What Should I Work On Next?, a kingdom hearts fanfic

MKL: hey, everyone! -bright grin- what's up? is everyone's life going okay? yes? good!

well, I know everyone realizes by now that it's been a while since i updated anything. but it's for a good reason! with the exception of my Final Fantasy VII/X-2 crossover, ALL of my stories are STILL on my old harddrive and probably will be for some time. while i'm trying to re-write them on this computer using my memory alone, i have to admit that...well, it's not going so well and i get frustrated and stuff. and, when i get frustrated, what do i do? write new stories, of course! -grins- and that's where this comes in.

this "story" of mine is actually more of a series of previews used for multiple reasons. 1: the one mentioned above. these are all good for stress relief. so yay for us all! -grins- 2: to show you i'm not dead. believe me, i'm still alive and kicking, although i am kinda sick and have been for a while. not to worry, i'll get over it eventually. 3: so i can decide what sort of stories i'm going to focus on next.

yes, my friends, out of these...erm...couple (i'm not sure how many... -.-;) stories, i'm going to pick one or two to truly focus on and actually work with. meaning it's up to you to decide! whichever one gets the most votes gets the honor of officially appearing on fanfiction. and it's all up to you to pick. so yeah.

in case you haven't noticed, these aren't all Kingdom Hearts stories, despite the section. it just so happens that most of them are, which is why it's here. but, either way, i hope you all enjoy and give me honest feedback! i greatly apreciate it!

goodbye for now, and please tell me your opinion! obviously it really matters! ^.^

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(The World Ends With You/Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion Crossover)

Summary: Yoshiya "Joshua" Kiryu had a life before becoming the Composer. Actually, if you want to know the truth…for a good portion of his life…he was positively treated like royalty…

Royal Composer

Giggle-chuckling at the comment, Joshua opened his mouth to respond, but was interrupted by the familiar ringtone of his cell phone that sang "A Place In This World" with various pitched beeps and jingles. Ignoring the looks of confusion and slight annoyance he received for the choice, Joshua's brow furrowed as he reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell. Who would call him other than Mr. H or Neku…hell, who would remember to call him other than Mr. H or Neku…?

Upon spotting the name on the caller ID on the front, Joshua blanched and quickly flipped open his phone, actual worry creeping onto his face.

"Nunnally?" he asked, looking over everyone else's heads.

"Lelouch?" a different, yet still familiar voice asked instead, sounding uncomfortable and slightly apprehensive. Joshua's eyes widened a fraction before falling half-lidded.

"Oh. Suzaku." His voice became completely deadpan. "No, this is Joshua. What are you doing with Nunnally's phone?"

There was a pause on the other end before Suzaku let out a frustrated sigh. "Fine, whatever you want to be called! Joshua! Look, Nunnally's in serious trouble—she's been kidnapped!!!"

Suddenly, Joshua's whole body became cold. He felt his expression fall into slight horror, all of the blood draining from his face as his body became lax. Unintentionally, he dropped his guard in front of other people—specifically Neku and his friends.

"N…Nunnally," muttered he in a voice that was softer than a whisper. His hand began to relax and it only took a moment for his old personality to take over, his expression becoming serious and masked as he steadied himself. "Were there any demands? Any indications of who did it?"

"None," Suzaku responded, abruptly serious as well as something shifted on his end, "except for an odd symbol painted on the wall in red with 'For the Composer' scrawled under it."

It was all Joshua could do not to growl aloud, his eyes narrowing dangerously as he ignored the increasing worry/confusion/anger in his companions' Music. "What does the symbol look like?" Suzaku seemed suddenly apprehensive, and what was left of Joshua's patience snapped as he hissed angrily. "Suzaku, this's no time for secrets! What. Does. It. Look. Like."

"A skull." Again, dread flickered through Joshua, but now it was for a more specific reason. "A skull with an 'X' underneath it. At a certain angle, the skull itself could be a mutated cross with two bat wings making up the top part."

Joshua felt himself getting sick, but his voice remained steady and calm—the voice of a leader. The voice of the Composer. The voice of… "The next ship for Shibuya from the mainland is in half an hour," said he instead of trailing into that train of thought. "Can you make it?"

