Sorry it took so long! I originally wasn't planning on this being that big a chapter- just a transition or pit stop before leaving for the next world. However, it just ended up spiraling into more and more...oopsie!

Anyways, you can think of this as the part in every game when they run you through mechanics. :D

Disclaimer: Nope...I still don't own Kingdom Hearts -_-"

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Riku rubbed his shoulder when Melody finally stopped pulling him into town. One would think having Sora and Kairi constantly pulling him around the island for years would have made him immune to this kind of ache. Apparently not.

Melody stopped several feet away when she realized he wasn't following and turned. "C'mon slow poke! We should stock up on a few things before we leave!" Riku just rolled his eyes and slowly began following.

"Are you always like this?" Melody began walking backwards when he got closer and cocked her head to the side in confusion.

"Always like what?" She asked. Riku sighed, having gotten his answer.

"Nevermind. Anyway, I don't really shop. Can't I just meet you somewhere?" He asked and glanced behind her. She easily sidestepped a junk crate that had fallen over, despite her attention never straying from him. Melody shook her head, crossing her arms as she continued walking backwards.

"We need to get to know each other better or we won't be able to work very well together. We can't do that if you go off by yourself." She said matter-of-factly. Riku just mumbled under his breath. Melody giggled softly. "I'm not that bad, am I?" She asked teasingly. Riku just shook his head.

"…Where to?" He asked, glancing behind her once more. She had closed her eyes in thought, but still managed to spin out of the way as two boys and a girl raced by and faced forward. Riku raised an eyebrow, briefly wondering how she could maneuver so well without seeing where she was going.

"First... I think I'd like to have a duel." She decided with an excited grin. They had stopped in the middle of a large lot in the middle of town. To his right, there was a large sign with a countdown to something called a "Struggle". Riku raised an eyebrow.

"Why?" He asked, placing a hand on his hip as he stared at her. Melody slowed to a stop and held her hand out to the side. A long bow with a dark grey hand-guard on it appeared in a flash of light, gently falling into her hand. The hand guard had dozens of tiny multi colored stars decorating its smoothed surface, and something that looked like a dagger pointed outward from it.

"I just need to see how you fight." Riku raised an eyebrow, unsure if that's really all she wanted. He had a nagging thought in the back of his mind that he was being tricked. "Oh, come on. You afraid of little ole' me?" She asked in a super innocent, playful voice. She batted her eyes at him in the same fashion and held her bow under her chin. Riku's sharp turquoise eyes narrowed in a glare and he held his hand out, the Soul Eater Keyblade falling gently into his grasp in a burst of silver and black energy.

Melody hid a triumphant smile behind her bow before walking a few paces from him and settling into a loose fighting stance. She reached over her shoulder, pulling an arrow from the quiver that had appeared with the bow. "Ready?"

Riku panted, leaning against his keyblade. 'Damnit… she's fast…' he thought, trying to catch his breath. She didn't look it, but she was quite the formidable foe. She attacked from a distance for the most part, and could dart away in the blink of an eye.

Even in close distance, her bow did not lose its effectiveness. The guard was strong, and rounded just enough that his attacks could be rerouted away from her body with ease, leaving him open to a retaliating strike. The dagger on the bow was sharp, and forged strong. He had been able to block it two or three times, but in doing so his blade had hit one of the stars decorating the guard, setting off sparks that made his vision dance.

He glared up at the girl standing a few feet away rolling her shoulder. She had a few beads of sweat on her brow and cheek, but she was barely winded. She looked more invigorated than worn.

"How?" He grumbled, more to himself as he finally calmed his breathing enough to stand up straight. The auburn-haired girl heard though and giggled.

"Well, to be fair I probably have a teeny tiny bit more experience than you." Melody said, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. Riku narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously.

"How much is teeny tiny?"

Melody put a finger to her chin in thought, her bow disappearing in a flash of light. "Hmm….10 years? Give or take?" She replied in thought. Riku would have fallen over in surprise if his keyblade hadn't been still out to support him.

"What? How is that possible, I thought you were around my age?" He asked, looking her up and down again. Maybe she was just young looking, and she was actually in her 20s? Melody couldn't help laughing- he was just so cute when he was trying to figure something out!

"I am! I started training when I was first taken in by the Celestial Witch. And I was only around five when that happened." Riku's eyes widened as he watched her stretch out her arms and rub her shoulder again. "Jeez. You hit hard Riku." Melody commented. "Ya know, if you worked on your speed just a bit more, you'd probably knock me on my butt in ten seconds flat." She said, glancing back at him. "...What's with the look?"

