Author's Note (longest it will probably ever be): It's been a while… So nowadays, I'm in college as a writing major. That's right, those of you who read the original version of this story, I DID go for it.

I used to love this story, but recently when I found it on my laptop and decided to read through it, there were so many mistakes grammatically and structurally that I had to quit. Yes, it's a fanfic I started in early high school, and I've been reading Shakespeare and Chaucer for three years (so I suppose the "Oh God, I can't believe I wrote that crappy sentence/paragraph" feeling is to be expected), but I can't stand not being able to enjoy reading something I put so much time and effort into.

So I'm re-working it; not changing the story to fit the new games (which I HAVE played, and love), because that would take more work than I think I have time/patience for. This edited version is mostly for me; I just decided I'd might as well post it since I'm going through the trouble…

This is not a re-imagining, and I doubt I'll be able to continue the story where I left off (being a writing major sucks homework-wise, and I do have to focus on writing publish-able material during my spare time), but I want to change the things that bug me. It is just a pet project, so I doubt everything will be perfect… But it should be better.

Avalon's name (Avalon Rain) kind of bothers me now, but I suppose it's uniquely hers… I made up her name before I even made up her character. So it stays.

Feel free to leave comments (especially old fans, if you're still here! I'd love to hear from you!)

I may not log onto Fanfic again unless I'm posting or see a question I feel compelled to answer, but I WILL see your reviews because my account is still linked to my e-mail, and I truly do appreciate feedback. Thank you in advance!

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, its characters, or its story. Unless you count owning copies of all the games like the total geek I am. =P

"Hmmm…" Avalon's sapphire eyes grazed her surroundings. "Not bad!"

The teenager stood in the center of a small cabin just outside the Pennsylvanian mountains. There was a bathroom, a bedroom, a kitchen, and a living room. "Everything a person needs," she mused. It was certainly compact in comparison to her family's full-sized house in the suburbs, but more than big enough for one person. Especially considering the fact that most of Avalon's time would probably be spent studying and sleeping…

She was nervous about the idea of living on her own in such a rural area, but it seemed silly to drive a two-hour commute to and from her new college, not to mention detrimental to her grades and any possible social life.

To get used to the area, Avalon had arranged to stay for a week or two during the summer; provided an ax-murderer or rapist didn't attack her in the meantime. Avalon grinned at the memory of her mother's warnings as she'd left the house that day:

"Don't talk to strangers," "Don't answer the door at night," and "Don't go wandering around the streets without a can of mace!"

Avalon could practically see the comically wagging finger that traditionally accompanied such advice.

She'd left home late and arrived at 11. Knowing she'd probably go to bed within a few hours of arriving (and trying to put off digging through her crammed duffel bag for as long as possible), Avalon had driven over wearing her pink-plaid pj pants, a black tank top, and her black tennis shoes. It wasn't the most covering outfit; the waistband of her pants had lost most of its elasticity from over-use, and the tank top wasn't quite made for her cup size... But it was comfortable in the balmy night air.

Avalon dropped her belongings in the bedroom and carefully extracted her Gameboy Advance from the front pocket of her dreaded travel bag, then the Playstation 2 from its own box, which had been maintained with the intent of serving as a travel case.

"If I'm gonna be isolated," Avalon grinned, "I might as well get some good gameplay in." It wasn't so much a result of her trip as an anticipated perk. The girl had been looking forward to playing in peace (away from her family of four) forever.

Besides, it was creepy and dark and lonely outside… No way was she getting to sleep without giving her mind something else to focus on. She shivered a little in a moment of realized vulnerability. All the blinds were up, revealing nothing on the other side of the windows but pitch black and an assortment of bugs drawn by the living room light. With a nervous knot in her stomach, Avalon walked around the cabin and closed them, then forced her attention back on the games in her hands.

"Replay Chain of Memories or start Kingdom Hearts 2?" She cocked her head in thought. She hadn't even opened Kingdom Hearts 2 yet, but she knew she wouldn't be able to pull herself away from the new game once she started it, and she did want to sleep at some point since it would make the morning come faster.

"Chain of Memories, it is." Avalon figured it would be fun anyway; she'd be able to re-fresh her memory while effectively wetting her appetite by looking for clues about what was going to happen in the new game. Trying to predict the course of a story was a little game of hers.

Avalon crawled into the bed, (her bed now, she realized) and started a new game under Reverse/Rebirth. She just managed to get through Riku's fight with "Maleficent" before she sank further into her pillow and closed her eyes.

0000000000000000000000000000

Avalon was cold. Unwilling to admit defeat in her attempt to sleep, she kept her eyes closed and felt blindly around her curled-up body for the tip of her comforter. Nothing cushy… In fact, the bed was rock-hard… And cold. The girl squinted at her surroundings. Pink walls and pillars, stained glass windows, odd pipes sticking out of the walls and ground…

"Whaaaa?" Avalon jumped up, glancing all around her like a mouse in a meadow. "Where the heck am I? How did I get here?" She shivered and rubbed her arms, even though she knew the little spasm wasn't entirely cold-induced. "How do I get out…?"

Something in a corner of the room caught her eye. Just a shadow. Or was it? Upon closer inspection, it was in fact writhing, moving with no apparent cause. Within seconds of Avalon's realization, shadows covered the floor and moved toward her with a life of their own. The girl gasped.

They were Heartless. She was being cornered by Heartless!

It had to be a dream.

Dream or not, she wasn't in the mood to die. Avalon backed away from the advancing shadows until she had nowhere to go. What else could she do? Though shaking with fear and cold, Avalon grabbed a pipe from the floor and held it like a bat.

They were so close now… Avalon lunged at the nearest shadow Heartless and hit it across the room, but it landed and crawled back as though nothing had happened.

"Crap!" Avalon had forgotten that only special weapons could hurt the Heartless… "Oh man, what am I supposed to do?" The word that came to mind was "die", but she didn't particularly like that option. So, she continued to hold the Heartless at bay, knowing that all she could do was hold them back for a while, knowing that she was getting sweaty and achy, all too aware that she would soon tire and they would not.

"I… can't… keep this up…" she panted, hitting two more away. "What… … … What can I do?"

Avalon wacked another Heartless as hard as she could, then looked up and found herself staring into a pair of striking aqua eyes.

Random FYI; I don't go to college in the mountains or live alone in a cabin. lol.

For those of you who didn't read the original, all the chapters after 5 are a LOT longer. So if you're annoyed about the length (or, more specifically, the lack thereof), just bear with me!

Review?