Alternate title: Are you there Heart? It's me, Axel.

How to Summon a Keyblade in 3 Easy Steps

Step 1: Dive to the Heart

Step 2: Grasp the Light

Step 3: Yell into the void. A lot.

A tranquil forest. Golden leaves rustling all around. A gentle breeze through his hair. The sun's warmth on his face.

This was a world of absolute peace and stillness, unchained from the flow of time. Here he could stay as long as he wanted, as long as he needed, until he could complete his task.

Taking a long deep breath, he closed his eyes and raised his arm, hand reaching out to grab at something.

One minute passed. Two…three…

He frowned. He opened his eyes and stared at his empty hand, wiggling his fingers a little as he grasped the empty air.

Realization started to set in. What exactly was he supposed to be doing here? He had definitely listened closely to all of the exposition being spouted at him, but now that he ran it through his head again, nothing in there really resembled a set of instructions.

A frustrated sigh escaped his lips, and with a grimace, Lea flicked his outstretched Keyblade-summoning hand and a dark corridor appeared before it.

In the time-compressed world that had been prepared for him, roughly eight minutes had passed. In Yen Sid's tower, in the room next to the study, that translated to roughly three seconds, so when a dark portal appeared almost immediately after Lea had left, Merlin and the Three Good Fairies jumped.

They watched in confusion as he stepped out, running a hand through his untamed red mane, a sheepish grin on his face.

"Good heavens!" Merlin exclaimed. "What do you think you're doing with that? I told you that world has a door!"

"Ah, sorry, force of habit," Lea admitted.

"How odd to see you back already," the fairy in red, Flora, said with a frown.

"Did you succeed, dear?" Fauna, the green fairy, asked sweetly.

"Him? No way!" the last of the fairies, dressed in blue, Merryweather, looked him over carefully with a disdained expression on her face and shook her head.

Lea felt an odd irritation at that, but she was right, unfortunately. "No, not yet," he said. "Actually, there was something I realized I forgot to ask old Yen Sid."

"Is it important?" Flora asked.

"Yeah, very. You could say everything I'm doing in there hinges on this question."

The three fairies and Merlin exchanged glances for a moment, but then Flora made a "go on" motion with her hand, and Lea opened the door leading back to the study.

In the study, Yen Sid continued to sit in his chair with a stern expression, and Mickey, Donald, and Goofy paced around the room. Exactly as he'd left them, not even a minute ago. The trio also jumped back when they saw him. Yen Sid was unperturbed.

"Back so soon?" the old sage asked him.

"Yep," Lea said and stepped in front of the desk. "I had a question for you. Really important."

"Very well. Speak."

"Thanks," Lea said with a solemn nod. He then paused, partly for effect, and partly to figure out how to best ask without sounding like an idiot.

But mostly, the effect.

"So how I do it exactly?" he blurted out. "Summon the Keyblade, I mean."

The Disneytown trio immediately groaned.

"That's your question?" Donald yelled at him.

"Well…yeah. I mean, you sent me off into that time-free world to train, but what am I supposed to do there?"

"That's something you should've asked right away!"

"I forgot! I was in the moment!" Lea didn't know why he felt the need to defend himself. Wasn't it Yen Sid's fault for not giving him instructions in the first place?

"Alright fellas, calm down," Mickey said, and crossed his arms in contemplation. "It is a good question."

"Summoning a Keyblade," Goofy said thoughtfully. "Gwarsh, wouldn't you need to have a strong heart for that?"

"Yeah, yeah! How do I get one of those?" Lea asked. It had been a while since he last had a heart at all. He was a little out of practice about these things.

"Hard work and determination?" Donald offered bitingly. Lea glared at him.

"Ahem." Yen Sid cleared his throat, and at once everyone straightened up. "To summon a Keyblade, you need to look inwards," the old sage explained calmly. "Dive into your heart, clear the trials within, and then the light be will yours to wield."

None of that made any sense, but Donald and Goofy nodded sagely at this explanation, and when Lea looked at Mickey, the only actual certified Keyblade wielder in the room, he too seemed to accept that answer. He looked at Lea with a determined smile.

"We believe in you, Axel," he said and held out his hand.

"It's Lea," Lea replied and sighed again. Okay, dive into the heart, clear the trials, grasp the light. It didn't sound too bad, aside from the part where he had no idea what any of that actually meant.

"For a start, why don't you consider why you want a Keyblade?" Goofy suggested. Lea looked at him quizzically. That…actually sounded pretty logical. He hadn't expected that from the laidback sentinel.

"Yeah, okay," Lea muttered, his grin returning. Yeah, he could definitely do this. Lea gave a quick lazy salute to Yen Sid and the others, and stepped into a dark corridor once more.

Why do I want a Keyblade?

