

The thought of Xion made Sora remember the other figure he had fought, the one who would potentially become an ally. And that sparked an idea in Sora that made him give a large smile. “Hey, maybe she can help us with the Organization. That armored guy said he would join us.”

“He did, huh?” Roxas asked, his voice sounding doubtful, but Sora didn’t pick it up, “Well, I’m afraid she can’t… she’s gone. She said she made me whole.”

“Whole?” Sora repeated, looking at Roxas from side to side, “But you were already whole, weren’t you?”

“I don’t know, Sora,” Roxas replied, suddenly feeling tired again. “Let’s just get lunch. Like I said, some food will do us some good.”

Though he wanted to discuss the other figure that sounded like Roxas, Sora nodded, and the two of them walked out of the library. There was plenty of time to learn from each other later.

In the hallway nearby, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo hid behind a set of lockers. Though they didn’t overhear the conversation being held within, they were very disappointed when everyone simply left.

“Sora and Fluttershy didn’t even see it,” Scootaloo said with a sigh, stepping over to the entrance of the library..

“I’ll say,” Apple Bloom nodded, crossing her arms as she looked at the piece of greenery hanging above the doorway. “It wasn’t easy hangin’ up that mistletoe either.”

“We still have a few other ideas,” Sweetie Belle piped up, standing amongst the other two as they looked up at the mistletoe above. “But right now, we should probably take that down.”

Scootaloo sighed, “Alright, I’ll get the ladder.”

***

Sunset Shimmer’s leg tapped on the carpet floor of the empty classroom, giving off a rhythmic muffled beat. She just couldn’t contain her excitement, and the wide grin she had on her face was proof of that. On the desk she was sitting at was her laptop, replaying the video she had uploaded that morning.

She couldn’t believe how well her plan worked. A few videos here and there, and suddenly Sora was an outcast. She didn’t have to worry about him, what with his reputation utterly destroyed. It was remarkable who gullible the students were, they’d believe anything, even if it came from her. She did have a history of exposing people for who they really were, not lying about it, but it hardly mattered. With a satisfied sigh, she closed her laptop, sitting back comfortably.

“That’s what you get when you mess with me,” she proclaimed, nodding her head slightly.

“My, my,” an eerily familiar voice echoed in the room, causing Sunset to jump, “It seems you have everything planned out.”

Whipping her head around, Sunset glared at the witch that she had spoken with not too long ago. There stood Maleficent, holding that confident smile that Sunset had remembered from the last time they had met. With a huff, Sunset pushed off of the desk, turning around to face Maleficent fully.

“And just what do you want?” Sunset snapped, crossing her arms. Maleficent merely chuckled darkly, taking a few steps forward.

“Just to congratulate you on your success,” she explained, “Even if it is trivial.”

“Whatever,” Sunset waved off, rolling her eyes at the same time. She had won, and it hardly mattered what Maleficent said. Actually, Sunset had no reason to involve herself with Maleficent. With that thought, Sunset smirked, “It looks like I didn’t need your help after all.”

“We’ll see,” Maleficent replied, taking more steps forward. Sunset frowned at the response, somewhat irritated that Maleficent was acting all high and mighty around her. When Maleficent was close enough, she leaned forward and put her hand under Sunset’s chin, lifting it up in fascination. “You remind me of when I was younger. So devious, and yet so fetching.”

Sunset jerked away, knocking the hand away at the same time, “I sincerely doubt that.”

Instead of feeling insulted like Sunset had anticipated, Maleficent chuckled some more, placing both of her hands back on her staff as she stood up straight. “If you say so,” she said with a final grunt of amusement, “I came here for another reason as well: You mustn't underestimate Sora. He has proven to be far more troublesome than any other I had encountered. He is quite determined and resilient.”

From the way Maleficent spoke, it sounded like she had experience with Sora before. It made Sunset hesitate, suddenly finding Maleficent's advice very valid. “Wait,” she said slowly, raising an eyebrow, “Have you dealt with Sora before?”

“Oh yes,” she said with a nod, “And my words still stand.” With that said, she turned away from Sunset, walking away from her. “But you have nothing to worry about now. After all, you have a victory to celebrate, do you not?”

Sunset had reached her limit at that point. Maleficent was almost mocking her for how she had crushed Sora like a bug, and it was getting on her nerves. “Mind your own business,” she exclaimed as Maleficent faded away and disappearing completely. Sunset glared where Maleficent last was for a while. She had beaten Sora at her own game, yet it didn’t feel complete. She was missing something…

Whatever it was, she could probably do without it, so she briskly picked up her laptop and left the room. She wasn’t going to let Maleficent's words taunt her. She had won.

***

Xigbar smiled smugly. It was too good to be true. It was so unbelievable that he had to suppress a laugh from how absurd it was. Even if it was true, it would only make him fill up with even more mirth. Crossing his arms, Xigbar looked over to his side, and saw that Saïx did not change in appearance whatsoever. If anything, he was even grimmer than before.

Standing in the middle of the soccer field, Xigbar turned back to the hooded figure in the black coat, his silence speaking volumes. “So…” Xigbar drawled, failing to hide a few chuckles, “You really want to face Sora and the others without us? Can’t say that’s very smart.”

“And you’re an amature in that perspective,” Saïx muttered sarcastically, closing his eyes a few seconds before opening them again at the figure. “Your actions go against the orders of our Master. You do realize this, correct?”

“How little you know,” the figure retorted, not sounding hostile yet not at all friendly either, “Have you no faith in those of higher status?”

“Higher status?” Xigbar laughed, holding up a hand horizontally above the figure, “If you were a higher status, I think you’d be a few inches taller.”

Ignoring Xigbar’s comment, Saïx narrowed his eyes, “I have plenty of faith, but not in you. If you were not related to our Master, I would pull you out for treason.”

“But that is not the case,” the figure said simply, remaining unmoving, “And you’d very well listen. What I have planned does not concern either of you.”

“Whatever you say,” Xigbar shrugged, “If you beat ‘em, good for us. If you fail, well, it’ll be entertaining to see you crash and burn.”

Saïx stared at the figure for a few seconds longer, contemplating whether the figure could really handle it himself. He had proven himself useful in the Dream Worlds, but his secrecy was what truly made Saïx question his motives. If their Master had concealed the figure’s true mission, then neither Xigbar nor Saïx had no sway in the task.

“Very well,” Saïx said at last, “But do not disappoint our Master.”

“I wouldn’t be able to if I try,” the figure stated, and if his tone wasn’t so monotone, it would almost sound like he was bragging. The figure was encompassed in darkness before disappearing altogether, leaving Saïx and Xigbar alone.

“Wow-wee,” Xigbar said, his smile still on his lips, “He really is like Xehanort. Has the superiority complex and everything.”

“I would have to agree,” Saïx said with a single nod before turning away.

Xigbar raised an eyebrow at his partner’s statement, his grin intensifying. “I thought I’d never see the day,” he said with a laugh, lifting up both of his hands to point at Saïx, “You agree with me and think that little guy is as annoying as the old coot? That’s a double whammy if I ever heard one.”

“It’s merely an observation,” Saïx said with a glance over his shoulder, “Nothing more. Now, come along, let’s see how this plays out.”

“And now you want to watch what Sora and the others will do?” Xigbar said, following behind. “I must really be a bad influence.”

***

Practice did nothing to drive away the angry thoughts Rainbow had in her mind. And stopping it early only made it worse. Trudging through the halls with her soccer ball in hand, Rainbow gave a slow shake of her head, wondering how the others were doing. They were most likely at lunch, which is where she was heading. She had received a text awhile ago that Sora was found and Roxas was awake, but nothing more than that.

It didn’t surprise Rainbow that they weren’t texting her details about how Sora and Roxas were doing. Before she had left for practice, Rainbow had gotten a good look at how Applejack and Fluttershy were behaving from watching the video. It didn’t feel good to see her friends in such a way, especially for Applejack, who had taken it the worst. She was probably as athletically fit as herself, and to see her so down in the dumps made Rainbow Dash really dislike Sunset Shimmer.

With a heavy sigh, she looked off to the side, wondering how Sora and Roxas were taking the news. As she passed another hallway, her eyes caught something that made her stop in her tracks. A figure stood there with his back to her, standing quite tall. He had on a black coat, with a hood covering his head. It was exactly what the Organization looked like.

The figure was admiring the area, looking around like he had no other reason to be there. Luckily, Rainbow knew the real reason, and growled angrily. The video was already making her mad, but to see one of the Organization members walking around pushed her passed the limits. Without really thinking, she dropped her soccer ball and kicked it hard. The ball sailed through the air before hitting the figure directly in the back of the head. The figure flinched from the impact, whipping around with his hand out, like he was going to summon something. However, upon seeing Rainbow, the figure lowered his hand, shaking his head instead.

“That was uncalled for,” the figure quipped, his male voice being somewhat softer than Rainbow expected. The figure knelt down to pick up the ball near his feet, studying the object a while.

“Yeah, right,” Rainbow said, tightening her hands. “Just take your Organization and leave us alone.”

“Organization, you say?” the figure asked, tossing the ball between his hands, “I’m no longer part of them. Though, I am curious how I ended up in a place like this. It reminds me of the years before I became a Nobody, but I’ve never been here in all my life.”

“Don’t try to trick me!” Rainbow shouted, pointing an accusatory finger at him. “All you want to do it take our friendship away or whatever. Well, we’re not going to let that happen.”

The figure grunted, tossing the ball back to Rainbow, which landed on the ground and rolled towards her. “Say what you will,” the figure said rather calmly, “I want no part in this conflict as of now. I only just got my body back, and I’d rather keep it this time.”

Rainbow’s furrowed brow allowed a single eyebrow to rise, wondering if this figure really was speaking the truth. The ball rolled up to her, and she stopped it with a foot, still keeping her eyes on the figure. “So, if you’re not going after friendship,” Rainbow said, tilting her head to the side, “Then… what are you doing here?”

The figure shook his head, “Nothing. As I said, I am not involving myself with any of these parties. The keybladers, the Organization, Maleficent, Vexen and Zexion; they all vie for the same thing. If anything, I’m a spectator. But if you want me gone, then that’s what I’ll do.”

Turning around the figure walked away, just like that. Rainbow had half a mind to follow him and see where he went. But she knew she had to tell Sora and Roxas. They knew about these guys more than her, and they would know what to do. Nodding to herself, she picked up her ball and took off for the cafeteria, leaving the figure alone.

***

When Rainbow arrived at the cafeteria, in a time she would have been proud of if she had kept track, she scanned over the room before her eyes landed on her friends. Weaving her way over to them, she was able to overhear what they were talking about.

“So that’s where you’re sleeping?” Rarity asked in disbelief, sitting across from Sora, “A space ship?”

That made Rainbow pause.

“Yeah,” Sora answered with a smile, “The Gummi Ship. It’s how I got here in the first place.”

Rainbow’s eyes widened as a smile grew on her face until she was expressing pure excitement. “That is awesome!” she shouted, her previous encounter forgotten. After all, if he was going to do something, Sora and Roxas would stop him no problem. Her yell made everyone turn over to her, a bit startled by her sudden appearance.

“Rainbow,” Twilight called with a smile, “Glad you could make it. How was practice-?”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Rainbow waved as she quickly took a seat next to Sora, facing him with joy, “Tell me more about this space ship!”

Sora laughed, as did a few others, at Rainbow’s conduct. It had lightened up the mood considerably. And with the thought of a party tonight, everyone’s moods had risen dramatically.

***

“I don’t think this is going to work,” Apple Bloom deadpanned, holding a grape in one hand, “Like at all.”

“Don’t be so negative,” Scootaloo said, watching the group of friends hang out at a table. “All we have to do is to get that grape on Fluttershy’s plate, have her eat it, pretend to choke, then have Sora kiss her to help her. What could go wrong?”

Sweetie Belle sighed, “That plan seemed a lot better on paper.”

“Yeah,” Apple Bloom nodded, “This is just getting ridiculous. I mean, our last idea was to dress up as aliens and force them to kiss.”

“Oh come on, guys,” Scootaloo scolded, turning to them with an expression of hurt, “I thought we wanted Sora and Fluttershy to love each other.”

“We do,” Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle replied simultaneously, looking a bit distressed.

“It’s just that we don’t know the first thing about love,” Sweetie Belle explained, “so how are we going to get them together?”

Scootaloo tapped her chin, thinking about someone would be an expert on love. That’s when an idea struck her, causing her to smile brightly. “Follow me, guys,” she said walking towards the exit, “I think I know someone who can help us.”

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle glanced at each other with uncertainty. It wasn’t that they didn’t trust Scootaloo, but that she tended to put them in bad situations a lot of the times. With a hint of reluctance, the two chased after Scootaloo, leaving the cafeteria behind.

Chapter 14: Before the Fun

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 14: Before the Fun

The basement of the school was a place that was considered off limits. Students, nor a few of the staff members, were allowed within the dark confines that lay underneath the school. Not that there was anything of importance or value. It was simply uncared for, with broken lights and leaky pipes, making the place quite hazardous. However, because of the room’s off limit rule, it was a perfect place to hide. No worries about peering eyes, or sudden walk in’s.

It was a brilliant hideout for both Vexen and Zexion.

Though Vexen would have loved to have taken credit for finding it, Zexion was really the one who suggested it. It wasn't too far away to keep up with the events happening constantly, yet it wasn’t too close to be caught by their enemies. It was also the perfect place to conceal something far more sinister than Vexen had ever came up with.

However, despite the plan coming along nicely, Vexen was quite irritated by the overall progress. They may have started the plan yesterday, but the implementation wasn’t instantaneous, even with an illusionist like Zexion at work. Pacing had no effect on the speed in which Zexion worked, but it was all Vexen could do. His steps echoed in the empty room, his arms behind his back as his face was contorted in barely restrained annoyance and fury. The dim lighting and bland walling only made it worse.

With a growl, Vexen walked straight for a door, barging right through it as he ground his teeth. “How long could it take, Zexion?” he snarled, gripping his hands in front of him.

“Patience,” Zexion replied calmly, unfazed by Vexen’s sudden entrance. Zexion had his large, black book in his hands, leafing through the many pages that were filled with incantations and spells. He sat in the center of the room inside of a white circle, drawn with chalk, and surrounding him were a dozen Dusks which stood on the ring. With a quick glance to Vexen, Zexion turned another page. “This type of magic is very complex and delicate. Forcing it to be finished will only lead to little or no change whatsoever.”

Vexen grunted disdainfully, but remained silent, knowing that Zexion was right. As much as he wanted it done, rushing the process wouldn’t work in their favor. He had to sacrifice speed for quality. With a small sneer, Vexen crossed his arms, gazing around the group of Dusks that remained perfectly still. They weren’t even in a small idle dance like they usually were. It was amazing how obedient they were, especially since they were nothing like that back in the Castle that Never Was.

At that thought, Vexen chuckled, placing a hand over his mouth in an ill way to hide it. This did not go unbeknownst to Zexion, who raised an eyebrow while still reading his book.

“Something you find amusing?” he questioned.

“I was simply regarding the Nobodies,” Vexen answered, gesturing to the Dusks, “I know you are well versed in illusions, but to have the Nobodies think we’re Nobodies as well is quite astonishing.”

“I’m surprised you're still up hung on that topic,” Zexion said, causing Vexen to frown, “There was no logic in tricking the Nobodies into thinking we were a part of them until recently. I’ve always had the ability, just no reason to use it.”

Vexen turned away, doubting that considerably. Zexion may have been powerful with his illusions, but there was no way he would have had a spell like that before hand. Though he was the one who came up with the idea, it was still far fetched for Vexen to believe. Still, it hardly mattered in the long run, especially with what Zexion came up with.

Walking over to examine one of the Dusks, Vexen asked, “When did you say you would be finished?”

“In three days time,” Zexion answered before lifting his eyes off of his work, facing Vexen completely for the the first time. “Why do you ask?”

Vexen chuckled darkly, turning to leave, “Oh, no reason. I just can’t bare the wait.”

***

The top room of the Mysterious Tower was shrouded in silence. Yen Sid stood in front of the moon-shaped window, gazing out into the abyss of stars. His mind was constantly wondering about the progress of the keybladers. He hadn’t explicitly told Sora or Riku how long they would have to remain in that new world. He had hoped that they would keep the Darkness away long enough for it to lose interest. However, certain events were changing his position on the issue.

It was quite clear that the Darkness would always seek out the magic of friendship. Having Sora and Riku in the new world had helped protect the magic, but they couldn’t remain there forever. The Darkness was trying with all its might to destroy the magic of friendship, through the efforts of Xehanort and any other parties.

It was at that point that Yen Sid came to a sad conclusion. Even if Sora and Riku were able to drive away the Darkness, either by pushing it away or finishing it off completely, it would come back in time. Their objective was important, but it would only be a temporary solution. And considering they were dealing with Xehanort, it was obvious that he had a plan if he were to fail.

Though it was unavoidable, it did stand true that Sora’s efforts were making an impact. In time, Yen Sid had no doubt Sora would find Riku and fight back the Darkness, even if the results lasted a short time. And that would mean his return to his home in Destiny Islands, and in turn, would mean…

Yen Sid looked back over to Kairi, standing against the wall with her head facing the floor. Her mood had not improved since she had arrived with King Mickey after the incident at the Keyblade Graveyard. She was really torn up about Lea, and Yen Sid knew that being distracted may be the only thing to get her mind off of it. Or some good news.

It was at that moment that Mickey pushed open the door to the room, taking a deep breath at finally arriving back from his trip to the new world. Kairi instantly noticed his appearance, pushing off the wall as she briskly made her way over to him.

“Your majesty,” she said, her tone desperate as she clenched her hands in nervousness. “Did you talk to Sora? How is he? Did he find Riku yet?”

“It’s alright, Kairi,” Mickey replied calmly, holding up a hand to rest her anxiety, “Sora is fine. I told him about the situation, and unfortunately, he hasn’t found Riku yet. But I did learn that Roxas is with him.”

“Roxas?” Kairi questioned, tilting her head to the side in shock. Her mind was at ease knowing that her friend was okay, but the new information threw her for a loop. “You mean Sora’s Nobody? How did he come back?”

Mickey shook his head. “Your guess is as good as mine.”

Kairi leaned back, putting a hand over her heart at the same time. She was thinking back to when she had her own ‘Nobody’. If Roxas was able to come back, did that mean the same could be said for Naminé?

“I believe I can answer that question,” Yen Sid spoke up, causing Kairi and Mickey to turn their heads to him. He walked over to his desk before sitting down, closing his eyes in thought. The other two walked in front of him, standing side by side as they awaited his response. They didn’t need to wait long as he opened his eyes and spoke.

“The world Sora and Riku entered is special,” he started. “The magic of friendship is held within. You both know this, correct?”

After Kairi and Mickey’s nods, Yen Sid continued. “This magic is very powerful, and not even I know it’s limitations. However, it can stand to reason that Sora is connected to this magic in some way. How this is possible is because he is the key. Whether he is the key to friendship itself is yet to be determined, but the magic of friendship in that world is connecting Sora with his friends. Those who have no means of activity on their own are especially affected.”

“What do you mean by ‘activity’?” Kairi asked.

“I mean those who do not have physical bodies, or those who are asleep by internal means,” Yen Sid answered, “This is particularly evident in Roxas. He cannot exist on his own, but with the aid of Sora’s heart and the world’s unique magic, he is able to manifest into existence. Who else lie in Sora’s heart may reveal themselves in due time.”

Kairi smiled brightly, “So, is there a chance Naminé could appear?”

“Perhaps,” Yen Sid nodded, “But remember, Naminé is a part of you, Kairi. Though Sora is connected to her as a friend, she is linked with your heart. She may be able to fade in and out, but without you in that world, she would not be able to come back fully.”

Kairi let that sink in a moment, making sure she understood completely. It was rather confusing, but she grasped the concept easily enough. Yen Sid turned to Mickey, who stood to attention as he was addressed.

“My old friend,” Yen Sid said. “Besides informing Sora about Lea, did you also do as I requested?”

“Yep,” Mickey responded. “The defenses are in place. I also told ‘em how to activate it. Hopefully it won’t come to that.”

“Very good.” Yen Sid nodded in acknowledgement, stroking his long beard. “Now then, I suggest that Kairi get back to her training. She still has much to learn.”

Kairi gave a half smile as she gave a silent giggle. Though she really did need to learn more about combat, she was certain she was catching up to Sora and Riku. In time, she would be able to help them, instead of standing on the sidelines.

***

At long last, the final bell for the school day had rung, signaling the beginning of the weekend. The hallways were quickly filled with the chatter of students, flooding the area without much thought. Despite the packed environment, Twilight and Rarity had no problem walking through without any hindrance, the students coincidentally getting out of their way. As Twilight stared directly ahead, a few books wrapped in her arms in front of her chest, Rarity looked around like she was in deep thought. However, her eyes always strayed back to Twilight, narrowing her eyes every time she did.

Twilight took no notice of this, not until she was suddenly grabbed by the elbow by Rarity. Twilight dropped her books in an instant as she was dragged into an empty classroom. It happened so fast that she couldn’t even voice a protest before Rarity let her go and pushed her into the room. It wasn’t the violent kind of push, just the kind to hurry her along. Rarity slammed the door shut, standing in front of it with her arms spread off to the side as if Twilight was going to try to escape.

“Alright, darling,” Rarity said, looking very determined as she furrowed her brow. Twilight, for her part, blinked multiple times, wondering what was even happening. “You must tell me what is on your mind.”

Twilight tilted her head to the side, brandishing her confusion openly. “On my mind?” Twilight repeated, “What are you talking about?”

“Oh, don’t play games with me regarding relationships!” Rarity practically shouted, pointing a finger at her before quickly walking to stand in front of her. “I know that look. You had the same one around Flash Sentry. You have a crush on someone.”

Twilight swallowed, chuckling nervously as she looked the other way. She didn’t think she was that easy to read. Then a thought struck her as she looked at Rarity, who had a smirk with her arms crossed in triumph. “Wait a minute,” Twilight said, rubbing her chin, “Rarity, how could you know what ‘look’ I had for a guy I was thinking about? I’ve never been interested in another boy before, especially not someone named ‘Flash Sentry’.”

Rarity’s eyes widened, realizing her slip up. With a groan, she softly hit her head with her fist. Why hadn’t anyone told Twilight about the other Twilight from the pony world? Then again, Rarity wasn’t about to say anything either. That answered her question fast enough.

Taking a deep breath, Rarity gave an exaggerated smile, showing her teeth as she tried to cover up what she said. “Well, um, darling,” she said, placing a hand on Twilight’s shoulder. “I, eh… saw the same look on Fluttershy! You and her aren’t too far apart when it comes to boys. Heh heh.”

Twilight blushed a bit from that response, accepting it without much argument. Rarity gave a sigh of relief, relaxing her shoulders before standing tall again. “So you do have a boy in mind, hmm?” Rarity asked, regaining the upper hand.

That caused Twilight's blush to grow, bowing her head in an attempt to hide it. “Maybe…” she mumbled, but it was heard by Rarity regardless of her volume, who gasped sharply, a wide smile on her face.

“Why, darling!” she said as her hands landed on her cheeks. “That’s splendid! You simply must tell me who it is!”

Reluctantly, Twilight twirled a strand of her hair in her hands, “...Roxas.”

Another sharp gasp came from Rarity, looking very giddy with this new set of information. “You like Roxas?!” she said, her voice cracking a bit from her excitement. “That’s marvelous, darling!” Rarity grabbed a chair nearby and sat down on it, leaning forward intently. “Tell me everything!”

Twilight let out a sigh, knowing there was no way around it. Rarity leaned forward in anticipation, but before Twilight could say a word, the door burst open, startling both of them.

“Twilight!” Pinkie said, holding all of the books Twilight had dropped in the hallway, “Why is all your stuff on the floor? I’m pretty sure that’s not where books go. Unless you’re starting a trend, in which case, I highly recommend you start a different one!”

The tone was cheery and positive, as usual, and Twilight and Rarity couldn’t help but giggle. “Pinkie,” Twilight said, walking past Rarity and over to her other friend. “I didn’t do it on purpose.”

“Well, duh,” Pinkie said as she passed Twilight’s books to her. “That’s why it’s a joke, silly.”

With a smile and a roll of her eyes, Twilight shuffled back to Rarity, setting the books down on a nearby desk. Pinkie looked between the two before asking innocently, “Why are you two in here anyway?”

“Twilight likes Roxas!” Rarity blurted, making Twilight hide her face in her hands in embarrassment.

“Whoa,” Pinkie said in surprise, her jaw dropping, before counting her fingers. “So we have Fluttershy liking Sora and Twilight liking Roxas. What exactly do those two have in common?”

“Why, they’re heroes, darling,” Rarity explained nonchalantly, brushing her hair to the side. “Everyone likes a good hero. They’re chivalrous, courageous, and are very loyal to someone who’s captured their heart. Why, the way Sora and Roxas fought all those ruffians yesterday… I would go so far as to say that no one in this school could compare!”

Rubbing her head, Twilight thought back to when she had suddenly liked Roxas. It was so nonsensical, yet it didn’t feel forced. Though there was some entity nudging her along, she felt like it was meant to be. For Twilight, she hadn’t realized what it would be like to have someone to love, or how much she actually wanted it.

With a sigh, she stood up straight, giving Rarity a determined stare. “Rarity, Pinkie Pie,” Twilight said, turning to each of them in turn, “Can we please just go now? I don’t want to talk about it right now.”

With an unladylike groan, Rarity pushed herself to her feet dramatically. “Oh, very well.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie agreed, jabbing a thumb towards Rarity. “What she said.”

“Thank you,” Twilight said with a smile, relieved that the subject was dropped. With a quick swivel, she grabbed her books again, adjusting them to hold them comfortably. Rarity walked over to stand by Pinkie, not thrilled that she was denied a chance to hear of another relationship. After having everything settled, Twilight made for the door and pushed it open, entering the crowded hallway again. Rarity and Pinkie Pie followed behind, with the mood between them completely apparent. Though the hallways were as full as before, the three still had no trouble walking around. With Twilight a little ahead of the other two, it gave a bit of room for Pinkie to ask a question that was on her mind.

“Say Rarity,” Pinkie said, a thoughtful expression on her face as Rarity looked at her expectantly. “What if another hero like Sora and Roxas appeared? Who would love him?”

Rarity shook her head, “Darling, it isn’t just because they’re heroes. There are many other factors that go into it. And besides, not all heroes fall in love.”

“You sound like you speak from experience,” Pinkie pointed out, blinking and smiling innocently.

Rarity faced the other way with a small scowl, “...Perhaps.”

***

“What?” Miss Cheerilee asked in puzzlement, holding a stack of books in her arms. “No, I’m not an expert on love.”

Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo groaned in disappointment, each of them not liking that answer at all. They stood in the library, where Cheerilee was working after school hours. Cheerilee shook her head as she walked past the girls, heading for a bookshelf underneath the balcony.

“Are you sure?” Scootaloo asked desperately, running up to Cheerilee. “You had a lot to say about love when we tried to get you and Apple Bloom’s brother together.”

In the middle of reshelving a book, Cheerilee shot a sharp glare at Scootaloo, who chuckled nervously. “Okay, I see your point,” Scootaloo said with an uneasy smile.

“Well,” Sweetie Belle spoke up, walking with Apple Bloom to stand beside Scootaloo. “If you don’t know much about love, then who does?”

Cheerilee sighed, knowing there was no way to get rid of the three girls without answering them. “Probably Miss Cadence. She’s always bragging about it.”

“Why didn’t we think of that before?” Apple Bloom asked, causing the other two to shrug. “Let’s get goin’ then.”

Just as the three were about to head for the door, a loud cough came from Cheerilee, catching their attention. “Girls, she already left. She always leaves early once school is over. You’ll have to wait until Monday.”

“Aww,” Scootaloo whined, kicking a speck of dirt on the floor. “That’s lame.”

“I guess ‘Operation: Get Sora and Fluttershy Together’ is a no go, huh?” Sweetie Belle asked, looking to her friends.

With a raised brow, Apple Bloom said, “First off, we never gave this ‘operation’ a name. Second, what kinda name is that?”

“A good one,” Sweetie Belle beamed, smiling with pride.

“Anyway,” Scootaloo spoke up, breaking up Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle’s argument before it could escalate. “We’ll have to wait until Monday to talk to her.”

“Well, duh,” Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle said simultaneously.

Scootaloo threw her arms in the air with a groan, “Ah, whatever.”

The three left the room quietly, causing Cheerilee to look back with a frown. However, it didn’t last long as her lips erupted into a smile. Grunting to herself, Cheerilee got back to reshelving books while whispering, “Those three girls certainly make a good team.”

***

Sora leaned against the wall beside the trophy case of the main lobby with his arms crossed. His mind was wandering off to the party that was planned in less than an hour. The thought of just hanging out and having fun wasn’t foreign to him, but it was very different to what had been happening over the last few years.

With a chuckle of anticipation, Sora imagined how Roxas would behave in such an area. However, it was quickly taken away as his mind drifted over to Riku. There he was, running to have some fun when Riku was still in the control of the enemy. If there was some way to free him, Sora would search for it relentlessly. Sadly, that wasn’t the case, so he was forced to wait.

Maybe he really did need this party; it would help him get his mind off all of his troubles, even if only for a short time.

A shadow suddenly passed over Sora, breaking his train of thought as he looked up to a rather intimidating figure. He wasn’t really mean looking or anything, but his tall stature and stoic expression made Sora uneasy. He had on an open red jacket over a white shirt, with blue jeans, reddish tan skin and orange hair. His eyes, though looking uninterested, stared at Sora like daggers.

Looking up at him, since the guy was a head taller, Sora scratched the back of his head nervously. He wanted to tear his gaze away, but found his eyes glued to the other’s. It actually scared Sora a little.

“Um…” Sora started, noticing how close the man stood. “Can I help you?”

“Eeyup,” the man answered, but gave no other response, prompting Sora to fill in the blanks himself. Based on the events that had unfolded that morning, Sora gave a fairly educated guess

“Does it involve the video?” Sora asked, already knowing the answer. He had to wonder why the figure couldn’t just say what was on his mind, but Sora dared not say that out loud.

“Eeyup,” the figure answered simply again, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly.

“Right,” Sora replied, taking a deep breath, “Well, what exactly are you upset about? All I can say is that Sunset was lying about me.”

“Even ‘bout Applejack?” the man suddenly asked, catching Sora off guard. Sure, Sora had gotten more than a few comments regarding the video, but most of them were about how he acted towards Fluttershy. This lead to Sora jumping to a certain conclusion.

“Are you… Applejack’s brother, Big Mac?” Sora asked back, gesturing towards the figure.

“Eeyup,” Big Mac answered yet again with a short nod. That definitely put Sora on edge, if Big Mac hadn’t already. Hoping to defuse the situation before it could become worse, Sora waved his arms in front of him rapidly, looking quite distraught.

“It’s not what it looks like,” Sora explained. “Me and Applejack aren’t going out. We’re just friends.”

Even Sora had to admit that it sounded forced. Though Big Mac didn’t look too angry, the tone he spoke in made it clear he wasn’t amused, “How can I trust ya?”

Sora’s mouth hung open, unsure how to answer that question. He never even considered that Applejack’s relatives would react to the video. Knowing that he was in trouble, Sora idly scratched his cheek, his hope fleeting with each passing second.

“Sora? Big Mac?” Applejack said, suddenly entering the lobby to see the two. Her expression was a mix between confusion and anger, as if she already knew what was going on. “What the hay is goin’ on?”

Sora wasn’t sure how to respond, knowing that Big Mac was simply trying to protect his sister. Instead, he looked between them anxiously, unsure how to say it. Thankfully, Applejack was able to put the puzzle together as she gave a frustrated and surprised grunt.

“Big Mac,” she said sternly, marching right up her brother, who actually showed a bit of fear as he winced. “Are ya gettin’ mad at Sora for that video?”

Based off of Big Mac’s expression, he definitely didn’t want to answer, already regretting his actions as he looked to the floor. “...Eeyup.”

“Oh for the love of…” Applejack muttered to herself, putting a hand to her forehead as she closed her eyes. “Big Mac, Sunset Shimmer put that video up. You know, the girl that tried ta brainwash everyone?”