"Yeah," Suzaku said, sounding relieved that Joshua was willing to help him. "I can." He paused suddenly, and his voice dropped to a whisper, as if there was someone else in the room. "Joshua, tell me…is what Nunnally said true? …I mean…are you really…?"

"No," Joshua interrupted, eyes reflecting nothing as he gazed at 104. "He's dead. He was dead to Nunnally long before that—the sword just made him dead to everyone else as well." After another pause, the Composer of Shibuya went on. "I'll meet you in front of Hachiko at four."

A long moment passed. "…all right. See you then."

Without responding, Joshua closed his phone, his fingers curling around it as sorrow alit silently to his eyes. Nunnally…had been kidnapped. And there was a note only he, the Composer of Shibuya, understood at the scene. That could only mean one thing: Someone knew his weakness.

Someone knew who he had once been nearly five years ago.

(Final Fantasy VII)

Summary: The members of the Lifestream Council don't want to give Sephiroth a second chance at life, willing to tear his soul to shreds so it doesn't corrupt their home. Well, except for one…

Heaven's Dark Harbinger…?

"Calamity's Child was born to destroy Mother Gaea, created with only anger and pain in mind. Surely you realize that destroying its corrupted Soul would only be a blessing."

Tears sprang up inside of Aerith's eyes as she rapidly shook her head, clasping her hands in front of her chest tightly enough to make her knuckles white. "You're wrong! He…dear Planet, he wasn't c-created," she nearly choked on the horrible word, "with anger in mind! His mother…she couldn't have…and surely his father…!"

When the spokesperson slowly shook her head, Aerith felt her throat close with pent-up emotion. The woman before the teenager went on in a softer, but still mostly toneless voice. "Youngest Child of Mother Gaea, the mother of Calamity's Child personally did some of the experiments on its unborn form, while its father simply stood by and watched. He took no action against it, and even helped the process along at times."

A long pause followed those words before Aerith gazed at the spokesperson determinedly.

"His father," she said, voice wavering only slightly as tears continued to shine in her gentle green orbs, "did nothing of the sort."

"Surely you jest, Youngest Child of Mother Gaea," the spokesperson said, frowning slightly as all empathy escaped her gaze. "Its father—"

"I don't mean who you think I do." Aerith felt the tears fall down her face, but her gaze did not quiver; she knew what she wanted to say, and she was going to, no matter what the spokesperson wanted/did. "Not his literal father, but the one who sacrificed his life attempting to save the boy he wasn't biologically related to."

Curious, the spokesperson seemed to almost brighten. "Ah, you are referring to the Container of Chaos?"

"Precisely," said Aerith, the barest of smiles pulling at her lips. "I know he could be more of a father than the one who raised him ever was."

"Are you referring to Calamity's Scientist, or—?"

Aerith nodded. "Both."

"Ah," muttered the spokesperson, suddenly a bit thoughtful. "I see." Something sparkled in her eyes as she locked gazes with the young girl, who became apprehensive upon seeing the faint shimmer. "Tell me, Youngest Child of Mother Gaea—are you confident in this theory?" After only a moment of wavering, Aerith became serious again and nodded determinedly. The spokesperson seemed the slightest bit pleased, leaning back in her chair. "Then what do you say we make a test out of it. To guarantee that you are worthy of your position on the Lifestream Council."

"What sort of test?" Aerith asked, her voice barely a whisper.

"If you are correct in your theory that this man could be a better guardian for Calamity's Child than the Scientist, then I will be willing to not only allow you to keep your spot on the Council, but I will also allow its soul to rejoin the Lifestream as soon as it departs of more natural causes."

Aerith slowly cleared her throat, gazing in slight fear at the spokesperson. "And…if I'm wrong…?"

"Then not only does the soul of Calamity's Child end up destroyed, but you lose your seat on the Lifestream Council and you will be forced to rejoin the Lifestream."

Wincing, Aerith thought about it for a few moments. Would this honestly be a worthy risk? She would be forced to leave not only her newfound friends and ancestors on the Lifestream Council, but Zack (the Planet's newest Guardian), as well…could she honestly handle that…?

With one memory of the pathetic look on her old friends' face when he lost his last connection to the outside world other than AVALANCHE, she realized that the possible benefits outweighed the risks.