Lea found his way to a clearing, and laid down on the grass, hands crossed behind his head.

The answer to that question was simple. He wanted a Keyblade because he wanted power.

Lea held up his hand and summoned a few flames to his fingertips. He had been surprised to discover he still had his Nobody powers upon waking up, but they felt weaker now. Because he was whole again?

Either way, they wouldn't do going forward. The future was going to be full of Keyblade battles and if he wanted to take part, he'd need to get one himself.

And he was definitely going to take part. After everything that bastard Xehanort had done to him and his friends, he was owed as much.

"I want a Keyblade to whack Xehanort on the head with," he said out loud. Thoughts of Xehanort (or Xemnas, rather, as that was the face that came to mind) enflamed his heart.

"Oh hey, this could work!" Lea realized, with a grin. Yen Sid had said something about the fire in his heart before. "Okay, so do I need to run through every single thing the Superior has done in the last decade? Man, oh man is that a long list. Good thing I've got it memorized."

It was also a good thing he had plenty of time to go through it. Lea was generally a chatty person, but he didn't think he ever talked for that long before. At some point, he was pacing around the forest, full on ranting, and at another point he was rolling around in the grass working through his frustrations in the only way he knew how. Something may have caught fire once or twice.

At the end of it all though, he still didn't have a Keyblade. He did have a headache though, and a very unpleasant tingling on his skin.

The anger that had coursed through his veins had evaporated. There was plenty for him to be mad about, sure, but now that he'd gone through everything out loud, how much of it even mattered anymore? The only thing he really wanted was to get Isa back. He wouldn't forgive, but he'd gladly forget the other stuff if he could have just that.

He laid on the grass with his eyes closed, breathing deeply for a long time. At some point he wound up falling asleep, and he must have dreamed about getting swallowed by the darkness or something of a similar nature because when he woke up, he suddenly had an idea.

He summoned a dark corridor.

The portal's reappearance wasn't as immediate as the previous one's had been, but it still startled the three fairies all the same when it appeared. Fauna and Merryweather even hid behind Flora.

Then they saw that it was just Lea again and relaxed, Merryweather immediately stepping forward as though nothing had happened.

"Hey grannies," Lea said with a grin.

"Hello again, dear," only Fauna returned the greeting.

"Do you have another question for Master Yen Sid?" Flora asked him.

"Nah, not this time," he replied, and put his hands on his hips as he looked over at the fairies, and then at Merlin in the corner of the room leafing through a book on his lap. "Actually, maybe you old timers could help me."

"Old?" Merryweather bristled, but Flora's hand on her shoulder kept her from charging forward.

"Word of advice, lad," Merlin said. "When asking someone for a favor, you'd do well to choose your words better."

"Yeah, yeah, sure," Lea waved him off dismissively. "So anyway, I was thinking, what if we use some magic?"

"Magic?" Merlin closed his book, and looked at Lea curiously. "What sort of magic?"

"We can't summon a Keyblade for you," Merryweather told him bitingly. "And even if we could, why should we?"

"Now Merryweather, you know we'll need as many allies in the coming battles as we can get," Flora told her sternly. To Lea however, she said. "Merryweather's right though. We can't summon Keyblades out of thin air."

"I wasn't asking you to," Lea assured her, but secretly he was disappointed about that. "I was just thinking, what if we try a desperation move? Conjure up a bunch of Heartless for me to fight, and see if that will spur the Keyblade on."

"That sounds awfully dangerous," Fauna said.

"They don't have to be real Heartless," Lea said. "I mean, I'm not in any hurry to lose my heart again! But you know, just give me something to fight off so I can get a feel for it."

The fairies and wizard considered it. Merlin started nodding.

"Yes, yes, I suppose you do have a valid point. Wait one moment, I shall see what I can do," he said and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Only Lea and the fairies remained.

"This will never work," Merryweather said bluntly.

"We won't know until we try," Lea replied huffily. Now that she'd said it, he was extra positive it would work just so he could prove her wrong. Spite was an excellent motivator.

"Well, we wish you the best," Flora said, though her voice made it clear that she also wasn't fond of this idea.

Lea looked over at Fauna, but the last of the fairies just smiled and shrugged at him.

"Well, I don't see you old hags coming up with anything better." he pointed out.

"Who are calling an old hag, you scrawny circus runaway?" Merryweather retorted. "See if we ever try to help you again!"

"You haven't even helped me at all," Lea pointed out. "Isn't there, like, some kind of magical charm you could cast that could help me out?"

The fairies exchanged glances. They whispered something to themselves, before Merryweather smiled, stepped forward, summoned her wand, and pointed it at him. Lea shut his eyes and braced himself as the wand's magic hit him. When he opened them again, there was a tingling on his scalp, but as he looked himself over, he couldn't feel any difference.

