A.N.: Okay so this one was inspired by sparkkeper on Tumblr and their amazing and practical theory of Mickey and Minnie being from two different worlds, and then I noticed something as I did my research (because I never got to play the original two games mind you) Timeless River Pete didn't recognize Donald and Goofy either so they must also be from different worlds. So yes, this takes place after Dream Drop Distance, and probably some down time in good ol' KH3.
"Hey guys, during my Mark of Mastery exam I ended up in a world where you two and King Mickey were Musketeers, and back then Queen Minnie was a princess." Sora mentioned to his two constant companions as he noticed a familiar symbol as they walked around Traverse Town. Specifically the Fleur-de-lis that served as Cid's Jewelry and Accessories store sign here in the First District, but Sora better remembered it more recently on the Musketeer's uniforms, almost like a royal seal, or coat of arms, or something.
He heard the duo give their own gasps of surprise behind him at the mention, which gave him enough proof that they knew what he was talking about.
"Gawrsh Sora, that was an awful long time ago fer us." Goofy quipped. "Back then the King wasn't even the King just yet."
"What? Really? Then how did he become the King if he wasn't already?" Sora asked in genuine surprise.
"Seriously, Sora? Did you fall asleep in school or did our adventures together make you skip those lessons?" Donald nearly berated the boy.
"Uh…both?" Sora answered uneasily, and his answer nearly made the duck trip in disbelief. Donald sighed in exasperation before he finally gave a better answer to Sora's earlier question.
"He married into royalty of course. Queen Minnie was Princess Minnie back then, ergo she's the true royal one out of the two of them."
"Ooooohhhhh, that makes sense! He's so laid back that he lets Riku call him by name. I tend to use his title out of habit." Sora replied in understanding.
"Say, Donald? Wasn't that Mus-kee-teer job also around the time that we first met him?" Goofy asked suddenly, though knowing him, he had probably been pondering about it since the subject was brought up.
"Only for you Goofy, I actually met him a little bit earlier." Donald replied and then all but paled at the memories and a sudden thought. "Oh brother…"
"What's the matter Donald?" Sora egged on, wondering why Donald looked like his entire life just flashed before his eyes in the worst way possible.
"I just remembered something and now everything makes sense." Donald replied gravely. "You know that rule about us keeping the world order wherever we go as best as possible?"
"Yeah?" Sora and Goofy replied in unison.
"One of the main reasons that rule even exists is because of the meddling's of our King."
"WHAAAT? What did he do?" Sora asked in pure bewilderment. It was Goofy who answered for him in his usual cheerful, nonchalant manner.
"Oh, ya mean because the King took Queen Minnie, or rather Princess Minnie back then, and me out of our world!"
"Huh?" Sora asked again trying to process this information.
"Goofy is from The Country of Musketeers, as was back then, Princess Minnie. I am not and obviously neither was the King. I became friends with him sometime before he had some business to do in that world and he brought me with him for some reason, and we shortly became friends with Goofy as soon as we blended in by becoming Janitors, and then by Pete's manipulating plan to steal Princess Minnie's throne, we became Musketeers, which you probably saw, Sora." Donald explained thoroughly.
"He did say he was working on a problem when I met him there, but he didn't tell me what kind… So what happened?" Sora mused aloud then asked, wisely leaving out any mention of the fact that Donald was a bit of a coward back then judging by what he had seen.
"According to Master Yen Sid, he foresaw that particular world getting swallowed by darkness so he sent Ki- I mean Mickey, to blend in and investigate what could be done to prevent it, and he brought me and his dog Pluto along for the ride because three is better than one when it comes to gallivanting across a world to find this kind of thing. Unfortunately under no one's true fault, we just made it worse, and it didn't help that way back then Mickey had trouble summoning his Keyblade." Donald started, still adjusting to having to drop his superior's title for the sake of not confusing Sora.
"The Princess fell in love with him and the feeling was mutual." Goofy added cheerfully.
"And that's when things slowly started to go downhill. We couldn't find the keyhole in time since Mickey had trouble summoning his Keyblade. So we had no choice but to let the world get swallowed up by the darkness, but not without one heck of a fight. So Mickey scooped up the Princess, I scooped up Daisy and Pluto dragged Goofy with us and we hightailed it to Mickey's home world which was still in the middle of construction of Disney Castle but was almost done." Donald finished.
"Well, in the sleeping version of that world, the keyhole was behind the words of all Musketeers; 'All for one and one for all!'" Sora told the court wizard.
Donald slapped a hand to his face at the irony, if only it were that simple back then, and if only Mickey was able to summon his Keyblade sooner, that world could have been saved…but in the end it actually was for the best wasn't it?