(Kingdom Hearts)

Summary: No title yet. After the Organization is defeated, Marluxia shows up on Sora's doorstep. The two quickly become more than friends… (Warning: yaoi/shonen-ai ahoy!)

MarluxiaSora

Groaning lightly, Sora's bright blue eyes flickered open and he slowly shook his head, blinking away the spots in his vision. He was dimly aware of a soft, warm pillow of some sort next to him, and another warm pillow around his middle. Unconsciously, he snuggled closer to the larger pillow and sighed contently, closing his eyes. His weary mind abruptly caught up to his body just as he was about to drift off and Sora's eyes snapped open as he stifled a loud yelp.

"O-oh…" he muttered, blushing deeply as he unconsciously wrapped an arm around his lower body. Next to him, Marluxia shifted and breathed softly against Sora's neck, pulling the younger boy closer to him. Sora was suddenly aware of how much of his own skin was brushing against Marluxia's and he let out a low whimper, flushing even more darkly.

"Good morning," came ex-number XI's deep and clearly amused voice. "Sleep well?" When Sora merely shifted in obvious discomfort, tightening his arms around his bare body, Marluxia chuckled lowly. "Oh. Maybe not."

There was a long silence as Marluxia gently placed his face in Sora's hair, tickling the brunette's scalp with his breath. And then:

"Do you regret it?"

"H-huh?" squeaked Sora, eyes widening as he pulled forward and turned his head somewhat to see Marluxia's abruptly serious expression. "Wh-what did you just say?"

"I asked," Marluxia reiterated softly and patiently as ever, his warm breath washing over Sora's face, "if you regretted last night."

After a few moments, Sora shook his head, smiling a bit as his blush cleared somewhat. "No. Not at all."

Nodding, Marluxia released his grip on Sora's midsection and instead began to run his fingers through the Keyblade Master's hair. "Good."

"Did you?" Sora asked quietly. Marluxia's lips twitched up into a slight smirk-smile.

"Of course not," he murmured, bowing his head a fraction. His brownish-pink hair fell over half of his face as he snaked the arm under Sora's body to hold him tightly, the other hand continuing to massage Sora's scalp. "I've wanted what happened last night to occur for a long, long time."

Sora's blush returned and he coughed, turning away somewhat. Marluxia pretended not to notice, closing his brilliant blue eyes and resting his chin on the crest of Sora's head. "…Roxas doesn't like you."

As if Sora had flicked a switch, Marluxia's fingers stilled and the rise and fall of his chest abruptly stopped. Sora sighed lowly and closed his eyes.

"He says you're a snake—that you're just using me," the teen went on, aware of the affect his words were having on the Assassin. "He thinks…he thinks you're just going to throw me away when you get bored, or when you find Larxene. He thinks I'm just…a replacement."

Pain leaked into Sora's voice as his own fears mixed with Roxas's doubts, and he shut his eyes tightly as he tried to keep his emotions in check. He was all too aware of the lack of Heartbeat in the chest of his once-enemy. Sora continued to speak, his voice quivering only slightly as he went on.

"I…I don't want to believe him…I want to believe that…that I mean more to you than that…but…" Dimly aware of the wetness falling down his cheeks, but not caring enough to do anything about it, Sora's whole body shook as he tried not to say what he wanted to. Eventually, he gave up, voice hardly a whisper. "But how could you love me without a Heart?"

(Saiyuki)

Summary: The goddess Amaterasu has defected from the Heavens, and Kanzeon Bosatsu enlists the help of an ex-War God to gather the souls of the only four gods who, combined with the ex-War God, might be the only hope for saving all the humans in Shangri-La…

Revival of the Gods

"Jiroshin, what are you doing?" Kanzeon Bosatsu asked with slight amusement as she walked into her private chambers. Her bodyguard, Jiroshin, jumped visibly and whirled around with a faint blush as he cleared his throat nervously.

"M-Merciful Goddess…p-please forgive me…I-I was just…" he stammered awkwardly. Kanzeon walked over with both eyebrows raised and mouth twitching upward in amusement.

"Were you just looking in on the Lower World, my dear Jiroshin?"