Then he leaned forward slightly, and a lock of bright blue hair fell over his shoulder.

"What the!" he yelled and grabbed his hair and shoved what he could in front of his eyes. "My hair! It's blue! Why is it blue!?"

"I thought a little change might be inspiring," Merryweather told him calmly. "Have you heard the saying "New look, new you"?"

"But it's blue!"

Flora and Fauna gave Merryweather matching disapproving looks. Fauna stepped forward, and pointed her own wand at Lea.

"That wasn't nice, dear," she said and sent her own magic at him. To his horror, rather than fix his hair, Fauna, kind, sweet Fauna, turned it green. "I think this goes better with his eyes."

"Ladies," Flora said, hands on her hips. "Now is not the time for this." She waved her own wand. Despite being the red-dressed fairy, when her magic hit Lea's hair, it became pink.

"Seriously?"

"Hypocrite," Merryweather muttered, and turned it blue again. Flora frowned, and changed it back to pink. Merryweather scowled.

"Blue."

"Pink."

"Blue!"

"Pink!"

"How about red?" Lea cried out, but was ignored. He tried ducking out of the way, but the magic would just end up hitting the mirrors around the room and ricochet onto him anyway.

He suspected they had a lot of practice doing this.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry!" Lea yelled. "I take back what I said!"

They didn't stop however, until Merlin suddenly reappeared, and teleported right into the warpath. Flora and Merryweather's magic hit him at the same time, turning his robes a splotchy mess of blue and pink. Fauna let out a light gasp.

Lea breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh dear," Flora said, as Merryweather looked away guiltily. "I apologize, Merlin." She waved her wand and Merlin's robes were immediately restored to their usual color. Lea's hair however, remained pink.

"Not to worry," the old wizard said, and looked at Lea approvingly. "Trying out a new look, are you? Good, good, that's an excellent motivator."

"I'm not!" Lea snapped, and glared at the fairies. "Please tell me the Heartless are ready?"

"Oh yes," Merlin told him. "I've conjured up illusory Heartless all over that world for you. Vicious little blighters, they are, so if you feel like you're getting overwhelmed, let me know. Use the door."

"Finally," Lea cheered, and summoned a dark corridor for himself. "Thanks old timer."

"Hmph." Merlin just rolled his eyes.

"Hold on a moment, Lea," Flora called. The Three Good Fairies (a horrendously inaccurate title as far as Lea was concerned) all raised their wands and waved them in sync towards him.

He immediately checked his hair. "Oh thank darkness!" Lea exclaimed and pressed the familiar bright red clocks to his face in relief.

"We didn't just restore your hair," Flora said. "You're still relying too much on the powers of darkness. Even if your clothes are protecting you, it's dangerous. It probably won't do us any good to tell you to stop, so the charm we just cast will better shield your heart."

"Huh," Lea said looking down at his chest. He didn't feel any different.

"That doesn't mean you should keep summoning that—that thing." Merryweather gestured at the dark corridor he'd opened. "You'll never summon a Keyblade if you keep throwing your lot in with the darkness."

That may have been the first helpful thing she'd said to him.

Was she right though? Lea regarded the portal carefully. It was so convenient.

No. If he had to choose between it and the Keyblade, he would still pick the Keyblade.

"Thanks ladies," he said earnestly. "I'll keep that in mind."

Though he would never tell her, Lea suspected Merryweather was probably right.

Not about the powers of darkness thing—jury was still out on that, but she was probably right that fighting a bunch of (fake) Heartless was not going to win him a Keyblade.

For starters, Lea was just too used to fighting them…with chakrams.

As he ran around the forest, he tried very hard not to use his old powers. Merlin hadn't been exaggerating about the illusory Heartless being aggressive. Lea would quickly find himself surrounded if he stayed in one place for too long.

He tried to think of the light. Of summoning forth a Keyblade (one that looked like Roxas') and bashing it against the monsters. He tried to imagine how screwed he'd be if the key didn't appear to him.

But even though his mind knew that these weren't real Heartless, his heart seemed to recognize them as such and moved his body instinctively. If it ever seemed like the Heartless were going to get a second hit in (he let them get one and it hurt), his chakrams would be cutting through them before he could fully process their appearance.

The other problem with this idea was…human bodies were a little on the weaker side.

Axel could have easily fended off a horde like this for a good while, but Lea found himself growing tired quickly. He should have asked Merlin for a designated safe zone. Or some potions at least.

As his breathing grew ragged, and his limbs grew heavy, Lea summoned a dark corridor and jumped inside before an Emerald Blues could send him flying with an Aero.

In the tower, the minute between portals had been used to set up a tea party.

When an exhausted Lea stumbled out of the corridor, he was greeted by a floating teapot, and the smell of strawberry cake.

