So, how is everyone? I know don't upload too often, and so, in celebration for my sudden return, this one is going to be a little longer.
Nim: What's there to celebrate? I'm sure everyone expected a thousand years before your next upload.
Me: Hey! There's no need to be so... prickly. *grins*
Nim: Well, folk, dont expect any more uploads for quite, for our dear and stupid author is going to be in recovery for a while.
Me: Meep!
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Heart or any of its lovely characters... and Donald. I do own my OC, and all the prickly-ness she has to offer! *Dodges fireball* Ha-Ha! Missed me, Nim!
"Incredible!" Nim could practically scream as she looked over the Keyblade leaning against the wall. Leon told her she couldn't touch it, at least until the boy woke up, but she can settle with just looking at it for now. "It's absolutely incredible! This the real thing!"
"How do you know?" Yuffie asked as she continued to stare at Sora's sleeping form. She sat on the table in the room, her feet kicking back and forth from boredom.
Nim looked over it from behind her glasses, which she made to be able to act as magnifying glasses should she wish it. "The metal of the blade is similar to silver, but something much more rare." She looked up at the handle. "This isn't gold. No, it's likely… It's not anything I've ever seen."
She pulled a paper from her pocket, holding it over the part of the key that would usually go into a keyhole. "While the rest of the weapon would probably be best suited for blunt force, this…" She dropped the paper and it sliced clean in half over the edges. "Magnificent. Not to mention the magic that is just radiating off of it is giving me tingles! Its no wonder the Heartless seem drawn to it."
"Keep your tingles to yourself, cause he's waking up." Yuffie said as she jumped down and walked over, only to be pushed out of the way by Nim. "Hey!"
"Yuffie…" Leon said simply, and with the simple nod of his head, she backed off.
Nim watched him as he stubbornly fought off waking. "Honestly, it's like he is used to napping this long." At the sound of a girl's voice, Sora slowly began to open his eyes. "Come on, lazy bum. Wake up!" The boy sat up and shook his head, trying to gather his wits. He looked at Nim in a very confused manner, but little does she know, he sees someone else. Feeling slight sympathy for him, she sighed. "You okay?"
"I guess…" The boy replied as he gave a slightly familiar smile. If she didn't know any better, it was almost as if boy felt familiar with her. She guessed an explanation would likely be due.
"Those creatures that attacked you are after the Keyblade." She explained, getting kind of giddy, even though this is a very serious matter they are discussing. "But it's your heart they really want, because you wield the Keyblade."
The boy seemed to completely dismiss the conversation entirely as he smiled wide at her. "I'm so glad you're okay, Kairi."
"The hell?" Nim said as she sat straight up, straightening her glasses. "Who's Kairi? The name's Nim."
"What?" Sora shook his head in confusion, squinting at the girl before him. The vision of Kairi turned into Nim, and at the sight of her, Sora jumped back, falling off the bed. He peaked over the bed to see the scary girl staring at him with an eyebrow raised.
"I think you might've overdone it, Squall." Yuffie said with a playful smile.
"That's Leon." Leon corrected.
Sora seemed to completely dismiss him when he saw his weapon leaning against the wall. "Hey, that's mine!"
"Yeah, sorry about that." Yuffie said with a half-hearted smile. "We had to get it away from you. It turns out, that's how they were tracking you."
"It was the only way to conceal your heart from them." Leon continued, sighing. "But it won't work for long." He picked up the Keyblade, holding it out and examining it as if there were a glass window in front of it. "Still, hard to believe that you, of all people, are the chosen one." He scoffed as he struck the Keyblade out, and it disappeared from his hand in a flash of light, startling the boy as it reappeared in the same manner in his own hands. "Well, I suppose beggars can't be choosers."
"Why don't you start making sense! What's going on here?" Sora said, starting to get frustrated.
Yuffie looked at Nim, instantly scowling at the sight that girl was taking down notes in a small journal. "Incredible!" The girl whispered to herself, as she jotted down the notes, in an excited tone that Yuffie was sure she was physically incapable of. "Instant dematerialization when handled by anyone that isn't the intended wielder. An incredible defense mechanism!" Yuffie sighed. "The Keyblade is incredible!"