"I'm just… surprised. I didn't know people started that young." Riku finally replied, releasing his own weapon. Melody blinked a few times before smiling widely and looking at him hopefully.

"Are you impressed?!" She asked excitedly. Riku jumped a little as she leaned in close- a little too close in her earnestness. He rolled his eyes a few seconds later and flicked her in the forehead with his finger.

"Calm down. It's not like that." He replied calmly. Melody whimpered, rubbing her forehead and pouting as he denied it. "It's just unusual to hear someone training at such a young age, that's all." And it was- no one could deny that. Many kids only started any kind of combat or martial arts training at 10, maybe 9 if they were ambitious. Melody sighed in defeat.

"I guess you're right. More weird than impressive." She replied. Riku chuckled once before he could stop himself.

"I'm not sure weird is the right word." Melody was staring at Riku, a little surprised he actually laughed but happy to see it. He seemed to have loosened up just a smidge. "What's with the smile?" She only smiled wider in response, tilting her head to the side.

"Oh, it's nothing! Just… excited!" She said, trying to divert his attention. "Hey! How about we go get some items? Don't know about you, but I am seriously low on potions- and by low, I mean none!"

'Of course you don't have any…' Riku thought, but nodded. "Lead the way."

'She's crazy, she must be.' Riku thought with a groan. After an hour and a half, she had dragged him around the entire Tram Commons and Station Heights, insisting they stop at every. Single. Shop. And if she didn't get something, she guilted him into buying something. He was now, to his dismay, broke. His bag was weighed down with potions, eithers, a second set of clothes (insisted on by a certain bubbly auburn-haired girl), a set of enchanted rings, a brand-new journal (another "necessity" Melody insisted on) and he was sure she had slipped more in when he wasn't looking.

"Oh! I would love something to eat! Let's get some ice cream!"

"Aren't we supposed to be meeting Mickey?" Riku said quickly.

"Aww, c'mon. Just one last shop? We can get some for Mickey too!" Melody pleaded, pointing to the small Ice Cream Parlor on the corner. They were currently half way up the hill of Station Heights, heading towards the Station Plaza. Riku was about to say no when he remembered something Mickey had said. Mickey was actually quite a fan of sweets- he said it was the first thing he wanted to eat once they got out of Castle Oblivion. He'd asked Riku what he was going to have, but… Riku hadn't been able to answer.

"…Fine." Riku said, biting back a sigh. "But this is the last stop." He added quickly as he saw hazel eyes brighten up at his consent. Melody nodded in agreement and practically skipped over to the shop, leaving Riku on the corner.

He crossed his arms, leaning against the brick and watching the girl chat animatedly with the clerk. She seemed to have gotten drawn into a story by the old man, showing no signs of this being a quick stop. With a deep breath, he turned his gaze from them, looking out over the shops and street alight with the soft, warm glow of the ever-setting sun. A light breeze blew through the street, cooling shoppers and making the flowers dance happily in their pots. It was…oddly comforting for him.

"It's alright, sir. I'm sure it'll be no trouble!" Melody said to the owner, turning to call Riku over but paused. He was leaning comfortably against a brick building, warmed all day by the sun. His sharp turquoise eyes seemed softened as they looked out over the town, bathed in afternoon sun. A light breeze rustled his normally silver hair, now a warm gold, reflecting the light from the sun. He seemed so calm, tranquil.

Melody felt her face heat up, thinking how beautiful the scene was. He must have felt her gaze, because after a moment he turned to look at her, raising an eyebrow in question. However, Melody's mouth felt a little dry, and her words had died out.

'Come on, Melody! What is wrong with you?! Snap to it!' She scolded herself, shaking her head several times to shoo the odd feeling away. If he wasn't already giving her an odd stare, she would have slapped her face a few times for good measure.

"Riku! Can you come over here a minute? This man needs some help with a locked chest he found!" She called, hoping her smile looked right. She saw him shake his head exasperatedly, but he stood all the same. As he got closer he held his hand out, keyblade gently dropping into his grasp. Melody stepped back a little, watching.

The owner's eyes lit up, curiosity driving him to practically hang over Riku's shoulder. Riku felt a bead of sweat drip down his face but concentrated on the lock. After a few seconds, the tip of Soul Eater glowed a soft red, knowing what it needed to do. As soon as he saw the faint light, Riku tapped the chest twice, a loud click echoing around them and the lid popped open part way. The parlor owner practically giggling with glee, shoved his way in front of RIku to look in the chest.