That statement made Big Mac cower a bit, but Applejack was far from done as she put her hands on her hips, “And another thing. Even if Sora was my…” She stopped for a moment to look off to the side. “...boyfriend, I don’t need ya to confront him. You can come to me.”

“But-”

“I don’t wanna hear it,” Applejack interrupted with a shake of her head. Seeing Applejack talk down to Big Mac bewildered Sora, thinking that the older sibling was the one that should be the one to scold the other. Never the less, Sora sympathized with Big Mac, and knew he had to defend him, even a little bit.

“Hey, don’t be too hard on him,” Sora interjected, taking a few steps forward. Applejack whipped her gaze over to him, but Sora stood firm. “He was just looking out for you, and you can’t get mad at him for that.”

Applejack stared at Sora for a few seconds before she gave a heavy sigh, relaxing her body, “I suppose you're right, Sugarcube.”

Big Mac released a sigh of relief, but Applejack got up to his face, causing him to jerk back. “But I don’t want ya believin’ Sunset’s lies, ya hear?”

“Eeyup,” Big Mac answered quickly, nodding his head.

“Good,” Applejack said, taking a few steps away. Big Mac released a breath he had been holding and wiped away some sweat that had formed on his forehead. Another small glare from Applejack caused him to turn away from the two and briskly head out the front door. After he left, Applejack chuckled, her seriousness dropping instantly. “He’s a nice fella when ya get to know him, but he gets a little protective.”

“Ha! I’ll say!” Rainbow said with a big grin, revealing herself as she walked up to the Sora and Applejack. “I haven’t seen him so scared since the time you tried getting him with Miss Cheerilee.”

Sora chuckled himself, crossing his arms. “Now that’s something I’d like to see.”

“See what?” Pinkie Pie asked, her arms behind her back as she lead all of the other friends. “If it’s cake, I’d like to see too.”

“No, nothin’ like that, Pinkie,” Applejack said with humor in her voice while waving a hand. Sora glanced to the group that had entered, noting that everyone was all gathered together.

“Are we all set?” Sora asked, more to Pinkie as she was the one who was setting this party up.

“Yes indeedy,” Pinkie quipped with a cheerful hop. “Everyone is ready to get funky with it.”

“Assuming that means to party,” Rarity whispered with a glance to Pinkie. “I concur. We’re ready.”

With a final nod, everyone turned for the door and headed for the entrance. Though everyone was quiet, they were enthusiastic about the time off, especially Rainbow Dash, who was quivering in excitement.

“This is going to be awesome,” she said, pumping her arms beside herself. “The first thing I’m going to do is-”

“Halt,” the authoritative voice of Vice Principal Luna exclaimed, freezing everyone in their tracks. Turning their heads, they all saw Luna standing there with her arms crossed, an unamused expression on her face. Her face alone made the group frown, making them apprehensive to what she wanted. The few students that were lingering in the lobby hastily made for the exit, leaving the entire area to themselves.

“Um…” Twilight spoke up for the group, breaking off from them and approaching Luna cautiously. “Is there a problem, Vice Principal Luna?”

Luna nodded, her eyes on Twilight a moment before turning to the group. “I’ve just come in regards to Fluttershy’s detention, and I suppose Sora’s as well.”

“Oh no,” Sora mumbled, a hand landing over his eyes. “I forgot.”

Fluttershy wasn’t taking it well either, her hands stroking her pink hair as she muttered over and over, “Oh dear, oh dear…”

It was sadly true that Sora and Fluttershy hadn’t finished their detention yet. As far as they knew, they had only finished half of the hallways they were meant to clean. It had slipped both of their minds, since the many events that had unfolded regarding the video and the anticipation of the party had kept their mind busy.

Sora scanned over his friends, seeing that they were looking at either him or Fluttershy, who was really looking sad. She was as excited for the party as much as he was, though she didn’t necessarily show it. Sora couldn’t bear to see her so sad, and with finality, he walked forward towards Luna and Twilight.

“I’ll take over for her detention,” Sora announced, “So they can go to the party, right?”

The expression Twilight gave him was fondness for his small sacrifice, and sadness at seeing him have to work. The other girls shared a same face, but Roxas simply shook his head as he closed his eyes.

“Always gotta play the hero, huh?” he said, though there was no hint of annoyance, only acknowledgement. He was glad that Sora was able to make such a decision.

“As noble as your request is, Sora,” Luna said, exaggerating the statement and catching everyone’s attention, “I actually came to you to tell you that your detention has been retracted.”

“Retracted?” Rarity repeated.

“Yes,” Luna nodded, having an indifferent demeanor, “Sora and Fluttershy are off the hook.”

“Wait, really?” Sora asked, tilting his head to the side. “Why?”

“Because…” Luna said, trailing off as she was suddenly put on the spot, slightly panicking. “I said so.”

Everyone raised their brow in doubt, except for Fluttershy who simply rubbed her arm, not wanting to question Luna further.

“Run along now,” Luna said with a shooing gesture. “I’m sure you want to get to this party.”

Everyone remained still for a moment, not sure if it was some large prank. However, Luna’s constant shooing eventually made everyone hesitantly head for the doors. A few times they looked behind them, only to see Luna waving goodbye. It only made their suspicion grow, but by the time they completely left the school, Rainbow shouted, “Alright, let’s get going!”

The others slowly but surely dropped their suspicions, continuing down the concrete path. “So Rainbow,” Sora said, making her turn to him with a smile, “What were you saying before? About the first thing you were going to do?”

Rainbow gave a half smirk, turning away with a raise of her chin, “I’ll let it be a surprise.”

The others laughed at that as they continued on their way. Luna, having approached the doors, watched as they disappeared around the corner of the school. A feeling of loneliness washed over her, causing her to sigh. She couldn’t remember the last time she had friends like that, and that wasn’t counting her sister. With her head tilted downward, she turned around to head back to her office, only to nearly run into Celestia. With a yelp, Luna jerked back with her eyes wide, and Celestia gave a barely suppressed giggle.

“Did you want to go partying too, sister?” Celestia asked with a knowing smile, putting a hand on her hip. Luna rubbed her arm in annoyance, keeping her eyes trained to the floor.

“No, Tia,” she replied exasperatedly, knowing that Celestia had teased her many times before. After a few seconds, Luna looked back to Celestia, turning serious. “I’ve done what you asked,” she stated, “But may I ask why?”

“Certainly,” Celestia responded calmly, her smile never wavering. “They’ve had a rough couple of days. I think a party is something they all deserve. Especially Sora and Roxas.”

“If you say so,” Luna grumbled, standing up straight as she walked past Celestia. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have many reports to file, especially one pertaining to you-know-who.”

Understanding her meaning, Celestia gave a quiet chuckle. She was happy that Sora and Roxas got some time to goof off, and with the six girls with them, she knew they’d be in safe hands. They really were something else.

As she watched Luna walk back to her office, Celestia’s smile slowly lowered to a frown, thinking back to how Luna watched the group leave. It was mildly depressing, but it was a look that Celestia had seen for a few years. She thought she would be used to it, but it always hurt to see it.

“Oh, Luna,” Celestia said, hugging herself sadly. “Why do you always have to be so busy?”

Author's Note

I don't think I've ever been so busy before in my young life. I suddenly wish I was back in high school, at least then I'd get more chapters out. Anyway, next chapter will come out sooner (I can feel it), and it'll be great. Trust me!

Chapter 15: Party Time

Author's Note

I was unable to double check the music links at the time of publication, so I apologize before hand and will fix any problems as soon as possible.

Chapter 15: Party Time

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 15: Party Time

The trip down the sidewalk to the club gave the group plenty of time to converse. However, Sora found the sights to be quite inviting, having never left the school since arriving. His eyes wandered all over the place, never straying on one point for too long. Roxas wasn’t as attentive, since he had made a hasty run through with Twilight yesterday. Even still, he found himself gazing over to a few things that caught his eye.

“You guys look a bit out of it,” Rainbow noted, nudging an elbow at Sora’s arm as she walked in between him and Roxas at the front.

Sora tore his eyes away from his sight seeing to face Rainbow, giving a small smile. “Well, it isn’t everyday I get to explore another world,” he explained, putting both of his hands behind his head.

“Yes, it is,” Rainbow argued playfully, “You have a spaceship for crying out loud!”

“Maybe,” Sora agreed with a nod before giving a sly look, “But I’m not supposed to be meddling in other worlds in the first place.”

Rainbow rolled her eyes, “Yeah, yeah, because of the world order.”

“Never stopped me,” Roxas said with an idle shrug.

“You used Corridors of Darkness to get around, right?” Sora asked, lowering his arms with a raised brow.

Roxas nodded with a smirk, “It wasn’t so bad using them. Made traveling a lot faster, that’s for sure.”

“Can you make them still?” Sora asked, honestly curious whether it is still possible.

Roxas frowned a little, shaking his head, “Even if I could, I don’t think it would be a good idea. Xemnas told me those who used it were at a great risk in being corrupted or destroyed by the Darkness. At the time, everyone thought we were without hearts, so we didn’t care.”

Looking between the two, Rainbow gave a slightly frantic expression as she exclaimed, “Hey, don’t leave me in the dark here! What are you talking about?”

Sora and Roxas blinked, forgetting she was still part of their conversation. That simply made them laugh at her, making her pout. Meanwhile, Applejack and Pinkie were walking behind them, having their own conversation.

“So can ya remind me how ya were able ta get us into this fancy club?” Applejack asked, having never heard the details. In fact, she wasn’t sure anyone really knew.

“Easy,” Pinkie said with dismissive wave, “Vinyl needed help with a certain party at the club, so she called me in because it’s me! And you know me! Then she said she owed me a favor.”

“Oh, I see,” Applejack nodded in understanding, “So you just called in on your favor then?”

“Nope!” Pinkie said with a shake of her head and a bounce in her step, making Applejack’s eyes shoot open, “I did something completely different.”

Applejack pointed at her weakly, absolutely confused. “But then why bring up-?” she stopped herself, closing her eyes as she took a deep breath, “Ya know what, never mind. Probably for the best I don’t know.”

“Probably,” Pinkie said with a quick nod, her smile intensifying.

Trailing behind those two were Fluttershy, Twilight, and Rarity, with the latter narrowing her eyes in thought at the other two. Fluttershy and Twilight tried not to be too inconspicuous, though they had no idea what they could be hiding in the first place. Rubbing her chin, Rarity looked up at the sky for a moment before snapping her fingers, causing the other two to jump a little.

“Okay, girls,” Rarity said in determination, putting a fist into her palm, “At the club, you’re both going to dance with Sora and Roxas.”

“W-What?!” Fluttershy whispered, lowering her head as she glanced over to Sora, making sure he wasn’t listening. “But-But I don’t know if…”

“It’ll be fine,” Rarity reassured, patting Fluttershy’s back, “You like him, right? I’m sure he likes you too.”

Fluttershy mumbled inaudibly, swallowing anxiously. She was just so nervous that something could go terribly wrong. If that was the case, Fluttershy wasn’t sure if she could bare the embarrassment. Just thinking of what could happen made Fluttershy shiver, rubbing her arm for a bit of comfort.

Seeing Fluttershy behave like that made Rarity a bit guilty. She really wanted her friend to find some love, but she had to be careful not to force it too much. She couldn’t ruin this for her. Turning to Twilight, since she hadn’t spoken yet, Rarity noticed she was just as apprehensive. However, she wasn’t nearly as on edge. Glancing over to Rarity, Twilight knew she was waiting for her own reply to Rarity’s solution.

“Well,” Twilight said, rubbing the top of her head, “I can’t really… dance.”

Rarity sighed, remembering how the Pony Twilight acted at the Fall Formal, and it wouldn’t surprise her if this Twilight was the same. Goodness, was it bad. Then again, it didn’t stop Flash Sentry from dancing alongside her. It’s a shame she left, they looked like a nice couple. Of course, after the Pony Twilight left, Flash transferred to a new school. She had heard it was only temporary, for whatever reason, but it was obvious it was because of the Pony Twilight.

“Uh, Rarity?” Twilight asked, knocking Rarity back into reality. “Are you alright?”

“Yes, I’m fine, darling,” Rarity quickly replied, clearing her throat afterwards, “Now, you can’t dance, correct?”

“R-Right…” Twilight agreed, grasping her hands in front of her, “It, uh, runs in the family.”

Humming to herself, Rarity wondered how she could make it work. If Twilight couldn’t dance, then there must be some other way she could spend some quality time with Roxas. Unfortunately, Rarity didn’t know much about the club they were going to, having never been there herself. Once she arrived, she would be able to give a better assessment.

“Oh, looky, looky! We made it!” Pinkie Pie shouted excitedly, pulling everyone out of their conversations. Everyone saw she was pointing to a certain building coming up from down the street. The walls were somewhat mundane, but the blue neon sign that hung above advertised its name: ‘Club Moonlight’. The sun was heading towards the horizon, showing they still had plenty of time before it became too late.

“Let’s get going then!” Rainbow said as she took off for the building, leaving everyone behind. Everyone was quick to follow, their own eagerness growing as they neared the front door. Rainbow burst through the door when she got to it, but was quickly stopped by someone raising their palm in the way. Screeching to a halt, Rainbow gave a saddened and confused look at the hand, just as everyone stopped behind her.

The room was a typical hallway, leading to the main part of the club. The sound of thumping music could be heard only a few yards away, muffled by the walls. The only thing stopping the group was a muscular, bald, suit-wearing man with a blue goatee and dark sunglasses. What set him apart from everyone else was his gray skin.

Realizing that the figure was a bouncer, Rainbow growled as she shoved his hand away. “What’s the big deal?” she questioned angrily.

“No visitors without an invitation,” the bouncer growled, crossing his arms in finality.

“Invitations?” Sora repeated.

“Yes, spiky,” the bouncer spat, making Sora jump back a bit from the insult. As Sora scratched the back of his head, Spike popped out from Twilight’s backpack, looking over to the bouncer with his head tilted.

Noticing this, Twilight reached over her shoulder and patted him a bit with a smile.

“Pinkie,” Rarity said, facing her with a bit of worry slipping into her expression. “You do have the invitations, right?”

“Don’t worry your heads, everybody!” Pinkie said, pushing past everyone to stand at the front. “I got this!” The bouncer was not swayed by these words, standing as still as a statue as Pinkie dramatically cleared her throat. Narrowing her eyes, Pinkie gave a confident smirk. “Simple and clean.”

The simultaneous groan of everyone present was heard, and a few people even facepalmed. However, the bouncer simply gasped, quickly stepping to the side and gesturing to the door. “Vinyl is waiting for you, Pinkamena Diane Pie,” he said with a nod, standing a little straighter.

The group’s annoyance swiftly changed to utter shock as they all stared at Pinkie, who turned to them with a large, innocent smile. “I told you I got this!” she said with a shrug, walking past the bouncer and over to the door. The group was frozen for a few seconds before Rainbow shook out of her stupor, throwing her hands into the air.

“Alright, party time!” Rainbow cheered, rushing forward past Pinkie. As soon as she made it to the door, she practically threw it open, allowing the loud, obnoxious music to come through, reminding everyone they could start their fun.

Smiling, Sora hurried after Pinkie and Rainbow entering the main part of the building. He was instantly at awe at his surroundings, having never been to a place like it before. The whole interior was dark, but had colorful lights dancing around the floor and walls to give just enough illumination to the area. The sides of the room held tables and chairs, and a small vendor sat in the far right corner for refreshments.

What really stole his gaze was the elevated platform that had large speakers to the sides and a turntable between them. At the head of it was a white-skinned girl with wild, electric blue hair. Her purple glasses hid her eyes completely, but her bouncing head and smile showed she was really into the music she was playing. Even the large crowd was enjoying it as they danced wildly, especially Rainbow. Pinkie was strangely no where to be seen. As for Sora, the music was certainly… unique, but maybe he just wasn’t used to hearing it.

“Whoa,” Sora said, giving the room one last sweep before pumping a fist, “Alright, this is what I call a party.”

Roxas grimaced at hearing the music, rubbing one of his ears with his hand as he and the rest of the group stepped beside Sora. “What kind of music is this?” he questioned, “Sounds worse then when Demyx goes freestyle with his sitar.”

“The music isn’t that bad,” Twilight said, wincing a bit from the noise, and not even knowing who Demyx was. Roxas gave her an incredulous look, an eyebrow raising. Twilight simply stared at him with a blank face as Roxas crossed his arms.

“It’s bad,” Roxas deadpanned, glancing over to the side to see Applejack silently chuckling at his quip. Twilight didn’t say anything, not sure what to do after that. Luckily, Rarity pulled her off to the side, though her temper was barely contained as she fumed silently. Rarity brought Twilight over to a table off to the side, and once she got her into a seat, Rarity took one across from her, having a mild glare.

“Twilight,” she said sternly, putting both of her hands on the table as she leaned forward, “Don’t argue with your crush, it leads to bad things.”

Twilight didn’t understand the logic of that as she gave a frightened look, “But I was just-”

“Baaaaad things,” Rarity stressed, leaning forward more until she was just inches away from Twilight. The look Rarity was giving Twilight was enough to make her cower a little under the table, terrified she had ruined everything.

“Wha-What do I do then?” Twilight whimpered out, looking over to Roxas, who was still standing around and looking at everything with furrowed brows. Rarity put on her thinking face, sitting back in her chair as she drummed her fingers for a few seconds. Another look at Roxas made Rarity suddenly get an idea, but it wasn’t one she was completely happy with.

“You’ll sit here and watch him until the time is right,” Rarity said sliding off her seat and standing on her feet, “I will assist Fluttershy in the mean time.”

Twilight made to protest, but remembered she had zero knowledge regarding relationships. If she was going to get with Roxas, she needed to listen to Rarity. So instead of arguing, she nodded her head sorrowfully, facing Roxas as Rarity left.

***

“Woo-wee,” Applejack said, putting a hand on her hat as she watched Rainbow on the dance floor. Fluttershy was just beside her, staring over at Sora, who was simply walking around, examining the room. It was sort of childish for him to do so, but that was just the way he was. “I may not like the music, but everybody sure is having a swell time.”

“Yeah,” Fluttershy said monotonically, never tearing her eyes off of Sora. Applejack quickly took notice of this as she gave a sideways glance over to her. Seeing her in a trance-like state, Applejack gave a small smirk as she looked away from Fluttershy

“It’s a good thing I pick oranges all the time, right?” she asked, hiding her laughter the best she could.

“Yeah,” Fluttershy said instantly, before blinking and turning back to Applejack, “Wait, when did you start picking oranges?”

“Never,” Applejack answered, still smirking. Realizing what she was doing, Fluttershy sagged her shoulders, causing Applejack to somewhat regret her little fun. With a sigh, Applejack put a hand on her shoulder, “You really like that Sora fella, don’tcha?”

Fluttershy’s nod was so small Applejack was lucky to see it, especially in the dark environment they were in. “Well,” Applejack started, quickly racking her brain for something wise to say, “Just be yourself. I should know a little something about that.”

Fluttershy didn’t respond, her mind drawing a blank on what warranted as ‘herself’. Was being kind enough? Was her affection towards him enough? Too many questions buzzing around in her head, and not a single answer in sight. Her breathing increased as anxiety filled her twisted stomach, and she was shivering a little bit too. She just wanted to be with him. Why did it have to be so hard?

“Fluttershy, darling,” Rarity called as she made her way over, a sincere smile on her lips, “I have some time to help you before-”

She was suddenly cut off as Fluttershy ran over to her throwing her arms around her waist. She tightened her grip as Rarity flung her arms in the air, surprised by the sudden hug.

“Rarity!” Fluttershy whispered as loudly as she could, “Please, help! What should I do?!”

Rarity looked down at Fluttershy blankly a moment before turning to Twilight, still sitting in her chair in distraught. Finally, she faced Applejack, who was looking a bit uncomfortable about the topic.

“Maybe I’ll let y’all have a moment to yourselves,” Applejack announced, quickly heading over to Rainbow Dash, who was still dancing like there was no tomorrow.

Giving a tired sigh, Rarity put her hands on Fluttershy’s shoulders and carefully pushed her back. Thankfully, Fluttershy released her and backed away a few steps. Her arms were clutching each other tightly, and her ragged breathing softened Rarity’s heart even more. If she didn’t know better, she’d think Fluttershy was trying to stop herself from sobbing.

“Darling,” Rarity said tenderly, stopping for a moment to find the right words, “Don’t worry too much. Sora is too kind to hurt your feelings. Just get to know him.”

Fluttershy nodded a little bit, giving a shaky sigh as she tried to clear her thoughts a little bit. She was somewhat ashamed of that little break down. “Now listen closely,” Rarity said with a determined smile on her lips, “This is what you’re going to do.”

***

“Say, RD,” Applejack said loudly after arriving over to Rainbow. It instantly got her attention as she turned towards Applejack, still dancing, though not as recklessly as before. “How do ya feel ‘bout all this lovey-dovey stuff that’s been goin’ ‘round?”

“Seriously, AJ,” Rainbow said through her teeth, shaking her head as she stopped her dancing altogether. With a sigh, she gave Applejack a furrowed brow. “Why bring that up at a party? We’re supposed to relax and have fun. Not get into the mushy stuff.”

“I know,” Applejack snapped back, feeling slightly ashamed for bringing up the topic. “But after seein’ Fluttershy act so… unusual ‘round Sora, it got me thinkin’.”

“Well, stop thinking,” Rainbow ordered, a smile erupting as she jumped back into the crowd of dancers. “This is a party!”

“Yeah,” Applejack muttered somberly, straightening out her denim skirt, “A party.”

***

The bad music was really starting to grind on Roxas’ nerves. He was able to tolerate it before, but after only a few minutes, he was ready to leave. If this was what a party was like, he was seriously questioning whether to go to another one. He probably would still go to another one regardless, since he’d rather not deal with a depressed Pinkie Pie.

With another long groan, he gazed around the room, still finding Sora examine his surroundings. It made Roxas wonder what was going through his head. Surely he would be hanging with his friends instead of walking around like he was lost. So what exactly was he doing?

He planned to intercept Sora and ask himself, but Roxas caught something pink in the corner of his vision. Quickly looking over, he saw Pinkie disappear around the back, behind the DJ’s stage. Curious, Roxas made his way over, slipping by other people as he did. Edging up to the side of the stage, Roxas remained hidden as he peered around the corner.

Pinkie stood alongside the DJ, with Pinkie facing away from Roxas, and both seemed to simply be talking. There wasn’t much going on, but Roxas was compelled to listen in.

The DJ scratched the back of her head, looking slightly guilty. “Are you sure you don’t want to call in that favor I owe you?” she asked, sounding like she was forcing Pinkie.

“Nope,” Pinkie shook her head, closing her eyes simultaneously, “I want to use it when I really really need to use it. I’ll just pay for my friends invitations.”

“I dunno,” the DJ replied with a shake of her head, “It’s kinda spendy. The manager knocked up the price too.”

“I understand completely,” Pinkie said with a shrug, still holding that same smile, “I’ll be able to pay for it.”

The DJ was obviously conflicted, but in the end, she gave a single nod. “If you say so,” she said, walking back up the steps to her stage, “I’ll bill you later.”

“Right!” Pinkie exclaimed as she watched the DJ leave, but with each second, Pinkie’s smile fell until she was frowning deeply. “Right…”

Roxas took a deep breath, piecing the puzzle together in his head as he stepped out into the open. “Are you really going to work off all our expenses?” he asked, making Pinkie whip around in surprise.

“R-Roxas!” she said before seeing his stern expression, which she responded to be facing away, unable to look at him. “How much did you hear?”

“Everything,” Roxas said casually, putting a hand on his hip, “And I think it’s very kind of you to pay.”

“That’s what friends are for, isn’t it?” Pinkie said, her gloom disappearing in a flash, “Help any way they can.”

“That’s what I used to think too,” Roxas answered, walking over to Pinkie as he looked over to Sora, who stood in the center of the room with his hands behind his head, “But someone taught me it’s okay to let others help.”

Pinkie looked where Roxas was facing, “Sora did?”

Roxas smiled fondly before giving a light chuckle, “No, someone else. Someone really important to me.”

“Oh,” Pinkie said, allowing silence to hang over the two. But only the two of them, since the club was still pumping out the music and chatter. Pinkie turned to each of her friends, wanting only their best interests in mind. She had always tried to do just that ever since the Fall Formal incident, but what Roxas said had stirred something up. Having her friends help her was something she had never considered before.

“Um, Roxas?” Pinkie inquired, making Roxas turn to her with a raised brow, seeing her slightly pouty face, “Could you hang out with me for a little while? I could use the company.”

“Sure,” Roxas answered with a nod, making Pinkie smile appreciatively. She had to admit, it was the most honest smile she had in a while. Not to say any of her other smiles weren’t as honest.

***

Another walk around the club still didn’t drive Sora’s thoughts away. He was in a club to have fun, and yet, from what he’s seen, Rainbow Dash was the only one partying. And Sora wasn’t sure who to cheer up first. His friends all had something on their minds, yet none of them wanted to share them. It put Sora in a predicament where he just couldn’t have fun. It wasn’t like with Donald or Goofy where everything was pretty much thrown in the air, sometimes literally.

Releasing a long sigh, Sora stood with his arms up behind his head in the center of the club, amongst all the other dancers. They maneuvered around him miraculously, staying in sync with their dance all the while. Sora was unfazed by any of it, his friends taking up the forefront of his mind. Why couldn’t things just work out for everyone?

“S-Sora,” the soft voice of Fluttershy said, knocking Sora out of his reverie. Turning around while lowering his arms, he saw her standing there, her face set in determination along with a noticeable blush. “I… I have something to s-say.”

“Can I ask you something first?” Sora requested, gesturing towards her. Fluttershy was taken aback by his question, making her fidget and fret, her earlier confidence dissolving on the spot.

“I didn’t mean to force you!” Fluttershy stated quickly, shaking her head around frantically. Sora didn’t know what she meant by that, but could tell something was definitely distressing her.

“It’s… fine, Fluttershy,” Sora said, his frown deepening. “It’s just no one is really having fun. I feel like it has to do with what has been going on lately. Maybe it’s my fault somehow, and-”

“No, of course not,” Fluttershy argued, making Sora pull his head back a bit. She was frowning as well, but her eyes were stuck onto Sora’s. He had to admit, her eyes were very pretty. But it discouraged Sora so much to have to see them with her grief. She had acted strangely around him for a while, and if Sora was going to get anywhere, he had to be upfront about it.

“Fluttershy,” he stated firmly, keeping eye contact with her as she blinked from his sudden robust attitude. Even his eyes had become somewhat hard, yet still held a tender feeling to them. “What’s happening with you? You can tell me anything. You know that, right?”

Fluttershy’s breath hitched in her throat, her arms visibly shaking as her nervousness grew once more. The courage Rarity had supplied had completely depleted as her emotions were laid out for Sora to see. There was only one other option that Rarity had given her.

Tell Sora the truth.

“It… it’s about you,” she admitted, unable to tear her eyes away from his own. They were so blue, it felt like she was gazing at an open ocean. A great sight to behold, and getting lost in them would be adventurous even for Fluttershy. Sora held his rigid body, but the subtle sorrow in his eyes spoke volumes to her. “Not in the bad way though. You’re very kind and considerate, Sora. You’ve always had the best interest in everyone, and even… saved me too. And it, w-well, I just…”

Something gripped her hand at that point, something soft and reassuring, and with a glance down Fluttershy saw that it was Sora’s. Facing him, she saw a smile that warmed her heart tremendously. “Whatever you have to say, if it’s good or bad,” Sora said, lifting the hand up and putting it on his chest, between his jacket “You’ll always be my friend.”

Fluttershy gave her own smile, something that was instinctual as she spoke. “Sora,” she whispered, almost unheard in the loud club, “You’re so wonderful. And what I have to say is that I…”

She hesitated, her heart pounding in her chest. She had to say it. It was at that moment or never at all. “I lo-”

“Sora!”

***

Twilight fidgeted in her seat, leaning left and right but still not getting a good enough angle. It wasn’t from her position where she sat, but her interpretation of Roxas. He was bored, so did he want to leave? But then why come here at all? Then he was talking to Pinkie, so did that mean he wanted to mingle with others?

Twilight groaned, putting her forehead against the table she sat at; it was all too confusing. Rarity said to watch him, but she didn’t say for how long or what to look for. Although Twilight was a scientist, this wasn’t another experiment, this was about Roxas!

She rolled her head around on the table in a form of shaking her head. She needed more help.

“Having troubles?” a boy’s voice asked behind her from another nearby table, but Twilight was hardly interested in him as she pulled her head up to face Roxas again.

“That obvious?” she questioned, feeling embarrassed a complete stranger could understand her struggle.

“I wouldn’t know,” the boy mused, sounding both interested and bored at the same time. “I don’t have much experience myself. I don’t know what it is you’re nervous about. Your friends perhaps?”

Twilight chuckled, a weak smile on her lips, “Not in the least. My friends and I couldn’t be closer. Nothing could break us apart.”

The boy chuckled as well, but it was cold compared to Twilight’s, “Let’s just see how unbreakable it is then.”

In a blink of an eye, Twilight’s left arm was grabbed, making her gasp in shock before she was physically pulled out of her seat. Her legs scrambled to stand back up, but the pain in her forearm made her cringe, gripping it with her other hand. She halted her efforts, her knees on the floor with her trapped arm held above her. Lifting her head, she faced the person responsible, feeling helpless.

“How pathetic,” the boy said, wearing the familiar black coat of Organization XIII. His gray hair was short, but was done up in a strange style. What really got to Twilight, however, was his eyes. They were yellow, and somehow portrayed an evil presence to her. “And to think, you hold something of great value.”

He gripped her arm harder, and Twilight opened her mouth to call for help, but his voice halted her before she could utter a word. “If you call your friends, you’ll never see them again,” he said ominously, forcing her to hold her tongue. He may have been lying, but Twilight wasn’t going to risk it. Why did she have to get into this situation? Why did she have to feel so helpless?

“W-What do you want?” she questioned quietly, hoping she didn’t break the rule the boy had set.

The boy narrowed his eyes ever so slowly, remaining almost motionless. “It isn’t something I desire,” he explained plainly, “But rather, something you can provide. Because in the end, all I seek is knowledge. You are at the center of the magic of friendship, something my master wants eradicated. And what better way to learn about this power, then from the source itself.”

A strange dark fog covered the boy’s hand, and suddenly Twilight caught flashes of her life fly by her eyes. They went so fast she hardly had time to even give a single thought to them, but there was a group of memories she had never experienced. Glimpses of ponies, a magical land, an evil she-demon, and friendship…

The process came to an abrupt end, and Twilight felt drained, like all of her energy had been focused on whatever the boy had done. She dropped to the floor a bit, the only thing holding her up was the boy still clutching her forearm. With her droopy eyes, she turned to the boy with what little strength she had left, seeing him give a small smirk as he grunted.

“I see,” he said, “So that’s what this power is truly capable of. I can see why my master put his full attention into this matter.” He chuckled again, “How little you know. You put far too much trust in your friends, so much so that you are blinded by it. They’ve been lying to you since the very beginning.”

“No,” Twilight said desperately and weakly, not wanting to believe a word the boy said, especially after what he had done to her, “You don’t know… anything about me or my friends.”

The boy closed his eyes, “One who knows nothing can understand nothing.” He reopened his eyes, their intensity becoming sharper than before, “And right now, Princess Twilight Sparkle, I understand much more than you do.”

Chapter 16: Unexpected Darkness

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Chapter 17: Reunion

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 17: Reunion

No matter how many times Sora shook his head, he couldn’t clear the fog out of his mind. Everything was just so fuzzy, from the moment he went to Valor Form to the position he found himself on his hands and knees. He remembered having similar occurrences in his travels, but it still didn’t explain why it happened in the first place.

His ears picked up on movement as someone made their way over to him. And when two pairs of shoes came into his vision, Sora looked up, seeing Roxas stand above him. He didn’t look very happy, glaring hard at Sora with his arms crossed, though he didn’t know why. With a deep sigh, Roxas put his hand out, his face softening a little. Accepting the offer, Sora gripped his hand and Roxas helped him back onto his feet.