"E-er…"

"You sly dog!" laughed Kanzeon, walking past and gently clapping him on the shoulder before bending over the pond slightly with her hands on her hips. "I always knew you secretly enjoyed the excitement."

"L-Lady Kanzeon…you won't tell anyone, will you?" Jiroshin asked lowly, looking like he wanted to drop dead right there. Kanzeon grinned over her shoulder.

"Too late, Jiroshin. The precious readers have already caught you red handed."

Suddenly confused, Jiroshin blinked, frowning somewhat at the person he served. "Readers? Merciful Goddess, whatever are you talking about?"

"Oh, nothing," she sighed dramatically, waving him off. "Just breaking the fourth wall."

After a few moments, Jiroshin sighed, folding his arms neatly behind his back. "My Lady, you make no sense sometimes…"

Kanzeon ignored the comment and instead smiled over her shoulder knowingly. "So, Jiroshin…have you heard the news?"

"News?" asked Jiroshin, confused again. "What 'news'?"

"Amaterasu finally defected from the Heavens," Kanzeon practically cooed, straightening up and smiling at Jiroshin playfully. Her bodyguard looked like he was going to fall over due to a heart attack.

"The Mother Goddess of the Sun?! WHY!?!"

With a shrug, Kanzeon turned back to the pond, smile abruptly falling. "I suspect she's as bored of the hypocrisy of the Heavens as everyone else with more than a thousand years on their plate."

"What are we going to do, Merciful Goddess?!" wailed Jiroshin, sounding more upset than he probably should have been about the situation. Kanzeon concluded Jiroshin had his armor on a little too tight and lost eight or nine girlfriends because of it. "If this had happened three years ago, we could have sent the Sanzo party after her, but now—!"

"Ha," snorted Kanzeon, shaking her head as she searched the Lower World for who she was looking for. "Sorry, Jiroshin, but even at their full potential dear Sanzo and his little friends wouldn't be enough to stop the Mother Goddess of the Sun herself. Except for Goku, of course, but that's only if he lost his diadem and didn't kill himself by being so reckless in that form.

"No," Kanzeon continued, smiling somewhat as she finally found the person she was looking for, "we need some warriors who are more powerful than them for this job. Warriors with a strength that is almost beyond god-like." She glanced over her shoulder and grinned at Jiroshin. "Do you need more clues, or did you guess who I mean?"

"You…surely you aren't referring to—!" Jiroshin cried, eyes widening in shock. Kanzeon cut him off with a snicker, turning back to the lotus pool before her.

"Exactly. You catch on quick, Jiroshin."

"But they're gone, My Lady! How do you expect them to return when they have already entered the Lower World?!"

"Easy," Kanzeon said with a smile. "We use the only one who is still around."

(Kingdom Hearts)

Summary: Two years after Sora destroyed Xemnas, he defects to the evil side, leaving Riku and Kairi to take refuge in The World That Never Was. They end up taking in children who eerily resemble the Organization, and when the planet is attacked and the "children" are separated from their "parents", their Nobody powers begin to be re-awakened…and their memories, as well…

The Nobody Wars

The next morning, Luxord had been sent to fetch Elenra when she didn't appear at breakfast. He gently rapped his knuckles on the door.

"Elenra?" he called. "You awake?"

When he received no response, the goateed man shrugged and opened the door. He wasn't prepared for what he saw.

Curled up on the couch was not only Elenra, but Saïx, as well. The blue-haired man was holding the blonde girl in his arms, body curled around hers protectively and arms draped over her small form with his long hair falling half over Elenra's face. Elenra herself was snuggled as closely to Saïx as she could get, a small smile on her features as she held one of his arms in both of her own.

At the perfect scene of sibling love, Luxord couldn't help but grin and slowly backed out of the room, closing the door softly--by hand--behind him.

"What's up, Lux?" asked Xigbar, blinking as he walked towards the blonde. "Did ya get 'Laney?"

"I don't think that's necessary, Xigbar," responded the Brit with a smile, shrugging as he pulled a pack of cards out of nowhere and began to shuffle them. He pulled out the Jack and Queen of Hearts and his smile widened as he chuckled, flicking his wrist and causing their appearance to change somewhat. "Why not let her sleep until we get there. I'm sure her 'Big Brother' would appreciate it."