If it had been saved…Minnie wouldn't have been able to keep Mickey by her side, he would've had to leave eventually, even if he does that enough as is for his Keyblade Wielder duties, the circumstances would be vastly different…Mickey probably wouldn't have had the guts to propose, what with the difference in class being an issue. Even if Minnie didn't care about that completely, it was still a doubt of Mickey's.
Regardless of the what-ifs, that world was swallowed up in darkness and it was partly Mickey's fault even if accidentally just because he couldn't summon his Keyblade very easily at the time. It was to this day his biggest regret, and Donald knew that, and also knew that if the King found out now how easy it actually would have been to find the keyhole, he would have a conniption and find a way to go back in time all together.
It's probably possible, if going forward into time requires having a snippet of oneself waiting there, then surely some semblance of the same principals is required when going backwards in time. But who's to say?
"I almost can't believe that it was that easy." Donald muttered in agitation loud enough for his companions to hear.
"Yep, but you had to have a true understanding of the meaning behind the words." Sora added cheerfully.
"Of course, that's why we still say it every now and then ourselves, because it's true and because we say it in small memorium for that world!" Goofy put in his two bits of munny.
"In small memorial!" Donald corrected.
"Ayhuck! That too!"
"Hey, Donald? If you met the King earlier than Goofy did, then how did you meet him?" Sora asked curiously. Donald snorted at the question and the memory that came with it before he answered.
"My world disappeared into darkness too, but luckily my Uncle Scrooge was rich enough to even have the Gummi Ship, so he, myself, and my three nephews, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, and the chipmunk engineers were the only ones who made it out in time, and as we traveled, Mickey splat himself like a bug on the windshield, he never did tell us how he managed that, but somehow we've just been friends ever since." Donald explained with a chuckle. "He may be King now, but he still ain't perfect, but once we got into the habit of calling him by title…it's not easy to stop even though we've been friends for almost as long as we can remember." He slowly got a little more sentimental as he finished, and looked up only when he heard chuckles from Sora and then Goofy followed suite only because Sora's chuckles were contagious.
"I can't even imagine the King just splatting on the windshield of the Gummi Ship! He actually did that? Wow, wait until I tell Riku about this!" Sora explained himself before bursting into more chortles. This time Goofy laughed harder upon understanding and Donald finally joined in because that memory alone is hilarious and the laughter of his friends was indeed contagious.
However, little did the trio know their entire conversation had been listened in on…by the King himself. Of course he went through the same rollercoaster of emotions as his court wizard as the story was told and even cracked a smile at the memory of him splatting on the Gummi Ship windshield window.
Unfortunately, Sora's bit of information of the keyhole for The Country of Musketeers nagged at him like nobody's business. It truly was his biggest mistake surely written in Master Yen Sid's book of all of his mistakes from while he was an apprentice to the wise, old sorcerer. He wouldn't be surprised if a certain other incident was in that book too, and sure enough he knew he was never meant to live that down as soon as he overheard Sora explaining another bit of the past that he went to, during the time Mickey's magic got out of hand after borrowing Master Yen Sid's hat.
The way Sora described it went a little differently than how it really went. After all, he was pretty sure he'd remember meeting Sora or even Riku during that time, and Sora especially in The Country of Musketeers.
Still…thinking of the past, he couldn't help but feel that pang of utmost regret. It made him wonder what would have happened if he was able to save that world from darkness…but at the same time he didn't want to think about it. Everything happened the way it did and things just fell into place otherwise.
However, he still had that doubt in his mind, even though he did try his hardest to summon his Keyblade at the time, he just wasn't able to, but was his hardest enough? He needed that confirmation elsewhere, not from his Master, but from her…even though he had a funny idea that he knew what she was going to say on the matter.
Thus, he went home, albeit using the Star Shard which still didn't do as he expected, so it flung him straight into one of the flower patches. He didn't even have time to wonder if it was one of Minnie's favorite patches, as she answered that for him.
"Mickey Mouse!" In a tone that said she was upset with him. Generally.
"Sorry 'bout that Minnie! I still can't control where this thing will put me when I wanna go somewhere." He apologized, trying to reassure her as he held up the Star Shard to show her. "I also can't guarantee how much time I'll have here 'cause if I'm needed somewhere it will act up on its own accord and take me there." He added sadly.
"Oh for pity's sake, I'm not upset about the petunias Mickey, you just startled me is all." She sighed in exasperation at him, as she plopped down next to him to give him a hug, not caring about wrinkling her cupcake of a dress.
"Still sorry." He quipped, hugging her back, unable to help the notable sigh that made her ear twitch in his face.
"So, did you forget something…?" She asked him tactfully as she slowly pulled away from him and leaned on her right hand for support, still pretty close to him though, but she just needed to gauge him before she could get a hold of whatever was bothering him.