“Thanks,” Sora said with a nod, but Roxas walked past him without a word, and Sora watched him as me made his way over to the girls. Seeing them, Sora leaned back in shock, looking at each girl in turn. All of them were looking at him, all having fear, but there were layers of anger laced in as well.

Scanning the rest of the room, Sora saw that it was still empty, and that Young Xehanort was gone. On the plus side, Riku and Lea were still there, showing that they weren’t taken away again. It did present relief for Sora, but the looks he was getting from the girls prevented a celebration.

Sora rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, “Did I miss something?”

“You mean you don’t remember?” Rarity snapped, her fear being replaced with fury, furrowing her brow. She was walking towards Sora as she continued, her voice raising, “How you turned into some Heartless monster, or how you fought Riku with that form, or…”

She had reached Sora at that point, whose eyes were wide in shock at those accusations. Rarity looked him straight in the eye, her face tensing up as she stared at him. “Or how much you scared all of us,” she finished, tearing her gaze away from him.

“Turn into a Heartless?” Sora repeated, tilting his head.

“Yeah!” Rainbow confirmed with a nod, rubbing both of her arms for comfort. Sora had never seen her so distraught; she was trying to look tough, but she was clearly faking it, as fear gripped her heart. “Me and AJ were all set for you to go Valor Form with you. And when you changed, we disappeared too!”

Applejack, who was sitting on the ground alongside Fluttershy and Twilight, shivered, bringing her legs up to her chin as she hugged them. “It was so cold,” she whispered, looking at her boots, “So dark. I… I didn’t know when it’d end. I thought I’d stay there forever.”

“Y-Yeah,” Rainbow said as she faced Applejack, her voice cracking, “It was like all of our happiness was gone.”

Sora felt an immense guilt weigh on his heart. To have Applejack and Rainbow go through something like that tore him apart. And it was his fault too. “All I remember,” Sora said, unable to meet anyone’s gazes, “Is going into Valor Form, then blacking out. Then I end up on the floor.”

“That’s all?” Roxas questioned, with an idle gesture, raising his brow. A nod from Sora made him hum to himself in thought.

A whimper came from Fluttershy, making Sora turn to her and really noticing her reaction. She was hiding behind Applejack slightly, her eyes solely on Sora. That look hit Sora the hardest, showing absolute terror in them. Her hair hid most of her face from view, but with what Sora could see, she didn’t want to speak with him.

Sora reached a hand out, “Fluttershy…”

She whimpered, shifting her head behind Applejack, who gave a worried look back at her. Sora didn’t push to communicate with her, knowing he had messed up big time. Sagging his shoulders with a sigh, Sora thought about his change into a Heartless, wanting to know more of the details.

“Is there anything you can tell me about my… change?” he asked, somewhat desperately. He needed to learn about this different form, and why no one had told him about it before. He really didn’t want to change into it again. For everyone’s sake.

Roxas stepped towards Sora, standing in front of him. “It definitely knew what was going on,” Roxas said, gazing straight into Sora’s eyes, “It wasn’t mindless. In fact, I think there was still a piece of you in there.”

Staring off into space, Sora thought about that fact. If there was some of him in his heartless form, then he wouldn’t hurt his friends if it happened again. Injuring Roxas or the girls would be the last thing Sora would do, if he could even go that far. He closed his eyes, knowing that not going into that form again was the best bet.

“It came out when you tried going into your Valor From,” Rarity said, glancing at Applejack and Rainbow Dash, “So perhaps it’s best… that Sora never use it again.”

“What!?” Rainbow shouted, some of her old self coming back as she faced Rarity incredulously. She made her way over to her as she spoke, “Sora kicked major butt when he used it! There’s no way-”

“Okay,” Sora agreed, making Rainbow freeze, turning to him as everyone else did the same. Sora still had his eyes closed with his arms crossed, “I don’t know anything about this form. Just because it didn’t hurt my friends, doesn’t mean it won’t later on.”

Rainbow opened her mouth to protest, but instead, let out a sigh as she faced the floor. Sora saw this, and walked over to Rainbow. Standing before her, Sora reached out and put a hand on her shoulder for comfort. Rainbow didn’t react to it, but Sora didn’t mind.

“And…” Sora said, continuing on with his argument, “I don’t want you or Applejack to go through that experience again.”

Applejack smiled weakly at Sora’s concern. Despite Sora becoming a Heartless monster before, she knew that he was still the same Sora. However, a glance back to Fluttershy showed she was still traumatised by the incident, since she wouldn’t even look Sora’s way. Applejack had to feel sorry for her and Sora. They both looked like they were going to become closer, but that form seemed to have driven them apart.

Releasing a sigh, Applejack pushed herself to her feet, albeit shakily. Afterwhich, she gave a broad smile as she tipped her hat at Sora. “Thank ya kindly, Sora,” she said, before she found herself contemplating, “But why did ya turn into that form in the first place? And if it happened before, why didn’t your friends feel the same way we did?”

Sora crossed his arms again as he looked between Applejack and Rainbow, seeing their uneasy expressions. He had to think back to the last time he had used Valor Form, against Vanitas and Riku. It was similar to this one, where he drew the power of their bravery to transform.

“The magic of friendship,” Sora muttered.

“What was that, darling?” Rarity asked, the others equally as confused.

“Well,” Sora said, knowing he would have to start at the beginning, “You know how Roxas is, I mean, was my Nobody?”

Everyone nodded, even Roxas, though he had to wonder where Sora was going with this. Seeing the general agreement, Sora continued, “Well, for Roxas to form… I had to turn into a Heartless first.”

There was no cries of anguish, no shouts of surprise, just stunned silence. Roxas turned away from the group, going into his own thoughts. Nobody really took notice as Pinkie asked an appropriate question.

“How did you turn into a…?” Pinkie asked, unable to finish as she shuddered. She couldn’t imagine Sora as a Heartless, even the version she saw resembled him. But to have a plain Heartless that used to be Sora... It made Pinkie terrified just considering it.

“I sacrificed myself to help a friend,” Sora revealed, tilting his head up as he remembered back. How cold and lonely it was, falling into the darkness. Perhaps he already knew how Applejack and Rainbow felt when he changed. “If Kairi hadn't saved me, I don’t know what would have happened.”

Fluttershy turned her head ever so slightly at the name. She remembered Kairi to be one of Sora’s best friends, and it made her wonder if she knew about how Sora would change that way. In some ways, she felt angry that she probably didn’t know, just like the six of them didn’t until a few minutes ago. But another part of her felt sad that Sora had to live with a piece of darkness inside of him, waiting to come out when he needed power the most.

“Did Donald or Goofy ever bring it up when you changed into that Heartless?” Roxas asked at last, twisting his torso to look back at the group. Sora shook his head as a response, “Then it probably only affects the girls.”

“Right,” Sora said slowly, coming to the same conclusion. He faced the girls, feeling his finality coming forth, gripping his hands into fists. “I think the reason Applejack and Rainbow felt how they did when I changed, was because they're a part of the magic of friendship.”

“But why would they feel like they're falling into darkness?” Twilight spoke up from the ground, wincing as she clutched her head with a hand. Spike sat next to her, nuzzling her side. “If they’re part of the magic of friendship like you said, Sora, wouldn’t they resist becoming a part of your dark self?”

“I don’t know,” Sora admitted, making Applejack and Rainbow glance at each other worriedly. “There’s still a lot we need to figure out.”

Though no one was satisfied with that answer, they couldn’t argue his point. The light, the darkness, friendship; even after years hearing about them, Sora still couldn’t draw many conclusive explanations for most of it. It was like they wanted to remain a mystery.

A low groan emanated behind Sora, causing him to whip around his eyes wide open. Riku stirred from his slumber, shifting back and forth as he lifted his hand up to his head. “Man,” Riku muttered, using his other hand to push himself up to a sitting position, “What happened?”

No one answered, not even Sora. Seeing Riku wake up at last made Sora change his shock to excitement. He finally had his friend back. In all of his adventures, Sora always had an immense feeling of happiness when he found his best friend. Traverse Town, the World that Never Was, and in this world. No matter where Sora found him, he would always be glad to be reunited with him.

“Riku!” Sora cheered, hurriedly making his way over to him. Riku blinked at the call of his name, and when he faced Sora, his friend had knelt beside him and assaulted him with a hug. For Sora, it was just like back at Yen Sid’s Tower, after Riku had fought off the Nightmare Armor. Even the bafflement on Riku’s face was similar. It was laughably uncanny, and Sora relished in it.

“Sora?” Riku asked feebly, his body still recuperating from the battle as he sat motionless from the sudden affection.

“It’s great to see you again!” Sora said joyfully, pulling away to get a good look at him. Riku was abashed as he failed to hide a smile from forming on his lips. He should have known Sora would behave like he did.

He chuckled, eyeing Sora with warmth, “Good to see you too.”

If it were possible, Sora’s smile grew bigger. Extending his hand, Sora offered his help, and Riku took it without hesitation, standing to his feet with a grimace. The pain still lingered from the battle, but he smiled through it. When he was at full height, Riku stretched his back, grunting a little before relaxing his posture.

“What happened?” he questioned, his smile faltering as he recalled what he could. Another wave of pain passed through him, and he flinched, clutching his left arm. “And why do I hurt all over?”

“You don’t remember?” Sora asked, tilting his head to the side.

Riku shook his head, and Sora closed his eyes in thought. If he couldn’t remember, then that must mean the crystal was playing with his memory. Just another point to bring up with everyone. Not only that, but it would be interesting to know what Riku had done before he was captured.

“Sora!” Pinkie called from behind him. Sora looked back at her as she jumped up and down, her own smile on her face. “Your Pinkie Promise!”

“Oh, right,” Sora said, jumping up a little in remembrance. He grabbed Riku’s wrist and practically dragged him over to everyone else. Riku was surprised from the sudden movement, but didn’t berate Sora for it. A part of him was glad to be with Sora. After stopping, Sora let go of Riku as he waved at everyone to get their attention, even though they were already focused on them. “Everyone, this is Riku,” Sora said, gesturing towards him, as Riku gave an idle wave, “My best friend, and the best fighter you’ll ever meet!”

(Stop music)

Everyone gave their hellos, waving at him all the while. Riku grunted in acknowledgement, rolling his eyes slightly at Sora’s praise. He gazed around at the group around him, noticing that they were pretty battered up, though not in the physical sense. “Nice meeting friends of Sora’s,” he said, smiling again. His eyes landed on Roxas, who had his arms crossed, with an expression between gratitude and fury. Riku’s smile fell as he grew grim, narrowing his eyes at Roxas.

Sora looked between the two of them, remembering what had transpired the last time the two had met face to face. He jumped between them, facing Riku as he held his hands out in front of him. “It’s okay, Riku,” he said, and Riku looked at him, wanting some answers. “If it wasn’t for Roxas, the girls would be in a lot more trouble.”

Riku stared at Sora, as if he was considering it to be a lie. His eyes fell back to Roxas who glared right back. It was a stalemate that went on for several seconds, until Roxas sighed.

“Look,” he said, putting a hand on his hip, “What’s in the past is in the past. We all had to do what we had to do.”

Riku was still not convinced of that explanation, but Roxas wasn’t finished as he tilted his head down. “I can’t say I wouldn’t do the same for Axel,” he whispered, “And I might not be here today if it wasn’t for you.”

Riku gave a stiff nod, and Roxas returned it. Sora had no idea if they would start something, but the girls were far worse, seeing as they had no clue what they were talking about. Seeing that nothing bad was happening, Sora lowered his arms, giving another cheery smile. It was contagious as Riku couldn’t help but smile as well.

Rarity cleared her throat, catching everyone’s attention in the quiet atmosphere. She took it in stride as she stood up straight, gesturing over to Riku. “Now then,” she said faintly, “Since you were introduced, it can only be fair if we did the same!”

Rainbow rushed forward, unintentionally brushing by Rarity, who glowered at her. When Rainbow was at the front, standing out from her group of friends, she jabbed a thumb onto her chest boastfully. “The name’s Rainbow Dash,” she announced with a grin. Riku smirked at that, since the girl reminded him of Sora in a way. Of course, he wouldn’t say that out loud.

Wanting her revenge, Rarity pushed by Rainbow, though much more forcefully. Rainbow took a few steps back, crossing her arms as she glared at Rarity. “As for me,” Rarity said, still holding herself in high regard, “I am Rarity.”

“Pinkie Pie!” Pinkie introduced herself loudly from where she stood, startling her other friends. Riku had to scratch his previous assumption with Rainbow Dash; Pinkie was more like Sora. Or perhaps both of their personalities made up Sora. It was an interesting train of thought.

Twilight glanced at Riku, giving a forceful smile as she nodded in his direction. “I’m Twilight Sparkle,” she said. Riku gave a nod back, and as he turned away, he kept his eyes on her, noting that she was suddenly somber, like something heavy was on her mind. It was an interesting attitude, one that made Riku ponder if she were hiding something. He’d have to investigate later.

“F-Fluttershy,” a girl spoke up from beside Twilight, hiding slightly behind the other girls. Her name gave away her behavior, so Riku didn’t pry, and simply gave a wave of his own. It was followed with a small smile from Fluttershy, showing her appreciation of his gentle demeanor. Riku was somewhat glad of that.

Applejack gave a simple wave, not showing herself off in some fashion like the others had. As a matter of fact, as Riku examined her, he found her clothing much more different than the other girls. The hat, the denim skirt, the boots; it all lead to one conclusion.

“Howdy,” Applejack greeted with a smile, despite looking dreadfully tired, “I’m Applejack.”

Riku had to stare at her a moment longer, more so than the other girls. Applejack was unlike anyone else he had met, mostly in her appearance. It was something that interested Riku considerably.

“Hey, Riku?” Sora asked, waving a hand in front of his face, “You still there?”

Riku shook out of his thoughts, noticing that his actions had caused Applejack to bring her hat down a bit to hide her face. She averted her eyes as well, keeping her hands close to her stomach in a sort of protective stance. Riku blinked when he realized he was the one responsible for her discomfort, tearing his gaze away.

“Sorry,” he mumbled, though only Sora caught it. Rainbow gave him a questionable look, glancing over to Applejack. She didn’t know what exactly had happened, but she didn’t feel like finding out. After all, there were more important matters to discuss.

“So…” Rainbow spoke up, not wanting to change the subject to a much more serious and bitter topic. “What’s up with that crystal, huh?”

To everyone, it sounded like the beginning of a bad joke. However, it did give everyone a chance to think about it. Riku glanced to each person, completely lost. “What crystal?” he asked.

“It was the one that turned you against us,” Twilight explained, still holding her head, “Sora had to fight you because of it.”

Riku didn’t like that one bit. It was already bad enough he had to fight Sora when he was conscious, and hearing that it had happened again made him angry with himself. Why did it always come to fighting his best friend? “You guys might need to explain some more of this crystal to me,” Riku announced, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

Applejack grunted, “We should probably tell ya what’s been goin’ down around here too.”

“What about Axel?” Roxas put in, looking over to his friend, “He’d want to know too.”

“Axel?” Riku questioned, facing the prone figure on the ground, “You mean Lea? How’d he get here?”

Rainbow sighed, “This is going to take a while.”

Roxas never took his eyes away from Lea, wanting his friend to wake up. It had been so long since they had spoken face to face. Roxas couldn’t even remember the last time they had ice cream together, just the two of them. He had to wonder if they would still have been friends if Roxas had remembered him back in the fake Twilight Town, when they had to fight each other. Would Roxas had gone back with him? Would things have been just like they were before?

Considering Xemnas was involved, Roxas was afraid to think that far.

“Jeez,” the voice of Lea said, making Roxas jump out of his thoughts as he gazed at his stirring friend. He was pushing himself up, a hand on his head. “Did anyone get the number on that truck?”

Since he was facing away from the group, Lea couldn’t see exactly who he was with. As he pushed himself to his feet, he rubbed his head tenderly. “Ah, now I have a headache,” he stated, before giving a dry chuckle, “What else could happen?”

This was it. Roxas’ best friend was standing only a few meters away. He didn’t know what to say. What do people say when they’ve been gone for so long? Roxas raised a hand toward Lea, his mouth becoming dry. The others remained quiet, letting Roxas have his moment.

“Axel?” Roxas called, finding his voice was much quieter than he intended. Lea froze, his coat jerking a bit from his movement. Looking closer, Roxas could tell he was shaking a bit.

“For the last time,” Lea exclaimed in annoyance, turning around, “My name is-”

He cut himself off as he looked at Roxas. His whole body was still as the two stared at each other. Lea’s breathing was ragged, and his shoulders sagged as well. He swallowed a moment and refused to blink. “R-Roxas?” he questioned, taking a few steps forward. “Is that really you?”

A smile grew on Roxas. Seeing his friend again, after all they had been through… Roxas didn’t think he would ever get the opportunity. “Yeah,” Roxas said with a nod, “It’s me.”

Lea didn’t say a word, his mouth hanging open a bit as he slowly walked up to Roxas. Their eyes never left each others, and as Lea got closer, he closed his mouth, his face tensing up. After a few seconds, Lea stood before Roxas. Since he was taller, Lea had to look down to Roxas, and Roxas up to him. During all this time, Lea never smiled once. It made Roxas falter a bit, afraid he had done something wrong.

“Do you remember?” Lea said, his voice cracking ever so slightly, “When we last talked together, as true friends, back in the World That Never Was?”

Roxas tilted his head to the side, unable to remember that particular memory. He understood why Lea would refer to themselves specifically as true friends. The last time they had met, they had fought each other, and as Sora had demonstrated in his memories, friends should never have to fight like that. However, the time Lea was referring to wasn’t exactly clear.

“You were about to turn against the Organization,” Lea went on, “and you said no one would miss you…”

The hard expression Lea had was breaking up, as his softer side came into view. His teeth were clenched, and his eyes wavered as he rushed over to Roxas wrapping his arms around his shoulders. “Well,” Lea continued, his breaths shaky, “I did.”

Roxas didn’t know what to say, especially when he remembered what Lea was talking about. The day Roxas was about to challenge Xemnas, but had confronted Riku instead. How he had lost, and was forced into a simulation as he merged with Sora. Lea was right; it really was the last time they had met as friends.

“Axel…” Roxas said, unsure on exactly what to say. He couldn’t just apologize, like it was an accident, but what else was there? Lea chuckled, making Roxas even more confused. Pulling away, Lea showed his tear stricken face, as well as a smile.

“Come on, Roxas,” Lea teased playfully, “It’s Lea now.”

He brought his hand up to the side of his head, tapping a finger to it. “Got it memorized?” he said.

A tear fell from Roxas’ eye, his frown growing back to a large smile. “Lea,” he repeated, not finding another word to say. Just saying his name, his real name, gave Roxas a grand feeling of reunion in his heart. He had his best friend back.

Lea brought a hand to his face, rubbing his cheek a bit before looking at it. Upon seeing the wet spots on his glove, his eyes widened before turning away, hastily wiping the rest of his face. Afterwards, he brought his hand down, but kept his face away from Roxas.

“Man, I’m a mess,” he said, more as a joke than anything else, and Roxas took it as such.

“No more than usual,” Roxas quipped, making Lea face him with a huff.

“That’s a fine howdy-do,” Lea said sarcastically, putting his hands on his sides as the both of them laughed. Bringing an arm around Roxas’ neck, Lea brought him close as he used his other arm to give him a noogie. “Glad to have you back, buddy.”

Roxas pretended to struggle, laughing some more as they both had a moment with each other. Roxas wouldn’t have it any other way. Axel was back, Lea was back. And as far as Roxas was concerned, he was going to keep it that way.

Sora watched their reunion, the scene reminding him of Riku and himself. As he put his hands behind his head, Sora glanced over to Riku, who had his arms crossed, having a faint smile. Sora could tell he was feeling the same way; glad to see two friends just enjoying each others company.

In the end, that’s all that mattered: Friendship.

***

After everyone was introduced to Lea, and vice versa, Sora and Roxas filled in Riku and Lea about what had been going on in the world. As they were doing that, the girls stepped off to the side, going into their own discussion.

“They seem mighty friendly,” Applejack said, adjusting her hat.

Rarity nodded in agreement, “I believe it’s safe to assume that any friend of Sora’s are always going to be friendly.”

“And those are the best kind of friends!” Pinkie cheered, making everyone else chuckle. Fluttershy didn’t, however, catching the attention of the other girls. They were all genuinely sorry for her, unsure what to say after what happened with Sora. It was a troubling topic, and though Sora did mean well, they could only hope it didn’t happen again.

Rarity gave a sly glance back to Riku, a smile on her lips. “Riku is pretty handsome, isn’t he?” she asked, changing the subject.

Rubbing her forehead, Rainbow groaned as she eyed Rarity. “Of course you would jump to looks, wouldn’t you?” she said with annoyance. The other girls only shied away, not wanting to take part in a tender conversation like that. Rarity just laughed at their reactions, causing the rest to look back with confusion.

“I was merely teasing, girls,” she said, before narrowing her eyes with a smile, “Or am I?”

“Ah, romance, showmance,” Applejack waved off, growing irritated, “I can see y’all getting into it, but for me, it’s just as hectic as washin’ a pig in the mud.”

Rarity grimaced, “What an… interesting choice of words.”

As Applejack chuckled at Rarity’s expense, Rainbow rubbed her chin in thought. She recalled Applejack asking about romance herself before the appearance of the Organization. Why did she suddenly have a change of heart? Rainbow would have to talk with Rarity about it later, though it wasn’t a discussion Rainbow was going to look forward to.

“Vexen and Zexion?” they heard Lea say as they all faced the four boys. They could see how puzzled Lea was, and the girls listened to what was going on.

“Yep,” Roxas nodded, crossing his arms, “It was definitely them. I could recognize them anywhere.”

Lea shook his head, closing his eyes as he did. “But that doesn’t make sense,” he said, a hand scratching the top of his head, “They became their full selves again like me back in Radiant Garden. There’s no way they could be here, let alone awake.”

“Are they sleeping?” Sora questioned, and Lea nodded in response. “So, if these are two imposters, then why are they going around calling themselves Vexen and Zexion?”

“Sounds familiar, right, Sora?” Riku asked, his head bowed down. Sora had to release a sigh, remembering back on his first adventure when he discovered the Ansem he had defeated wasn’t really Ansem. In a way, it was pretty similar, but this time, they had no idea who these two could be.

“I wonder...” Riku muttered, before facing the other three, “Do you think the reason the real Vexen and Zexion are asleep is because of these imposters?”

“Their names are Even and Ienzo,” Lea corrected, tapping the side of his head, “Get it memorized. As for your little theory, there’s no way to prove they’re related besides knowing that they’re similar.”

“Then, since we have to wait to find out,” Sora said, putting a fist into his hand, “Why don’t we talk about the crystal?”

“The one that controlled us?” Lea asked skeptically, before giving a fake laugh, “Yeah, that’ll go well. We’re just as lost about that as anything else.”

“You don’t remember a thing?” Roxas questioned.

Riku shook his head, “Just what happened before we were controlled, but even then, it’s still pretty fuzzy. The last thing I remember was being ambushed by the Organization.”

Tilting the head to his side, Sora looked at Riku intensely. Afterwards, he leaned towards him, making Riku jerk back. A few seconds passed before Sora cracked a smile. “So, they got the jump on you, huh?” he asked with a smirk.

Seeing his meaning, Riku relaxed before shaking his head in amusement. “Laugh it up, Sora,” he snapped playfully, before going serious. “But what concerns me is how it was made. What could make something like that?”

A memory flashed across Rarity’s eyes, making her shiver. Holding that crystal was the worst experience she had ever endured, and she was glad it was gone for good. “I might have a idea about that crystal,” she piped up, and all eyes landed on her. She was unfazed, but did lose some of her steel from remembering the crystal. Giving a shaky sigh, she calmed herself down as much as she could. “When Spike was able to get that evil boy to drop the crystal, I was able to grab it. But when I did… it hurt so much…”

“Y-Yeah,” Pinkie Pie continued for Rarity, who was very grateful for it. Pinkie stepped forward to Rarity, throwing an arm around her for comfort. Rarity accepted the gesture, looking away from everyone else. “She was lying on the ground, hurting. I was able to get the crystal away from her before kicking it over to Roxas.

For Roxas, it explained why the crystal had simply slid into the fiery ring that contained Roxas and Lea. “So,” he said, looking to Rarity, “What was your idea about the crystal, Rarity?”

Rarity hesitated a moment, clamping her eyes shut. “I think…” she said, swallowing, “It tears away our friendship.”

Everyone was shocked by those words. The girls talked over one another in worry, while the boys were silent. It wasn’t that they were concerned, but that they didn’t know what to say about Rarity’s thoughts.

“The crystal did change you two,” Sora said, pointing to Lea and Riku, “Do you think it could have made the thought of friendship… disappear?”

“Possibly,” Riku replied quietly. He didn’t like that one bit, especially after what he and Sora had gone through. Riku cherished his friendship with Sora, just as much as Sora did for him. And to have those thoughts simply vanish like they never existed made Riku mad that Sora had to go through that.

“And because we’re part of the magic of friendship,” Rarity continued, making Riku sigh sorrowfully. There was more? “I think it may have been trying to corrupt it or something.”

“Landsakes…” Applejack whispered, terrified at that thought. If Rarity had held it longer than she did, who knew what could have happened. The darkness in the crystal might have spread to the other girls, and could have destroyed the magic of friendship. They never even considered how fragile the magic really was.

“Maybe that’s why the boy left,” Pinkie added, “He thought the crystal would be all he needed.”

Rarity shook her head, breaking the half hug from Pinkie as she stroked her hair. It was a nervous tick, both to keep her beauty and to relieve stress. “The boy said something about having collected enough data.”

“Data for what?” Sora asked, but no one answered, and instead just glanced to one another, like someone else would know the answer. Twilight herself just stared at her feet, her thoughts going back to when the boy had grabbed her arm. The hundreds images that had appeared before her eyes… she still couldn’t remember half of them. And the boy had called her a princess as well. He might have been playing with her, but there was something in those images that said otherwise. Something about a crown.

Twilight wanted to voice her concern, but the boy’s words still plagued her, how he had stated that her friends were lying to her. If he was right about her being a princess, then what if he was right about the honesty of her friends? She didn’t want to think they would lie to her, but the thoughts persisted.

For the time being, she was going to keep quiet about what the boy had done. She just hoped it didn’t come back to bite her later.

“Alright,” Rainbow said stomping a foot as she furrowed her brow, “So, do any of you guys mind telling us about who that guy was? I’m guessing he was part of the Organization, right?”

“Oh boy,” Lea sighed, sagging his body, “This could take awhile.”

***

Master Xehanort sat upon his throne as he always did. With the rest of the Organization members away, doing his bidding, he had no reason to leave the sanctuary of his seat. Add the ability of time travel, and Xehanort could execute his goals in little time, and with little effort. He reminisced about all of his previous failures, and how pitiful they were compared to the plan he had implemented against the magic of friendship. This time, he would swiftly eliminate his adversaries.

The sound of a Corridor of Darkness echoed through the white room, and Xehanort glanced down to his younger self. A cold smile grew on his lips as he rested back against his seat.

“Ah,” he said with a nod, “You have returned. And with good news, I should hope.”

Young Xehanort remained unmoving, as if he was contemplating something. “The mission…” he said monotonically, “was a complete success.”

Xehanort’s smile grew even wider, expecting nothing less. The favorable outcome of his small task would lay the foundation of their true objective. It was only a matter of time. “Please,” Master Xehanort asked with small wave of his hand, “elaborate.”

“As you wish,” Young Xehanort replied, his posture never wavering, “First off, I can confirm that one of the bearers of the magic of friendship is directly related to it. She has no idea of the power she holds. It is in our great interest to use this advantage.”

Xehanort gave a slow nod as Young Xehanort continued, pacing to the right, “Another thing I have learned is that the magic of friendship is elusive. If we outright eliminate the bearers, the magic will simply flee into six other worthy bodies. If we desire to completely eradicate this magic, I suggest a bit of insight to our approach.”

Xehanort was growing pleased, much more so than any of his other subordinates could deliver. This information was invaluable, and with it, Xehanort could easily see a victory in his future. They just needed to play their cards right.

“Adding to that,” Young Xehanort said, pacing to his left, “The magic of friendship is fragile. One bearer could hardly hold the crystal Xemnas had created. And as per your instruction, I left the crystal behind, allowing it to be destroyed.” Young Xehanort paused a moment before looking back to Master Xehanort. “Pray tell, why did you order to leave it in the hands of our enemies?”

Master Xehanort chuckled darkly, leaning forward with his wicked smile, “The bearers of light believe they have more on their side, and though it will prove difficult in our future endeavours, giving them back their two friends will cloud their abilities. In the end, it shall be our winning grace.”

Doubting that very much, Young Xehanort remained quiet, not wanting to voice his complaint. Instead, Master Xehanort spoke up, causing Young Xehanort to focus on him. “And what of my theory concerning Sora,” he asked, leaning forward slightly in anticipation, “Surely you must have picked up on something.”

“Yes,” Young Xehanort answered, facing his master fully, “And you were correct, Sora does harbor an inner darkness. A darkness that can escape his heart and overtake him. He has little control over it, but this darkness still encompasses Sora’s motives.”

Satisfied, Master Xehanort nodded, resting back in his seat. He would have to come up with something to adjust to this specific knowledge. If this form Sora becomes is as unpredictable as he believed, then there were many possibilities that would need to be considered.

“Finally,” Young Xehanort said, making Master Xehanort shelf the thought, “There was someone else. He was neither with the key bearers, nor with us. It is another imposter, such as Vexen and Zexion are. However, this one is different. He had assisted the key bearers, but by only making my presence known, and nothing more. I know not his intentions, but…”

“Do not worry about a simple distraction such as this person,” Master Xehanort interrupted with an idle wave of his hand, “Ignore him as much as the other warring parties that have interfered. They will detract the key bearers away from us, allowing us to snuff them out when they least expect it.”

Young Xehanort didn’t like how much he was left in the dark, figuratively speaking. It just showed how much Master Xehanort revealed of his plans. He didn’t even tell his own younger self what he had in store. Young Xehanort didn’t know how to feel about that.

“Is that all?” Master Xehanort questioned, leaning an elbow on one of the armrests. Young Xehanort nodded in response, causing the grin on Xehanort to widen even further. “Excellent. Now, I want you to inform our other members to not intrude on the events that transpire in the world. I anticipate the other groups will make their move before hand, and I want to see how Sora and his friends handle it. It will be… educational.”

“Of course,” Young Xehanort responded with a stiff nod before a Corridor of Darkness enveloped him. He disappeared, leaving Master Xehanort alone once again. He enjoyed the silence; it reminded him of times long past. For the moment, Master Xehanort could sit back and relish in his imminent triumph.

He just had to be patient.

Author's Note

Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMix is far more distracted than I gave it credit for.

Interlude: Surrounded by Light

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Interlude: Surrounded by Light

Sora lay awake in his bunk, the soft snores of his friends reminding him that they were fast asleep. After everything he had done that day, he couldn’t get a wink of sleep. He couldn’t put his thumb on why that was though. He definitely felt tired, but something was lingering in the air, and try as he might, Sora couldn’t figure out what it was.

“Ugh,” Sora groaned, sitting up in his bed as he rubbed the back of his head, “I’m never gonna get to sleep.”

With a sigh of resignation, he hopped off the top bunk, landing as quietly as possible. Even though he couldn’t get some rest, that didn’t mean he had to disturb the others. Making his way through the Gummi Ship, Sora pressed a button and allowed the ramp to descend. As he walked out onto the rooftop, he could feel the crisp night wind brush against his skin. The only light that was given was the moon, just as full as it had been when he had first arrived into the world.

The sounds of night were just loud enough to tell Sora that there was still a few things active; the hoot of an owl, the melody of the crickets, and the occasional passing car. It all came together to form a truly marvelous night.

Yet the chronic feeling Sora had grew worse, becoming very unsettling for him. He had felt something like it before, but he couldn’t remember where or when. It might have been in Radiant Garden… He closed his eyes, keeping his focus on the feeling in hopes it would uncover something.

“A night full of darkness,” a monotone and grave voice spoke up, startling Sora as he whipped to the side, finding the culprit instantly. A figure stood near the ledge of the school, his head tilted back as he gazed up at the moon. His long silver hair reached down to his waist, and his black clothing matched perfectly with the single black wing on the right side of his back.