Luxord walked away without explaining what he meant.

(Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion)

Summary: Lelouch ends up in the past after being murdered and ends up staying with his siblings, most of which are dead and/or incapacitated in the future, and Rolo. But then the future catches up with him again…

Suzu of the Rebellion

Just as things were getting back to normal (or as normal as things could be at that point), Lelouch found himself confronted with yet another problem.

His father.

According to Schneizel and Cornelia, the two closest children to Charles for one reason or another, the Emperor of Britannia was starting to get suspicious of his children's odd behavior when he was home, especially after that last episode (which none of them wanted to relive). Ever. But anyway, Charles had told Schneizel in private that he was planning to come back to the mainland and stay in the mainland for a while to make sure everything was running smoothly.

Not. Cool. For. Lelouch and Rolo.

The not-siblings were both uneasy with the thought of Charles di Britannia being within the castle with his children, especially Lelouch. The elder was spending quite a bit of time just sitting in random spots throughout the castle brooding, staring off into space blankly. He was refusing to eat or sleep or do anything until his body demanded it, which Rolo and the members of the Britannia family were not happy about.

So, when Odysseus or Rolo or someone forced Lelouch to get out of whatever room he was holed up in and actually do something, he reverted to an old hobby of his that allowed him to think while assuring others that he was semi-paying attention to what he was doing.

Playing piano.

Piano was a talent that had always come naturally to Lelouch. He could pick just a few notes and compose an entire arrangement based upon them within moments, his fingers deftly flying over the keys in a well-practiced way. Often his siblings, from Rolo to Euphie to Clovis to Schneizel, came to listen as his thoughts were expressed through his music. It was a soothing practice that worked out well.

It was when he was playing piano that they appeared.

Euphemia and Cornelia were there along with Rolo and Odysseus at the time, Euphemia and Cornelia sitting on a nearby love seat just behind Lelouch while Rolo sat on the bench next to his adopted brother and Odysseus stood in the doorway, smiling somewhat. Lelouch was effectively ignoring all of them as he composed a piece slightly more upbeat than most of the others he had. His thoughts were on his memories of Nunnally at the time.

Perhaps it was merely fate.

Lelouch was the second to sense something wrong with the air of the room, looking up from his playing just moments after Rolo (ever the trained warrior his younger brother was).

"Why'd you stop?" Euphemia asked, frowning in mild confusion. Her response came in the form of a sudden, swirling breeze flowing through the room followed by the Geass symbol appearing just above the middle of the floor.

"That's—!" exclaimed Rolo, jumping to his feet. Lelouch nodded with narrowed eyes as he slowly followed suit.

"The Geass sigil," the elder Lamperouge explained for the benefit of his Britannian siblings. Euphie's frown changed into a look of surprise as Cornelia stood up next to her, eyes narrowed. In the doorway, Odysseus's own blue orbs widened.

"Should I get the others?" he asked, glancing towards Lelouch. The black-haired teen moved to respond, but abruptly stopped when the sigil moved up, a swirling doorway forming. Slowly, two sets of feet came into view, both of which were clad in white boots. As the sigil moved farther up, Lelouch's eyes widened; by the time the sigil reached the waist area of the taller figure, who was obviously wearing a white suit with a royal cape and golden trim while the shorter was wearing an open white outfit with balloon-like sleeves and various buckles, he and Rolo had both deduced who it was.

(Kingdom Hearts)

Summary: Xemnas is given the chance to go into the past so he can stop himself and the other Apprentices from giving in to the Darkness. However, when his Heartless ends up in the past, as well, things all spiral out of control…

Fixing the Past

"Xehanort, what are you staring at?" asked Ienzo curiously as the two walked down the path towards the Marketplace. Xehanort blinked once, shaking his head, then turned his gaze from the direction of a booth back to Ienzo. He could have sworn he saw a flash of silver, but...

...Oh well. It was probably just his imagination.

"Nothing, Ienzo," he said instead, smiling a bit at the young silver-haired apprentice. "I just thought I saw something."