"Hello, Lea," Merryweather said, somewhat smugly. "How were the Heartless?"

"Exhausting," he admitted, and looked over to Merlin. "Ixnay on the Eartlesshay."

"Already?" Merlin shut his book, and stood up. "I was hoping you'd last another minute, at least."

"How many minutes is that in that world?"

"Touché," the wizard chuckled, even though Lea had asked that in genuine curiosity. "Very well, I'll go clean up. Sit tight." Merlin vanished once more.

Lea collapsed into the chair he'd left vacant.

"Are you alright, dear?" Fauna asked.

"Yeah, just need a minute to catch my breath." The minute lasted approximately ten seconds, because another thought suddenly occurred to Lea, and he shot up. "Actually, gonna go ask Yen Sid something. Later."

For Lea, it had been a while since he saw the old master and the other three. But the bewilderment on their faces quickly reminded him it was just a few minutes.

"Axel? Again?" Donald sputtered.

"Heya." There was a little wooden chair by the wall, so Lea got comfortable.

"Still no luck?" Yen Sid asked him.

"Not yet, but I'm getting close. Probably." Lea shrugged. "Just needed a quick breather while Merlin fixes up something."

"What does Merlin need to fix?" Donald asked suspiciously.

"Don't worry about it." Lea stretched out in the chair. "So? Any news?"

"Not yet," Mickey said. "But, well, it's only been a few minutes…"

"Hey, a lot can change in a minute," Lea told him. "But while we're all still here, I was wondering. Where do Keyblades come from?"

From the way Mickey, Donald, and Goofy stared at him, one might have thought he'd said a different word instead.

"Work with me here," Lea said, rolling his eyes. "I'm in that timeless world trying to prove myself or something so I can get a Keyblade. But who am I actually proving myself to? My heart? Kingdom Hearts? Some other higher power? Oh hey, back in Radiant Garden, we were taught—

"That is not relevant here," Yen Sid quickly cut him off. "You should already know the answer."

"I'm a little slow about these things," Lea replied dryly. "Come on, educate me! It's for your good just as much as mine, you know."

Donald's glare said he didn't agree, but Mickey and Goofy were more sympathetic.

"Well, the way I was taught it, there are three types of Keyblades," Mickey said. "Keyblades of Light, Keyblades of Darkness, and Keyblades of Heart."

"Oh, those are the ones we're using, right?"

"No," Yen Sid answered. "Keyblades of Heart are a special category. The ones we wield are Keyblades of Light."

"Well, aside from me, I guess," Mickey said and summoned his golden Keyblade. "Mine is from the Realm of Darkness."

Lea shot up. "They have Keyblades there?"

"Yes, but…" Mickey shook his head and sheathed his weapon. "I know what you're thinking. Don't. Time works differently on that side. If you can even get in."

"How does that even work?" Lea asked. "Are they just lying around for anyone to take? Mickey, buddy, are you holding out on me?"

"He's not your buddy!" Donald quacked at him.

"If we had time to send you to the Realm of Darkness, we would not be training you in the other world," Yen Sid said critically. "If you want a Keyblade, you will have to reach into your heart, and pull one out yourself."

"And this Keyblade that I pull from my heart would be a Keyblade of Light, not a Keyblade of Heart, correct?"

"Correct."

Lea groaned and slumped in his seat. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see a similar look of confusion cross Donald's face.

If there was anything he could take away from that confusing explanation, it was that Keyblades did, in fact, come from the heart.

Therefore, Lea decided that he did, indeed, need to prove himself to his heart.

He wandered around the forest until he found a tree stump. He pat it a few times to dust it off, and then climbed on, crossing his legs.

"Okay," he said, looking down at his chest. "So, here we are, I guess. Just you and me."

Lea hadn't had a heart in a very long time. Funnily enough, he thought getting it back would be a bigger deal, but somehow he didn't feel all that different with it.

"So how should we do this, heart? Should I apologize for casting you away before? I mean, that wasn't really my fault, I don't think, but, uh, that probably doesn't really matter much. Anyway, I'm sorry. I'm really, really glad you're back now."

There was no sound other than the rustle of leaves. Lea briefly wondered if hearts themselves could even feel, or if they just made others feel.

"So, as I'm sure you're aware, there's still a storm brewing out there. Xehanort's back, Isa's missing, Sora's in some kinda trouble… Sora's, well I don't think I can really call him my friend, but his heart's got my best friend in there. So I've still got that stake in all this as well. Anyway, I'd really like to join the fight, so I'd really like it if you could give me a Keyblade? Pretty please? With sea-salt ice cream on top?"

He held his breath for several moments before sighing in resignation.

Yeah. Like that cheesy speech was going to do anything.

"I have to dig deeper," Lea reminded himself. He closed his eyes.