Sora balked at the person, tightening his hands as he recognized him. “And yet light is so abundant that it could easily be missed,” the figured continued, not acknowledging Sora’s presence.

“Sephiroth,” Sora said, the name ringing in his head like a battle drum. Their last encounter had ended in a fight, and Sora hoped he didn’t have to go through a similar event that night. “Weren’t you fighting Cloud?”

“Light and Darkness are always separate,” Sephiroth stated plainly, refusing to turn around. “It was only inevitable that we would break away.”

Sora stared hard at Sephiroth, unsure what he was after. It had to do with the magic of friendship, why else would he come here? It was the reason for everyone else coming to this world, and Sephiroth had to be no different. The memories of their previous battle kept Sora on edge, prepared to summon his keyblade at a moments notice. He couldn’t let his guard down around Sephiroth.

“What a cycle to be stuck in,” Sephiroth said, “To constantly fight the Light, but to only end in a stalemate. I suppose that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? Light and Darkness, always at odds.”

“Maybe,” Sora said, his expression hardening as he glared at Sephiroth, “but that doesn’t mean Darkness has to take over everything.”

Sephiroth grunted, finally turning around to reveal a deep scar that ran across his left cheek. “On the contrary,” he said, putting a hand on the handle of his very long and thin blade, “I believe there’s too much Light.”

Seeing the gesture, Sora summoned his keyblade, bringing it in front of him. However, no attack came, making Sora uneasy. “Always so uptight,” Sephiroth taunted, barely revealing any emotion. There was a short pause as Sephiroth studied Sora, “I see you still continue to wield the keyblade. Has no other more worthy swordsman claimed it?”

“What? Like you?” Sora retorted, furrowing his brow.

Sephiroth shook his head, “We both know what happened last time. How I challenged you, and how you stood victorious. How you brought Cloud to me, and how the two of us fought each other.” Sephiroth brought a hand up to the scar on his face, “He was even kind enough to leave me a souvenir.”

Sora swung his keyblade in disdain, “No more than you deserve.”

Sephiroth didn’t respond right away as he stared at Sora, his eyes never wavering. “You’re in this world because of the Light it has exposed,” Sephiroth said, tilting his head slightly, “I’m curious to see what will happen to it, once you’re gone.”

With that said, Sephiroth drew his blade in his left hand, holding it in a battle pose. Sora knew that any attempt to avoid confrontation was gone. He had no choice but to face Sephiroth and beat him. It was peculiar, how this battle had little to do with defending the magic of friendship. In the end, this was a battle of survival, and Sora was all too aware of that fact.

In a flash of black feathers, Sephiroth disappeared before reappearing directly in front of Sora, bringing his sword back. Seeing the attack, Sora brought his keyblade up and blocked the blade just in time. Sephiroth didn’t let up, going through a plethora of fast slashes. Sora was able to deflect most of them - his speed on par with Sephiroth’s - but he found himself backpedaling. Sephiroth was very aggressive with his strikes, never allowing Sora a chance to get a hit in.

In a powerful uppercut, Sephiroth knocked Sora back against the Gummi Ship. As Sora recovered, he shifted to the side, narrowly evading a stab. Sephiroth had cut right through the ship like it was butter, and adding to his strength, he jerked his blade to the side, leaving a deep gash on it. Ignoring the damage to his ship, Sora took the opportunity and lunged forward.

Sephiroth disappeared again, making Sora swing at empty air. Sephiroth reappeared behind Sora, his blade coming down. Luckily, Sora was able to anticipate the strike, and made a swift spin as he knocked the blade back. With the opening presented, Sora hit Sephiroth into the air, stunning him for a moment. Jumping up, Sora swung his keyblade left and right, giving a fair amount of damage.

Having enough, Sephiroth vanished yet again, appearing on the rooftop with his arm held out in front of him. “Give in to the dark,” he said, summoning several dark orbs around Sora. While in midair, Sora nimbly blocked each orb as they flew towards him, twirling in the air with somersaults, flips, and turns. The process was quite fast, but by the time Sora had finished dealing with the dark orbs, Sephiroth had appeared behind him with an overhead swing.

Sora barely had enough time to bring his keyblade up to bare, blocking the attack. However, the force knocked Sora straight onto the roof. Following up, Sephiroth turned his blade around in his hand and fell towards Sora, his blade ready to stab down. Sora was able to roll out of the way and onto his feet as Sephiroth struck the ground. Just when Sora was about to face Sephiroth again, he was cutting through the concrete ground, guiding his blade to Sora.

He didn’t have enough time to block the attack, but thankfully he didn’t have to. Someone fell directly between Sora and Sephiroth, with a very thick sword striking the ground. Not only did this large sword block Sephiroth’s blade, but the blast from the figure’s landing causing Sephiroth to slide along the floor away from Sora.

Blinking in awe, Sora recognized the weapon to be Cloud’s Buster Sword. And as Sora’s eyes trailed up the weapon, past the black half-cloak and to the face of the figure, he couldn’t help but blurt, “C-Cloud!”

Instead of responding, Cloud pulled his blade out of the ground, wielding it in two hands as he faced Sephiroth. “Don’t let up,” he said, his face set in determination as he narrowed his eyes. “This fight isn’t over yet.”

Sora shook off his surprise, “But how did you get here?!”

“There’s no time for that!” Cloud snapped, turning to Sora briefly.

Sephiroth could only smirk at their small exchange, swiping his blade to the side, “So, you finally arrived.”

“Yeah,” Cloud growled, gripping his sword tighter. “In a world full of light, finding a heart as dark as yours wasn’t hard.”

“You must love it here,” Sephiroth said, with a ghost of a smirk, “What was it that woman said? ‘He just needs someone to surround him with Light’? What a pointless proverb. Even in this world, I can still sense your Darkness. You can’t deny it.”

“Shut up!” Cloud shouted, just about to charge. However, he halted as the ground shook, causing he and Sora to glance around in shock. Even Sephiroth gazed around lazily, noting the shaking scenery with a raised brow. Out of no where, the ground between them blew up, showering chunks of concrete around the three of them.

Climbing out of the newly formed hole was a centaur, towering by a height of twice that of Sora. The horse part of him had charcoal fur with a white tail, while the human part - if it could be called that - had a mixture of red and black. His muscular physique and long, dark gray horns stood out the most as he looked back and forth between Sephiroth, Sora and Cloud.

Seeing the three, he let out a booming laugh, one that made Sora wince. He had to wonder how Riku and the others were able to sleep through it all. “At last!” the centaur yelled, a wide grin on his face, “I have found the source of this power!”

Finding his voice again, Sora looked at the centaur with wide eyes, “Who are you!?”

The centaur gave a dark chuckle, looking down at Sora and Cloud like they were nothing to him. “Who am I?” he said, “Only Lord Tirek, the new ruler of Equestria!”

“Equestria?” Sora muttered, tilting his head to the side in confusion.

“Another character has arrived,” Sephiroth said with a grunt, “No doubt after unattainable power.”

“Says you!” Tirek shouted, pointing a finger at Sephiroth, “I have the ability to drain those of their magic, and going through the portal to this world will double, no! Quadruple, my power!”

Sora ground his teeth, already disliking Tirek. He reminded Sora of many other villains he had defeated, and he could easily be compared to Maleficent. Not only that, but with his power to drain magic, there was no doubt he would search out the magic of friendship. He had to put a stop to him right away.

“Sora,” Cloud said, catching his attention as he brought his sword to his side. “Let’s do this together.”

Seeing the gesture of teamwork, Sora smiled proudly, glad that Cloud was opening up to accepting help. “Yeah, of course,” he agreed with a nod, bringing his keyblade down into his battle pose.

Tirek saw their defiance, and bore his teeth in a scowl. “Resistance is futile,” Tirek said threateningly, facing them fully, “Let’s see how long you last!”

“Show me your strength,” Sephiroth said, pointing his blade to the others. “and we shall see if it rivals my own.”

Everyone was poised to strike, waiting for another to make the first move. Eventually, Cloud ran forward, pushing off from the ground in a powerful leap. He flew over Tirek who tried to reach up and grab Cloud, but to no avail. Landing between Tirek and Sephiroth, Cloud launched forward, his blade held to side as he swung. Sephiroth easily batted the strike away, and the two had a long trade of swings, metal clanging with each attack.

Sora charged towards Tirek, ready to confront him for the time being. Seeing his approach, the space inbetween Tirek’s horns formed an orange orb before Tirek shot it off in the form of a beam. Sora jumped over where the beam struck, closing in on Tirek. He fired several more shots, but Sora weaved through the mess of beams, ducking or hopping over others that came too close.

When he was within range, Sora struck one of Tirek’s legs, causing him tumble a bit. Jumping high, Sora smacked Tirek in the face, sending him flying to the side. He recovered quickly, getting to his hooves as he shot a bunch of beams at Sora. Just as he landed, Sora deflected the beams, glancing over to Cloud and Sephiroth as an idea formed.

“Cloud!” Sora shouted, bouncing one of the beams towards him. A quick look back was all Cloud needed as he jumped to the side, allowing the beam to hit Sephiroth. He was stunned for a moment, orange electricity arcing around his body. Cloud took this advantage as he powered himself up, bringing his sword back for a strong slash. With a yell, he struck Sephiroth, sending him over the lip of the building and to the ground below.

Cloud rushed after him, leaping away from view as Sora ground his teeth after deflecting another beam from Tirek. Sora had to see if Cloud needed help. Positioning his keyblade, he deflected another beam to Tirek’s stomach, causing him to clutch his stomach in agony. Sprinting forward, Sora jumped up again and swung straight down on Tirek’s head, making him crash down, his face smashing against the concrete. With the momentum of the last strike, Sora charged up his keyblade and struck down a second time, effectively putting Tirek in a daze. It wouldn’t last long, but it gave Sora ample time to check on Cloud.

He hurried over to the ledge, seeing pillars of fire sprout from the ground below. When Sora reached the ledge, he gazed down at the front lawn to see Cloud on his knees, with Sephiroth standing a few meters away. Thinking fast, Sora leapt with a powerful push. He soared through the air a moment before landing beside Cloud, instantly pointing his keyblade above him.

“Heal!” Sora said, and a ring of green flowers magically appeared, curing Cloud in a instant as he stood back up. He gave a curt nod in thanks as the two of them readied themselves for Sephiroth, still remaining motionless. Suddenly, he disappeared and reappeared above them, raising an arm up as it glowed black and purple.

“The time has come,” he called, just as a hail of meteors appeared, heading straight for Sora and Cloud, “Let us make the future.”

Sora and Cloud looked to each other, both smiling as they nodded. Leaping upward, they each reached a meteor and pushed off of it. They both repeated the process, bouncing from one meteor to the next as the meteors continued to rain down. Sora and Cloud were the same distance away from Sephiroth as they neared him, both weapons pulled back to the side. Ending the meteor shower, Sephiroth swung at Sora, forcing him to block it and fall back down.

Cloud, on the other hand, pulled his sword over his head, giving Sephiroth no time for a counter attack. He blocked the strike, but the force pushed him back to the ground. Cloud was far from finished, quickly diving back down to clash with Sephiroth once again. They held their swords against each other, pushing with all their might. Sora, having landed a ways away, was about to charge after, but noted that Tirek was getting back up. Sora had used up his time to help Cloud, and he had to head back.

With a bit of reluctance, Sora veered away from Cloud and Sephiroth, heading back to the school. Even from the distance he was, Sora could hear Tirek mutter to himself.

“These fools are far more powerful than I anticipated,” he groaned, rubbing the top of his head. “I must return with more power!”

And with that, Tirek jumped down behind Sora, surprising him. He whipped around, seeing Tirek gallop straight for the horse statue in the center of the yard. “You’re not getting away that easily!” Sora shouted, rushing after him. However, something at the corner of his eye caught his attention.

Facing the disturbance fully, Sora saw Sephiroth rising in the air, his entire body glowing purple as he held his arms out. Cloud glared up at him, ready to jump up and intercept him. “Descend…” Sephiroth said, “Heartless Angel.”

Sora looked to Tirek, watching him just about to reach the statue. Facing Cloud and Sephiroth, Sora knew he had to help his friend who was in the most immediate danger. After all, the attack Sephiroth was getting ready to use would seep away their strength, and leave them helpless. Sora could only hope he had an extra elixir in his pocket.

Cloud rocketed up towards Sephiroth, just as he was about to complete the spell. “Get back here!” Cloud screamed, and just as he reached him, with Sora desperately trying to help him, the whole area was covered in a blinding light.

***

Sora shot awake, knocking his head against the roof of his bunk. Rubbing his head, he glanced around groggily, seeing that he was back in the Gummi Ship. Remembering the fight he had partaken in, Sora pushed himself out of bed, slamming a hand against the button as he rushed out of the ship. As he entered the rooftop, he scanned the area intently, blinking in shock at what he saw.

It was still night time, but all the damage that was caused during the battle - from the slash mark on the Gummi Ship to the huge hole in the roof - were gone. It was like they were never damaged to begin with. Cloud was no where to be found, nor was Sephiroth or Tirek. Running over to the edge of the rooftop, Sora saw no change in the front lawn either.

Backing away slowly, Sora took a deep breath calming himself down. He had to be rational with himself. “Was all that…” he said, shaking his head as he faced the ground, “a dream?”

Another check of the area confirmed that nothing had changed. With another shake of his head, Sora sighed, “I must really need some sleep.”

Turning around, he trudged his way back to the Gummi Ship. If he had remained there a moment longer, he would have noticed the single black feather, drifting down from the sky and landing on the ground. Just as the feather touched down, the wind picked it back up, sending it sailing through the air and out of sight.

Author's Note

You can either consider this canon or non-canon with the rest of the story, entirely up to you.

Chapter 19: Peace with Conflict

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 19: Peace with Conflict

The town was fairly quiet as Roxas and Lea walked along the sidewalk. There were hardly any cars driving along the roads, and the people they had passed were few and far between. Lea didn’t really care, glancing around with an air of boredom. Roxas, on the other hand, walked with intention, his eyes focused straight ahead. Lea could tell he was dedicated in finding the sweet shop Pinkie Pie worked at.

And it made it all the worse that they had no idea where they were going.

Lea sighed, stopping as he put a hand over his eyes. Roxas took no note, continuing on without hesitation. “Let’s just admit it,” Lea groaned, “We’re lost.”

Roxas merely grunted, not sparing a look back, “If we keep going, we’ll find it eventually. It’s always in the last place you look.”

Shaking off his sour mood, Lea turned back to Roxas with confusion. He ran after him, and walked by his side, leaning forward to speak with him face to face. “That’s what people say to make themselves feel better when they find what was lost,” Lea explained, before standing up straight, gesturing to the path. “And the sweet shop isn’t what’s lost, we are.”

At last, Roxas stopped next to an outdoor table, and Lea along with him. It was evident that Roxas was growing as agitated as Lea. They didn’t know where Pinkie worked, and they didn’t know where they were. It wasn’t a good combination, and Roxas rubbed his forehead, trying to sooth his frustration as he leaned against the table.

“What do you think we should do then?” Roxas snapped, whipping over to Lea with his eyes furrowed. Lea was unaffected by his sudden yelling as he crossed his arms with a bored expression. Roxas jabbed a thumb to his chest, “My plan is to wander around until we find it. It’s better than just waiting for it to appear.”

Lea remained silent, allowing Roxas to glare up at him. Roxas stared at Lea waiting for some sort of response, but getting none. Eventually, Roxas groaned, falling down to a sitting position on the ground, defeated. “So yeah,” he said dejectedly, “We’re lost.”

Lea had to suppress a smirk, knowing it really wasn’t a victory to win a meaningless argument. Off the top of his head, he couldn’t recall a specific time when Roxas was stuck on something like this, but Lea knew that with a little patience, he could get Roxas on his side. The only problem was that Lea wasn’t the patient type.

Lea shifted over to stand in front of Roxas, crouching down afterward with a small grin. “Hey, come on now,” Lea said, consoling the best he could. “Chin up. The first step to solving a problem is admitting you have one.”

“I don’t know,” Roxas said with a shrug, avoiding making eye contact with Lea, “We’ve been searching the town for a while. How do we-?”

“What are you guys doing out here?” Pinkie suddenly asked, standing just off to the side. Lea and Roxas recoiled in shock from her sudden appearance, their eyes shooting open. They stared at her a moment as she smiled weakly, looking quite tired. The flour powdered apron she wore showed she was already busy baking.

“Pinkie?” Roxas asked in astonishment, getting to his feet. He kept his eyes solely on her, afraid she would disappear if he looked away. “Where did you come from?”

“From Sugarcube Cafe,” Pinkie replied like it was a simple fact. Lea looked past Pinkie to the building, his eyes widening further as he took a few steps back to get a better view. His expression slide from surprise to reluctant acceptance, closing his eyes.

“Of course,” he said, turning away from Roxas and Pinkie, hands on his hips, “The one place we don’t look…”

Roxas shelved his shock a moment, tilting his head with a raised brow before looking back to the building. His mouth fell open as he stared at the white building with a pink canopy. A sign hanging near the entrance read ‘Sugarcube Cafe’.

“So…” Pinkie said, tapping both of her index fingers together, “Are you two going to catch bugs in your mouth, or are you coming inside?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Lea waved off, turning back to face her with a small scowl. “Roxas and I just have to… talk for a moment.”

Pinkie smiled brightly, “Okie dokie lokie!”

As she stepped back inside the cafe, Lea walked to Roxas, whose eyes still wandered around the building like it was actually an illusion. He turned to Lea, hoping he wasn’t the only one still shocked that the building they were looking for was where they had stopped. Lea just had an annoyed expression, prompting Roxas to look at him warily.

“What’s the matter?” Roxas asked, “We found the sweet shop.”

“The sweet shop isn’t what concerns me,” Lea said sternly, glancing at the door leading inside before turning back to Roxas. “It’s Pinkie Pie.”

“What about her?” Roxas questioned, somewhat upset that Lea would think unkind things about an innocent friend.

Putting a hand on his chin, Lea hummed in thought, thinking over his words carefully. “I have a strange feeling about her,” he admitted, shaking his head, “What I mean is... She comes off as… weird. And loud, very loud.”

Chuckling, Roxas gave a broad smile, heading for the door while still addressing Lea. “That’s Pinkie Pie,” Roxas said, “She isn’t hiding anything if that’s what you’re wondering.”

“It did cross my mind,” Lea muttered with a nod, following Roxas inside, “Multiple times…”

As the two entered, they were instantly greeted by a mass of people and ambient chattering, both of which filled the small room. Every table and chair was occupied by a person, each eating different types of pastry from cakes to pies. Everyone else was clustered around the counter, hiding it completely from view.

Lea watched the chaos within, scratching the back of his head nervously, “Maybe we should come again some other time.”

“Lea…” Roxas strained, eyeing him with a hint of anger. Lea simply rolled his eyes, never really intending to leave.

The two of them made their way through the crowd, occasionally having to push by people. After the night club, Roxas had a resentment towards large amounts of people in one place. Being in a packed area put him on edge. He must have been too used to the quiet serenity of Twilight Town. Even the World That Never Was had always been bare and calm.

Brushing past two smaller kids, Roxas and Lea made it over to the door to the right of the counter, leading into the kitchen. Quickly, he opened it up and went through, knowing he was trespassing. But they were friends of Pinkie Pie. That had to mean something, right?

The kitchen was free from people, eliciting a sigh of relief from Roxas and Lea, but it definitely wasn’t clean. Every open spot on the counters were taken up by bowls, dough, cooking ware, and white powder. Even the island in the center was filled to the brim with cooking ware, with a few more hanging above it. The four ovens in the corner were on, making the room a couple degrees hotter than usual.

Lea whistled, scanning over the room, “Haven’t seen a place this bad since the old mansion.” He sniffed the air, releasing a content sigh, “But I do like the smell.”

Roxas looked to the left, seeing Pinkie hastily move around the kitchen. She’d jump from a kitchen counter, to a register, to an oven, and repeat. Her hair was sticking up in places, and her exhausted expression showed she was being worn down, badly. How she had the time to pay Roxas and Lea a visit outside was anybody’s guess.

“I don’t think we should bring up that we wanted Sea Salt ice cream,” Roxas said to Lea, feeling bad that Pinkie was in such a condition.

“It can’t be helped,” Lea agreed with a nod. Roxas glanced over the kitchen again, then over to the large crowd before smirking. He may not be able to get his ice cream at the moment, but there was something else he could do. He motioned for Lea to follow him, which Lea responded with a puzzled expression.

Roxas rushed over to Pinkie and exclaimed, “We’ll help you out, Pinkie.”

“Really?” Pinkie said excitedly, receiving cash from a customer. “That…” She quickly looked around the room before laughing nervously. “That would be really helpful.”

Lea groaned, looking away when Roxas shot one of his glares at him. “I was really looking forward to just spend some time with you, Roxas,” he explained, his expression softening as his gaze fell to the floor, “It’s been a long time.”

Roxas’ glare lessened as he felt sympathetic for Lea. Roxas had no feel for time when he was a part of Sora, so for him, it may have been a couple hours, possibly more. For Lea, however, Roxas could only guess how long he wanted to eat ice cream with him again. Delving into his memories, Roxas tried to think of something that would cheer Lea up a bit, and he was thankful Pinkie remained quiet with their exchange.

Roxas grunted in amusement before holding out his arms, “The sooner we finish, the sooner we can hang out!”

Taken aback by that statement, Lea blinked before chuckling a little before laughing. Quickly settling down, he held up a fist as he smiled confidently. “Yeah, alright,” he said, “I mean, if I can save Sora from becoming one of Xehanort’s pawns, then helping Pinkie Pie should be a piece of cake, right?”

“Speaking of cake,” Pinkie pipped up, pointing over to the trays full of uncooked muffins, “Could you put those in the oven? There’s a really big order by Derpy.”

“Derpy?” Lea questioned to himself before shaking it off, making his way over to the muffins with a smirk. With a flick of his wrist, he summoned one of his chakrams, twirling it a bit as he walked. “Cooking muffins, huh? If there’s one thing I’m good at, it’s using heat.”

Roxas smiled at Lea’s newfound determination. He could only hope Lea didn’t accidently burn the muffins, considering he had only used his powers for fighting. Like back in the Organization…

A thought struck Roxas, like it had always been on his mind. He was surprised he hadn’t spoken to Lea about it earlier. “Lea,” Roxas asked, his voice far softer than he intended. Lea stopped just as he was holding his Chakram back, glancing over to Roxas and prompting him to speak. “Do you know a girl named Xion?”

Lea flinched at the name, lowering his chakram as he stared at Roxas. Lea had no signs of recognition, yet he looked like he was conflicted. There was no doubt he had a feeling similar to how Roxas felt; he didn’t know Xion, but had a notion of her existence. Roxas had yet to figure out what that meant exactly.

“It doesn’t ring any bells,” Lea admitted, “Are you looking for this girl?”

Roxas frowned, sighing deeply, “No, I just wanted to ask.”

The sorrow radiating from Roxas told a different story, though Lea could only guess what could be the cause of that. Turning back to the muffins, Lea thought more on Xion, and why he was feeling sad too. He felt he should know that name, that he should remember it like was an old friend, but he couldn’t. And he hated himself for that.

Gripping his chakram, Lea clenched his teeth as he swung his arm back. His chakram was laced in fire, growing intensely as he clutched it tightly. The name had stirred something inside of him, and it forced him to get some aggression out. It was as if the name had caused him some sort of pain some time ago.

***

Lines of apple trees surrounded Riku as he walked along the worn path. He glanced at each tree he passed, feeling fond of the tranquil atmosphere. He had spent a long time alone, traveling the worlds, especially when helping with Sora’s awakening. This solitude prompted him to enjoy his solo outings. After all, being around friends was a bit tiring; Riku didn’t know how Sora did it all the time. Not only that, but Riku’s dabbles in Darkness didn’t make it easier being around other people, afraid his past would cause a fair amount of awkwardness. It wasn’t exactly a pleasant line of thought, and Riku decided to change it.

He questioned why he was heading for Applejack in particular. He had no other plans to meet the others girls that day, and if he was told correctly, Applejack would be busy picking apples. Perhaps that was his reasoning: he would rather stay busy than hang around doing whatever girls did together. Even Kairi would rather help with Riku’s training than any of the other girls on Destiny Islands.

In some way, Riku interpreted hanging out with Applejack as training. And he was completely fine with that.

“Riku!” the voice of Rarity called behind him, and when he looked back, Rarity was running up to him, waving a hand enthusiastically. Riku waited for her to catch up, and when she did she stopped a moment, catching her breath.

“I didn’t expect to run into you here, darling,” she said, putting a hand to her chest to ease her panting.

Riku shrugged, showing no emotion except boredom, “I thought I could get some training down, stay ready when the Organization make their move.”

Rarity smiled, “Truly exceptional; how you put away your fun for the sake of your friends.”

“Thanks,” Riku said, genuinely glad Rarity had phrased it that way. He needed a reminder that what he was doing was for his friends, and for all of the worlds out there. He turned around to walk along the path again, briefly wondering what Rarity could be doing here.

“But,” Rarity spoke up, and Riku halted as he ceased up his shoulders, knowing that some sort of lecture was coming his way. “You should really take the time to have some fun. If what Sora said is true, you should be fairly powerful already.”

Remaining silent, Riku barely shook his head, wishing he hadn’t bumped into Rarity. “I can spend my time the way I want, can’t I?” he asked, keeping his tone as friendly as he could muster. He didn’t want to outright snap at her.

“By all means,” Rarity replied with a small smirk, “But at least have me come along.”

Somehow, Riku knew if he denied that, Rarity would have tagged along anyway. Accepting that, he closed his eyes with a shake of his head. “Alright, you win,” he said, allowing a small smile to emerge, “But why stick around boring old me?”

Rarity studied him up and down before looking over his shoulder. Afterwards, she crossed her arms confidently, “For certain reasons.”

Sighing, Riku refused to question further. He felt that Rarity was toying with him, and after being manipulated by Xehanort’s Heartless, he didn’t want to deal with that. After all, Rarity was a friend, or at the very least, a friend of a friend. He could play nice for a day.

Rarity brushed by Riku with a giggle as she continued down the path. Riku followed along, wondering how his day would go with Rarity thrown into the mix. Not wanting to be rude, he jogged up until he walked alongside her. At that moment, Riku was anxious of what Rarity would bring up. She was unpredictable, and didn’t seem fazed by whatever awkward questions she would bring up. That’s the impression he got from her, even if it was an inaccurate assumption.

“So are you seeing anyone?” Rarity asked out of the blue, looking up to him with a sly smile. Riku held back a groan as he faced away from Rarity, scolding his mind for being so spot on. Rarity could only widen her smile at his reaction.

“Not that it’s any of your business,” Riku emphasised, glancing up to the sky as if the question was nothing but small talk. “but no, I’m not seeing anyone.” A thought crossed his mind as he found a way to retaliate. “What about you?”

Rarity stumbled a bit, stammering as her eyes fell to the floor, “W-What about me?”

“Don’t play dumb,” Riku teased, nudging Rarity with an elbow. She barely recognized the gesture, still distracted by his question. “A pretty girl like yourself must have lots of boys chasing after you.”

Rarity was silent as the two finally reached the end of the road, a red barn house standing in the center of the orchard. It matched perfectly with the apple motif of both the family and the area. Riku scanned the trees and house for anything important, and when he found none, turned his attention back to Rarity.

She cleared her throat as they stopped again, with Riku crossing his arms at getting his payback with Rarity. “It only seems fair,” Rarity muttered to herself, her eyes furrowed as she stared off to the side. However, when she faced Riku, she dropped her attitude with an elegant smile, closing her eyes for effect. “As pretty as you claim I am, I await a boy that is perfect. And I can say for certain that it isn’t you.”

She spoke with a hint of humor to continue with their playful banter. However, when Rarity looked back to Riku she saw how saddened he was. She wasn’t sure if it was from what she said, or that he genuinely liked her.

“Have I said something wrong?” Rarity questioned, unsure how to handle the situation.

“You’ve heard how I fell to Darkness,” Riku replied, his expression growing dark. His eyes were nearly hollow, staring just to the side of Rarity in deep thought. “And because of it, I’m really not perfect. I guess it’s something I should expect.”

Rarity blinked in confusion before it clicked as she covered her mouth, “Oh my, darling. I didn’t mean it like that! We all know you were… less than friendly with Sora when you had all that Darkness. But it isn’t something we would hold against you. After all, you and Sora saved all of the worlds together. You made up for it.”

Riku shook out of his stupor, giving a soft smile at Rarity’s praise. “Right,” he said, rubbing his forehead with a hand. He didn’t show any emotions, but Rarity could tell he was still upset with what he did years ago. “I shouldn’t jump to dumb conclusions like that, huh?”

“Heads up!” a voice to the side yelled, startling the two. Riku whipped his head over to look at the source, only to summon his keyblade and swipe at something that was thrown at him. Rarity yelped in surprise before she saw two halves of an apple by her feet. She could only tilt her head to the side while Riku raised his brow. It was an odd attack, and given that it wouldn’t have done a lot of damage to him, he felt the perpetrator wouldn’t be very hostile.

His suspicion was correct as a little girl came bounding out of the trees, giggling to herself. Riku didn’t know who she was, but Rarity huffed as she crossed her arms. “Apple Bloom!” Rarity scolded, “Hasn’t Applejack taught you that throwing apples at people isn’t nice?”

Apple Bloom wasn’t wavered in the least as she stopped in front of Riku. She was far more excited than Riku expected, and he also noticed that she wasn’t looking at him. Following her gaze, he found she was fascinated with his keyblade.

“That was so cool!” Apple Bloom praised, causing Riku to smile in appreciation. Rarity, on the other hand, scowled at Apple Bloom for having ignored her. “You guys must have the bestest lives ever!”

Riku had never had any praise outside of his world, and to receive it from a little girl boosted his confidence quite a bit. Though, it did sadden him knowing that another person had been dragged into this world’s affairs. Apple Bloom shouldn’t have to deal with the Organization and the trouble they caused. Plus, Maleficent was roaming around too, with Pete cornering them just a few days ago.

“Where’s your sister?” Riku asked, crouching down to her level. He had to concentrate on the reason for coming to Sweet Apple Acres, and letting Applejack know of his presence was the first step.

Crossing her arms, Apple Bloom huffed as she turned away, slightly amusing Riku. She must not like being treated like a kid. “She’s in the orchard,” Apple Bloom answered, jabbing a thumb over to the apple trees. “She likes ta work alone sometimes.”

Riku nodded as he stood back up, “I’ll let her know we’re around. Wouldn’t want to scare her.”

As Riku wandered into the orchard, Rarity tapped her chin in thought. She could have just as easily informed Applejack of their arrival, and Riku could have gotten started on his training. He must have a good reason, and as his adventures had shown, he prefered to do things on his own. As remarkable as he was, he was pretty dense when it came to friendships, since he always relied on himself.

“He’s nice,” Apple Bloom commented as she picked up the two halves of the sliced apple, offering one to Rarity.

“Certainly,” Rarity agreed as she accepted it. Studying the food, she was disgusted to see a bit of dirt and grass had landed on the apple. Glancing to Apple Bloom, she saw her dig into her apple with vigor. Rarity scrunched her face up, turning back to the trees that Riku had disappeared through. “Though he could still learn a thing or two from Sora.”

***

Standing on a step ladder, Applejack picked apple after apple before tossing each one into a vacant, wooden bucket on the ground. It wasn’t uncommon of her to work monotonously, and the repetitive labor allowed her mind to drift. Of course, instead of thinking about the looming threat to friendship, Applejack found herself thinking about school, especially with the new reputation she had gandered, courtesy of Sunset Shimmer.

It was already bad enough she was teased for who she was, but to add a boyfriend problem into the mix made things complicated. First people made fun of her for actually getting one, then after rectifying that claim that she never had one, everyone figured Sora had dumped her. Applejack had never brought it up with her friends, and how could she? The boys already had a lot on their mind, and the girls didn’t need another reason to fret over her.

Pulling off an apple with a little unnecessary force, Applejack gazed at it, seeing her reflection on the red skin. Her face was what it had always been, yet it carried a tinge of regret. It was a feeling Applejack hadn’t felt since she was a Freshman at Canterlot High. She was supposed to be strong, but with all of this bullying, she didn’t think she could last very much longer.