"You, too?" Ienzo muttered, surprising Xehanort. The violet-eyed boy turned to face forward again with a thoughtful frown that simply didn't look right on his young face. "I thought it was just me being paranoid, but if you saw it, as well...

Xehanort's stomach dropped as he again caught the slightest hint of silvery-pink out of the corner of his eye. "...any idea what it is?" When Ienzo merely shook his head a fraction, Xehanort sighed a bit. "Perhaps it's harmless. A stray dog or something."

Suddenly, Ienzo smiled and gave Xehanort an innocent look. "Like yours?"

A scowl alighted to the white-haired man's face, but amusement still tickled his reddish-gold eyes. "You and I both know he is not a dog," he scoffed. His scowl suddenly lifted into a grin. "He's a Prince in hiding."

Ienzo snickered, ducking his head to hide his grin as Xehanort shook his head, pretending not to notice the strip of silver just barely visible from the side of the nearest building.

"So what's on that list from Master Ansem?" asked Ienzo curiously when he recovered.

"I'm not quite sure," Xehanort admitted, pulling out the slightly crumpled list from his pocket. "Food, I'd imagine."

With a roll of his eyes, Ienzo fought down a smile. "Well, gee. How insightful of you, Xehanort."

Xehanort grinned in response. "I know."

And so the shopping trip continued, both of the Apprentices forgetting about the flash of silver and pink that continued to follow them with eerily-graceful movements as they went down the street, being watched every step of the way...

(Final Fantasy VII)

Summary: Instead of those classic stories where Zack and/or Cloud and/or Sephiroth go back in time, I decided it would be best if everyone's favorite ex-Turk got the chance to go instead...

Final Fantasy VII:
WAY Before Crisis

Vincent Valentine was one of those guys. Any woman reading this should realize he was the tall, dark, handsome stranger that brooded just enough to be hot, but not entirely emo, and would kill to protect his own (family, partners, or otherwise). Sure, maybe he obsessed a bit much over Lucrecia, and sure, he sometimes pushed away people because of his own stupid insecurities...but no man is perfect, right? And besides, as one of those guys, it just made him more appealing overall.

So, naturally, one would not picture Vincent Valentine objecting to a mission he was given, since he was the type who sucked it up and did whatever the hell he had to when the need arose.

"Reeve," Vincent said slowly, giving his old friend a completely deadpan look.

"Vincent," Reeve responded without a hint of sarcasm, arching a single eyebrow.

A silence fell over the two.

Naturally, Reeve--having much less patience and even less training with the ever-calm Turks--was the first to give in. "If it's about your mission, then I'm afraid I can't reassign it to anyone."

"I don't have time to go on fool's errands, Reeve," Vincent deadpanned, giving his friend a long look. "Is there no one else who's willing to go?"

"This isn't grunt work, Vincent, and Yuffie is off on an espionage mission," Reeve sighed, folding his hands together and placing his elbows on the large desk he was sitting at. "The Turks are out of the question. We don't know what to expect when you arrive there, either; you are the most adaptable member of the WRO and, as such, are the best for this mission even if the others were available."

Although it was reasonable to say that Vincent had a lot of patience compared to the average person, it was also reasonable to say that, since the Omega incident, that patience had been worn dangerously low. "It's a simple flux in the Lifestream. Surely there's someone who could investigate."

"You're just upset because of the location."

Silence.

"...Vincent, I'm sorry, but we don't have a choice," Reeve softly told his friend, gazing at Vincent with empathetic eyes.

And that is how Vincent ended up standing outside of the ShinRa mansion, gazing up at the darkened windows with an expression that clearly showed he would prefer to be eating his own claw than be standing there. He didn't move from the spot he was standing at for a long moment, the abandoned town of Nibelheim dark and dreary behind him as a soft wind caused his cape to snap in the breeze.

Why was he there, again?

...oh, right. Influx in the Lifestream.

"There's been some odd activity going on under the ShinRa Mansion. The Lifestream's been unusually unruly there; our scientists are in an uproar. We need you to go and figure out what, exactly, is going on and report back as soon as possible. Make sure you have all of your guns and your PHS ready--there's no way of knowing exactly what's going to happen when you arrive."