"So, this is a Keyblade." Sora said as he looked at the weapon in fascination. "And what does all of this have to do with me?" Yuffie and Sora were startled by the sound of Nim slamming her notebook shut.
They looked at her as she removed her glasses. Her face remained impassive as she said, "This has everything to do with you." She said, cleaning her glasses with a rag. She continued once she placed them back on her face. She pointed to the Keyblade. "The Keyblade is the ultimate weapon against the Heartless."
"Heartless?" Sora asked. He heard them talk about it before, but he doesn't really know what they are.
"Those without hearts." Leon said simply.
Yuffie shook her head. "That much was obvious, Squall." Leon growled at her for using his real name. "The darkness in people's hearts—that's what attracts them."
"And there is darkness within every heart." Nim said with melancholy as she felt her scarf where her locket was underneath. It got a bit quiet in there, as even Sora, who was the only one in the room who didn't know why the girl hurt, could feel the energy that was building.
So, Yuffie decided to change the subject. "Hey, have you ever heard of a guy named Ansem?" The sound of Nim scoffing, her sorrow quickly turning to anger, was enough to bring what little energy was in the room back.
"Who?" Sora asked.
"That man is of no concern at the moment." Nim said. At the sight of Leon glare, she sighed. "But, I suppose, his reports do pose some importance." Sora looked to Leon for a more detailed explanation.
"Ansem was a… researcher from our world." Leon explained. "He composed a small series of reports, detailing the research he did on the Heartless, the heart, and the heart of the worlds. At least… they should."
Sora quirked his brow at the young man. "What do you mean 'should'?"
"They were scattered across the worlds!" Yuffie said as she stood from the bed, stretching her arms. "When our world was destroyed, his reports flew off like pigeons in the wind, gone to other worlds."
"Then how do you know so much about the Keyblade?" Sora asked as he looked among the three.
Yuffie smiled up at Nim. "You can thank our local scholar for that one." She laughed. "Thanks to her obsession with the Keyblade Wielder stories, we know just about every…" Nim's staff crashed into the floor where Yuffie was standing a second ago, the girl now hiding underneath the table.
Sora decided it would probably be best to move on, ignoring the practically glowing blush on Nim's face. "So, how is this and ultimate weapon against the Heartless?" Sora said, holding up the large key.
"The Heartless have great fear of the Keyblade." Leon said, turning around and heading to stand in front of the door. "That's why they'll keep coming after you no matter what."
"Well, I didn't ask for this." Sora complained, flinching slightly as Nim gave him a look that could either anger or disappointment.
She walked up to him, bringing him up to his feet by his shirt, glaring at him. "The Keyblade chooses its master." She said, letting go of his shirt and poking him in the chest. "And it chose you, so you had better get used to it." She sighed, turning around and leaning on the wall in the corner.
"Was… was it something I said?" Sora whispered to Yuffie, trying to understand Nim's sudden hostility.
Yuffie looked at her, then looked to Leon, who nodded to her. "Nim has always wanted to meet the Keyblade Wielder." She said. "Imagine the kind of disappointment she must be feeling when the fated wielder is a Kid who is barely younger than her, and he doesn't even want it."
"I-I didn't say I didn't want it." He said with a sigh as he looked at the Keyblade. "It's just that… it all happened so fast. My home… my friends…"
Hearing this, Nim seemed to have softened up a bit, but not completely relent. But then Sora suddenly jumped up from the bed. "Wait a minute! What happened to my home? My island?" He grew more sullen. "Riku! Kairi…"
"You know what?" Leon said, closing his eyes in thought. "I really don't know."
Not knowing what else to do, Sora decided to ask some more questions about the Keyblade. He walked up to Nim as Leon and Yuffie began discussing things with each other. The girl seemed to be putting something in a box, and then she locked it. Sora looked at her curiously, jumping back when he saw the girl destroy the key in the palm of her hand with a small flame.