Clamping her eyes shut, Applejack threw the apple to the ground, missing the bucket. She didn’t care, as long as she got some of her frustration out. Though, it didn’t help very much.

“What was wrong with that apple?” a voice asked behind Applejack, causing her to jump with a yelp. She tried to hold on to the step ladder, but the support beam was just out of reach as she tumbled backwards. Two arms attempted to catch her, but proved futile as she crashed into the person.

Landing on top, Applejack groaned as the person underneath her did the same. She quickly shuffled off of him, finding that it was Riku. Seeing a friend pop by made her push aside her personal problems, giving a big smile.

“Well, howdy, Riku,” she greeted, to which Riku grunted in reply, massaging his stomach. “Fancy meeting ya this deep in the orchard.”

A brief smirk emerged from his face as he sat up, using a hand to support himself. “Yeah,” he said, “I just thought I’d let you know me and Rarity were here. Didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Ah, shucks,” Applejack waved off, getting to her feet as she brushed off her skirt, “Ya just surprised me. Takes a bit more than a friend visitin’ ta scare me.”

“Glad to hear it,” Riku said with a shake of his head. Applejack offered him a hand and he took it, standing back up again. He glanced over to the lone apple on the ground as he frowned, and Applejack knew what he was thinking. “What was wrong with that apple?”

Sighing, Applejack turned away from the apple in question, feeling the sadness from before set in. “Bruised, nothin’ more,” she explained dryly. Riku raised a brow before stepping over to the apple and picking it up. He tilted his hand to look at it from every angle, all the while Applejack faced away from him tensely. She didn’t need him getting worked up over her.

“Looks fine to me,” he said before turning to her.

“Well, I’m the expert,” Applejack retorted, still not looking at him, “I know when an apple ain’t right.”

“Then I guess you won’t mind if I have it,” Riku said with a smirk, causing Applejack to finally face him with annoyance.

“I ain’t stoppin’ ya,” she said with a shrug, watching as Riku took a bite out of the fruit. She didn’t want it going to waste anyway. Fiddling with her hat, Applejack waited for Riku to take a few more bites before she asked, “So what brings you around these parts?”

“Training,” Riku answered, tossing the apple lightly to himself. He rolled his arm around his socket, grimacing slightly. “After being manipulated by Xehanort, I don’t want to be put in the same position again. Figured your farm would be a good place to practice a bit.”

Applejack smiled, “Be my guest.”

An apple suddenly came sailing through the air, and Riku summoned his keyblade in his free hand without a second thought, cutting through with an upward strike and making two halves fall on either side of him. Applejack blinked, surprised by how fast he had moved. She barely even realized an apple was thrown at him. Turning to where it had emerged, Applejack furrowed her brow, spotting the culprit.

“Apple Bloom!” she scolded, stomping a foot, “You better come out and apologize!”

“Don’t worry about it,” Riku waved off with his free hand, and Applejack growled, seeing Apple Bloom take off giggling. It was like she had no respect for visitors. “She’s keeping me on my toes.”

“It ain’t nice,” Applejack retorted, putting a hand on her hip.

“Yeah,” Riku said, eyeing his keyblade, “but I need the training. Every little bit counts. I need to be stronger.”

It might have been that Applejack wasn’t a keyblader, but she didn’t think having apples thrown at him would help improve his fighting ability. Walking up to Riku, Applejack snatched the apple away from him as she smiled reassuringly.

“You’re plenty strong already, Sugarcube,” she said, causing Riku tighten his hold on his keyblade, “Ya just gotta focus on what matters most.”

“I already have a someone beating friendship into my head,” Riku joked, snatching the apple right back, “And he’s lazier than you.”

“That must be sayin’ somethin’,” Applejack said with a smug look. The bucket of apples was only a few feet away, and a small plan formed in her head that would be beneficial for her and Riku. “And, uh, do you mind cuttin’ up more apples?”

***

With the animal shelter in front of him, Sora was confident he had reached where Fluttershy was most likely at. Rainbow stood beside him, simply staring at the building intently. Sora was glad he had ran into her as he walked the streets. He had no way of navigating, and getting lost in this town would have been a waste of time.

“So, Rainbow,” Sora asked as they both tore their eyes away to look to each other. “You’re not mad that I turned into that form back at the club?”

Rainbow shrugged, a smile growing, “How can I? It wasn’t like you did it on purpose.”

As reassuring as it sounded, Sora was still grim as he remembered Rainbow and Applejack when he got out of his form. “But you looked scared,” he said, causing Rainbow to look to the ground with both anger and fear. “You and Applejack had to go through my Darkness.”

“I’m not going to lie,” Rainbow stated, gripping her arm tightly, “It was… scary. It was so lonely, and cold, and just not good. And to know that Darkness could come back if you go into Valor Form again makes my stomach churn.”

Her words were all too familiar with how Sora felt when he turned into a Heartless back in Hollow Bastion. Of course, he had been forgetting things when he was being consumed, and he was immensely grateful Rainbow had not gone through something similar. It probably had something to do with her connection with the magic of friendship.

Rainbow pointed a finger right at Sora’s face, causing him to flinch, “Don’t tell that to anyone, got it?”

“Y-Yeah,” Sora answered before taking a deep breath, eyeing the door leading into the animal shelter. As much as wanted to resolve the conflict between himself and Fluttershy, he couldn’t find the strength to take a step forward. At the moment, Sora would rather face off against Xemnas again. At least then, he knew what to do.

Rainbow was respectively quiet as she crossed her arms. She tapped her foot impatiently before asking, “So are you going to talk to her or stand here all day?”

“What would you do?” Sora asked, bowing his head.

Growling, Rainbow shifted behind Sora before pushing him along. “Say I’m sorry then hug it out!” she stated, giving one last shove, causing Sora to nearly lose balance as he caught himself at the door. “Now I don’t want you leaving until everything is sorted out!”

Her encouragement was blunt, but it did make Sora smile, knowing someone had his back. Thinking it over, Sora knew that the one true way to get Fluttershy back as his friend was to be himself. He was never one to plan, and when things got tough, he used what all of his friends taught him. Even still, as Sora reached for the doorknob, he wished he could remember those lessons.

Chapter 20: Feelings

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 20: Feelings

The animal shelter was silent as Sora entered through the door. It was a receptionist area, fit with a counter just to his left and a see through room in the far corner. The many colorful tubes in the secluded room proved that it was for hamsters, if the rodents inhabiting it didn’t give it away. Besides the hamsters, there was no sign of any pet or person, like it was meant to be closed for the day.

“Fluttershy,” Sora called, unwilling to walk further into the room. With the lack of life, it put him in an awkward position if he was not meant to enter. Thankfully, a door opened on the left side of the wall, past the counter.

“Oh, I’m sorry, we’re…” Fluttershy started before trailing off, her eyes landing on Sora. She immediately looked away with her hands gripping her arms. It didn’t take an expert to know that she was still uncomfortable around Sora.

“I wanted to apologize,” Sora stated, “I didn’t mean to frighten you when I… changed into that form.”

The room felt like it was pressing itself against Sora, and it didn’t help that there was not a sound to be heard, inside or outside. Fluttershy didn’t respond, almost acting like she was ignoring Sora, which made his heart heavy. Scratching the back of his head, Sora tried to think of something to help him in the situation. Idly, he stuck a hand into his red pouch, searching around without really looking for anything.

His hands brushed against a star made of seashells, and it made Sora freeze up. Pulling it out, he found the good luck charm Kairi had given him. It had seen better days, but it was still intact and clean, and it held the warm radiance that Kairi gave off. With a little more thought, Sora felt that Fluttershy shared that same feeling.

“What’s that?” Fluttershy whispered, barely giving a glance at Sora. Seeing her speak up made Sora smile, which didn’t go unnoticed by Fluttershy, giving a weak one in return.

“It’s Kairi’s good luck charm,” Sora explained, tossing it up before lightly catching it. “She made it before our world was taken from the darkness. Before I went out to fight Xehanort’s Heartless, she gave it to me. I’ve tried giving it back, but she wanted me to keep it.”

Fluttershy deflated at the mention of Kairi, closing her eyes in defeat. Sora could tell Fluttershy was sensitive around the name Kairi. Whenever Sora had brought her up during the long story back at the club, Fluttershy would turn away like she had been hurt. Why Fluttershy would behave in such a way, when she had never even met Kairi, made him sadder.

“You remember when I turned into a Heartless at Hollow Bastion?” Sora asked, clutching the lucky charm as he raised it up. “How I had sacrificed myself to free Kairi’s heart?”

It was something Fluttershy could never forget. She couldn’t even imagine Sora disappearing, but coming back as a Heartless to boot was even worse, and in a dreadful place no less. Fluttershy quickly nodded, hoping the conversation would move past that point.

“Her heart lead me back to the light,” Sora said, rubbing a thumb on the lucky charm, “And I wouldn’t be here today if it hadn’t. But…”

It was the moment of truth, and Sora could tell his heart was urging him to go through with it. Lowering his hand, he stepped forward towards Fluttershy, reaching into his pocket again. He deposited the lucky charm before finding the little orb in the lower reaches, and pulled it out just as he stood in front of Fluttershy. Her breathing was ragged, looking off to the side, though he could tell she was struggling to not look up to him.

“Here,” Sora said, holding out his hand to display a small blue crystal, perfectly rounded and fragile. Fluttershy gazed at the object in awe, transfixed by its beauty. She may not have been one for jewelry, but Fluttershy felt special as she picked up the orb. Afraid she would drop it, Fluttershy cupped her hands, rolling it around in her palms.

The way Fluttershy was acting made Sora smile. He knew she wasn’t one for expensive, shiny objects, but he felt she would cherish it. “I got it in Twilight Town, after learning that Kairi had been kidnapped,” Sora said, “When I held it, I felt something deep inside of me. Like someone else was reaching out to it.” Sora grunted in amusement as he crossed his arms. “I think it was Roxas, he always did get a little protective with his stuff.”

Fluttershy gave a quiet giggle at his quip, and it made Sora happy, even if he did bring up Kairi again. He pointed at the orb as he continued, “This crystal was what made me feel like I wasn’t alone, that someone else was in my heart.”

Fluttershy was still staring at the crystal in bliss before her face fell back to a frown. Sora’s heart dropped, dreading the reason behind the action. He didn’t want Fluttershy to reject his gift; he felt like he was close. “W-Why are you giving it to… me?” she asked, finally looking directly up to him. Looking into her aquamarine eyes caused him to blush and smile at the same time. It also allowed him to just look at her fully. To him, she was beautiful, with a heart of gold to match. It brought relief to know that he loved her with all of his heart. However, bringing it out into the open made him blush, barely finding the words to respond.

“Because,” he said, lifting a hand up and placing it against the side of Fluttershy’s head, feeling her soft hair between his fingers, “I want you to know that you’re a part of my heart, as much as I’m a part of yours.”

Fluttershy met Sora’s hand with her own, holding the crystal tightly. She knew what Sora meant by that statement, and her blush matched his own. She had no idea how to respond; she didn’t have a lot of friends, and to have someone who had arrived merely a few days ago say something like that put butterflies in her stomach.

“Sora…” she said, taking a single step forward.

Suddenly, a solid kick to the door snapped them out of their trance-like staring as they hastily backed away from each other with heavy blushes. With the door ajar, Rainbow Dash leaned into the doorway with a curious expression. She turned between Sora and Fluttershy before a large smile emerged.

“Have you guys made up yet?” she questioned with a hint of impatience, “Standing outside waiting for you guys is so boring.”

The question brought back the subject that drove Sora and Fluttershy apart in the first place. It wasn’t resolved either, leaving the true answer in the dark. Sora faced Fluttershy with a desperate feeling he hadn’t felt since the Dream Worlds. Fluttershy simply stood there in contemplation, and Sora could only wonder what could be passing through her head. He really didn’t want it to be a negative remark.

“Yes…” Fluttershy said slowly, holding the crystal orb tightly as she smiled shyly, “I think we did work it out.”

The immense pleasure Sora felt was euphoric, and it made him release a chuckle. He was on top of the world for the moment after the harrowing situation he had on his hands before. Rainbow was pleased as well, giving a genuine smile that wasn’t cocky or absurd.

“Finally,” Rainbow said before sweeping an arm for them to follow, “Come on, lunch is on me.”

Though Rainbow was really eager, Fluttershy held a finger, turning to a few papers on the receptionist's desk as she sorted them out. Sora could tell she was closing the animal shelter properly, and wasn’t at all in a rush, though Rainbow groaned as she heaved a restless sigh. The short period gave Sora time to think about how things would turn out with Fluttershy. She didn’t really confirm whether she wanted to share the same feelings Sora did, but he felt like it wasn’t something that needed an answer. He kind of already knew, and it made his heart skip a beat whenever he reminded himself of it.

However, his mind drifted over to Kairi which made him frown slightly. Sora had no idea how Kairi would react to him loving Fluttershy, but he felt she would accept it. He didn’t want to break the deep friendship he had with her, and he was willing to bet she didn’t either. He still remembered the radiance that her lucky charm gave off. It was more than a trinket, that much he would never deny, and it showed their connection as friends. No matter what happened, he knew that she would understand, and bring a smile to his face along with it.

***

A hooded stranger, wearing a black cloak, sat next to the doorway leading into the animal shelter, the occupants that had once resided inside were long gone. It left an empty feeling to the area, like all the happiness and friendship had left with those three kids. The stranger didn’t care, or at least that’s what he kept telling himself. The exchange Sora and Fluttershy had put him in a rut, one that caused him to contemplate his very motivations for being in this world in the first place.

He had stated that he was merely observing, watching and waiting for something, but exactly what, he hadn’t a clue. Maybe he was lying to himself, covering up for what he had done, and likely for what had happened before his time with Organization XIII.

“How long?” the stranger asked himself, gripping his leg tightly, “How long has it been since that morning? The moment when everything I held dear had been snuffed away like a small flame.”

He turned to the sidewalk where he saw Sora and the two girls walk down. “That boy had experienced the same loss,” he mused, “But he gained everything back. He doesn’t know how lucky he is.”

Standing up, he held his hand in front of him, staring at the palm like it would provide him the insight he desired. It didn’t tell him why he was the one to become a Nobody, why he had wronged Sora, why he didn’t just fade away. It was just a hand, a hand that couldn’t do anything but what he wanted it to do.

“Maybe this is my reason for appearing here,” the stranger said, gazing around, “A form of punishment for my actions. The evidence stands with it; black coat, memories of my past, and the girl.”

The stranger paused, remembering the first time he had seen Rainbow Dash, practicing. She played a game he wasn’t familiar with, but it hardly changed his feelings towards her. Rainbow Dash was so much like her, it hurt to just look at her. The times they had shared was long gone, and could never be repeated, and fate chose to torment him with someone that resembled her so much.

“She is not her,” the stranger emphasised, shaking his head slowly, “She is not my… sister.”

His sister was gone, end of story, though not the end of his memories. As much pain as they brought him, those small moments with her was all he had left. And Rainbow Dash, how she pranced about boastfully, imitating her, mocking her. She acted like her but never being her in the first place.

“She is not my sister!” he bellowed, lashing an arm to the side. He almost summoned his weapon, but restrained himself, knowing nothing good would come out of losing control. He gave a few long breaths, lowering his anger, though not doing well. He had to distract himself, that’s how he had kept sane. He just needed to observe, nothing more.

“Even if she isn’t her,” the stranger continued, walking forward, “I can’t resist the urge to assist her. I hope it wanes out with time. It is cumbersome to watch her like I did with my sister.”

With that in mind, he made his way down the sidewalk, where the three kids had trekked down. The stranger could easily pull up a Corridor of Darkness, but the day was far too sunny. He should enjoy the light while it lasted.

***

With three apples coming his way, Riku smirked with his keyblade ready for another strike. Three quick swings was all it took to cut the apples once more, adding to the other apple halves that littered the ground around him. His sweat was nothing to him as he breathed heavily, feeling like he was in his element. A rigorous training was what he really needed to feel alive, though the last barrage wasn’t enough to sate him.

“Three apples?” Riku asked, shouldering his keyblade with a smirk, “Why are you taking it easy on me?”

Applejack chuckled with a smirk of her own, five apples in her hands. A baseball pitching machine stood in front of her, still humming with its rubber wheels in motion. Apple Bloom and Rarity stood beside Applejack, their arms full with so many apples they could hardly keep balance. Applejack laid her apples on the ground before tipping her hat, “It’s mostly cause ya sliced enough of ‘em for the apple pies, but also cause ya look like ya could slip like Granny Smith on a banana peel.”

A glance around did show Riku that he had little room to maneuver. Most of the space had been filled up, to the point where stepping anywhere out of the barren circle he stood in would be hazardous. Grunting, Riku dismissed his keyblade with a nod, and Applejack shut off the pitching machine. Rarity and Apple Bloom dropped their apples with a drawn out sigh, relief flooding their mind.

Applejack was still impressed how Riku was able to cut that many apples in a few hours. They had barrels full of the apples halves, more than they probably should have cut really. However, seeing the proud smile on Riku reminded Applejack of herself; the feeling of doing a good day’s worth of work.

Taking hold of a wooden bucket, Applejack tossed it to Riku who caught it nimbly, already knowing the procedure. He collected whatever apple was in reach, along with Applejack, Apple Bloom, and Rarity, with the latter whining under her breath.

Applejack stopped a moment to glance to Riku, “Ya sure do like ta train, huh?”

“Yeah,” Riku said with a shrug, examining an apple half before tossing into his bucket, “It’s become more of a habit than anything.”

Rarity could believe that, considering she had helped him alongside her friend for longer than she would have liked. Why couldn’t he be like most boys, who did sports or played music? At the very least, he enjoyed doing what he loved, and Rarity knew how it felt when she was designing a new dress. The fact that both Applejack and Riku were both content on what they were doing at the same time was somewhat baffling. Cutting apple halves was a perfect fit for the two of them.

“So,” Riku asked, standing to his feet, “You enjoy picking apples?”

“Are apples red?” Applejack asked back with a chuckle, “Me and AB were raised on this here farm, and there ain’t nothing tearin’ us away from it!”

“Yeah!” Apple Bloom cheered, dropping her bucket as she raised her hands into the air, “We’re apples to the core!”

Riku hummed to himself as he pondered their words. He hadn’t met anyone so dedicated to their work, especially with a girl like Applejack. She was in school yet used her free time to work in an apple orchard. It reminded him of himself, though with a clearly long term goal with her profession. He knew he would probably continue being a keyblade master after the whole mess with Xehanort was cleaned up, but it felt so far away, and what exactly he would be doing was still up in the air.

His worries spiked for a moment before he took a deep breath, but the heat of the sun finally made him realize how weary he had made himself. Putting his bucket down, Riku stretched his back, releasing a breath afterwards.

(Stop music)

“I think we could use a break,” he admitted. As much as he wanted to help Applejack with the apples, he couldn’t deny that he was tired.

“Yes, I agree with Riku,” Rarity said quickly with a pointed finger, letting her bucket fall out of her hands and nearly tipping it over in the process.

“I guess it couldn’t hurt,” Apple Bloom said with a nod.

“Ya’ll can go on ahead,” Applejack said without a glance, “I’ll wrap up this mess real quick and pick a few more apples.”

With a raised brow, Riku crossed his arms studying Applejack intently. She had picked apples the whole time, and that wasn’t counting the hours before he had arrived. By the look of her, she was struggling ever so slightly to reach for the apple halves strug around. It wasn’t blatantly obvious - whether she was trying to hide it or not - but she was most likely as exhausted as Riku.

“Come on, Applejack,” Riku chided with a wave, “We can pick up the rest in a few minutes.”

“It’s alright, Sugarcube,” Applejack said pushing herself up with a smile that promoted her fatigue. “Ya’ll run along.”

“I think you can manage a few minutes without working on apples,” Riku said rather sharply, his tiredness ebbing into his mood.

“I don’t work with apples all the time,” Applejack snapped back, furrowing her brow, “Besides, ya should follow your own advice with your training.”

“And I do,” Riku said curtly, “And I also know my limitations.”

“But ya don’t know mine, so just back off a bit,” Applejack retorted, turning her back to him as she picked up more apples. It was simple gesture, but Riku grew angry, and Rarity and Apple Bloom saw it plain as day.

“Perhaps we should be moving along,” Rarity suggested with a nervous laugh.

“Yeah,” Apple Bloom drew out, taking a few steps back, “Just a quick breather for every-”

“Why do you have to be so prideful?” Riku questioned loudly, causing Applejack to freeze up. Rarity and Apple Bloom groaned, knowing their attempts to break up the fight were fruitless. “You know you can spare a break, but you choose not to. What are you trying to prove?”

Applejack stood to her feet slowly, turning her head to Riku with the harshest glare possible. It didn’t faze Riku, though inwardly, he did wince, feeling he had passed some invisible line. Her hands were shaking a bit too, like she was suppressing a violent urge.

“I think it’s high time ya left,” she said rather coldly and quietly, startling him as his face broke away from his anger. Before he could respond, Applejack stormed away, her apple bucket still in her hands. Turning to Rarity and Apple Bloom, he silently asked for some sort of explanation for her behavior, something to show he hadn’t ruined a friendship without some other factor contributing to the argument.

Unfortunately, they didn’t say anything. They weren’t mad by any right, but they looked as troubled as he was. Either they didn’t know or they didn’t know how to word it, or even if they wanted to tell him. They broke eye contact with him as they walked by him, heading in the same direction as Applejack. Alone, Riku couldn’t come with any reasoning behind Applejack’s behavior, and in his frustration, made his way to the path leading out of Sweet Apple Acres, punching a tree as he passed it.

***

“Done,” Roxas breathed, falling onto the counter as he breathed heavily. After hours of working in the hot bakery, the store had finally closed for the day, giving Roxas time to finally rest. He knew helping Pinkie take care of all those customers would be a handful, but he didn’t think it was be so demanding. Glancing to across from him, he saw Lea lean against another counter, his chakrams still in his hands.

“Remind me again why it was so busy?” Roxas requested as he turned to Pinkie, who was putting away the last of the ingredients, looking no worse for ware. In fact, if Roxas didn’t know better, she appeared to not have worked at all. He really had to give her credit for her stamina. Compared to how she was a few hours ago, Pinkie was clean, energetic, and happy. Roxas had to wonder if he and Lea had something to do with that minor transformation.

“Well, after you burned the first batch of muffins…” Pinkie started, staring wistfully at the ceiling.

“It was a spur of the moment thing,” Lea defended with a shrug.

“Remaking all of them took twice as long,” she continued, “and with three times the customers, mixed in with half as many bakers, and four times as many ingredients, we come to one abnormal day of work.”

Lea gazed at her, his eyes half closed as he stood up straight. “Right, sure,” he said, rubbing his back, “Add math to anything and it gets complicated. It almost sounds like you don’t know.”

“That’s part of it,” Pinkie agreed as she tossed the last bag of flour into the cabinet. “But still, it’s a shame Twilight didn’t show up. She said she’d help out.”

“Twilight?” Roxas asked, perking up.

“Yeah,” Pinkie said with a nod, “She must have been busy at her house. Though her family had plans all day, so I didn’t think anything would come up.”

To hear that put Roxas on edge, remembering what Riku said the night before. The Organization had every chance to attack her when no one was there to defend her, and if she wasn’t here at Sugarcube Cafe, then something must have stopped her. With his fatigue forgotten, Roxas rushed up to Pinkie, causing her to lean back from his sudden approach.

“Do you know where she lives from here?” he asked desperately, growing uneasy with each passing second.

“Yeah,” Pinkie replied, standing up straight with a smile, “A few streets down, first purple house on the right.”

“Thanks,” Roxas said before taking off out the kitchen door.

Lea reached a hand out in surprise, watching Roxas leave the cafe. “Wait, Roxas!” he shouted, but the door had been shut before he could be heard. “Aaaaand he’s gone.” He pushed off from the counter, dismissing his chakrams before putting both hands on his hips, muttering, “Just how much does Twilight mean to you?”

Lea couldn’t recall a time when Roxas was so apprehensive over one girl. It didn’t worry him too much, but it did raise the question whether Roxas was feeling something that he couldn’t understand. Chuckling to himself, Lea imagined a moment as Roxas as a bumbling fool in front of Twilight, much like Sora could be at times. He may be a powerful keyblade wielder, but there was still a lot he needed to know about the real world.

These amusing thoughts still didn’t put Lea at ease. He had no idea where Roxas was going, and by the look on his face, it didn’t look like he was heading for a tea party. He hoped nothing would happen to him, and that he knew to head back to the school at the end of the day. It was a shame they didn’t get a chance to hang out though. Trying to relax, Lea glanced over to Pinkie, seeing her wipe another counter absent mindedly. Considering she had scrubbed that particular counter clean three times already, he had to wonder if she even noticed Roxas’ demeanor upon his departure.

“Pinkie,” Lea said, gaining her attention. He had his mouth open, preparing to question a lot of her actions, but stopped himself recalling what Roxas said when they had first arrived at the cafe. The memory drove his questions away as he smiled, asking, “Ever heard of Sea Salt ice cream? It’s a delicacy where I come from.”

***

Roxas replayed the directions Pinkie had given him, finding it hard to breath, especially with the anxiety of all the possibilities. Twilight could be hurt, captured, or worse, and he had been spending the day baking! Just the thought of it made his heart drop, and it made him pick up speed. He had to find Twilight; he couldn’t rest until she was safe. His dedication somewhat baffled him, but not to a certain degree. He had felt the same anxiety for another girl before, possibly for Xion. However, that was in the past, and Roxas put it behind him as he focused on where he was going.

A house to the side looked like the one he had left with Twilight a few days ago, and he cornered around the grassy front yard to the door. Without missing a beat, he pounded a fist against the door.

“Twilight!” he yelled, stopping a moment to listen. There was no sound of movement nor any reply, making his uneasiness build up. “Twilight, if you’re in there, please answer me!”

He pounded a few more times on the door with no avail. In desperation, he tried the doorknob, but found it to be locked, causing him to jiggle it in hope it would come loose somehow. Growling, he banged on the door one final time before shouting, “I’m coming in!”

Stepping back, Roxas summoned the Oblivion keyblade, swinging it out before pointing it at the door. Just as he did, the lock clicked, and the door swung open. Roxas would have associated such an action with his keyblade, but there was no light like the other times a keyblade had unlocked a door. Lowering his keyblade, Roxas watched as Twilight slipped out of the house, her head low with a very crestfallen expression.

However, Roxas was just glad Twilight was alright, breathing a long sigh of relief upon seeing her. Dismissing his keyblade, he ran up to her with a wide smile. “I was worried about you,” he said, “Pinkie said you were going to help her today.”

“I…” Twilight stated, barely moving her head, “had some things on my mind.”

“Well,” Roxas said, putting a hand on his hip, “Maybe I can help you out. I’m all finished at Sugarcube Cafe.”

“Help?” Twilight asked, finally facing him with a hint of animosity, “Help like my friends did by lying to me?”

“Lying?” Roxas asked, “Your friends wouldn’t-”

“But they did!” Twilight screamed. Roxas’ heart hurt when she said that. He didn’t like seeing her so upset, and with his small experience with friendships, he didn’t feel very confident in handling the conversation.

“Can’t you just talk to them about it?” Roxas asked, trying not to pick sides. He would have stuck with Twilight and agreed with what she said, but the girls lying didn’t sound like them at all.

“It’s not that simple, Roxas,” she snapped, heading for the door again, “You just don’t understand.”

“Then make me understand,” Roxas demanded, stepping closer and resting a hand on her shoulder. As soon as it touched, Twilight swatted it away with her eyes furrowed, making Roxas flinch.

“They know something about me,” Twilight said, putting both hands on her chest, “Or something that isn’t me but at the same time is me, and they never brought it up because it has something to do with the magic of friendship. They don’t trust me enough to tell me it.”

“Of course they trust you,” Roxas said desperately. He couldn’t stand seeing Twilight like this, not after everything they had gone through so far.

“How would you know?” Twilight barked at him, “You don’t have any experience with friendship because you were just a Nobody for most of your life!”

As soon as the words left her mouth, Twilight gasped before putting her hands over her mouth. Roxas stared at her in horror, unable to see any valid reason for bluntly saying something like that. Had her friends really affected her that badly that she’s resorting to push away her other ones? And Twilight had met Lea, she knew Roxas had some knowledge about friendship. She had no reason to go off like that.

Furrowing his brow, Roxas turned away, “I ran all this way to be told I don’t know anything about friendship. What a friendly thing to say, huh?”

He strode away, and though Twilight reached out to apologize, the words died in her throat as her heart broke. All of these foreign memories supplied by Young Xehanort had been stirring in her head, and she had released all her confusion and tension on Roxas. She had no idea how she was supposed to fix something like that, and she felt tears welling up in her eyes.

“Maybe I’m the one who doesn’t know anything about friendship,” she muttered to herself, shuffling back inside. Roxas didn’t look back when he heard those words, nor when the door closed. At that point, he didn’t care, and refused to see if Twilight had really meant what she said.

***

Though his heart was full of glee, Sora felt dread in his heart as he sat on the ledge of the school roof. It was like there was something negative in the air, tainting it like a foul odor. He couldn’t really pinpoint it either, like it originated from the world itself. And as he thought about this, he remembered that he never confirmed if Fluttershy really liked him back, or if he had even said it clear enough. His head was so full of uncertainty that it just made him uneasy. Not even the beautiful sight of the surrounding town brought him any delight. Even still, he and Fluttershy had become good friends again, at the very least.

The sound of footsteps broke his thoughts as he looked back to see Riku walking across the roof, his hands in his pockets. With a boost of energy, Sora pushed off the ground and walked over to meet Riku, a smile on his face.

“So how’d it go?” Sora asked, putting his hands behind his head.

“Terrible,” Riku grumbled, briskly passing by Sora without pause. His attitude made Sora look back at him as he made his way to the Gummi Ship, “I’m heading to bed early.”

Crossing his arms, Sora contemplated on what could have put Riku in a bad mood. He had went to Applejack’s orchard to train, and as far as he knew, Riku enjoyed doing that. The sounds of more footsteps caused him to turn around to find Roxas, behaving just as sulky as Riku.

“How was Pinkie’s?” Sora asked, but Roxas didn’t even bother replying, stepping right past him for the Gummi Ship. Sora sagged his body in defeat, feeling really left out. If his friends weren’t happy, then it was pretty difficult for him to be happy. “What’s with everyone?”

Even more footsteps were heard and Sora whipped around to find Lea with four Sea Salt ice creams in his hand. He didn’t look at all bitter like Riku and Roxas, and was actually pretty happy.

“Hey, Sora!” he said cheerfully, “Check out what Pinkie Pie made.”

He waved the ice creams, and though the thought of eating one made Sora salivate, he couldn’t bring himself to be cheerful, sighing. Lea frowned at Sora upon seeing how he was acting, offering an ice cream to him.

“Things didn’t turn out well with Fluttershy, huh?” he asked, holding two ice creams together as he bit into a different one, unable to suppress a smile at the taste.

“No,” Sora said with a shake of his head, accepting the ice cream as he stared at it, “Just how Riku and Roxas seem to be down in the dumps.”

Lea hummed to himself, tapping the ice cream to his chin, “Sounds like girl problems to me. Riku was heading to see Applejack, and Roxas ran off to check on Twilight. I bet my ice cream that something happened between them and those girls.”

“What does that have to do with how their acting?” Sora asked, giving a shrug.

Lea chuckled, “Not all friendships are roses and daisies all the time, especially when girls are involved.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Sora asked, still puzzled.

Chuckling again, Lea took a large bite out of his ice cream, turning away to fully appreciate his dessert. Sora didn’t think he would be getting a solid answer from him, turning his gaze to his ice cream, seeing a bit of it melt off.

“You know,” Lea said, “Kairi tried Sea Salt ice cream for the first time.”

“Really?” Sora said, his spirit rising at hearing a friend try the delicious food. “What’d she think?”

“Salty,” Lea said with a smirk, “And that’s pretty much it.”

Sora looked at him playfully, finally licking his ice cream, “That’s all she had to say about it?”

