By Design
Written by: Corey
Beta'd by: Ashley
Fandom: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Fantasy, AU
Pairings: Akuroku, RiSo, SoKai, NamiXion, Disney canon pairings, whatever else pops up
Warnings: Alternate universe, slash/femslash content, possibly bizarre and complicated plot, playing around with canon (obviously), bit darker than canon
Rating: M overall
-Prologue-
The islands were the first to suffer her wrath. Palm trees bent and houses washed away like the sand they were built on as the darkness overtook their blue skies and the stench of battle floated on their balmy breeze. The blood flowed away with the tide, but the desiccated corpses of the Witch Queen's sacrifices remained as a testament to her cruelty. Those who could flee ran away, carrying news of the attack and hoping for the safety of those trapped behind.
As Queen Maleficent's armies of heartless swarmed over the once-peaceful lands of Kingdom Hearts, tentative reports of hardship and misery filtered into King Mickey's courts. The couriers were poor and haggard, oftentimes risking everything to bring this news to the beloved ruler. However, it seemed far away as if in a dream, and the parties and revelry of Disney Castle and Town continued as always. The cries of her victims could not be heard by such decadent ears.
Then the refugees arrived.
They came in groups, ragged survivors with wary eyes who jumped at every shadow and looked about wildly at every noise. They clogged the inns and cathedrals, grieving for those who had been lost and accusing the royalty who had done nothing. At last, here was proof that could not be ignored. The nobles could no longer turn a blind eye to the suffering in front of them or a deaf ear to the wails of the damned. They assaulted the King with petitions, some honest and some opportunistic, but petitions all the same. The King made an oath, to the Islanders and the court.
The King proclaimed to all the land, "No longer shall we suffer the assaults of the evil Witch Queen! People of Kingdom Hearts, former residents of the Destiny Islands: your pain will not be in vain. It ends here!" To prove his commitment, he adopted three orphans whose parents had died in the assault- a set of twins with blue eyes, and their younger sister. With this bold statement and show of heart, Kingdom Hearts officially went to war against the darkness in 527, the year of good tidings.