"I know what you are going to ask me." Nim said as she wiped the ashes from her hand, smiling at the boy. He lightly blushed at the girl, as she has a very pretty smile. She should do it more often. "I can only tell you about the Keyblade from what I've read in books, and there aren't many on it."
Sora only nodded his head with optimism. "Anything would help."
Nim then nodded excitedly, gesturing to the box, which would actually be more accurately described as a chest. "Well, the first thing I can think of is how the Keyblade is said to be able to open any lock."
Sora walked up to the chest and materialized the Keyblade. He looked at the lock, then to the Keyblade, then back to the lock. "How am I supposed to do that?"
Nim's smile slightly faded, as she now realized that the keyhole is far too small. Then she just shrugged. "I… I don't really know. Why don't you try hitting it or something?"
Sora looked at the chest again, thought for a moment, then just shrugged. He tapped the large key against the chest, and the two of them became excited when the thing popped open, revealing the Hi-potion Nim had placed inside. "It works!" Nim became excited, hopping around for a moment, before quickly jotting it down in her notebook. "This is incredible! I wonder else I read about it is true." Nim looked up to find Leon and Yuffie staring at her, the latter with a big smile on her face. "What?"
"It's been a long time since we've seen that smile." Yuffie said happily. The girl and Nim argued, or rather Yuffie listened as Nim berated her with a blush on her face.
Leon pulled Sora to the side. "The Heartless can come at any moment." He said sternly. "I hope you're ready." After a minute, Sora smiled up at the man, nodding. Squall smirked, looking up to speak to Yuffie. "Yuffie, Nim, let's go meet up with…"
"Leon!" Yuffie said as a Heartless appeared in front of her and Nim. This one is different from the Shadows. It is slightly larger and standing on two feet, not slouched like the smaller Heartless type. It appears to be wearing a helmet of sorts, as well as some kind of tunic and armored pants. Nim has dubbed them the "Soldier" class.
"Yuffie, go!" Leon yelled, the girl rushing through the door, Nim hearing as Aerith called for the girl, as well as what sounded like… a duck?
In a quick action, Nim unclipped her scepter from her side, lengthening it to be a staff, and knocked the Heartless out the window. "Nim…" Nim looked at Leon, who nodded at her. "You know the drill." Nim nodded in return, kicking the exit to the room open and jumping out into the alleyway from the balcony, Leon doing the same with the window.
Sora quickly followed Nim out the door, jumping down the balcony, landing on his backside as they quickly finished off three other Heartless. Nim headed forward, going to a door and trying to get it open. Sora tried to follow her, but then Leon called, "Sora!" Sora looked behind him at the man. "Don't bother with the small fry. Find the leader and take it out, and they should subside. Nim usually does it, but she can use your help." Sora nodded, following closely behind Nim as she got the door open, revealing that it lead to the Second District.
"So, how do we find something like this?" Sora asked as he and Nim ran through the alleys between other shops and houses.
Nim was about to strike down a Soldier-type, but Sora got to it first, surprising the girl with the quick action on his part. "In my personal experience, they usually gather where more Heartless are prone to spawn. Best bet would be the Third District."
The two of them headed towards a door with a large "3" above it. They went in, finding it surprisingly calm. They walked down the steps. Nim stopped before the squared off area, closing her eyes and trying to focus on the darkness. She definitely feels it strongest in this area, but for some reason, there is nothing here.
Sora walked forward to examine area for any hiding places. It is then that there is some kind of noise that sounds like a mixture of awkward screaming and squawking, followed by Sora being used as a landing cushion for… a duck… and a dog?
Donald and Goofy, still slightly disoriented from their fall, didn't really notice that they landed on someone until they saw that this someone was holding a massive key. Instantly thinking of the message from King Mickey, they both said in excitement, "The Key!"
Nim didn't have time to be confused, as she soon found herself being lifted into the air, a platform rising from the ground underneath her feet. They rose from all sides and in front of the locked door to the First District. "Stupid defense mechanism!" Nim said as she pounded the platform underneath her as Heartless began appearing all around Sora, Donald, and Goofy. "You've gone and trapped them in there with a bunch of Heartless!"