Isa had read a book on meditation once, and back in the Organization, Xaldin had taught them both some breathing techniques at some point. Lea had a good memory, so he wondered if he could recall the details. Meditation had something to do with inner peace, right? That sounded relevant to him right now.

He shifted his legs and put his hands on his knees. Then he began to take deep breaths.

In…

Out…

In…

Out…

Don't think about anything, he told himself. Quiet the storm in your mind…

Soon he stopped hearing the wind against the trees. Then the sunlight hitting his face seemed to fade away. There was nothing all around, and then, Lea thought he saw a light in the distance.

Slowly it gained a circular shape, and colors began to appear. It looked like…stained glass?

Carefully, he lifted one hand and reached…

…and leaned too far forward and fell off the tree stump with an undignified yell.

"Goddammit!" He yelled spitting out grass and dirt. "I almost had it!"

This time he propped himself up against the tree stump. But try as he might, he could not visualize that stained glass again.

Before summoning his trusty dark corridor, Lea kicked the stump.

That would teach it.

Merryweather was grinning like a cat when he hobbled out of the portal.

"Again?" she asked.

"Again," Lea answered. "But I was really close that time."

"Sure." She didn't sound convinced at all.

"Are you alright, dear?" Fauna asked, looking at his foot.

"Yeah, just stubbed my toe. No biggie," Lea assured her. "Yen Sid still here?"

"It's been about a minute," Flora replied pointedly. Lea pretended not to notice.

"Cool. Be back soon." He opened the door to the study again.

He was, quite honestly, starting to enjoy the looks his constant reappearances were earning.

"You just left!" Donald yelled at him as he sat back down in the little wooden chair.

"Really? Feels like ages since we last saw each other," Lea joked. "I think I've made progress though!"

"Oh?" Yen Sid looked at him expectantly.

"Yeah, I was in the darkness and I thought I saw this stained glass thing? Is that supposed to happen?"

For the first time, Yen Sid actually looked pleased. "A Station of Awakening. Excellent."

"Congratulations Axel!" Mickey came over and clapped him on the arm.

"Okay, so that is supposed to happen then," Lea said, a genuine smile finally finding its way to his face.

"Indeed," Yen Sid said. "Reaching the station is the first step. And? What did you see?"

The smile faded. "Ah well, about that… I saw it briefly, and then I sort of fell out of a tree and couldn't get back." He had decided against saying he fell off a tree stump. A tree sounded less pathetic.

"What are you doing in there?" Donald muttered in disbelief as Goofy chuckled to himself.

Mickey and Yen Sid sighed in what was definitely disappointment.

"Don't worry, Axel, you'll get there," Mickey assured him.

"It's Lea," he replied reflexively. "But, okay, what's the deal with that station? What is it exactly?"

Mickey frowned. "Well, it's a little hard to describe. I suppose it's something like a representation of your heart?"

Lea stared blankly.

"Don't worry about it too much," Mickey waved his arms. "The important thing is that you reached it. Every Keyblade wielder starts there."

Lea nodded. "So I take you saw it when you were starting out?"

"Yep!" Mickey jumped up, smile coming back. He looked over at his friends and mentor fondly, as if reliving that moment in his mind.

Suddenly a new idea came to Lea. "Say, Mickey? How did you become a Keyblade wielder anyway? I know Sora was sort of chosen, but what about you and everyone else? I mean, back in the Organization, we made such a big deal over Sora and Roxas but, it kinda seems like Keyblade wielders are a dime a dozen these days." Lea was vaguely convinced he'd even met one when he was a kid.

"Gosh, it was so long ago…" Mickey said.

"Come on, please? Maybe hearing how everyone else got theirs will help me get mine!"

"Well, it is worth a shot, I guess," Mickey agreed. "You already know about Sora. And Riku, well, he was chosen a long time ago, but the darkness in his heart caused him to get passed over. He really struggled with that for a long time afterwards. He earned his true Keyblade after finally being able to accept himself."

"Meanwhile, Roxas just sort of had his from the outset," Lea mused. "Probably because he was Sora's Nobody."

"Data-Sora had been able to earn a real Keyblade as well," Goofy chimed in.

"Yeah," Donald agreed. "When he chose to keep fighting with us despite being powerless."

"Right," Mickey agreed. "As for myself… well, I don't think I was really chosen or anything. Golly, I probably wasn't even meant to be a Keyblade wielder, right Master Yen Sid?"

Yen Sid closed his eyes and let out a low hum.

"So what happened?" Lea asked.

"Back then, I worked as Master Yen Sid's apprentice. Not the Keyblade Master's apprentice, but the Sorcerer's apprentice," Mickey explained. "And I was always going through Master Yen Sid's things and getting myself in all sorts of trouble. And then one time, I found Master Yen Sid's Keyblade and took it and, well—

"Mickey," Yen Sid suddenly cut in. Mickey's eyes widened and he covered his mouth. But Lea had already caught on.