Melody laughed softly as Riku's eye twitched in annoyance. As the owner turned to thank Riku, Melody felt the bag strapped to her belt heat up, sending a tingling sensation through her hip and leg. 'A job already?' she thought and opened the black bag. She pulled out the old journal taking up most of the space in the small bag, leather still warm from the magic that had just passed through it. Flipping through the pages, Melody came to the last page with writing and looked at the script that had just appeared. As she read over the new mission, her eyes widened in surprise before a large grin nearly split her face in two.

"Something tells me that grin isn't for the free ice cream." Melody jumped as the voice broke through her thoughts. She turned to Riku with a more serious look on her face.

"You got free ice cream?" She asked.

"So, that book is directly connected to this Celestial Witch you work for, and that's how you get missions?" Riku finally said as they sat on the ledge of Station Plaza, eating some of the ice cream. Melody nodded, taking a bite of the popsicle in her right hand.

"Yup. This book was apparently created with part of the Celestial Witch's soul, which is why she can get messages to me no matter what world I happen to be in. It's pretty cool-ehhaahh!" Melody suddenly yelped after taking another large bit from the ice cream bar in her left hand. Her eyes began watering and she rubbed her head with the base of her palms.

"That's what you get for eating so much at once." He said, watching her whimper and nearly drop the treats in both her hands.

"Ya ok, Melody?" Mickey asked, leaning to look around Riku at the poor girl suffering through a brain freeze. Melody's eyes watered a little but she nodded.

"Yes, I think so…" Melody croaked out, blinking away the last tears as feeling came back to her throat and the pain ebbed from her temple. "Hey, how come you guys aren't eating more? That old man was so nice to give us all these frozen treats! You should be enjoying them too!"

"Just because we don't try to eat them all at once, doesn't mean we aren't enjoying them." Riku replied, taking a small bite from the sea-salt ice cream he had. Mickey elbowed him in the side, but couldn't completely hold back a laugh.

"I can see why she wants to though! These are delicious!" Mickey said, taking a bite of the large drumstick cone in his hand for emphasis. Melody nodded in agreement before returning to her own cold treats. "Oh! Melody, where did that journal say we needed to go anyway?" Mickey asked as he took the last few bites of his cone.

Melody sucked the last bit of sea-salt ice cream in her right hand before replying with a happy grin. "Hollow Bastion!" She said with obvious glee. She reached behind Riku for the bag of ice cream but he blocked her, moving it over to his other side by Mickey. The small king hid an amused grin behind his hand as Riku ignored Melody's pout and grumbles. "Before Maleficent arrived, there was a gate there that connected directly to Witch Thera's home. She wants me to reactivate it."

Riku and Mickey glanced at one another before looking back at her. "You do know Merlin went there right after Sora got that old dragon out, don't you?" Mickey asked.

"If there was a portal, wouldn't he have found it by now?" Riku added. Melody shook her head.

"Witch Thera cut off the magic completely from her end when the world was invaded. Even if someone found it, it wouldn't have led anywhere except deep space." She explained, pulling out the journal since Riku obviously wouldn't be sharing any more. She flipped through the pages, searching for something.

"So if it was completely cut off from that end, what are we supposed to do in Hollow Bastion?" Riku asked, trying to casually catch a glimpse of the pages she was flipping past.

"Actually, with you there it should be pretty easy." Melody replied. "The hardest part will be finding it. There's a good chance it's still buried under rubble." She finally stopped on an old page, the edges torn and faded. The elegant script that filled the whole page stood out against the aged yellow paper, along with a small diagram, appearing to depict an intricately designed door. "King Mickey, I might need your help stabilizing it though. My magic's, uh…not the most reliable." She said, looking over at Mickey, tilting the book to show him the page with the required spells on it.

Mickey smiled and jumped up, thumping his chest once. "Just leave it ta me!" Melody nodded once in agreement before looking back down at her book.

"Great! Then all we have to do is find the door, repair any damage done to it, then reactivate and stabilize the magic." She said. She folded the page she was looking at in on itself so she could find it easier later and snapped the book closed.

Meanwhile, Riku had finished his popsicle and was fiddling with the ends of the strings on his cloak as he listened. "You make it sound so simple."

"Sure! Maleficent's gone- what's there to worry about other than a few stray heartless?" Melody replied matter-of-factly.

Mickey was quick to agree. "She's got a point Riku. With Maleficent's forces gone, it can't be that bad anymore. And don't forget, Leon and the others returned there." Melody stood up on the ledge as well, happy to have a little support.