"Nim!" Aerith called, getting the girl's attention just as she was about to jump down and help them. Nim jumped down on the opposite side of the square and joined Aerith and Leon, Yuffie joining them shortly. "Let Sora handle this." Aerith said softly. "We need to see what he can and can't handle."
Nim was about to protest, but Leon put his hand on her shoulder. "Trust him." Leon said, and they all looked over the balcony to see Sora battling the Heartless.
To Nim's surprise, Sora seems to be handling himself very well. Granted, he is a complete amateur, and his moves are sloppy, but he seems to be able to get the job done. And it helps that the duck and the dog are doing pretty well, the duck seeming to be an adept mage, the dog being none too shabby with that shield of his. Once all the Heartless were gone, they finally got a break. "Woo! They did it!" Yuffie danced around and praised.
Nim wasn't so sure though. "No." Nim said as her eyes closed. "It isn't over yet." It was quiet for the longest time as everyone looked to Nim for info. She suddenly shot her eyes open, looking above. "Heads up!"
Sora jumped out of the way as a large suit of armor came crashing down from the sky. Everyone stood still, as the armor seemed to be doing the same; merely remaining on the ground in a mess. And then in a single moment, the armor pieces began to shake before suddenly floating in the air.
"No." Nim said with fear in her voice. "Sora can't handle that! It's a Boss Type!"
"Trust him." Aerith said with a smile, placing her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Although he's new at this kind of thing, the Keyblade chose him for a reason." She watches as Sora, Donald and Goofy struggled against the large suit of armor.
Nim looked at the young woman. She looked at Sora as he took out one of the armors gauntlets, only to be knocked to the ground by the other one. She smiled. "Aerith." The young woman looked at the smiling girl, who then smacked her hand off of her shoulder. "You should know by now…" Aerith looked at her with shock as the smiling girl jumped on the edge of the stair's railing. "I don't trust anyone."
Nim then jumped into the air, doing a back flip. Sora watched from underneath her, and for him the world slightly slowed. The way she caught the light as she pulled out her staff, her hair flowing in the air, her hand glowing as she… wait, glowing?!
Sora watched in amazement as Nim, not even touching the ground yet, focused a blast of lighting onto her staff and released it at the Heartless, which she dubbed the "Guard Armor" in her head. "Thunder!" She yelled as the blast came out, missing the torso, but subsequently obliterating both of its feet. She landed on her feet, quickly walking up to Sora. "Hurry! To your feet, Keyblade Wielder!"
Sora just stood there for a second, staring at her in amazement, before shaking his head to compose himself. He grabbed her hand that she held out to him, jumping to his feet. "Thanks!" He said with a big smile on his face.
"You can thank me later." Nim said firmly, looking to the Guard Armor as the dog knocked the last hand to the ground, the duck destroying it with a minor fire spell. Now only the Torso remained, and even though they can't see the face of the Heartless, by the way it's shaking, they can tell that it's angry.
"Drink this." Nim said as she handed Sora a small bottle filled a green liquid. Sora recognized it as a smaller version of the bottle of liquid he got from the chest earlier. He looked at her with confusion. "It's just a normal potion." She looked at him, pointing to his forehead. He reached up and felt it, wincing at the sharp pain that followed. He looked at his finger t find some blood. "It has a small healing effect, but it should be more than enough for now."
Sora nodded his head, popping the cork off the bottle, taking it back. "Oh my…" He could almost gag at the horrible taste. "Nim, are you trying to poison me? Nim?" He looked just in time to find Nim running straight for the spinning torso. "Nim!" He rushed after her, Keyblade in hand.
"Duck. Dog." Nim said, getting their attention. "Try to distract it long enough for me and Sora do deal the finishing blow."
"Who are you to give us orders?" The duck said with a very apparent lisp.
"Better do what she says, Donald." The dog said, making a "hyuk" noise that Nim guessed was his laugh. "She seems like she knows what she's talkin' about."