"Hang on? You took his Keyblade, and what? It became yours?"

"No. Not exactly…" Mickey looked away.

"How not exactly? Wait…" his eyes widened. "You said Riku was chosen a long time ago. Who chose him? Another Keyblade wielder? Don't tell me. Is there a Keyblade succession ceremony?"

Yen Sid remained stone faced. Mickey, Donald, and Goofy, however, were terrible liars, and their averted gazes spoke volumes.

"There is totally a Keyblade succession ceremony!" Lea scowled. "Then why am I struggling over in that world? Mickey, give me your Keyblade."

"What?"

"No," Yen Sid said.

"Yes," Lea snapped and made a grab for the mouse king. But Mickey was agile, and avoided his clutches effortlessly.

"We did not tell you about the Keyblade succession, because it is irrelevant here. A Keyblade succession ceremony does not grant you a Keyblade immediately," Yen Sid continued calmly, as Donald and Goofy jumped into the growing fray to keep their king safe from Lea. "If we were to perform it on you now, then someday, you too would be able to wield a Keyblade."

"Isn't that what we want?" Lea yelled.

"Someday." Yen Sid repeated. "We cannot know when."

"That's fine, isn't it? Do the ceremony and I'll go hang out in that other world until it shows up."

"You can't even stay put in there for five minutes!" Donald yelled at him.

"The Keyblade succession ceremony is to ensure there will be Keyblade wielders in the next generation," Yen Sid explained. "Furthermore, it can only be performed once. If Mickey chooses you as his successor now, he will never be able to perform the ceremony again."

"These are desperate times."

"To be honest, Master Yen Sid, I wouldn't mind…"

"No," Yen Sid said again, and stood up. That action froze them all in place. "Go back to the other world, Lea. If you have already reached the Station of Awakening, then you are close enough as it is."

"But—

"You can do it, Axel," Goofy said, still standing protectively in front of Mickey. "The Organization studied Keyblades, didn't they? Then you probably already know more about them than the rest of us."

"Goofy, have you heard his questions so far?" Donald asked exasperated.

"What Feathers said," Lea agreed. But he knew a losing battle when he saw it, and backed off. He shot Yen Sid a glare. "But fine. I'll go back. Wouldn't want to have to wait around in there for ten years or something."

The old sage nodded.

"I trust the stories you heard were helpful?"

Helpful? Yes. Going to get me a Keyblade faster? Not with you in my way, Lea thought bitterly.

"Yep. Loads of help. Later."

Yen Sid didn't trust him, Lea decided, leaning against the tree stump, knees drawn up to his chest.

He couldn't really blame the old coot for that. Lea did just literally come back from the dead and declared himself an ally to their cause. The last thing he'd done was kidnap Kairi. Great way to start off a friendship, that.

He started to feel a gnawing in his stomach. Nerves? Anxiety? He wasn't sure how much time he'd already spent trying to summon a Keyblade, but it was really starting to wear him down. He still couldn't find his way back to the Station of Awakening. Maybe he had never seen it at all. Maybe it was just a fluke.

"Man, Roxas, do I wish you were here right now," he said looking up at the sky. "Last I saw you, you had two Keyblades. And here I am. Can't even summon one." Once in a while, Lea would extend his hand, and try to call the weapon forth. This time too was a failure.

"How'd you even get two pal? Couldn't you leave one behind for your best friend?" Lea chuckled despite himself, then pulled his knees closer. He really missed Roxas. Even though Lea was finally whole again, he would give anything to go back to those days in the Organization. Going on missions, eating sea-salt ice cream on the clock tower, talking about stupid stuff…

"I should have asked you more about the Keyblade back then," Lea said softly. "Remember that time you lost it for a bit? I never did find out how you got it back." He thought back to that time, then suddenly jumped to his feet.

Wait. When had Roxas lost the Keyblade? How would that even be possible? But no, Lea thought about it, and it definitely happened. He remembered covering for the kid, and coming up with all sorts of excuses to Saïx. That had been the first time he went behind Saïx's back. But when was this?

Lea started pacing. Something wasn't right. Roxas never lost his Keyblade. He couldn't have. Saïx and Xemnas would have immediately noticed if Kingdom Hearts stopped receiving hearts one day. Roxas was the only active Keyblade wielder they knew of at the time.