"Not exactly." He answered simply, scratching the back of his head uneasily in knowing that she was already onto him, she knew him too well. He took a slow breath before he simply asked, "Remember when we met?"
She quirked a brow at the subject, and again held back her immediate thoughts as she answered, "Fondly, my handsome and most loyal musketeer."
Mickey gave a rueful smile at the compliment and the small semblance of a pet name before he lay on his back. "Remember what happened not too long after?"
Queen Minnie knitted her brows in puzzlement at what he was referring to, for there was a whole slew of things that happened after they met that was only a domino effect of her falling all the more in love with him, as he proved his worth as a musketeer. "Such as…?" She finally prodded, needing him to be a little more specific.
"Such as me not being able ta save yer world." He groaned in self-pity as he rolled over, turning away from her.
"Are you still hung up about that?" She asked incredulously. "Mickey, I regret nothing! If I had to make the choice all over again, I wouldn't change a thing."
"I didn't try hard enough, never mind being a Keyblade Wielder, I didn't try hard enough ta be a good musketeer neither, and don't say that's because o' talent." He finally huffed.
"What are you even talking about? You were a fine musketeer! You had every quality that was required in a musketeer and then some, and I should know because I was raised to know every last aspect of it, so don't you tell me that you didn't try hard enough because I know you always were trying your hardest!" Minnie argued firmly, knowing how stubborn he could be when it came to listening to reason during a bout of self-doubt. "Besides, I'm as much to blame for my own world disappearing."
"What?! No! Minnie-!"
"Mickey." She cut him off very easily with just his name in a stern but loving tone, but the single finger to his lips also certainly helped. "Because I loved you so much though our love was so young, I distracted you every chance I got. I distracted you from all of your duties even the ones I didn't know about at the time. Not that I would trade any of our moments together for even a second, but I'm fairly certain that if I had left you alone to do what you needed for even just a little bit longer, then maybe you could have figured out how to summon your Keyblade with ease much sooner."
The King looked at his Queen with wide eyes as she explained her line of reasoning for her half of letting her own home world fall to darkness. He couldn't help but smile demurely after she finished, since her end of it was a lovely thought but the keyhole should have been easier to find regardless.
"Min, I love ya, and I do truly appreciate the sentiment with all my heart, but the keyhole was behind the musketeer creed the whole time, and if it weren't fer me not being able to summon my Keyblade I probably would've been able ta save yer world that much sooner." He told her slowly so that he could put his emphasis where it needed to be so he could get across why he was beating himself up over it after all these years.
Now it was Queen Minnie's turn to look at her beloved with wide eyes. Whereas he looked at her more in awe that she was even able to blame herself for the fall of her world too, she now looked at him in pure disbelief that the heart of her world was behind something so simple and basic and said amongst musketeers everyday like the words themselves were as important as breathing, and now in a sense, they were.
For the longest time she was stunned in silence, and Mickey slowly drooped his head down in shame until he heard her giggle. It was the kind of giggle in which she was still in slight disbelief or at the very least shocked and wasn't quite sure how else to react.
"Just our luck isn't it?" She finally managed even through her disbelieving giggles resting her forehead on his shoulder and moving the rest of herself to sit in his lap with her legs to one side of him. Mickey couldn't help but join her with chuckles of his own since he also couldn't help but agree with her about the luck.
"Yeah, no kiddin'."
"I still stand by all of what I said though." Minnie started to get his attention, when she had it she continued. "If I had to do everything all over again, I wouldn't change a thing. Besides, I like how everything turned out for us in the end."
"Me too, Minnie." He hummed in agreement and then had a sweet afterthought to add to it all. "Ya know, come ta think of it…if I had managed ta save yer world, I probably wouldn't have stayed fer much longer after I found the keyhole, and that woulda made us star crossed lovers."
"Indeed it would." Minnie giggled in delight of the cute notion. "But I know that back then I would not be very happy about it, and I would certainly hope that you would at the very least come back to visit me."
"Of course." Mickey replied without hesitation, nuzzling her as he said so. "Even Master Yen Sid wouldn't've been able ta keep me from ya fer long." Ironically enough no sooner had he finished that sentence that the Star Shard started glowing again, and knowing it all too well Mickey quickly kissed his darling wife and then scooted away from her, saying his goodbye as quickly as possible before he vanished before her eyes. "Can't say the same for the Star Shard though, love ya Min! I'll be back as soon as I can, but don't wait up, see ya real soon!" With one last burst of light he was gone, or really just shrunk down to a small ball of light that started zipping away in light like a shooting star that really liked to zigzag.
"See you later, Mickey." Queen Minnie whispered to the air as she watched the zigzagging light vanish beyond the horizon.
In the end it didn't matter whether or not her world was saved from darkness, they were still star crossed lovers even now.