"Ah, what do you know, ya big Palooka." Donald said with a grumble, him and the dog doing as Nim instructed. "Fire!" Donald yelled, hitting the Torso in the helmet, getting its attention. It turned toward the duck, floating higher into the air, before slamming down. It would have crushed the duck if the dog didn't hold it back with his shield.
"Ya gotta be more careful." The dog said with a goofy grin.
"What's the plan?" Sora asked Nim, who was analyzing the Torso's movements. As she suspected, getting rid of its limbs made it desperate. It slams down and attempts to crush its enemies like it had the feet do, but that damages itself. It spins at incredible speeds, which would likely cause massive damage, but also leaves it vulnerable.
Nim nodded her head, thinking up a good plan. "Sora, I need you to aim for its head." She called out to the other two. "I need you guys to focus all your attacks the body! Sora and me will get the head. That's the weak point!" She looked to Sora. "Ready?"
With everyone working together, with Nim's direction, the Torso soon came crashing down on the ground, not getting back up. Nim smiled at the sight of a heart floating to the sky, signifying that the battle was over. And sure enough, the walls on the corners of the area came down as well.
"We did it!" Sora jumped in celebrated. He went to give Nim a high-five, but she just stared at him with disinterest. He looked at her curiously; his hand still rose. He then smiled at her, grabbing her hand and clapping it against his. "Smile a little. It's good for you."
"Hmph." Nim said, putting her hand on her hips. "Careful. Keyblade Hero or not, I won't show mercy if you annoy me." Sora still just smiled at her and she rolled her eyes.
"Hey!" The duck said as he approached Sora, the dog following suit. "We need to have a word with you."
"Try being a bit nicer, Donald." Goofy said with a chuckle, earning a complaint from the duck, or "Donald".
"Nim!" Nim turned at the sound of her name to find Aerith walking up to her with Leon and Yuffie. The girl expected some kind of lecture, or perhaps even a slap to the face, but Aerith merely paused while standing in front of her before crushing the girl in a hug. "Don't do that ever again!" Nim was shocked by the embrace, blushing slightly because of the embarrassment from feeling kind of guilty for making her worry.
"Alright, alright!" Nim said, nudging Aerith off of her. She and Yuffie were smiling at the girl, the ever stoic Leon doing his version of a smile, so she looked away to avoid contact. "I'm sorry, ok?"
"It's alright." Aerith said, putting her hand on Nim's shoulder. "We're just glad we're alright."
"Yeah!" Yuffie said with a grin. "You gotta be more careful, though! We don't know what we would do without our braniac little sister around."
Nim blushed again, but this time it was with anger. "H-Hey!" She yelled. "I don't know when you got the idea that I liked you people, let alone considered you my family, but just perish the thought!" She then walked up to Yuffie, flicking the girl on the forehead, making her pout. "Besides, I'm older then you."
While rubbing her forehead, Yuffie glared up at the girl. "A month doesn't count."
"You've been looking for me?" Sora said, almost yelled, in disbelief. This caught everyone else's attention as the duck nodded his head.
"They, too, have been seeking the wielder of the Keyblade." Leon said, getting Sora's attention, Yuffie nodding her head at his words. Nim looked to the duck and the dog, wondering what they would want with the wielder of the Keyblade. She then remembered that Aerith told her about a King that had visited them, inquiring about the same thing. These two must be associated with him in some way.
"Hey, why don't you come with us?" The dog said with a goofy smile. "We can go to other worlds on out vessel!"
Nim became suddenly downtrodden at the sound of that offer. She knew that she was going to have to say goodbye to the young wielder eventually, but she didn't think it would be so soon. She wished she could have studied the Keyblade for a little longer. Everyone leaves. She thought to herself, slipping away from the group while they were distracted by Sora making some kind of ridiculous face. "The Keyblade Hero is no different."
"Okay, why not?" Sora said with a grin. "I'll go with you guys!"
The duck held his wing out. "Donald Duck."
"Name's Goofy." The dog said as he followed Donald's action.