"Hey, come on. I'm not going crazy, am I? I wouldn't misremember this," Lea assured himself. The sinking feeling in his stomach grew worse. "Get a grip, Lea. Think carefully. Naminé would have already started working on fixing Sora's memories at that point. You know that process ended up having all sorts of effects on Roxas. It's why he left eventually…" Lea shook his head. He wasn't going to start thinking about that again. "So the memory restoration must have messed with Roxas' Keyblade for a bit… Yeah, that would make sense… and then he started absorbing more of Sora's memories, so that must have been how he got it back! Yeah, that's it!" Lea's voice cracked slightly when he said that, but the more he repeated that explanation to himself, the more it really did sound convincing. He even remembered reading one of Vexen's reports on that subject.

He wasn't going crazy. He definitely wasn't.

"So what then, do I need to go find Naminé and ask her to plant some of Sora's memories in me now?" Lea asked, then sneered to himself. "Yeah. Like that's possible."

He plopped back down onto the grass. The pitted gnawing in his stomach suddenly turned to rumbling, making him realize, with some bemusement, that he was hungry. He suddenly realized he hadn't actually eaten anything since waking up. Aeleus had tried to get some food into him, but he'd refused and went on his way.

…That was a dumb move.

Lea sighed, and opened a dark corridor yet again.

Merryweather looked at the clock on the wall, then at him, and just hummed to herself knowingly.

"Hello again, Lea," Flora said. "If you're looking for Master Yen Sid, you will have to wait a moment. They're having an important discussion right now." That discussion apparently included Merlin as he was nowhere to be seen as well.

"Oh no, actually, I was wondering if I might join you ladies," Lea admitted sheepishly, and ran a hand through his hair. "You see, I haven't eaten today, and I suddenly realized I'm starving." Right on cue, his stomach growled again.

Fortunately, the Three Good Fairies turned out to be the grandmotherly types. At once, they conjured up a chair, and ushered him over. To his surprise, trays of food appeared on the table as the three fairies piled different things onto his plate, fussing all the while.

It was the first real meal Lea had in a very long time.

With a full stomach, and a warmed up heart, Lea was ready to try again. He lay on the grass and watched the clouds, focusing on his clearing his mind.

The meal had done wonders for his muddled head, and it really was kind of the fairies to take care of him like that. They didn't have to, he thought. It really would have been enough for them to just cut him a slice of cake and leave him to it. But then he thought some more, and realized that meals were generally supposed to be like that. He'd had family dinners. He was always grabbing lunch with Isa.

In the Organization, the closest thing to a meal together he'd witnessed had been in the early years, when the Elders still futilely clung to routine and pretended to still care about Ienzo's poor eating habits. But a lack of heart resulted in a lack of preference, so when the kid had stopped tuning his nose up at everything, it didn't last. At that point though, there hadn't even been any meaning to them. If was just something they did.

Like Axel's sea-salt ice cream. Lea had liked eating it as a reward for a day's work, so Axel kept up the tradition. Even when Saïx had stopped joining him, he continued, though the ice cream had long lost any real flavor to him. It was only when Roxas appeared that the sweetness returned, and at some point he realized he was looking forward to it again.

But Roxas was gone now. He lived on inside Sora, but it wasn't the same. Still though, he was safe. He was in a better place than Isa, whose whereabouts remained unknown.

Lea suddenly frowned and swung himself up into a seated position. That was wrong too though, wasn't it? Roxas wasn't safe. He couldn't be because Sora wasn't safe. Sora was lost in the sleeping worlds somewhere, practically wearing a target on his shirt. Wasn't that why Lea had come out here? Wasn't that why Lea had decided to get himself a Keyblade, the moment he got the full rundown?

"You made us a promise. That you'd always be there to bring us back. Got it memorized?"

Roxas had said those words in his dream.

"So that's it," Lea said quietly. "How could I miss something do damn simple? I really am out of practice on this whole heart thing."

He stood up and stretched his arms. He took a deep breath.

"I get it now," he said confidently. "I don't want a Keyblade because I'm pissed at Xemnas, or want some shiny new power for the fights ahead. I promised Ienzo and Aeleus I'd find Isa and Braig. I promised Roxas I'd always be there to bring him back. And that's exactly what I'm here to do.

"Listen up, heart. Maybe you don't remember this too well, but I am a man who keeps his promises. You and I are going to get that Keyblade, and we are going to go find our friends!"

He shut his eyes, and in his mind, he dove into the darkness where that stained glass had first appeared. He could see it more clearly now. He understood why Mickey had called it a representation of his heart. He saw himself on the panel. He saw Roxas too. And Isa. And even Sora? Or was it Naminé? He couldn't quite make out the other face there, but either one was fine. These were all people he cared about deeply.

He was going to bring all of them home.

Lea opened his eyes and thrust his hand forward. He could see it now. The light was taking shape in his mind.

He was going to summon it!