Lea shrugged playfully, his ice cream finished as he left the stick in his mouth. “Sweetness may have came into it too,” he said, which left Sora fairly happy, knowing she truly did like the ice cream, if he was interpreting Lea right. However, it didn’t last when he remembered the feeling he had felt in the air earlier, turning to the Gummi Ship where Riku and Roxas resided.

The drama that was going on, along with the three groups fighting for the magic of friendship, left a mess of worries in Sora. There was just so much going on, he was afraid he would neglect something and the whole thing would come crashing down. And with the risk of all friendships ending didn’t make things easier on him either. Still licking his ice cream, Sora looked to the sky, still blue from the sun. Behind that shroud of blue was the many worlds, counting on their success, whether they knew it or not.

Lea looked up as well, not commenting on his action. He knew the stakes as much as Sora, and it came as a bit of a surprise when he pulled the stick out of his mouth holding it over his head like he was showing the finished ice cream to the worlds. Lea didn’t hold back a large smile on his face as he kept his arm in the air, twisting the stick ever so slightly between his fingers.

Chapter 21: Power of Deceit

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 21: Power of Deceit

The Dusks surrounding Zexion were ready, standing still as stone as they had done for three days. He could hardly believe he had pulled it off, frantically flipping through the pages of his Lexicon. It wasn’t that he believed he wouldn’t finish the plan Vexen had set in motion, but rather that it came about so easily. Despite his vigilance scanning the pages, he found nothing that could contradict his completed work. He truly was finished.

Standing to his feet inside the chalk circle, Zexion held his open book close to himself as he gazed around to the newly formed Nobodies. Though they were once Dusks, they had changed enough in appearance and ability that they deserved a different name. They were the same size and shape of a Dusk, but their suits were lighter, almost pure white, with their opened mouths containing a gray interior. The once blue veins that ran up the side of them had different colors from one Nobody to the next. Yellow, red, blue, and green, each pulsing with energy.

Seeing his creations sent a wave of pleasure in Zexion, smirking as he shut his book with one hand. Just as he did, the doors leading to the rest of the basement swung open, revealing Vexen with his hand behind his back, grinning maniacally.

“So,” he asked, slowly stepping into the room with barely contained excitement. “Are they ready?”

“Yes,” Zexion answered with a nod, “The process came out better than expected. Each one contains a certain element that can wreck havoc on our enemies. They also house the special talent you specifically requested.”

“Excellent,” Vexen said, his grin growing as he studied one of the new Nobodies from where he stood, “I, myself, have been doing some reconnaissance. The blubbering fools with keyblades have distanced themselves among a few of the magic of friendship. With your illusions and my cunning, it will be easy to separate them and squash them like bugs.”

Zexion grew serious as he glanced off to the side, and the act caught Vexen’s attention as he grew upset at his lack of enthusiasm. “What is the matter?” Vexen demanded, “Have you grown soft?”

Zexion shook his head, “My work has given me ample time to think about our purpose.”

“That is unimportant,” Vexen waved off, walking closer, “With the keybladers out of the way, we can-”

“Can what?” Zexion snapped, turning his dagger-like eyes on Vexen, who halted in his approach with surprise, “Gain the magic of friendship? Take over the worlds? If we have no purpose, why do anything?”

Vexen scowled, pointing a finger at Zexion, “You know exactly what we were meant to do. We already know our purpose, and our current course will set us closer to achieving it.”

“Have you no free will of your own?” Zexion asked, turning to the Nobodies, “I tricked the Nobodies into following us, and created these Nobodies with nothing more than a few incantations. But for what reason do I follow the orders of those no longer in power?”

Vexen growled, not liking Zexion’s constant questioning. It was already bad enough they had to wait such a long time to strike, but to have him bring up such insignificant qualms on the brink of their attack was outraging, to say the least. If Zexion wasn’t a key figure in controlling the Nobodies, Vexen would have been done with him a long time ago.

“You listen here,” Vexen hissed, clenching his hands closed as he grew closer to Zexion, grabbing his coat when it was within reach. Zexion was hardly fazed by his aggression, staring blankly at Vexen like he had dealt with it so many times before. “We were created for one purpose and one purpose only: to eradicate the enemies of our creators. We have no other meaning to exist than any other Nobody, and with this task we have our direction. If we so much as diverge away from that, we lose everything. Do you hear me?”

Zexion narrowed his eyes, “It seems you are withholding information from me.”

Vexen shoved him away, crossing his arms with a growl. He showed no indication that he was going to give any response to that statement. Zexion brushed where Vexen had grabbed him, closing his eyes in acceptance.

“Very well,” he said, “I will hold my tongue before I speak ill of our creators.”

“Thank you,” Vexen exhaled in a dramatic way, his grin returning in florish as he held out his arms to gesture to the Nobodies, “Now, prepare these Nobodies - these… Nightbreakers - for the upcoming battle. With their new abilities, and their special talent, they will truly and utterly destroy our enemies.”

With a nod, Zexion held up a hand, his palm presented to the door Vexen had entered through. Like their predecessors, the Nightbreakers stretched their legs in a walk, with Zexion following behind them. Just before he could pass Vexen, Zexion stopped beside him, who at that point held a hand up to his chin in a thoughtful pose. There was no doubt he had a plan already blooming inside of his head, and Zexion was almost afraid to hear about it.

“We may have surprise on our side,” Zexion started, staring straight ahead as Vexen turned to him with a raised brow, annoyed. “We may have the Nobodies under our command, and we may have these newly evolved Dusks, but there will come a point where we ourselves will have to combat the keybladers. And so I ask of you…”

Zexion nudged his head a bit towards Vexen, just enough to shoot him a small glare. “What worth is it to attack the magic of friendship?” he asked. Vexen narrowed his eyes in suspicion, but Zexion didn’t back down as he steeled his gaze.

Vexen smiled confidently, almost like he approved of Zexion’s question. It made Zexion uneasy, especially since Vexen was the one who came up with the plans. Though his confidence got in the way some of the time, Vexen didn’t do anything without a good reason, and it was high time Zexion learned of that after working with him for this long.

“The magic of friendship connects everyone,” Vexen explained, slowly stroking his chin like his ego had been given the same treatment, “Even those with the darkest hearts will feel its loss once it is taken care of. I surmise that Xehanort, Sora, and everyone who follows one or the other will perish from the aftermath. In one fell swoop, we will have completed our one true goal.”

“And what becomes of us?” Zexion asked, almost fearing the answer.

“Who knows,” Vexen shrugged off as he turned around to head for the door, “And who really cares? In the end, we will have completed our task, and will have no purpose anyway.”

The response was what Zexion had predicted, and though Vexen was correct, there was still uncertainty on what would become of the worlds. That was if they succeeded, and if things did not go as planned, Zexion needed to come up with a plan of his own. What it would be, and how he would even implement it, would be challenging, but in the mean time, he would occupy himself with the Nobodies. The battle ahead would be grand indeed, and he would need his strength.

***

A hooded figure rested against the side of the statue in front of the school, his arms crossed in impatience. Though his master was the one in charge, the figure was always irritated when he had to wait for his appearance. It was almost like he wanted to appear late, just to mess with him. From the way his master handled his enemies, it would come as no surprise if that was the case.

At last, a Corridor of Darkness erupted just to his left, near the empty street. Master Xehanort stepped out with his hands held behind his back as always. His eyes rose to examine the school that sat in front of him, taking a deep breath. The Corridor behind him collapsed as he took a few more steps, passing the figure without so much as a glance. After which, he halted, and the figure turned his head towards him.

“You must feel the eminent battle,” the figure said cooly, “How the darkness has fluctuated in the school. Yet you have us stand by and let the bearers of light fight them. To what purpose does this serve? Surely our intervention within the chaos would enable us to gain a foothold.”

Master Xehanort chuckled deeply, “All too true. But you must have patience. If all goes according to plan, Sora will play his little game of heroism, and we will be one step closer. As my younger counterpart has said, the magic of friendship is crafty, but predictable as well. In time, you will come to realize what it is I have planned, and you will be more thankful for it.”

The figure bowed his head, hunching his shoulders in silent disagreement. Though Master Xehanort failed to explain his plan involving the magic of friendship, at least he knew what he was doing. The figure knew that eventually he would come to learn of the plan, just as Master Xehanort said he would.

“As you wish,” the figure said gruffly, his tone darker. He was then engulfed in darkness before disappearing altogether, leaving Master Xehanort alone. The quiet atmosphere gave Master Xehanort a moment of contemplation. His plans were quite elaborate, and every chance he got, he considered the multiple scenarios that could play out. However, there was one part in his plan that needed no consideration, since it was as predictable as the sun’s movement.

“I eagerly anticipate how you shall use your powers of time,” he chortled, before turning on his heel, proceeding away from the school. The students and faculty would arrive shortly, and the attack would begin soon afterward. He didn’t want to interrupt such a momentous occasion after all.

***

The sun had just risen over the horizon behind an overcast sky when Sora emerged from the Gummi Ship, stretching his arms over his head with a yawn. With Monday starting, the school would be opening soon, ushering another week of education. It wasn’t something Sora was looking forward too, but he had to keep up appearances. Besides, he wasn’t really worried about the classes themselves, but rather the students. The rumors of his ‘terrible’ actions were still top news, and there wasn’t anything Sora could do about it.

Breathing in the morning air, Sora reflected on his weekend, none to pleased with how he had spent the last day off of school. Sure, it was another restful day, but it was too restful, even by Sora’s standards. Having Riku and Roxas so upset had brought his mood down a tad. And as much time as he spent sparring with Lea, Sunday was still a boring day. He couldn’t bring himself to visit the other friends he had made in this world, since he wanted to keep Riku and Roxas company during their distant behavior.

Though Sunday had been lacking in terms of commotion, he was somewhat glad school would be starting again. It would force Riku and Roxas to leave the Gummi Ship and deal with whatever was plaguing their minds. It also gave Sora another chance to speak with Fluttershy, and just the thought of that made his heart flutter. This would be the day he would find out what Fluttershy really thought of him. Just imagining hanging out with Fluttershy again, after what had happened in the club, would be a tremendous relief.

Holding up a fist, Sora declared, “Time to get this show on the road.”

He shot back into the Gummi Ship, where his friends were still sleeping. It was strange how Sora was able to wake before them, even Riku. Disregarding those thoughts, Sora gave a mischievous smile before cupping his hands around his mouth. “Wake up, guys!” he shouted, causing Riku, Lea, and Roxas to jerk awake, looking around frantically. Afterwards, they all groaned when they realized what had happened, and Sora laughed at their expense.

“Gah!” Lea grumbled, holding a hand over his eyes to shield them from the light, “I already went through school, why do I have to do it again?”

Riku shook his head, hopping out of his bed with a sigh. “Everyone needs to be alert in the school,” he stated idly, “Even I’m enrolling. Trust me, I’m not too thrilled about it either.”

Roxas was oddly quiet as he slipped out of his bed, already heading for the ramp out of the Gummi Ship. Sora would have chased after him, but his despondent attitude from yesterday showed that he wasn’t ready to interact with him yet. Maybe a day through school will give Roxas time to speak with whoever he was having troubles with.

Shaking out his thoughts, Sora pointed outside eagerly, a smile on his lips. “Come on, you two,” he said joyfully, “You guys gotta check out the school. It’s not as bad as it looks.”

Lea grunted, sitting on the edge of his bunk tiredly, “Says the kid who’s energetic about everything. Seriously, I don’t think I’ve ever met someone who was happy to go to school.”

Reluctantly, Riku and Lea followed Sora out of the Gummi Ship, with Roxas no where in sight. Sora could only surmise that he had already entered through the school via the roof entrance. It was unlike him to just leave behind Lea like that, which made Sora believe whatever was bothering him was worse than he had thought. It was probably in his best interests that he find Roxas before classes officially started, just to make sure Xehanort or someone else hadn’t gotten to him.

“So,” Sora said turning to Lea and Riku who simply gazed off to the side, blinking in the sunlight. “Where are you guys going first?”

“Principal Celestia’s office,” Riku answered immediately, putting a thumb in his pocket. “I need to get a report about the situation at the school, especially if she had been in contact with the King. Then I can sign up for classes.”

“Guess I’ll be tagging along,” Lea stated, jabbing a thumb to his chest. “I need to get into classes too.”

Sora crossed his arms, his eyes glancing to the sky in thought, “Aren’t you kind of old for school?”

“We’ll just have to see,” Lea replied back with a shrug, not thinking too far ahead. The thought of going back to the miserable days of listening to teachers prattling on about one subject or another did not fill Lea with confidence. On the other hand, he would be able to hang out with Roxas more, if he shared the same classes. It made the thought of school much more bearable, since they would be suffering together.

“Let’s get a move on,” Riku ordered as he made his way to the roof access, with Lea and Sora not too far behind.

***

The day was cloudy and gloomy, and as Apple Bloom looked above, she wondered if it would rain that day. They seemed dark enough, and it had been a while since there had been a downpour. The water would be good for the apple orchard, especially with all the loose dirt that had been popping up.

“Apple Bloom, focus!” Scootaloo exclaimed, shaking her shoulder vigorously, “You can day dream after we figure out what to do today.”

Shaking her head, Apple Bloom glanced to Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, who walked beside her along the sidewalk. “Ah, sorry,” Apple Bloom apologized, “It’s just I’ve been worried ‘bout my sister.”

“Yeah,” Sweetie Belle spoke up, “Rarity was saying something about Applejack. Something to do with Riku.”

Scootaloo groaned loudly, putting the attention back on her. “Guys, come on!” she whined, looking disappointed, “We know Apple Bloom already got a chance to see a keyblader in action.” She shot a mild glare over to Apple Bloom, who shrugged with a sorry expression. “But I say we find Mrs. Cadance first. She’ll be booked for the whole day if we don’t.”

“Aww,” Sweetie Belle said with a shake of her head, “But I really, really, really wanted to see Roxas with two Clash bats.”

“Yeah, me too,” Apple Bloom concurred with a nod.

“Hey!” Scootaloo said, pointing a finger at her, “You don’t get a say!”

“Yes, I do!” Apple Bloom argued.

“No, you don’t!”

Sweetie Belle heaved a heavy sigh as her two friends bickered back and forth. She didn’t mind it too much, but it always detracted from the main subject. As the three of them closed in on the school, Sweetie Belle gazed lazily around, tuning out her friends as she looked for something to keep her entertained. It wasn’t until they reached the doors did Sweetie spot Roxas walking through the lobby.

Gasping excitedly, she rushed inside, and Apple Bloom and Scootaloo took notice as they watched her hasty entrance. Sweetie hurried over to Roxas before sliding in front of him, startling him a bit as he stopped, staring down at her.

“Oh! Oh! Roxas!” she said, hopping a bit with each word as she held her arms close to her chest, “Could you show us your moves now? Please?!”

He frowned as he stared at her eager face, “I-”

“Sweetie Belle!” Scootaloo scolded, making Sweetie wince as she turned to Scootaloo and Apple Bloom, who had just reached her, “We’re still debating, you can’t just go off on your own!”

“Sorry, you three,” Roxas interrupted, not wanting to start a fight on his expense, “I’m not in the mood to be showing off. Maybe another time.”

He gave a weak wave before continuing on his walk, heading for the nearest hallway. Apple Bloom drummed her fingers together in nervousness, unsure if they would get another chance, based on how Roxas was feeling. Charging after him, Apple Bloom grabbed his arm, giving it a tug as he looked back with surprise.

“Please,” Apple Bloom whispered, “We won’t bother ya ever again. We just want ta see ya do some awesome tricks.”

How tight Apple Bloom gripped him made Roxas believe she truly wanted to see it. And gazing over to Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo showed they shared the same feelings. With a long sigh, Roxas knew he couldn’t disappoint them, especially with the way they were looking at him. Besides, the exercise might distract him from what Twilight said to him the day before.

“Alright,” Roxas said lowly, forcing a smile as the three of them grinned widely, “I guess it couldn’t hurt.”

“Yay!” the three of them cheered loudly, causing Roxas to cover an ear with a hand. Apple Bloom then pulled harder and dragged him through the lobby in the direction of the gym. Roxas could only compare the moment to how Twilight had dragged him around town to get to school, and the memory, though fond, did leave a tinge of despair. He hoped his performance for the three would keep his mind away from Twilight, at least until he could confront her again.

***

With her heart heavy, Twilight walked through the hallways of the school. She barely registered her surroundings, moving along subconsciously. What she had said to Roxas still played before her like a haunted dream, reminding her of the damage she had caused. Spike trotted beside her, dragging his paws with each step with sorrow.

Twilight was really upset with what Young Xehanort had done. Ever since he had ruined the party Pinkie had arranged, nothing had been the same with her. He had filled her mind with various memories, which probably belonged to someone else. Twilight still had no idea who that other person was, but she knew her friends were holding something back, seeing as those images had shown them as well. However, with all of this going on, Twilight had never considered if Young Xehanort had simply given her false memories, just to mess with her. It was more than likely the case, considering what she had seen had shaken the very foundations of her life. He must have meant to confuse her and turn her against her very friends, and she had fallen for it.

But before she came to this conclusion, she had pushed away the one friend she cared about the most, the one she wanted to be with. She had spouted such vile things to him, things that couldn’t be taken back by a simple apology.

“What was I thinking?” Twilight berated herself, slipping a hand over her face. “He was only trying to help and I just flat out tell him he doesn’t know anything about friendship.”

Spike rubbed against her leg affectionately, and Twilight felt calmer with him around. As distressed as she was of the whole situation, at least she could count on one friend to always be there for her. Glancing down to him, she gave a warm smile which Spike recipitated with a bark.

“Thanks, Spike,” she said with a nod. Suddenly, Spike looked forward, baring his teeth as he growled menacingly. Remembering the same behavior around the Nobodies, Twilight whipped her head over to see Roxas standing at the end of the hall. His arms were crossed and his eyes were closed like he was in deep thought, hardly stirring at all.

Just the sight of him made Twilight incredibly anxious, her breath quickening and her heart beating faster. She had a chance to do what she could to gain back her friend, but she had no idea how things would go if she did speak with him. An angry bark from Spike snapped her out of her thoughts, showing that he was still on edge.

“Calm down, Spike,” Twilight soothed, gesturing for him to settle down, “It’s just Roxas. You remember Roxas.”

Despite her coaxing, Spike remained vigilant, growing more unruly if anything. It was very unlike him, especially since he had been so friendly towards Roxas. Ignoring Spike for the time being, Twilight turned back to Roxas, hurrying over to him.

“Roxas,” she said, having trouble finding the right words, “Listen, I… wanted to apologize. I-It’s not right for me to-”

“Stop,” Roxas snapped, silencing Twilight instantly, “I just wanted to speak to you before I head with Apple Bloom and the others to the gym. And I just wanted to say, you are the worst friend I’ve ever had.”

Twilight’s heart broke.

Roxas grunted, eyeing Twilight with an icy glare, “If you were even a friend to begin with.”

His words were horrible, and Twilight felt that she deserved it, no matter how much it hurt her. Finding the strength leaving her legs, Twilight leaned against the wall of lockers, unable to tear her gaze away from Roxas. Spike never stopped growling at him either, like he was defending her against the harshness Roxas pushed against her. Giving a shaky sigh, Twilight tried her best to hold back the tears that were welling up.

“R-Roxas,” Twilight choked up, her breathing becoming irregular, “Please, I-I’m sorry.”

“I don’t want to hear it,” Roxas said as he turned away, “Just leave me alone.”

Twilight slid down the lockers until she was sitting down, resting her body as she covered her eyes. Despite her effort, tears leaked from her eyes as she sobbed quietly, unable to completely break down.

Roxas stared back at her for a moment, his eyes softening before he sighed, stepping away from her. Spike didn’t let his guard down, staring down Roxas until he was out of sight. When he was gone, Spike turned back to Twilight, his hostile stance gone as he whined. Walking closer, he nudged Twilight’s arm with his nose before lying his head on her legs.

Slowly, Twilight reached her hands towards him and lifted him up, hugging him tightly. “S-Spike,” she cried, her voice just below a whisper, “I’m an awful person…”

***

Of all the people Sora could have run into during his stroll through the school, it had to be Rarity. He couldn’t really complain, however, as she showed extreme excitement over him reuniting with Fluttershy. As she walked alongside him, her eyes wide in anticipation as she held her hands together, Sora couldn’t help but chuckle at her enthusiasm.

“Come, come, Sora,” she said, creeping closer to him, “You must tell me how it went between you and Fluttershy!”

Her curiosity didn’t wane very much on Sora, putting his hands behind his head as he relaxed. He felt much happier after his talk with Fluttershy the other day, like nothing bad would happen. Not even Rarity’s constant prying could annoy him, though that was yet to be truly determined.

“Why don’t you ask Fluttershy?” Sora asked with a raised brow.

“Already did,” Rarity responded in a bored tone, waving a hand, “As usual, she was too shy to even reply.” She perked back up as she got in front of Sora, stopping him in his tracks. “But you are the type that can’t let a friend feel so left out.”

She stuck out her lower lip in a pout, giving Sora puppy dog eyes for added effect. It might have worked if Sora hadn’t heard from her about Fluttershy being in the school. Giving a big smile, Sora leaned closer to Rarity, who backed just far enough away, realizing what it must be like to have someone be so close.

“You saw Fluttershy?!” he asked, “Do you know where she is?”

Suppressing a groan at not getting her questions answered, Rarity sighed, “I’ve only texted her, darling.”

“Oh,” Sora expressed, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment, “Right.”

Rarity could easily tell Sora and Fluttershy were growing very close, faster than she had anticipated. As much as she wanted to know everything that was happening between them, how Sora was behaving was ample proof that he didn’t really know where they stood either. They were friends, that couldn’t be denied, but they were on the brink of taking it further, and Rarity couldn’t help them pass that point if she didn’t know what had been going on between them.

An awkward silence settled between the two of them, neither knowing what to say to break it. The subject of Fluttershy got Sora thinking, a faint blush on his cheeks.

“Rarity,” he asked quietly, “Do you think Fluttershy really likes me?”

The question was so absurd to Rarity she nearly laughed, luckily she reigned in her humor as she smiled sweetly. It was a reassuring sign that Sora took with confidence as he reciprocated the smile, already knowing the answer. He found it kind of ridiculous that he had to ask someone. Maybe he just needed to hear it from someone else.

“Sora,” Rarity said with a giggle, amused by his question, “I can say with the utmost confidence that…”

She trailed off, tilting her head to the side with a thoughtful expression. Sora was puzzled until he heard something just a few hallways away. It was mournful, but the walls muffled the noise, making it hard to discern completely. Turning to face down the hall, Sora knew it was close enough to investigate.

“You hear it too?” Rarity asked for confirmation, staring down the same hall.

“Yeah,” Sora nodded, narrowing his eyes. The sound unnerved him, making him shiver slightly. “Come on, let’s check it out.”

Sora took off with Rarity right behind him, streaking past the lockers and occasional student. By the looks of the people they passed, everyone was uncertain with what the noise was, but at some point, Sora instantly recognized the sound: crying. Deeply emotional crying.

Nearing a corner, Sora and Rarity saw a few students cluster around each other, whispering and gossiping as they gestured down the hallway. They circumvented them and got a peek down the hallway, spotting Twilight sobbing as she rested against the lockers. The sight made Sora and Rarity gasp, freezing for a moment in bewilderment at seeing their friend in such a state.

Rarity broke out of her shock as she ran over to Twilight, kneeling down to her. Twilight paused for a moment, sniffling as she glanced up to Rarity before breaking down again. Rarity rested an arm around her in comfort, bringing her body closer. Sora watched with his heart feeling sore, his earlier happiness gone. The sounds of the gossiping students brought him back to the situation, and he turned to them with anger.

“Will you give it a rest!?” he exclaimed, waving a hand as if it would drive them off. The students regarded him with annoyance, reminding Sora of his standing at the school. He wasn’t exactly in the best position to be ordering others. Nonetheless, the students - after quietly calling Sora a few names - scattered through different hallways, leaving the three of them alone. After furrowing his brow at the students, Sora turned to Twilight and Rarity as his gaze softened.

“Twilight?” Sora asked, but gained no response. Spike pushed out of Twilight’s hold, allowing Sora and Rarity to notice him. He was just as affected by Twilight as Sora and Rarity as he pawed at her gently, whining. Walking over to join his friends, Sora knelt down, resting an arm on his leg.

“Roxas…” Twilight finally managed to say, ceasing her crying for a moment to talk, though her breathing was still sporadic. “He said… I wasn’t… h-his friend.”

“Roxas!?” Sora repeated in surprise, “But why would he do that? It doesn’t sound like him at all.”

“I said some things…” Twilight explained, gripping Rarity’s arm tightly, “Some things I… I can’t take back.”

“Even still, darling,” Rarity said with a shake of her head, “How did Roxas even speak with you? Last I saw him, he was on the other side of the school with Sweetie and her friends, heading for the gym, of all places.”

The news halted Twilight’s pitiful state immediately, looking to Rarity with wide eyes, “W-What? B-But I was sure I saw him!”

Sora bowed his head in thought, wondering what Twilight could have seen. If Roxas was no where near Twilight, than who did she see? Whoever it was really hurt Twilight, and that wasn’t alright in Sora’s book. It was possible that she could have been seeing things, but Twilight was a person of reason. She couldn’t have just hallucinated the whole thing.

A bark from Spike caused everyone to look to him, seeing him hopping around, his paws smacking the floor like he was trying to get their attention. That thought got Sora thinking as he saw Spike continually bark as he jumped back and forth.

“I think Spike wants us to follow him,” Sora deduced, standing back up as Spike trotted down the hallway before stopping and repeating his actions again. Twilight stared at him for a moment before shakily standing to her feet, Rarity doing the same.

“I think so too,” Twilight said, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down.

“I don’t know,” Rarity said as she put her hands on her hips, “I don’t suppose there are any wells Derpy could have fallen down, is there?”

“Derpy?” Sora muttered to himself in confusion before shaking it off. There was no time thinking about an odd name. Spike was obviously trying to lead them somewhere, and it had to pertain to what Twilight had seen. “Let’s see where he wants us to go.”

Twilight nodded, standing tall with a brave face, “Lead the way, Spike.”

With a final bark, Spike sniffed the floor before heading around the corner. The three hurried after him, not wanting to lose him. A bit of hope had entered Twilight’s heart, and if there was even the smallest chance who she had spoken with wasn’t Roxas, than she would take it. She had to make it up to him, but for the time being, she was going to find out if someone had tricked her. Just the thought of that made her unbelievably upset. She could have been tricked for the second time.

Chapter 1: Arrival

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 1: Arrival

Sora was sitting at the pilot’s seat of the Highwing Gummi Ship, with it’s orange and yellow color scheme, as he steered the vehicle towards its destination. His hands were gripping the helm tightly, and his face was set with determination and a furrowed brow. His thoughts were a jumbled mess as he tried to keep the pieces in line to think straight. It had happened so fast, and all the new information was still processing in his head.

His determination faltered slightly as he gave a sigh, his face softening to worry. “What happened to you, Riku?” he questioned, not expecting an answer, as he was alone. He allowed his mind to go back to his meeting with Master Yen Sid, still trying to remember everything that had happened.

***

Sora entered Yen Sid’s Study with reckless ambition, the door swinging open easily as he strode inside. Donald and Goofy, who were following behind, entered a bit more gently, with Donald scowling at Sora’s brash behavior. Sora’s attention was instantly drawn to Yen Sid himself, still wearing his blue robes and pointed hat, who was stroking his beard thoughtfully.

Sora approached Yen Sid’s desk much more formally and stood at attention, his features turning serious. As Donald and Good stood a few feet behind him on either side, the three bowed simultaneously. Sora may not have been very polite the first time he came to Yen Sid’s tower, but he wasn’t about to repeat his mistake.

“You wanted to see me, Master Yen Sid?” Sora asked politely as he rose from his bow with his other two friends.

Yen Sid nodded, “Yes, I had Donald and Goofy bring you here from your home on Destiny Islands to assist in a very grave matter.”

Even though Sora knew the situation was important, he couldn’t help but break into a grin. “I’ll do everything I can to help,” he announced without a hint of hesitation, bumping his chest with a fist, “I was bored anyway, what with Riku and Kairi gone.”

Yen Sid gave a small smile, “Yes, I understand you have been waiting for your friends to return from what they are doing.” His smile dropped as he grew serious yet again, “However, that is the reason I have brought you here.”

Sora balked as he took a step back in surprise. “Are they in danger!?” he asked quickly, worry etched into his face, “Do they need my help?!”

“Calm yourself, Sora,” Yen Sid requested softly, yet it was enough for Sora to go silent, dipping his head to await Yen Sid’s response. “They are not in any immediate danger.”

Relaxing his shoulders, Sora breathed a sigh of relief as he faced Yen Sid again. “Kairi is still on a special mission with King Mickey and Lea. As for Riku, that is what I have asked you here for.”

Knowing there was no point in rushing Yen Sid, Sora simply nodded, “Alright, tell me what’s going on.”

Yen Sid shut his eyes in thought for a few moments before reopening them. “A few days ago, I felt the presence of a very powerful magic that reached to all the worlds,” he began, “How it suddenly appeared and why I did not sense it sooner, I cannot say. However, this magic is important to every living person, as it makes up the bonds we all share.”

“What magic would that be?” Sora asked with a tilt of his head.

Yen Sid smiled, “You of all people should know this, Sora. It is the magic of friendship.”

A smile crept onto Sora’s face as he closed his eyes and crossed his arms in thought. He had many times said that his friends were his power, and that was no lie. To hear that it was important to everyone wasn’t a surprise, but something still puzzled him. He opened his eyes again, a small frown replacing his smile, “What makes this so different?”

“The magic I have sensed is special,” he explained patiently, “Because of its power, it allows everyone to share the bonds of friendship that links us together. Every time you make a friend, Sora, a part of that magic forms a bond between yourself and that friend. It’s how we are able to remember each other, and enjoy the times we share.”

At that moment, it clicked for Sora, his face lighting up, “Oh, I get it. So, this magic is what makes people friends.”

“A very crude explanation,” Yen Sid agreed, “but effective in that regard.”

“Alright, so, what’s the problem?” Sora asked, feeling like he already knew the answer.

Yen Sid’s face turned grim, “The Darkness has also sensed this magic, and is on the move.”

Sora gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into fists. He knew exactly who was behind the Darkness, and it only took one word to voice his thoughts.

“Xehanort,” Sora said. He knew he would have to face him at some point in the future, but to face him under these circumstances was bizarre. Wasn’t he going to reappear when the time was right? And didn’t he want the χ-blade? He shook his head; it didn’t matter what Xehanort was going to do with this special magic, Sora would stop him and put an end to it before it began.

“You are correct, Sora,” Yen Sid nodded, “It is no guess that Xehanort is going after this magic. I do not know how he has returned, since he mentioned he would return when the time was right. But that is why I have sent Riku to investigate this phenomenon, and protect the magic from any harm.”

Donald and Goofy were acting worried at that moment, idly playing with their hands and facing the floor, knowing what Yen Sid was going to say next. “Unfortunately, we have lost contact with him,” He said, causing Sora to gasp sharply, his jaw opening slightly in shock. “I do not know if it is because of the world from which the magic originates from, or because of the encroaching Darkness.”

“Riku,” Sora muttered to himself, his eyes trained to the floor. Donald and Goofy were able to hear him as they glanced at him sympathetically. Sora hoped that Riku was okay. Though he knew that Riku could take care of himself, the worry still lingered. But Sora couldn't be moping around now. He shook off his sad demeanor as he looked at Yen Sid. “Is that why you summoned me, Master Yen Sid?” he asked with dedication.

“Yes,” Yen Sid nodded, “I want you to go to this world and find out what you can. It is top priority that you protect the magic of friendship until Xehanort loses interest, but I would like you to search for Riku as well.”

“You got it, Master Yen Sid,” Sora exclaimed, pumping a fist with a confident smile. He faced away from Yen Sid, feeling ready for another adventure, but Yen Sid cleared his throat before he could take a single step. Sora looked over his shoulder at him with a questioning glance as Yen Sid closed his eyes again.

“I must warn you, Sora,” Yen Sid cautioned with his hand raised for emphasis, “If the magic of friendship is destroyed, all ties with friendship will cease to exist.”