"That's the spirit!" She said. The small creature that had been relaxing in her hood all day poked its head over her shoulder. It mewed once in annoyance but stretched and hopped up fully onto her shoulder. "Oh, Sorry Valifor! I didn't mean to wake you." She said and scratched it lightly under the chin.

"Does that thing do anything besides sleep and bite?" Riku asked, eyeing the critter. He wasn't exactly fond of the little creature. It had bit his cheek twice while they had been shopping earlier- once for waking him up and the second time…well he wasn't sure. He figured he got a little too close to the creature or its owner for its liking.

Melody rolled her eyes, lowering her hand. "Sure he does, but he's a baby! They need lots of sleep!" She said, shaking her head as the tiny wind creature yawned and ruffled the golden feathers lining its front paws. It seemed to send a glare in Riku's direction before slipping back down into Melody's hood. Riku glared at Melody's shoulder where the creature had disappeared behind. Stupid little thing.

"So, why can't I just make us a portal? It'd be easy to-" Riku was saying as he looked around the inside of the station. Melody was following the wall to the right of the doorway and called out over her shoulder before he could finish.

"No way!" She said in a loud, stern voice. "Portals like that are not only traceable, but they can damage the world's protective barrier. Not to mention it takes a lot of dark magic." Riku tensed when she mentioned dark magic, guilt evident in his eyes. His fingers curled into a fist at his side. He had never known it took a lot of magic. When he had started opening his own dark portals, he was already drawing on the power of the Seeker. If it really did take a lot, he couldn't help wondering what else he had done without thinking that had taken as much dark magic. Had it been enough to permanently stain his heart?

"Riku!? You in there?" Riku blinked twice as he was drawn back to the present. Melody was crouched down, head tilted to the side so she could look up at his face. Mickey stood next to her, looking up at him worriedly.

"Ya ok Riku? You seemed to space out there for a minute…" Mickey said while watching Riku rub his eyes a few times.

"Yeah…Sorry. What were you saying?" He said, finally looking between Mickey and Melody. Melody sighed.

"Jeez, you weren't kidding when you said this guy needs looking after…" She mumbled to Mickey. Riku gave her a cold stare as she stood, seeming oblivious to his agitation. "I said, I found the gate! If you're ready, we can leave." Riku nodded, his body still a little tense as he followed the two around the corner and down past a parked train to a far, out of the way corner.

On closer inspection, Riku could smell it. The scent was neither completely light or dark, it almost smelled more like raw energy, than magic. It churned lazily around the corner, not expanding far into the station. Every few a seconds sparks of green emitted from the space, although he doubted a passerby would notice.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Melody said and stopped to look back at the others, for once a serious glimmer in her eye. "I know you both have traveled between worlds for a while now, but the Lanes Between is a really dangerous place. I can show you how to navigate them, but until then there are a few rules." She said, looking between the two to make sure they were listening. Mickey nodded, his ears twitching as he listened intently. Riku was looking at her too, but he had rolled his eyes and only gave her a dull look. "Always wear those cloaks while in the Lanes Between- it may not be the Corridors of Darkness, but the Space can still really tear you apart without proper protection." Mickey nodded, pulling his hood up and nudging Riku to do the same. "Next, don't lose sight of one another. You definitely don't want to get separated and blown off while there. Without knowing how to navigate it, you could be lost for a long time." She continued. Riku sighed.

"We know that. As you said, we've done this before." Riku said with only slight annoyance in his voice. Mickey nudged him in the leg. Melody took a deep breath before continuing.

"Yes, but the Lanes Between is different than using darkness or gummi ships to travel. Light and dark are constantly tugging on one another, and the spectral winds there never die down." She explained, crossing her arms. "The most important thing you need to remember is don't try to open the gates or create your own portals. Not until I can show you how to properly do it." Her hazel orbs narrowed on the two as she spoke. When they both finally nodded she smiled happily.

Valifor moved up next to her neck as Melody pulled her own hood up, tugging it all the way up and over her eyes. "Great! Now we're off!" She said, pep and energy back in her movements and voice. With that declared she held her hand out, the back of it facing away from her at the green sparks. The insignia on her glove glowed a soft yellow as the energies grew in response, extended into a vortex of greens and yellows.

Mickey looked up at Riku, who was staring intently at the growing energy. "You ready, Riku?" He asked in an unsure tone. After a long moment Riku looked down at Mickey.

"Yeah. Let's get started." He said, nodding to his little friend. His eyes moved back to the vortex, eyes sharpening in determination. As the energies settled, the gate fully opened, they both stepped forward to follow Melody into the light.

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And that wraps up Twilight Town for the time being. Hope you all enjoyed it!

Hollow Bastion- Here we come!