One minute passed. Two…three…

When the Keyblade still wouldn't appear to him after all that, he put his arm down. Then he laughed. A light muttered chuckle that grew into strong, loud guffaws that shook his body and echoed across the tranquil forest. He laughed until his throat was dry, and tears stung his eyes, and then he stopped.

He flicked his wrist and let the darkness swallow him once more.

The Three Good Fairies didn't even look up when the portal opened this time.

"Welcome back, dear," Fauna said to him politely. Lea ignored her and went straight for the door. He opened it with enough force to let it slam against the wall, startling the fairies, and earning an irritated grunt from Yen Sid. Merlin seemed peeved at having their conversation interrupted.

The others were nowhere to be seen.

"Well, well, looks like the show's already begun," Lea remarked. "Hey, Yen Sid, I've got a question."

"Oh boy. More questions?" Merryweather droned at him. "Honestly, why don't you just give up already?"

Lea gave her a rueful smirk. "Yeah, you know, not a bad thought. Crossed my mind too."

He felt, rather than saw, Flora give the youngest of the grannies a withering look.

"Now, Lea," Flora said sternly, and fluttered beside him. "You were told from the beginning that this would not be an easy task. You shouldn't give up because of a few setbacks."

"I'm not giving up because of a few setbacks," Lea said. "I'm giving up because I don't need it."

"So," Yen Side said in a grave tone. "Is that how far your determination takes you?"

"Yeah, it is," Lea replied. "So my question to you is, where are the others right now?"

"And what will you do with that answer? Will you go after them?"

"Now see here," Merlin cut in, waving his hand wildly. "It's much too dangerous for you. If you had a Keyblade it'd be one—no, even then, you're inexperienced. You'd just be throwing your life away."

"I did it once. Twice even. Wasn't too bad, all things considered," Lea replied in a light tone, but then he looked Yen Sid directly in the eye.

"Look," he said evenly. "I've had a lot of time on that world. You all can crack jokes about me showing up every five minutes all you like, but it's been hours, if not days in there. I did all the "look inside, dive into the heart" stuff, and maybe it didn't get me a Keyblade, but it got me thinking."

He took a deep long breath before continuing.

"I know who I am. I know who I want to protect. And I know what I need to do now. And if all of that doesn't make my heart, or Kingdom Hearts, whatever else think that warrants a Keyblade, then fine! I don't need it." He summoned his chakrams and let them hang from his fingers. "I've already got my Eternal Flames right here. And they'll be more than enough to burn Xehanort's schemes to ashes. Where are they right now?"

Yen Sid stood up. He was a very tall imposing man, but Axel stood tall as well.

"Go back to the time-compressed world," Yen Sid told him. "You'll still have plenty of time to help once you've completed your assignment."

"No," Lea told him icily. "I don't care how much time isn't passing out here when I'm in there. My friends need me now. And I'm going to help them. Where. Are. They?"

Lea was not going to ask again. If the old fogies weren't going to answer him this time, he'd figure it out some other way. Run blindly through the dark corridors. Get Ienzo and the rest to help him look. One way or another, he was going to find Sora.

Yen Sid closed his eyes and let out a long deep sigh. Merlin stared at Lea critically. The fairies hovered around him. The tension in that room could be cut with a knife.

Then finally,

"They're in The World That Never Was. It's reappeared, dear."

The answer hadn't come from Yen Sid. Startled, Lea turned to Fauna, who wore a gentle smile on her face. She nodded at him, undaunted by the outraged stares she received from the other two and Merlin.

Lea found a smile crawling onto his face as well. "Well, what do you know? Home sweet home beckons. Thank you."

"Good luck, dear."

"Yeah," Lea turned back to Yen Sid, who just muttered something inaudible under his breath. "I'm going now."

And then he disappeared into the darkness, a renewed flame burning within.

The moment he was gone, Merryweather started shaking. "Fauna!" she yelled. "Why did you tell him that!"

"I agree," Flora said. "The boy isn't ready."

"Reckless youth," Merlin lamented.

But Fauna ignored them and flew over to Yen Sid. "Master Yen Sid, did you see it?" she asked. "Did you see that light?"

"Indeed I did, Fauna." A smile started forming on the old sage's face. "It seems that fire of his has proven him worthy after all."

~Fin~

A/N: I just wanted to write a silly story where the Three Good Fairies mess with Axel's hair. I'm not quite sure what happened...

Axel has honestly been a weird character for me. I loved him in CoM & KH2, got slightly frustrated with him in Days, got really sick of him by BBS & 3D...and then KH3 took him full circle and he is back to being one of my favorite characters. He is a good guy who's had a terrible life and just misses his friends. One of my favorite parts of writing this was the contrast of writing Axel alone vs. Axel interacting with the others.
(...I might be imagining it, but it seems that characters dressed in blue have it out for him.)

Anyway, thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed!
Feedback is always greatly loved and appreciated!