Sora jumped back in shock, quickly facing him again, “Huh!? So you mean…?”

“I mean, that no one will be friends with anyone ever again,” Yen Sid finished with a nod.

Sora looked to the ground nervously, finally feeling the weight of this mission. If he failed, he wouldn’t be the only one to lose. Everyone in all the worlds would no longer have friends, and the worlds would inevitably crumble from disorder. He had to succeed, he just had to.

"Why would Xehanort want to destroy it then?" Sora asked desperately.

"I do not know his motives," Yen Sid admitted with a shake of his head. "But I assume that he hopes to divide us so his goal will be easier to achieve."

Sora groaned to himself. He should have known Xehanort would do something so underhanded. At the very least, though, Sora wouldn't be alone on this venture. He always felt better with friends by his side, even with the odds stacked against him. With that thought, Sora sprung back from his exasperated mood with a firm grin on his face.

"We’re on it,” Sora said, giving a reassuring smile and turning his head towards Donald and Goofy with a thumbs up. “Me, Donald, and Goofy will make sure that doesn't happen.”

Donald and Goofy did not share the same air of enthusiasm as Sora did, looking at him with sorry expressions. This caused Sora to turn to face them fully, slightly uneasy. “You’re coming with me, right?”

“Sorry, Sora,” Goofy apologized, scratching the back of his head, “Master Yen Sid needs us for somethin’.”

Donald nodded in agreement, forcing Sora to look between the two in wonder. He then turned back to Master Yen Sid. “So, I’m doing this alone?” Sora questioned with a bit of doubt.

“I am afraid so, Sora,” Yen Sid stated sadly, “They have an errand I need them to complete, and it may take some time. I have the utmost confidence that you will accomplish your mission on your own.”

Sora thought about everything that he had learned so far; the special magic, Riku’s disappearance, the possible destruction of all of the bonds of friendship. It was a lot to put on his shoulders. Though he had done impossible feats before, it was usually with friends at his side. This time, he would have to be extra careful, or everyone would pay the price. Not only that, but Yen Sid was counting on him, like the whole disaster with him nearly falling to Darkness had never happened. It was like he was giving him a second chance.

Giving off a heavy sigh, Sora nodded, and Yen Sid nodded back. “Donald shall give you the coordinates to the world, and the Gummi Ship is ready whenever you are.”

Sora looked at Donald, who gave a smug smile. “I hope you don’t crash it, Sora,” he joked, crossing his arms with a knowing look.

Sora chuckled, putting his hands behind his head as he leaned back with a smile of his own. Though he was heading out on his own, he knew he wouldn’t let his friends down. “You can count on me, guys,” He said, then he turned back to Yen Sid, standing back to attention with a salute. “So long, Master Yen Sid.”

“Good luck, Sora,” Yen Sid said with a curt nod, “and remember: stay vigilant.”

Sora gave one final nod before bounding for the door, Donald and Goofy right behind him to see him off. Yen Sid stroked his beard as the sounds of their footsteps faded away down the tower.

***

Despite the enthusiasm he showed at the Mysterious Tower, the true pressure of the mission made him somber. Riku was missing, and he was absolutely sure it wasn’t on purpose. Though there was the possibility that the world itself was disrupting communication, Sora had yet to find a world that did that. Not only that, but the thought of no one ever being friends again tore him to shreds. He loved making friends, and the notion that something so catastrophic like that happening was disheartening.

Sora snapped back to reality as a loud beeping noise filled the compartment of the Gummi Ship. It indicated that he was approaching a new world, and with a press of a button, the beeping halted, and Sora got a good look of the new world. It was shrouded in light, which was odd in itself. Was the magic of friendship making it like that? Whatever the reason was, it made it difficult to see what the world looked like. All he was able to discern was a building with some sort of statue in front.

“I guess I’ll have to land to see it,” he mused to himself, aiming the Gummi Ship for the world. As he approached it, the light grew brighter and brighter, until it was near blinding. Sora did all he could to keep his eyes focused on controlling the vessel, but the sheer amount of light wouldn’t even allow him to see through it. Unable to stand it any longer, he tore his gaze away, waiting for the light to diminish.

After a few moments, the light died down, and Sora allowed himself to face forward to continue flying. To his horror, he found himself diving straight towards the grass-covered earth. His heart dropping, Sora quickly tilted the helm back, attempting to steer the Gummi Ship out of harms way. He barely made it as the Gummi Ship skidded on the ground for a brief moment before sailing back into the sky. He veered the vessel to the side as he eased his breathing, glad he had pulled up just in time.

Slowing the Gummi Ship enough to get an easy fly-by, Sora looked out to see the world he had arrived at. From what he could tell, it was a small town with a large, two-story building shaped like a wide ‘U’ in the direct center of it. A medieval tower on top of a glass dome sat on the roof. The gray statue in the front was big as well, depicting a horse rearing up. At the back of the building, Sora could make out a field, complete with soccer nets and bleachers. The more Sora examined this world, the more it reminded him of something.

“High School?” he pondered aloud, raising a brow. “Well, I can take a better look around when I land.”

With that thought, he looked for a place to put the Gummi Ship. There weren’t many places to land without being spotted by passersby; he had to maintain the order of the worlds, so it was essential he wasn’t seen flying a space-faring vessel. The only area that looked out of sight was the roof of the school, and even that was risky in itself. Nonetheless, there was no other area that was more centralized or well hidden, and with reluctance, he pulled the ship to a slow descent towards the roof of the building.

As he approached, he steadily lowered the Gummi Ship while leveling it at the same time, keeping his aim near the glass dome. With professional skill, he grounded the vessel with a dull thud without a scratch, not counting his close call earlier.

“Donald would be proud,” Sora expressed with a chuckle as he unlatched his seatbelt. With a flip of the switch, the lower platform on the Gummi Ship opened up to show an exit into the new world. Jumping out of his seat, he briskly made his way out of the vessel and on to the roof. He ran over to the edge of the slant, which ended at the building’s ledge, looking over the new world.

“Riku’s out there somewhere,” he reminded himself, with a half-smile, “I just gotta find him.” He turned towards the roof, looking for a way down. In a stroke of luck, he was able to find the service stairs, and walked over to them. He swung open the door and climbed the set of stairs all the way down to the bottom until he reached another door.

When he entered through it, he found himself in a hallway, with blue tiled floor and walls covered in green lockers with the occasional door. The only thing he didn’t see were any students walking around. Sora walked over to a nearby railing to see the main lobby, with banners and display cases with horses on every single one. Wanting to start from the bottom, Sora vaulted the railing and fell to the ground floor, landing expertly. Staying on track, he chose a hallway to walk down and went along, looking for anyone to help him on his way. As he continued, he looked through the windows into the classrooms and noticed that even they were empty.

“Is it the weekend?” he asked himself, rubbing his chin. Then he heard talking, or more accurately, many people talking. With a grin, he followed the muffled noise as it lead him further down the hall. The talking grew louder as he approached a set of double doors, and knew this is where the noise was coming from. Stopping short of entering, he put his hands on his hips and looked over the doors.

“Must be the cafeteria,” he concluded, “Or the gym.” He knew it was some sort of place where students gathered, and the most logical were those two options. With a confident grin, he hit his fist against the palm of his hand in excitement. “Alright, now I’m getting somewhere.”

The grin still on his face, Sora stepped forward and pushed the doors open.

***

The cafeteria was as lively as ever, everyone talking animately with each other as they ate their lunches. Thanks to Twilight Sparkle a few weeks ago, the students weren’t as separated as they used to be, and were mingling with each other even though they had different hobbies. It was a normal and fun day for everyone, except for one girl sitting at a table near the back.

Fluttershy, wearing her white tank top shirt and light green skirt, sat alone as she picked at her salad with a fork that she was having for lunch. It wasn’t that she wasn’t hungry, but it was the fact that she was lonely and kind of sad. Her friends had yet to arrive, and she could really use someone to talk with. She eventually stabbed a leaf of lettuce and stuck it in her mouth, but it did little to quench her longing.

It was at that moment, that Rainbow Dash, sporting a blue short-sleeved jacket with a magenta and white skirt, walked in, swiftly looking over the room. Spotting Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash gave a wave, which she returned, and she made her way over to her. As soon as she was able to, Rainbow fell right into the seat in front of Fluttershy, giving off a content sigh.

“Hello, Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy welcomed with a smile, glad to have a friend with her again. “I thought you’d be at practice.”

“Decided to take a break for once during lunch,” Rainbow explained , returning the smile, as she stretched her arms, “Can’t practice all the time.”

Rainbow then looked at her with an intent stare, making Fluttershy turn her gaze back to her food. “What about you?” Rainbow questioned, “You okay with detention?”

Not finding the ability to speak, Fluttershy only nodded, playing with her food again to drive back her nervousness. Rainbow still looked at her, “Did you get someone to help you out?”

Swallowing, Fluttershy shook her head, shrinking down in her seat as Rainbow gave a sigh. “Come on, Fluttershy,” Rainbow scolded softly, “Not even the others could help you?”

“No,” Fluttershy said barely louder than a whisper. “Applejack is working at the farm, Twilight has to head to the library for a project, Pinkie Pie is busy at Sugarcube Corner, and Rarity needs to finish a dress by tomorrow.”

Then, she perked up, a small smile emerging on her face as she turned towards Rainbow. “Could you… could you help me?” she asked sweetly, before her eyes widened and she hastily added, “I-If that’s alright with you.”

A frown and a shake of her head was all the indication Fluttershy needed to slip back into sadness. “Sorry,” Rainbow apologized, “You know I have practice after school. Just because I canceled during lunch doesn’t mean I’m canceling this afternoon. But can you remind me how you got detention in the first place?”

“Well,” Fluttershy started, tapping her chin with a sheepish smile. “I was so busy with my animal friends that I may have sort of... skipped a few classes.”

“Lost track of time?” Rainbow deadpanned with a bored look.

“Yes,” Fluttershy admitted, her smile disappearing as she bowed her head in shame.

Seeing her distraught mood, Rainbow instantly tried to cheer her up. “Don’t worry about it, Fluttershy,” she comforted, putting a hand on her shoulder. “It’s just a few days of cleaning the hallways. It could be worse. Like, a lot worse. Try to find someone to help you, okay? It’ll be finished before you know it if you do.”

“I know,” Fluttershy sighed dejectedly. She really didn’t want to ask someone other than her friends for help. It was bad enough trying to speak with anyone in the first place, let alone asking for their help.

It was at that moment that the double doors swung open, and everyone glanced at it, as most people do when any door opens. However, they all had a double take at who entered. It was a boy like any other, with brown spiky hair and blue eyes, but it was what he was wearing that earned him the stares.

His garbs were mostly black, with a short-sleeved hoodie and long shorts. He also had large black and yellow shoes that stuck out like a sore thumb. It seemed like his clothing was made more for adventuring than school. All in all, the students had never seen a person like him before.

As bizarre as he was, many people's gazes did not last for very long, shrugging him off as just another strange person. The boy was unfazed by the way he was looked at, scanning over the room as if searching for someone. When his eyes landed on the lunches being served, he blinked a few times as he put a hand over his stomach.

“Who is he?” Fluttershy asked in wonder, hoping Rainbow could answer so she wouldn’t have to introduce herself.

“Who knows,” Rainbow replied bluntly, “Probably just a transfer student. Anyway, I’m going to get some food, be back in a flash.”

Fluttershy watched Rainbow get up and head over to the serving station for awhile until her attention went back to the strange boy. He was now crossing his arms as he looked deep in thought, contemplating something or other. Fluttershy couldn’t help but ponder why a boy like him would be in this school.

***

As Sora entered the room, the first thing he looked for was Riku, ignoring everyone else for the time being. It was a bit discouraging when he didn’t find him, but he hadn’t expected to find him right off the bat. Pushing the thought off for the time being, he finally gave a general look of the area. He was definitely in the cafeteria, if the tables and food were any indicator. The people, he also noticed, were each colored differently, from their skin to their hair. At least he wouldn’t be short in asking for directions.

When Sora saw the food being served by a green-skinned elderly woman, his stomach involuntarily grumbled, reminding him he hadn’t eaten for hours. Putting his hand on his stomach, he wondered what delicacies were available to him. He crossed his arms as he went into his thinking pose; he didn’t have time to eat. Everything regarding friendship was at stake. On the other hand, he couldn’t really get anything done on an empty stomach.

Before coming to a resolution, someone shoved past him without a backwards glance. He gave the girl responsible an annoyed look, but quickly shook it off, going back to his mental debate. He didn’t want to start a confrontation on the first day in the new world. Figuring he could get something to eat later, Sora went over to a table to start asking around for assistance on finding his friend. But Sora caught sight of the girl again heading for the line for lunch.

She had light orange skin, with long red and yellow hair. Her attire was a black jacket with an undershirt, along with an orange skirt. He stopped in his tracks to watch her for a few moments, and saw her do something that made Sora look at her in disbelief. The girl had shoved her way past all the other students in line without a care to their own well being.

“Sunset,” A girl in the back called out dangerously, “Get to the end of the line. You can’t just cut everybody.”

Sunset looked behind her with an uncaring glance, and the other students in line cringed in fright, taking off to get as far away from her as possible. The girl that had called her out - with her rainbow-colored hair - stood her ground, glaring at Sunset. Sunset simply gave a smirk, and walked over to the rainbow girl as many of the students watched with wide eyes. Sora wasn’t sure what to do, but felt like he should intervene.

When Sunset was a foot away from the girl, she crossed her arms and acted like she was superior. “And what are you going to do about it, huh?” She sneered, making the other girl look uneasy, as if she hadn’t thought that far ahead. Sora gripped his hands tightly, still remaining where he stood. Sunset was a bully, no doubt about it, but he hoped the whole thing would blow over.

“I’ll… uh, do something!” the rainbow girl said, her tone wavering as she rubbed her elbow in embarrassment. Sunset laughed at her expense, and Sora knew he had to stop her. He began making his way towards her, moving past students and tables gently, but he wouldn’t get to her for at least a few precious seconds.

“How about you go cry to your parents,” she suggested snidely, “It'd be a nice change of pace for a tomboy like you.”

The rainbow girl was at a loss for words, not sure how to respond to an insult like that as she stomped a foot in anger. Sora, however, had reached the end of his rope. He dashed the rest of the way and cut in between the two girls while facing Sunset and threw his arms out in a protective manner. “That’s enough!” he declared, making Sunset take a few steps back in surprise. “You have no right to say things like that!”

To say the rest of the cafeteria was surprised was an understatement, but Sora hardly noticed as he kept his eyes focused on Sunset. Even the rainbow girl behind him was speechless. Sunset gave Sora a funny look as if trying to make sense of him before giving an angry glare. “And who are you?” she questioned, “Rainbow Dash’s body guard?”

Sora did not move an inch, determined to help the girl behind him in any way he could. “I’m no bodyguard,” he admitted, with a shake of his head, “But you shouldn’t treat people that way. It hurts their feelings!”

Sunset gave a short laugh, “Feelings? We’re not seven-year-olds anymore. Grow up, you baby.”

Sora furrowed his brow deeply, not liking Sunset at all. He knew she was trying to get him to lash out, but he wasn’t going to take the bait. Instead, he stared at Sunset, who stared right back, and they remained where they stood for a few seconds. Eventually, Sunset glanced over Sora’s shoulder, and rolled her eyes and ground her teeth when her eyes saw something. “Don’t think this is over,” she said, jabbing a finger at Sora’s chest as he lowered his arms.

Then, she turned in the opposite direction and strode off. Sora watched her go for a while and then turned to look at the rainbow girl, known as Rainbow Dash, who was just as stunned by Sora’s outburst as Sunset was. “You okay?” he asked kindly, giving off a smile.

Rainbow jerked back into reality as she was addressed, and looked away with a angry pout. “Of course I am,” she said, looking to the ground. “I could have taken care of it myself.”

“Your welcome,” Sora said with a slight chuckle, facing her fully.

“The name’s Rainbow Dash by the way,” Rainbow introduced, still not looking at him completely.

“I’m Sora,” Sora replied in turn. Looking back over his shoulder, he saw Sunset rounding a corner and out of sight. Turning back to Rainbow, he asked, “What’s her problem?”

“Sunset?” Rainbow scoffed, “She’s just someone who thinks she owns this school. I can’t believe she said she wanted to make friends and then went back on her word.”

Sora rubbed his chin thoughtfully, “So, she used to be nice?”

“Not exactly,” Rainbow answered, crossing her arms as her eyes looked up to the ceiling. “It’s a long story.”

Sora nodded in understanding, then he saw someone approach from the corner of his eye, and looked to his left. A tall woman, wearing a golden jacket and purple pants, approached him. Her hair was a mixture of light green, light blue, and pink that flowed past her waist. She halted a few feet away with him, putting her hands on her hips, and Sora felt like he was in trouble.

“Are you new to this school?” she questioned, and Rainbow glanced at him quizzically, curious of the answer as well.

On the spot, Sora faltered slightly, rubbing the back of his head. “Um... yes?” he said hesitantly. He wanted to tell the whole truth, but that was probably not the best thing to do.

To his surprise, she gave a warm smile. “I am Principal Celestia,” she said, “I’ve just come to inform you that all transfer students must report to the counselor’s office for orientation.”

“How come?” Sora inquired innocently.

“Because of…” Celestia paused, searching for the right words to use, “certain past events. The office is to the left, down the hall, second door to your right.” She pointed to the cafeteria’s entrance, and Sora looked back to Rainbow, who simply shrugged. Seeing no other option, Sora walked towards the doors and opened them, but before he exited the room, he gave one last glance back. Most of the occupants of the cafeteria were watching the scene, and though Sora didn’t mind it so much, he did wonder what they thought of him now. He stepped out of the room, and the doors closed behind him.

Crossing his arms, he said, “That… could have gone better.” Chuckling, he remarked, “Talk about making an impact.”

***

When Sora left, Celestia soon followed to go back to her own office, leaving Rainbow to watch where Sora had disappeared. She had never seen someone stand up to Sunset before, besides Twilight. And for some reason, she had this strange feeling that she would meet him again. He seemed like the type that was both naive and smart.

“Oh, Rainbow,” Fluttershy said, running up to her, her hands held together in worry, “Are you alright? I didn’t want to interrupt and-”

“It’s okay, Fluttershy,” she said, with an idle wave and a proud smile, calming her down. “Principal Celestia just wanted to send the transfer student to the counselor’s. I didn’t get in trouble.”

“Oh, that’s good,” she said. An awkward silence came down on them, causing Fluttershy to look to the floor as she played with her hands. “So… do you know who he is?”

“Yeah,” Rainbow said with a sigh, acting as though it was laborious just to talk about him, “His name is... Sora.”

Author's Note

For some reason, I find this chapter a bit cheesy, even when I know some good stuff is going to be in the story. Anyway, leave any suggestions for the story; I love reading them for ideas.

Chapter 5: Gathering Hearts

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 5: Gathering Hearts

The rest of the school day went by pretty normally for Sora. His classes went by similarly to his first class, as he was still as clueless as ever. When the final bell rung, he almost let out a cheer, glad that he wouldn’t have to sit through another lecture for the rest of the day. He never realized how boring school was, and must have only remembered the fun times he had with his friends.

As he shrugged the thought off, he stood up from his desk and followed the rest of the class out the door. Before he could decide on where to go, he was tackled from the side by a pink blur, falling to the ground with a shout of surprise. Looking at his attacker, he came face to face with Pinkie Pie, giving him a wide smile.

“Hey, Sora, what’re you going to do today?” she asked excitedly.

“Oh, umm…” Sora replied, not even sure himself.

“Pinkie, Darling,” Rarity called, walking down the hallway with Rainbow Dash beside her. “You must show Sora some respect. He’s only been around for a day.”

“I know,” Pinkie said, hopping off of Sora quickly, “But that’s why I’m so happy! I want to hang out with him so badly. I mean, just think of all the stuff we could do together!”

Getting back on his feet, Sora briefly dusted his shorts off before glancing around, noticing that someone was missing. “Where’s Fluttershy?” he asked the group, knowing that she would have to clean the floors again.

Rainbow looked at the ceiling as she thought for a moment, “I think she said she was heading to the library to see Twilight, since no one has seen her at all lately.”

“Twilight’s another friend, right?” Sora asked for confirmation.

“Absolutely,” Rarity answered, “Why, she’s been so busy with that project of hers, that nobody has really seen her around.”

Giving her a nod, Sora crossed his arms. “Fluttershy still has detention,” Sora reminded everyone. “I was going to help her again like yesterday.”

“That is truly kind of you, Sora,” Rarity said respectively, “I wish I could join you, but Pinkie and I already made plans.”

“We’re working at Sugarcube Corner!” Pinkie cheered, giving a jump hug towards her. Rarity winced from the impact, but smiled none the less.

Sora looked to Rainbow, “What about you?”

“I have practice,” Rainbow said, making Sora feel dumb for forgetting that as he rubbed the back of his head.

“Then I’ll see you all later.”

“Yep!” Pinkie said, “Oh, and if you see Applejack, tell her I said thanks for bringing the apples to Sugarcube Corner.”

“Okay,” Sora said, even though he had no idea who Applejack was. He figured he’d find her when he saw her, and gave the girls a final wave as he walked down the hall.

“Uh…” Rainbow said with confusion, making Sora look back at Rainbow, “Sora, the library’s that way.”

She pointed in the opposite direction that Sora was going, and he gave a blank stare as he smiled embarrassingly. “I knew that,” he stated rather quickly, walking back towards them as Rarity and Pinkie giggled at his mistake.

***

Sunset Shimmer watched the group from down the hall, hiding behind the corner. She couldn’t see what was so special about Sora - she had finally learned his name - or why the Elements of Harmony of this world were friends with him. Whatever the reason was, she was about to put her plan into action. She just had to wait until he was alone and follow him, and then everything would fall into place.

It was a shame Sunset couldn’t use her lackies, Snips and Snails. After the Fall Formal incident, they wanted nothing to do with her, and actively avoided her wherever she went. She found it irrefutably annoying at first, but eventually forgot about them. She could handle her problems herself.

Then, Sunset saw Sora walking away from her, and gritted her teeth as she fumed. He was heading away from her, making her have to rethink her plan. Suddenly, he turned around, looking a bit embarrassed, and she face palmed. He was going the wrong way, and she definitely knew she was dealing with a moron. On the other hand, that would work to her advantage in the time to come.

Sora was getting closer, and she needed to act natural if she didn’t want him to be suspicious. So, she stepped away from the corner and pulled a filing stick out of her inner jacket, shaving a bit of her fingernails. Sora rounded the corner and only gave her a glance as he continued on. When he walked around the next corner, she stopped what she was doing and pulled out her phone with a sinister grin.

“Okay, new kid,” she said quietly, “Let’s find your deepest, darkest secrets.”

***

It was very strange for Sora to see Sunset looking calm. As he passed her, he felt like her intentions weren’t completely on filing her fingernails. He couldn’t displace a feeling in his gut, one that told him to watch out for her. Shrugging it off for the time being, he focused on getting to the library and finding Fluttershy, breaking out into a run to head there quicker.

He had used up enough time.

He quickly made it to the library, thanks to his explorations during school, and entered through the double doors. He halted in his tracks, his eyes wide in awe. “Whoa,” he said, examining the area. It was large, and stocked to the brim with books. It reminded him of the library in Radiant Garden, and it was magnificent.

In the center, where he could see a bunch of computers around a bust of a pony head, he saw three young girls huddled around a computer. From the angle he was at, Sora couldn’t see what they were looking at, but from their appearances, they seemed a few years younger than himself. Deciding to mind his own business, he turned to the other occupant of the library, one of his teachers, Miss Cheerilee.

He didn’t know why she was a teacher and a librarian, but it wasn’t a thought that stuck with him as he approached her. He stood right behind her, and raised a finger as he prepared to speak. Unfortunately, he never got a chance, as music suddenly started blaring behind him. Whipping around, nearly summoning his keyblade, he saw it was just the three girls that were on the computer, looking between each other in confusion.

“This ain’t our song,” a girl with a Southern accent stated plainly over the loud music. She had red hair with a large bow in it. “What happened?”

“Well,” a girl with purple hair and orange skin said slowly, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly and causing the other two to look at her expectantly. “I may have edited it a bit.”

The other two sighed, but before anything else could be said or done, Cheerilee walked past Sora and over to the computer, unplugging it and instantly canceling out the loud noise. Groaning a bit, she glared at the three who cringed from her gaze.

“If you three keep this up, I will ban you from using the computers,” she warned, plugging the computer in again before heading back to her work, muttering something Sora couldn’t catch.

“Oh, are you that transfer student?” A girl with light purple and pink hair, along with pale skin that matched Rarity’s, asked, looking at Sora. Facing the girl, he noticed that the other two were looking to him as well.

“Yep,” he answered with a smile, turning his head to look between the three of them, they were at least two heads shorter than himself, “How’d you know?”

“Rainbow Dash told me!” the orange skinned one said.

“And Rarity told me!” the white-skinned girl squeaked as well.

“And they told me!” the bow-wearing one finished.

“Huh,” Sora said absentmindedly, “Didn’t think I’d be that famous around here.”

“Are you kidding!?” the purple-haired girl said excitedly, “You jumped off the school without a scratch! That was awesome!”

Sora had to chuckle at that; if anyone at the school saw what he could do in other worlds, they would be a lot more amazed. He had learned many maneuvers in his travels, especially after going through those Dream Worlds. And that wasn’t even counting his fighting abilities. He never considered himself much of a fighter though, but perhaps he was always humble about it, especially when he compared himself to Riku.

The thought of his friend shifted Sora’s mood to a somber one as he frowned a bit. He had barely spent any time trying to find him, and Sora felt guilty for putting the second half of his mission off. Seeing his change in behaviour, the girls glanced at each other, uncertain if something they did was responsible.

“Um…” the red-headed girl said carefully, as all three of them stepped closer to him. “Are ya alright, mister?”

Shaken from his thoughts, Sora looked at the frowns he had caused and put on a forced smile, hoping to return to the happy atmosphere. “Yeah, I’m fine,” he waved off, not wanting to worry the girls. “What are your names anyway?”

“Applebloom,” the bow-wearing girl said, smiling as well. Sora was glad of that. His friends always told him that his smile was infectious.

“Sweetie Belle,” the white-skinned girl replied in turn.

“Scootaloo!” the last one cheered, causing Sora to laugh a bit.

“You guys are a lively bunch,” Sora commented with a smirk, “Kind of reminds me of myself. Oh, I’m Sora.”

The three nodded at his introduction, then Applebloom asked, “What are you doin’ here, Sora?”

“I’m actually looking for Fluttershy,” he admitted, looking around the room to see if she was within eyesight. “Haven’t seen her around, have you?”

Sweetie Belle rubbed her chin as she gazed to the balcony above. “I think she’s up on the second floor,” she answered, then looked back at Sora. “Why are you looking for her?”

“I’m helping her out,” Sora explained casually with a shrug.

“Do you have a crush on her?” Scootaloo asked suddenly with a sly look.

“Huh!?” Sora exclaimed in shock, taking a few steps back as he waved his hands frantically in front of him. “No, of course not!”

“Are ya sure?” Applebloom asked mischievously, sidling up to him.

“Positive,” Sora replied, crossing his arms firmly. What he failed to realize was that he was blushing slightly. “She’s just a friend.”

“That’s a shame,” Sweetie sighed, honestly disheartened at his denial. “She’s so kind and thoughtful. My sister told me that she used to be picked on because of her shyness.”

Sora closed his eyes in thought, not liking that a friend of his was bullied before. He had dealt with enough villains to know that it wasn’t fun to be the victim of one of their schemes. Still, he couldn’t shake the idea of Fluttershy and himself as a couple. He had only met Fluttershy yesterday, and he truly did only think of her as a friend. Besides, even if he wanted to pursue a relationship, he was doubtful it would last. He was a traveling keyblader, and he would leave this world sooner or later anyway. Then again, there was the possibility of coming back in the future.

Sora groaned loudly, clutching his head, “Why is this so complicated?”

“Uh, what’s complicated?” Applebloom asked. Snapping his eyes open, Sora had spoken aloud, giving the girls puzzled expressions.

Chuckling nervously, Sora rubbed the back of his head, “Never mind. I’ll just go find Fluttershy now.”

And without another word, he took off for the stairs as the three girls watched him leave. A few seconds had passed until the three looked between each other.

“Do you think he has a crush on her?” Sweetie asked the two.

“Definitely,” Scootaloo and Applebloom responded simultaneously.

“Are we going to try to get them together?” Sweetie asked again eagerly, a sparkle in her eye.

“Of course!” The other two shrieked passionately at the same time, causing Cheerilee to shush them from across the room.

***

After searching the library, Fluttershy came to the conclusion that Twilight had left school already. It was unusual for her to leave so early, considering that the library was nearly a second home for her. So instead, Fluttershy opted to look for any books that would interest her instead. As she skimmed through many titles, her eyes landed on a yearbook, one that was published when she was only a Freshman.

With a trace of a smile on her lips, she pulled it out, and opened it up as soon as she did. She flipped through the pages until she ended up on a picture that captured the first time she met her friends. It was during the Freshman fair, when they were all searching for clubs to join at the time. She could still remember the hardships she went through during her first few months of high school.

However, she also remembered the friends that helped her through it. With a radiant smile, she closed the book and placed it back where she found it. She then reached into her green backpack and extracted a photo. One that was taken during the Fall Formal. It featured her friends, all gathered together after their skirmish with Sunset Shimmer. It was a really happy time, but it was sad when they saw Twilight Sparkle from that other world leave afterwards. Although, it was made up somewhat quickly when Twilight came back, or at least, the Twilight of her world.

Fluttershy gave a sigh when she realized she had been staring at the photo for a while. She needed to get to Vice Principal Luna’s office to start her second day of detention. She wanted to finish it as fast as possible, and that wouldn’t happen if she stood around looking at pictures. It was at that moment that loud music sudden came on, making Fluttershy jump with a quiet squeak, dropping the photo.

The noise was soon stopped, but that didn’t stop Fluttershy from being scared out of her wits. She stood completely still, fearing that moving again would cause the noise to come back. She could hear people speaking downstairs, but couldn’t make out who they were. After reassuring herself that the music would not return, she relaxed her body and breathed a sigh of relief. Crouching down, she picked up her photo and gave one last look at it before slipping it back into her backpack. She carried the photo around for a reason: to remind herself that she had good friends that she could count on. They might have been divided by Sunset Shimmer, but they were reunited and their bonds of friendship was stronger from it.

She blinked; where had that thought come from? It didn’t feel like something she would say, but it was still the truth. Shaking it off, she headed for the stairs, ready to get back to work. She hoped Sora would join her today, but at the same time, she hoped he didn’t. She felt like she was being selfish by having him work by her side. The company was great, but she had to consider his agenda as well.

Stopping at the top of the stairs, she brought a both of her hands up to her chest in thought. And that wasn’t even mentioning what she saw the day before. She wasn’t sure it was something to bring up to Sora; would he become angry? However, if she didn’t bring it up, then what would Sora do with that weapon of his? Was he dangerous?

“Oh,” Sora’s voice said from the bottom of the stairs, causing Fluttershy to flinch involuntarily and glance down the set of stairs. She saw Sora standing there, with a genuine smile on his face. “There you are.”

Fluttershy turned away shyly, smiling as well. He couldn’t be someone of evil intentions, not with an attitude like that. If anything, he’s too friendly for his own good. “Hello Sora,” Fluttershy said, turning back to him.

With finesse, Sora bounded up the stairs like it was nothing, easily making the steps and standing beside Fluttershy. She took a few steps back to give him space as Sora faced her, “So, are we still cleaning the hallways?”

“Uh-huh,” Fluttershy answered with a nod, before she faced the floor playing with her hands, “But… I was wondering, that is if you don’t mind, if you could…”

Sora picked up what she was saying, and frowned because of it. “You want to talk about yesterday, don’t you?”

Fluttershy’s eyes widened as she began to panic slightly. “O-Oh, it’s fine,” she said hastily, “If you don’t want to, I can understand. You must be busy and you-”

“Fluttershy,” Sora whispered calmly, his eyes heavy with remorse. Fluttershy stopped herself from continuing her rant, glancing at his gentle, blue eyes. With a shift in movement, Sora rubbed his nose as he smiled warmly. “I think you deserve to know.”