As he breezed his way through the ShinRa Mansion, Vincent let out a long-suffering sigh, Cerberus out at his side and his brilliant red mako eyes drifting over the floor of the mansion as he walked. The fiends may have been few and far between since he had cleared it out during the Omega incident, but that didn't change the fact that they existed.

Gaia help him if he was caught being spooked by his own footsteps.

Honestly, though, it wasn't Vincent's fault. He had been jumpy around the place he had died since waking up four years before when Cloud Strife and his friends had explained it was thirty years since he had been put to sleep, although he didn't show it until he was forced to retreat to the mansion with Tseng and Elena to guarentee their wounds would be able to heal properly after they were tortured by the Remnants.

The fact that he was so twitchy disgusted him as he remembered his Turk years, when he might have been a bit naive when it came to love and happiness, but at least he knew how to keep his cool...usually.

"This is rediculous," Vincent practically growled to himself when the swish of his own cloak halfway down the hidden stairwell caused a bullet to end up lodged in the wall at about head height. "There's nothing here, and if there was, it wouldn't sneak up behind you; it would snarl and growl and jump onto your back."

Deciding this reasoning was sound, Vincent calmly walked down the stairs, his body slightly more relaxed. By the time he reached the door to his thirty-year chamber, however, he was even more jumpy than when he began.

The fact that something was scratching at the stone floor inside wasn't helping, either.

After only a moment's hesitation, Vincent held his gun carefully in his good hand and used the other to rip the door open, his gun poised between the eyes of--

...a...mouse...

"Squeak, squeak!" the mouse exclaimed in a frightened way, wide, watery eyes staring at Vincent's gun with fear as its entire, small form shook in fear. 'Poor Squeaky was just looking for food!', his inner Yuffie was saying; 'What has he done to have such a scary human in his way with a huge, shiney weapon stuck in his little mouse-y face?!'

Breathing out, Vincent lowered his gun, causing the newly-dubbed Squeaky to rush out under his legs instantly. 'The poor little guy!', whined inner Yuffie. 'He's so cute and little and innocent! Vinnie, you are soooo mean, you stupid ol' vampire!'

"Since when do I have an inner Yuffie?" Vincent sighed, reaching up with his clawed hand and shielding half of his face from sight. "...I blame Reeve."

Deciding this was sound logic, Vincent nodded to himself and moved to walk away, but as soon as his back was turned, something within the old crypt growled.

And it wasn't a happy growl, either. It was an I'm-going-to-tear-your-face-off-you-dumbass-human growl.

Vincent instantly whirled around, processing where the creature's head was before he even processed what it was. After a few moments of shooting at it, he was forced to jump away when a plume of bluish-black flame flew his way, giving him the seconds he needed to determine he had a phoenix-like creature before him. However, it wasn't just any phoenix; it had a long, serphentine neck and lots of pointy teeth in its beak, along with about ten too many eyes (most of which were on its wings) and brilliant poisen-green feathers.

The phoenix let out a loud, piercing cry and Vincent flinched as it seemed to ricochette inside of his skull, quickly re-loading Cerberus and firing it again in a single movement. The phoenix was, as before, unfazed by his shot, although blue-black blood was dribbling down its face from the many bullet holes Vincent had put there.

The phoenix opened its beak and a ball of pure energy formed, causing Vincent's eyes to widen a fraction as he cursed and pulled back, attempting to run as far away from the creature as he could...only to run in the exact opposite direction of the stairway.

This was his downfall.

(Final Fantasy VII/Kingdom Hearts Crossover)

Summary: Slowly, people are flocking to the previously-lost planet of Gaia. Many affected by the Time Warp at the end of the original Keyblade Wars are remembering their past lives--including Sora, Riku, and Kairi. Can they handle the sudden burst of memories and lies that are thrust at them?

Revival of Twilight

"Mister Nomura!" a shrill voice shouted.

"Graaah!" cried Sora in response, eyes snapping open as he jerked himself to his feet in a fighting position. He blinked in bleary confusion and the rest of the classroom burst into laughter, his teacher, Miss Kayak, frowning in disapproval with her arms folded over her chest as her foot tapped in annoyance.

"Nice of you to finally join us again, Sora," she said dryly, giving him the evil eye. "Now sit down and don't let me catch you sleeping in my class again!"