"I'm Sora." Sora put his hand in as well, smiling at them as they did the same. Donald and Goofy began having their own little celebration for getting Sora to join their group as he turned around. "Hey, Nim, how about…?" His smile faded when he saw that she wasn't there.
Aerith looked around, surprised that Nim wasn't there as well. "Oh no." She said with a sigh. "Sora, why don't you and everyone else head to the first district?" The boy looked at her with a bemused expression, but the girl only smiled at him. "Make sure not to leave before we have a chance to say goodbye, alright." With that, she walked up the steps to the door to the second district.
Aerith opened the door to the library to find Nim sitting in her lounge chair on the floor level, her reading another book about the Keyblade Wielder. Aerith shook her head at how obviously downtrodden the girl was, but was hiding it behind a stoic expression. She sighed. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." Nim said sternly.
"Something is wrong." Aerith continued, pulling a stool to sit in front of the girl. When the girl still didn't look at her, she gently pulled the book away and set on the floor next to her. "I know you, Nim. Something is upsetting you, and I think I know what." The girl scowled at her. "Make that face at me all you like, it isn't going to change the fact that you want to leave Traverse Town."
Nim looked at her with a shocked expression. "H-How…?"
"Because I know you." Aerith smiled at her before giggling. "Plus, I saw you dancing with your test dummy one time, saying how much wanted to go on an adventure with him."
Nim's face became flush red, not really able to find the words about how embarrassed she is. But then her blush faded, her face becoming sullen once again. "But I can't just leave, can I?" She stood up, straightening her glasses and her scarf as she began heading for her staircase. "Without me, when are you guys going to know when the Darkness starts to pour in?" She chuckled, albeit bitterly. "You guys would be lost without me."
"Oh, I think we'll do just fine once you're gone." Aerith said nonchalantly, catching Nim off guard just as she put her hand on the stair railing. She turned around and looked at the young woman. "What are you waiting for?" She smiled at her. "You've got some packing to do."
Nim brightened up in a smile, quickly rushing up to her room. She grabbed a simple knapsack and put a couple potions inside, packing an extra quill-pen and her notebook, as well as her journal.
Nim looked at her nightstand next to her bed, walking over and grabbing the book off of it. It is her favorite book about the Keyblade Hero. She held it close to her chest before packing it away into the bag. "Finally." She said, rushing down the stairs and joining Aerith at the door. She looked back at the library for a moment before shutting the lights off. "Its time for me to go on my adventure!"
Sora, Donald and Goofy turned around when Aerith and Nim came down the steps to greet that in District 1. "Hey!" Nim said with a grin, throwing her knapsack to Donald, who barely caught it in time, but with a surprised "wak!". She smiled, straightening her glasses. "I'm coming with you guys."
"What?" Donald said with shock, looking at her from behind her knapsack. "No way! We don't need anyone else on this trip!"
Goofy scratched his head. "Why the sudden interest, uh…" He squinted his eyes as he attempted to remember her name. "Kim?"
"Nim!" She quickly corrected the dog, who soundly apologized with a chuckle. She sighed, looking down at Donald. "Listen here, Duck…" She said firmly. "I don't care what you think." As Donald practically began to steam, the girl looked to Sora, her expression turning slightly sheepish. "But… if you don't want me coming, Sora, then I'll understand."
Sora looked to Donald and Goofy; Donald grunting and looking away, clearly not happy with the idea, while Goofy was just the opposite. After thinking about it, he held his hand out to her with a grin on his face. "Well, I don't see a problem with it. To tell you the truth, I was gonna ask you anyway." Nim smiled widely, internally celebrating while remain composed on the outside. Finally, her dream is about to come true, and she is going to go on an adventure with the Keyblade Hero.
She smiled sweetly at Sora, grabbing his hand. "Let's go, then!"
Well? I hope you all loved it! Cookies for anyone who leaves a positive review! Bad reviews might get a cookie, too, but I can't guarantee you'll be feeling too good after eating it.
Nim: There you go with the bribes again.
Me: *grins* You can prove nothing.