“I don’t know about that,” Fluttershy mumbled, turning away from Sora. He was about to reach over to her to object, but stopped himself, his hand inches away from her shoulder. Curling up his hand, he brought back to his side as he took a deep breath.

“I’m helping you clean the floors,” Sora stated, causing Fluttershy to whip over to him. “And my story is a bit long. So, either way, you’re still listening.”

Fluttershy giggled at his boldness as he chuckled himself, right before climbing a few steps down. Turning around, he have an enthusiastic wave. “Come on!” he laughed, running down the rest. Fluttershy chased after him as the two swept past the three girls on the computer, leaving the library to start her detention.

***

Sunset Shimmer watched from a nearby table as Sora and Fluttershy ran out of the room, a wide and evil grin on her face. Sora did have a secret, one that he had been keeping from his friends. It was too juicy to pass up, and she wasn’t going to miss it for a second. The chance to knock that oaf off his pedestal was okay in her book. She twirled her hair for moment in superiority, glad that things were going her way, and walked out of the library, head held high.

Heading down the hallway, she saw a flash of green, that rippled like flames, burst from around the next corner. Curious, she snuck over to see what was happening. When she peeked around the corner, her curiosity turned to confusion and a tinge of fear.

Standing in the center of the hallway was a woman, dressed in a long, black, wicked robe, with two horns on her head, and a staff in one hand. Beside her was a large, fat, cat-like person, wearing blue and red clothing. The both of them were facing away from Sunset Shimmer, and they gazed around in their new surroundings.

“Ah,” the woman said with a voice like venom, “So this is where I felt that magic…”

“Huh,” the cat person grunted, “Figured it would have been at some scary castle or somethin’. What makes you think that friendship magic is here, Maleficent?”

The woman known as Maleficent chuckled darkly, “Make no mistake of my powers, fool. The power is here, and once I have control of it, I can easily raise an army that would rival the Heartless.”

The other figure shrugged, “If you say so.”

Sunset was baffled by their use of words. The ‘friendship magic’ that they’re referring to must be Twilight and her friends, no doubt about it. But they wanted that magic to create a force to be reckoned with, like she did a few weeks ago! It was like Maleficent was encroaching on her turf, and she didn’t like that one bit.

“Hey!” Sunset snapped, stepping away from her hiding spot as the two turned towards her. “Don’t think you can just come here and take over, that’s my job.”

Maleficent grinned snidely, “Oh, is that so?”

“Yes, it is!”

Chuckling again, Maleficent raised her empty hand to point at Sunset. “I sense a darkness that could be of use to you,” she commented, flipping her hand to show an open palm of offering. “Would you like me to allow the darkness to bow to your wishes? After all, it is better to have allies instead of enemies.”

Sunset rolled her eyes, “I can handle myself. Besides, I already have a plan that will push me back to the top.”

Maleficent’s smile never wavered for a moment, “Very well, child. Have it your way.”

Sunset nodded, and walked forward moving past the two as they watched her go by. Just before Sunset was out of their sight, Maleficent spoke up again. “Just remember,” she said, making Sunset pause in her walk, “If you ever need any assistance, just call to me.”

“We’ll see,” Sunset whispered, finally leaving the hallway as her footsteps echoed ominously. She knew her plan would work, but it never hurt to have a back up. Besides, it seemed like Maleficent could be handy to take control of Equestria. When it came down to it, she may rely on Maleficent more than she thought.

***

“Welp,” Pete sighed, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, “Now what do we do?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Maleficent asked, turning in the opposite direction, walking off. “We wait for her to come to me, and with her help, it shall be that much easier to obtaining the powerful magic we seek.”

Pete laughed, following after her, “Heh, yeah. Now, if that loser with the keyblade doesn’t come here suddenly, getting that magic should be easy-peasy.”

Maleficent didn’t respond, examining her surroundings. From the looks of things, she was in a school, making her slightly annoyed. In environments like this, there was always too many witnesses, she would have to work to avoid detection. But the reward for doing so, in the end, would be worth it.

***

Roxas knew he wasn’t back in the heart of Sora, that he could say freely. What he didn’t know was why he was on a glass pillar, emerging from the dark abyss below. As he glanced around, he tried to recall how he got there. He had collapsed in the library, and spoke with Twilight for a brief time. Rubbing his head, he tried to stop the small headache that was building up. He was a bit glad it was there; it proved he wasn’t stuck in Sora’s heart. However, no matter how comfortable that thought was, he still had no idea what he was doing here for.

Tilting his head up, all he could see was darkness. It was unnerving, and it put him on edge, like standing on top of a high building. Where was he? His mouth opened suddenly in shock as a theory went through his head. A hand went up to his chest as he clutched his black coat tightly.

“Is this… my heart?” he asked aloud, turning back to the bright floor that depicted Sora with his friends. He shook his head, “Don’t fool yourself, Roxas. Nobodies can’t have hearts.”

Roxas wanted to have hope and believe that he was in his own heart. But he was afraid that if he set his hopes too high, it would be a deeper plunge if he found out it wasn’t his own.

He gave a deep sigh at that.

“Your name…” a voice echoed in his head, making him jump as he scanned the area frantically, finding it empty. The voice was empty, holding no tone whatsoever, like it had emerged from the nothingness itself.

“Who’s there?” he asked to the open air.

“Do you think I could be a friend?” the voice asked out of the blue, catching Roxas off guard.

“What?” he asked, cocking his head to the side.

“I can’t use the keyblade anymore,” the voice said again, but this time, it felt like it had a point of origin: behind Roxas. His eyes wide, he whipped around, widening his frame in case of attack. That wasn’t the case, but that didn’t stop him from being startled by the sight.

It was a person in a black coat, like his own, but the hood was up, and the figure was slightly shorter than himself, though he couldn’t really tell from the distance. The figure didn’t move, giving him the cold stare underneath the cloak. Roxas could only think of a few people that would wear a black coat.

“Are you with the Organization?” he asked, his brow furrowed as he clenched his hands into fists. At first, the figure said nothing, prompting Roxas’ anger to grow. Unexpectedly, the figure began spouting quotes that held no sound, yet still reached his mind.

“I used to watch the sunset with somebody else.”

“What am I... here for?”

“I worry about you all the time.”

“If only things stayed like this.”

“Set them free.”

“You're both my best friends.”

It went by so quickly that Roxas was lucky to catch any of the words spoken. They all seemed vaguely familiar, but he didn’t know if it was simply a trick by the Organization. If it wasn’t, then this was something that was related to his own heart, but that would only be true if he was in his own heart.

Growling at the intricate and difficult thoughts that laced together haphazardly, Roxas threw his arms to the side in frustration. “Who are you!?” he yelled, shooting a glare at the figure.

Moments passed without a hint of movement from either one, then the figure raised its right hand, making Roxas puzzled at the action. Suddenly, a keyblade was summoned to the figure’s hand, the Kingdom Key, and Roxas was taken aback.

“A keyblade?” he blurted in disbelief, “How do you have a-?”

He never got the chance to finish his sentence, as the figure had charged him. As a reaction, Roxas jumped back as the figure swung its keyblade missing him by inches. His anger flaring up again, Roxas summoned his own keyblades, Oblivion and Oathkeeper, and got ready to fight.

Taking the initiative, Roxas surged forward, swinging his right keyblade from the side. The figure ducked underneath the attack, and was about to give an uppercut slash, but Roxas was able to block it with his left keyblade. He brought his right keyblade back to swing again, but the figure pushed his left keyblade to the side just in time to block the next attack.

The battle continued as both traded strikes and swings, only to be blocked by the other. There seemed to be no definitive winner as both were evenly matched, but as time went on Roxas’ rage was giving him ground as he swung relentlessly. The figure was barely able to keep up, unable to retaliate in any way. Then, in an unpredicted move, Roxas jumped back and threw both of his keyblades, and they came towards the figure from different sides.

Unable to block both, the figure brought its keyblade to deflect one, but wasn’t able to get the other as it knocked into its gut, sending the figure to the ground as its hood fell off. Roxas ran forward while the figure fell, summoning his keyblades as he jumped into the air. Just as the figure landed on its back, Roxas stabbed the ground around its neck, creating an ‘X’ that rendered the figure incapable of escaping.

With the fight over, and with Roxas breathing hard in rage, confusion, and fatigue, he got a good look at the person he had been fighting. It was a girl, one that may have been his age, with short black hair, and blue eyes that matched his own. She was unfazed that she was beaten, calmly staring at Roxas with unblinking eyes.

At the sight, Roxas’ furious glare softened, and the more he stared into her eyes, the more he regretting having the battle. It was a feeling he had never experienced, and it just made him more perplexed.

Waiting a few seconds to catch his breath, Roxas asked quietly, “Do I… know you?”

At first, she didn’t react to his words, but soon, she spoke in a voice that was actually heard, that filled Roxas’ mind with anxiety and sadness.

“In someone else… maybe,” she said simply, causing Roxas to take a few steps back as he tried to wrap his head around it. He didn’t know her; her face was unrecognizable, her voice was unknown to him. Still, there was a lingering sense in his heart… one that did not leave his mind.

Before he could think on it further, his body tilted back until he was falling, and when he reached the ground, it burst into shards of glass. He was falling into the darkness, colorful shards surrounding him, but his mind only stayed on that one person.

***

A large yawn erupted from Sora as he climbed the stairs back to the roof. It had been a long day for him, and he was glad he was going to get some rest. He had spent the last three hours helping Fluttershy while explaining a bit about his story. It was exhausting work, especially when he had trouble gathering his memories. It didn’t help that his mind would stray from one subject to the other, but luckily, Fluttershy was patient with him.

She had taken it rather well, considering the stuff she could have been doing. Fluttershy was quiet throughout the story, only asking an occasional question to complete the full picture. Of course, Sora was still descriptive to an extent. He told her about the Heartless, which she was somewhat scared of, his keyblade, and his responsibility with it. Sora didn’t want to bog her down, and he gave her the bare minimum; he still had his mission to keep the other worlds safe.

As Sora entered the Gummi ship, he wondered why he tried to keep it a secret to begin with. Every world he visited had taken the information kindly, and he was able to get some friends from it. Perhaps he felt like this world was too innocent to be dragged into these type of affairs. Whatever the case may be, he wanted to finish up his business and hope to not involve the friends he had made in this world.

Rubbing the back of his head, Sora hopped into his bunk bed and fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

***

Opening his eyes, Sora found himself on the familiar glass surface. Nothing had changed the last time he saw it, but after the day he had, he was willing to bet something would happen. Glancing around a bit, he waited for whatever spoke to him before to communicate with him again. Unfortunately, he was only met with silence.

After a minute, he saw a flash of white light shine from the corner of his eye, and he looked over to see a circle glowing. It was in the circle containing Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, but when the glowing dissipated, he saw Rarity there.

“Generosity…” the voice spoke at last, making Sora raise a brow. He knew Rarity was a friend of Rainbow and Fluttershy, so there must have been a connection.

Another flash of light, this one being pink, and when he looked over the pink glowing circle, it faded to reveal Pinkie Pie.

“Laughter…” The voice said, involuntarily causing Sora to chuckle. She fit so perfectly. That confirmed it; this glass pillar was showing a group of friends that he had met. The four on it at that moment were the first few, so the other two that they mentioned constantly - Applejack and Twilight Sparkle - had to be next.

Sora smirked at figuring out a piece of the puzzle, but it instantly fell when another question crossed his mind: what made them so special? And what were these words that described them? He may have got more of a picture, but the mystery was far from over. It was at that moment that a crazy idea crossed his mind.

Did the magic of friendship have to do something with them?

It would make sense, considering they had faced the monster that was Sunset Shimmer first hand. It wasn’t impossible, but it was still a slim chance. He had to ask as soon as possible.

“One by one,” the voice said, knocking Sora out of his revery, “You find those that share the same meaning; It is becoming clear for you.”

Sora thought back to what the voice had said before, about the one meaning, the six elements that make it up, and how he was the key to it all. It had to be that these six friends were behind the magic of friendship. What else could it mean?

“Expect more from your heart,” the voice said, making Sora shake his head in confusion.

“More…” he asked quietly, placing his hand over his own chest. “From my heart?”

A bright light filled his vision, and he was gone from that station, sleep taking over.

Author's Note

The amount of writer's block was immense...

Chapter 18: Thoughtful Thoughts

Kingdom Hearts: Friendship’s Turmoil
Chapter 18: Thoughtful Thoughts

Sitting on the roof ledge of the school, with his legs dangling, Sora gazed out of the town, feeling very relaxed. The sun was just about to set, giving the world an orange tinge that made the day feel complete. After what happened at the club, Sora was glad he could just sit down and enjoy himself.

All the explaining and such to the girls was tiring. It probably didn’t help that Sora had left a few things out when he had first told the girls about what was going on. Sora still didn’t really understand what had happened back in the Dream Worlds, and he was willing to bet neither did the girls. At least telling Lea and Riku about what had happened so far in this world had been easier. The events were much more recent, and important for the time being. At the moment, everyone was up to date and ready for whatever the Organization would throw at them.

Hopefully, they would just leave and lose interest, but that was wishful thinking.

“Hey,” Lea said behind him, causing Sora to twist his head around to see Lea and Roxas. “Mind if we join?”

“Yeah, of course,” Sora answered with a nod, eliciting a smile from both of them. Roxas took a seat to Sora’s right, and Lea on Roxas’ right. All of their eyes were focused on the sun setting behind the horizon. The sight made Lea chuckle, making Sora and Roxas look to him.

“This place doesn’t really remind me of Twilight Town,” Lea said, his gaze firmly set on the sun, “But the sunset sure does like to try.”

Roxas raised a brow, glancing to Sora before facing Lea again. “Are you getting sappy on me?” he asked with a smirk, and Lea burst out laughing.

“You need to learn the definition of sappy,” Lea said, pointing a finger at Roxas before nudging him with an elbow. Roxas laughed before giving a content sigh, leaning back against his hands.

“You know what would make this perfect?” Roxas asked, as Sora and Lea looked to him expectantly. “Sea Salt Ice cream.”

“Yeah,” Lea agreed with a nod, resting his elbows on his lap, “But I doubt they’d have them here.”

Roxas nodded slowly, his happiness dampening slightly before he perked up, a smile erupting as he turned to Lea. “Pinkie Pie might have some,” he said enthusiastically, “And if she doesn’t, she could make a few. She’s great at making sweets, and I’m sure she could whip something up.”

Lea looked at Roxas with interest, “You really think so?”

“Definitely,” Roxas nodded, “I’ll talk with her tomorrow. She’s bound to be working over at Sugarcube Cafe.”

It was moments like this that Sora felt happy for Lea and Roxas. They were the best of friends, and to see them together again gave a warm radiance in his heart. Sora had some experience being separated from his friends Riku and Kairi, but for Roxas, and especially for Lea, they thought they’d never see each other again. If his adventures taught him anything, it was that friends were important. Of course, it didn’t take a journey for Sora to know that.

Something was shuffling at Sora’s left, and a look over showed Riku sitting beside him. He looked a bit troubled, but when he looked to Sora, he hid it with a smile. “So you two are heading for Sugarcube Cafe tomorrow?” Riku repeated, gesturing to Roxas and Lea.

“Yep!” Roxas said with an enthusiastic nod.

“Eh, probably,” Lea said, resting his head in his hand, “I mean, Roxas is going there, so might as well tag along. Something’ll happen eventually, right?”

Roxas looked at Lea funny, and Sora had to guess that Roxas had no idea what Lea meant by what he said. Truth be told, neither did Sora. He didn’t expect a lot would happen at a sweetshop.

“What about you, Riku?” Sora said, looking to him, “Got any plans?”

The smile that Riku had mustered faltered as he faced the ground below. Sora had to wonder why Riku always looked so grave when he was in thought. It wasn’t exactly annoying, but it did worry Sora considerably.

“Check up on Applejack,” Riku settled on with a nod, as if confirming it for himself.

“Applejack?” Lea repeated in disbelief, “No offense to her, but she doesn’t seem to have a very exciting lifestyle.”

“Neither did we before all this started to happen,” Sora explained with a shrug.

Lea pointed to Sora, his mouth open a moment before he grunted, lowering his arm. “Good point,” he agreed, scratching the back of his head, “Even still, why visit her?”

Riku shook his head, “She just… has this thing about her, you know? Sora said she was the Element of Honesty, and I think her hard work reflects that.”

“So, what?” Lea asked with a tinge of boredom, “You like that in a girl or something?”

Riku scoffed as he turned away, “I just want to see what she does for a living.”

Rubbing his chin, Sora remembered how prominent Applejack was with apples. It was on her clothing and even in her name. “Maybe she has something to do with apples,” Sora guessed.

“Maybe,” Riku shrugged, looking out into the distance. Everyone else did the same, letting the quiet atmosphere dominate the conversation. The sun had sunk below the horizon, officially ending the day. Blinking lights of various worlds began to appear in the sky, one by one. Turning his eyes upward, Sora was glad to see the worlds shine in the night sky. It showed that they hadn’t fallen to darkness, and the tasks Sora had done to save the worlds were successful.

Even still, they were at risk of crumbling if Sora and his friends failed to protect the magic of friendship. It was imperative that they all stay on track. Glancing back to Riku, Sora noticed that he still had something heavy on his mind. Perhaps it had something to do with their mission.

Sora put a hand on his shoulder, making Riku jerk from the contact, swiftly looking to Sora. “Riku,” Sora said, pausing to find for the right words, “Are you worried about the girls?”

Riku stared at Sora a moment before releasing a sigh, giving a small smile afterwards as he closed his eyes. “Am I that easy to read?” he asked, pushing himself up to a stand. He crossed his arms as Sora waited for some sort of response. It wasn’t until Riku looked down to Sora did he speak up.

“They could be attacked at any time,” Riku said, clenching up his hands, “The Organization or Maleficent could get a hold on them, and we wouldn’t be there to defend them. Doesn’t that bother you at all?”

Sora couldn’t meet Riku’s gaze, nor that of Lea or Roxas. Riku was correct in that their mission was to protect the girls, and Sora had done just that. However, as Sora stood to his feet, he placed a hand on his chest, staring straight ahead.

“I have a feeling we’d know if they were in trouble,” Sora said, facing Riku with determination, “When Roxas was fighting with the two giant Nobodies, someone warned me about it.”

Roxas tilted his head to the side, “Really?”

Sora turned his head before nodding, making Roxas look up at him in confusion. “Who was it?” he asked, getting to his feet as well.

Sora thought for a moment, scratching his cheek. The voice itself was unfamiliar, but it did remind him of someone. “It sounded kind of like Kairi,” he explained before closing his eyes, “But she’s with the King, so I don’t really know who it could have been.”

There was a momentary silence before Riku spoke up, “But how will this voice tell you when they’re in trouble? For all you know, it could have been because Roxas was in trouble, not the girls.”

Contemplating that theory, Sora hummed to himself before giving a grand smile, bumping a fist to his chest as he turned to Riku. “I’ll know in my heart,” he said as he put both hands on his hips, “After all, they are related to the magic of friendship. So if you start being mean, then we’ll know for sure.”

Roxas and Lea burst out laughing, and though Riku was a bit grim on Sora’s explanation, he did give a small smile of his own. It was a pleasant sight to see, especially after everything Riku’s been through. Both of them had never really had a chance to just hang out for once. In a way, their mission had given them that chance.

“Alright,” Lea said, standing up himself as he stretched his arms, “You guys can stand around all you want. I’m going to bed.”

With a yawn, Lea left the three as he made his way to the Gummi Ship, rubbing the back of his head. Roxas turned to watch him leave, and was about to take a step to follow him before a thought struck him.

“Oh, Sora,” he said as Sora looked to him with curiosity, “You didn’t say what you were going to do tomorrow.”

Sora blinked, not realizing his own agenda hadn’t been settled yet. Lea even stopped in his tracks, glancing back to know himself. It didn’t take long for Sora to know who he wanted to visit, and it made him sad knowing that he did.

“I’ll…” he started, giving a sigh, “talk to Fluttershy.”

Roxas gave a look of surprise before his expression turned sorrowful as well. He didn’t say another word, simply giving a small nod before walking for the Gummi Ship. Lea was a bit interested in Sora’s reason for checking on Fluttershy, but he didn’t bother to go into it. As Roxas and Lea entered the Gummi Ship via the platform, Riku looked hard at Sora in his own contemplations.

“Riku,” Sora said, his voice full of sadness. Riku rarely saw Sora sad, and when he was, it was for good reason. It was times like those it was imperative Riku paid attention. After all, Sora made everyone else happy, so it was only right to return the favor. “I need some help.”

Taking a seat on the edge again, Sora leaned his arms against his legs, his eyes trained on his hands. Riku followed suit, taking a seat beside Sora. He didn’t speak, letting Sora think over what to say. It didn’t take long before Sora faced Riku, wishing he didn’t have to say what was plaguing his mind.

“There’s a darkness in me,” Sora said, but Riku remained stoic, letting Sora finish, “When I was fighting you, I tried to turn into Valor Form. But it backfired, and I turned into… a Heartless.”

That time, Riku reacted, his eyes growing wide ever so slightly. Sora shook his head, his gaze falling back down, “I still looked like me, but I was covered in darkness. I was able to defeat you with it and turn back to normal, but the girls… they saw the whole thing.”

“Has this happened before?” Riku asked, trying to recall the times Sora had gone into a Drive Form when they were in the World That Never Was.

Sora had to think about it for a while, desperately attempting to remember one time that it had happened, but came up blank. “I don’t know,” Sora answered, sounding worse by the minute. “But if it did, why didn’t I feel it before? I just have these blank points when I change into a form, times I can’t remember fighting anything. This time, when I left my Heartless form, I could feel my heart full of darkness before it disappeared. Rainbow and Applejack were scared from having to go through it, and the rest of the girls were no better. Riku…” He jerked his head over to Riku, clenching his teeth. “I don’t want to change into it again.”

Nodding, Riku looked up to the night sky, seeing how dark it was. How cruelly ironic that their discussion was held when the light was gone. However, it did give Riku a way to help Sora. “You can’t fight your own darkness, Sora,” Riku said as gently as possible, “It’s a part of you, and if you don’t accept that, it’ll only make matters worse.” He bowed his head. “Trust me, I’ve had experience.”

Sora gave a long sigh, slowly nodding his head as he gave a weak smile. “Thanks, Riku,” he said, who gave a smile of his own.

The two stared up at the stars, admiring the light that shined through the darkness like so many times before. Riku had always liked the night, having the feeling that you’re alone, but at the same time, around so many people. The quiet atmosphere it would bring was also welcoming. However, as great as the night was, it was nothing compared to dawn. A true combination of darkness and light, working together for a breathtaking view. Though, that might have just been Riku’s past experiences talking.

“There’s something else,” Sora said before hastily adding, “But not as serious as the whole darkness thing.”

“Spit it out then,” Riku said teasingly, causing Sora to cheer up a little bit. But the topic he had was still hard to talk about.

“It’s about Fluttershy,” Sora explained, subconsciously putting his hand over his chest. “Ever since I arrived, I had this feeling in my heart. She’s very kind, pretty, and a great person. And I…”

“You like her, huh?” Riku guessed, a sly smile on his face.

Sora blushed slightly, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment, “Y-Yeah.”

“Alright,” Riku said, pulling a leg up to rest on the ledge itself, “So what’s the problem?”

“When I turned into the Heartless, “Sora said with a sigh, “Fluttershy saw the whole thing.”

Riku face lit up in understanding, “Ah.”

Sora clenched his chest, feeling the pain of what he had done. If Riku couldn’t help him, then he wasn’t sure what he would do. After everything he and Fluttershy had been through, Sora couldn’t deny it; he liked Fluttershy, truly liked her. He wasn’t sure when these feelings were starting to sprout up, but he had to accept that he had them.

In an after thought, he wondered what Kairi would think about Sora’s feelings. Sora and Kairi had history together, but there was something about Fluttershy, something that made Sora feel like he could pull off the impossible if it meant keeping her safe and happy.

Riku chuckled a little bit, knocking Sora out of his revery as he stared at him in disbelief. “Hey!” Sora exclaimed, his blush intensifying. “What’s so funny?”

Riku grunted in amusement, “I don’t know why you’re asking for my help on that. You already know what you’re going to do.”

“What do you mean?” Sora asked with a tilt of his head, honestly confused.

Riku chuckled again and pointed to Sora’s chest. “You’re going to apologize to her, for scaring her,” Riku said softly, “That’s why you’re visiting her tomorrow, right?”

“Well, yeah,” Sora said before pounding a fist against the ground, “But I can’t just do that! I mean, I scared her once before and apologized, but this is different!”

“How?” Riku retorted.

Sora froze on the spot, unsure how to respond to that. Riku gave a small smirk, glad he had stumped Sora. As naive as Sora was, Riku knew that Sora just had to be himself, and do what he did best; make others smile. Just like he had done with Riku.

“Come on,” Riku said, patting Sora’s shoulder for comfort, “You’re you. I’m sure it’ll work out.” Sora could only release a breath he didn’t know he was holding as Riku raised a brow. “Why did you want to ask me anyway? I don’t have a lot of experience with girls, you know.”

It was Sora’s turn to raise a brow, looking baffled at what he had heard. “You’re kidding, right?” Sora asked, leaning towards Riku who leaned away, “Who wouldn’t like you? All the girls back home talked about you all the time.”

“Well then, they were missing out,” Riku said, getting to his feet and walking towards the Gummi Ship. Sora shook his head, twisting around to face Riku.

“Missing out on what?” Sora asked, genuinely puzzled.

“On you,” Riku answered without stopping.

Staring at Riku a moment longer, Sora turned back to the ledge, his thoughts riddled with what Riku had meant. What exactly did Sora have that girls would like? Shrugging, Sora relaxed his posture, gazing out into the night sky again. Whatever the answer was to that question, he didn’t care. At the moment, there was only one girl that Sora had his eyes on. And just the thought of her made him smile.

***

The girls all headed home together, tired out of their wits. Their bodies felt cumbersome, the events of the day catching up with them. Most of them took it in stride, ignoring their exhaustion as best as they could. Except for Rarity, who sighed constantly as she looked herself over.

“This must have been the busiest week of my life,” she said, stretching her skirt out to find any dirt. “And I don’t believe we’re any closer to finishing these little incidents either.”

“I don’t mind,” Rainbow said dismissively, a confident smirk on her face, “We get to see a lot of action! And with Sora, Roxas and those other two around, it’ll definitely make things exciting!”

“Riku and Lea,” Applejack reminded, though Rainbow waved it off. Applejack didn’t mind that, but what did bother her made her sigh deeply, “And I can’t say the same for me, RD. All those Organization fellers messin’ with us all the time. And they ain’t gonna stop until they get a hold of this magic of friendship.”

“But that’s what’s exciting!” Rainbow said, brushing by Applejack as she threw her arms in the air. “Nothing is exciting unless there’s a little risk, and with Sora and the others defending us, we have nothing to worry about.”

“So, what exactly is the risk?” Pinkie asked, looking befuddled as she tapped her chin. “If Sora has never lost a fight, then he has a one hundred percent success rate. By those odds, we have absolutely no reason to get worked up! Now, I’m eighty six percent sure that Organization XIII has no chance!”

“Eighty six percent?” Twilight asked rather quietly, “What about the other fourteen percent?”

Pinkie shrugged, “I’ve never been good at math, unless it involves a party.”

Twilight sighed, accepting that explanation more than any other. Pinkie’s logic may have been confusing, but trying to make it understandable was just a waste of time. Besides, Twilight had a lot more on her mind at the moment. More so than the other girls. She had to get to the bottom of all this pony stuff that the younger Xehanort had showed her. And she couldn’t let her friends know about it as well. After all, they had called her a pony princess before, and if they were really hiding something from her, she couldn’t put her faith in them.

It saddened Twilight considerably to think like that, but she already felt betrayed by her friends. If she found out for herself, she thought that the feeling of being right wouldn’t be as severe if they had simply told her the truth. The real question was how she was going to find out for herself.

A nudge at her ankles broke her out of her thoughts as Twilight glanced down, seeing Spike face her worriedly. The sight made Twilight smile, knowing she didn’t have to leave out all of her friends. She also realized that Sora and the other boys probably didn’t know anything either, but she couldn’t risk taking the subject to them. They might bring it up to the other girls.

“Twilight?” Fluttershy questioned, putting a hand on Twilight’s shoulder. The act made Twilight knock the hand away, shifting her body away from Fluttershy as she scowled. No one had seen what she had done but Fluttershy herself, and it made her sad. It was already bad enough that Sora had been hiding something from her, but it seemed that Twilight was as well. Then again, the girls were doing the same with her. It was a bad cycle that they would need to break eventually.

Rarity noted Fluttershy’s mood, giving a sympathetic frown, “Fluttershy, is Sora still on your mind?”

Sighing, Fluttershy nodded, her eyes drifting down to her feet. Rarity patted her back, giving a small smile. “You mustn't blame Sora for what he became, darling,” she said quietly, leaning in to keep the conversation private. “After all, Sora has told us that it was an accident, and he has taken precautions so it wouldn’t happen again.”

“It’s not just about Sora changing into a Heartless,” Fluttershy said, shaking her head as she shivered. Just the thought of the monster Sora had become made her frightened. “It’s also knowing that Sora has enough darkness in his heart to turn into it in the first place.”

Fluttershy lifted her head up, facing Rarity with tears brimming in her eyes. “W-What does that mean for Sora?” she asked, desperately hoping Rarity had the answer, “Could he be hiding something else from us?”

Rarity gasped at Fluttershy, “How can you ask something like that? After everything Sora’s been through, we should be supporting him, not doubting him.”

“I-I know,” Fluttershy whimpered, wishing the words she spoke were nothing but an afterthought, “But what if… what if he has been lying to us?”

Rarity wanted to debunk that claim immediately, and had ample proof for Fluttershy to take back what she said. However, Rarity knew that whatever she said would be countered by Fluttershy. It seemed she was in the type of mood where she was just so confused and frightened that all reasonable thought was ignored and was replaced with pure emotions. Rarity had gone through many similar instances, as much as she regretted to admit to herself, and knew that Fluttershy would come around in time. At least, she hoped she would. Fluttershy was far more fragile than Rarity, so it may not simply go away.

Rarity bowed her head, holding her hands together as she muttered, “What a mess we’ve gotten into.”

She could only hope things would get better by tomorrow. It was only the beginning of the weekend, and there was plenty of time for Sora to turn Fluttershy’s frown upside down. Giving a weak smile, Rarity felt reassurance that Sora would fix things. Even though all of this started when he arrived, she felt confident he would do his best to make things right.

As the six girls continued walking, Rainbow thought back to the events of the club, more specifically to the discovery of the Young Xehanort. If she hadn’t warned Sora about what was happening to Twilight, who knew what would have happened. Rainbow was very proud about that. However, how Rainbow got that knowledge made her anxious, her pride diminishing. A stranger had told her, one that wore a dark coat like the other Organization members. But he had helped her, so he couldn’t be a bad guy.

And his voice sounded exactly like the person Rainbow had met in the school hallway. If that was the case, why was he getting involved? Didn’t he explicitly say he was staying out of it? And why warn Rainbow specifically and not any one else? The last question Rainbow could answer on her own, with some added thought. She was the only one hidden in a large crowd. The stranger could easily hide himself from everyone else, including Rainbow.

It was clear this stranger’s motives weren’t evil, persay, but they were definitely suspicious nonetheless. With a smirk, Rainbow hoped she’d meet this guy again, just so she could get some answers out of him. It would almost be like a game.

“What are ya smilin’ ‘bout, Rainbow?” Applejack questioned, giving her a wary look. Rainbow gave a lighthearted chuckle, putting her focus back on the present as she pointed directly ahead.

“Just how much I’m going to beat you in a race to Sweet Apple Acres,” Rainbow declared, already sprinting ahead. Applejack stared at her in disbelief before a playful smile came on her lips as she rushed after her.

“That’s what you think!” Applejack called after, already catching up to her. The other four girls smiled warmly at their competitive natures. Despite all the bad things that were hanging over their heads, the girls could always appreciate the simple moments like this.