"Yes, ma'am," Sora muttered, face heating up as he slowly sat down again and hunched his shoulders. In front of him, Kairi twisted around a bit to give him a slightly pitying look before he smiled weakly and tilted his head, gesturing for her to pay attention. With obvious reluctance, Kairi did as told, Sora's grin falling almost instantly as he let out a low sigh.

Since he, Kairi, and Riku had returned to the Islands, nothing of interest really happened. Of course their parents/guardians were excited to see them back, and there was a lot of grounding and promises to tell where they were at all times, but most pretty much ignored their sudden return and took them back into the fold of Destiny Islands's every day life; no one even bothered to ask questions of any sort about their absense. After nearly a month, there were no sudden Heartless or Nobody attacks, no form of contact from their out-of-world friends save of a letter from the King telling them to rest and relax, and no adventure of any sort.

Basically? Life was just as boring as it had been before they left, if not more so, since they now knew what life was like outside of their little world.

Finally, some form of salvation: the bell signaling the end of seventh period rang, causing Sora to brighten conciderably. He lunged to his feet, grabbed his books and bag, then ran over to Kairi, who chuckled at his enthusaism.

"Finally, Friday!" laughed Sora, throwing his arms up in the air dramaticly. "I thought it would never end!"

"Me either," Kairi agreed with a smile, nodding as she held her books gently to her chest. "Namine's had more fun than I have, to tell the truth. I've been the one doodling most of the time."

Sora snickered at that and shook his head as they stopped at her locker, watching as she put in the combination. "Can't say the same for Roxas. He's just as bored as I am with the whole thing. I blame the stupid Twilight Town simulation."

"Geesh, Sora–could you say that any louder?" asked Riku from behind the brunette, a black bookbag slung over his shoulder. Sora was completely unsurprised by his friend's sudden appearence and grinned, twisting his neck to lock eyes with the silver-haired teen.

"Good to see you, too, Riku," he greeted with amusement flickering in his eyes. "School's finally over! Aren't I allowed to be loud?"

To which Riku rolled his eyes, obviously unimpressed. He dropped his voice a reasonable amount. "You and I both know Roxas and Namine are supposed to be secrets. If others found out about them..."

"They'd throw us in the happy hotel," Kairi said just a bit too cheerfully.

"Exactly," Riku agreed with a nod. Suddenly, he grinned and bonked Sora on the head. "Don't you ever think with that thing you call a brain, Sora?"

"Hey!" Sora immediately whined, pouting at the silverette as he rubbed his head. "That hurt!"

Riku merely laughed and shook his head with a roll of his eyes. "You sound like a hurt puppy when you talk like that."

After only a second, Sora stuck out his tongue at Riku, folding his arms childishly over his chest. "And you sound like an egotistical bastard when you talk like that."

"Good," Riku responded with a cheeky grin, reaching over to ruffle Sora's hair like one might a puppy's fur. "That's the way I like it."

"If you two are done," interupted Kairi with a roll of her eyes, a slight smile on her face, "we should probably get home. I'm not sure about you, but I'm still under careful watch."

Her male friends groaned at the thought, both pulling a face as Kairi giggled at them and waved, beginning to run backwards to their right and expertly weaving around people in her way.

"See ya!"

"Later, Kairi!" Sora called back, waving as well. Riku merely lifted a hand as the redhead turned around and disappeared into the crowd. Sora turned to Riku curiously. "Wanna walk home with me?"

"Sorry, but I can't," sighed Riku, rolling his eyes. "Dad wants me to do some work around the house, and you know I can't say no."

Indeed, Sora did know Riku couldn't refuse, so the brunette smiled his understanding and nodded. "All right. See you, Riku."

Riku nodded with a slight smile, clapped Sora on the shoulder, then turned to walk casually down the path to their left.

Which left Sora, whose smile faultered as he sighed and turned to face the road directly in front of him. Something was bothering him about this whole situation, but he had no idea what...

Shaking the feeling, Sora smiled a bit again and began to jog home. He could think about it later. Right now, he had a weekend to start!

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alright, the voting is open until September 1st! for now, everyone enjoy--until next time!

-MKL, signing out.