All right everyone, let me be the first to apologize for somewhat abandoning this story. You'd be surprised how hard it is to get motivated to write fanfiction when senior year and college apps and such all start crowding your time (Got into rice, if anyone was interested =D). But I'm going to be doing my best to finish this out. Thank you everyone that reviewed for me, please keep them coming, and enjoy the 4th chapter of Two Halves of Me!

Here's the music you'll need. You'll see my music choices haven't changed much ^_^

Shadows between the sky by Buckethead
Chaos of the Unconscious by Buckethead
Inferno by Buckethead
Sea Wall by Buckethead
Search for "Piano Music" on Youtube, you'll need the first result. Should be called "Relaxing music (Instrumental piano)"

Begin playing (Shadows between the sky) by (Buckethead)

Saix observed from atop the clock tower as number 13 and his friends made their way towards the market square. Perhaps the overlord was right. Maybe he was just being paranoid. After all, what has the Key of Destiny done since attaining wholeness? He seems absolutely content with dropping off the radar and letting Sora take care of all the heroics. But just as he was about to gate back to base, something caught his eye. The gigantic clock behind him froze to a halt. Taking a closer look at the town, he could clearly see this was not a malfunction in the gears of the clock tower, but time had stopped again in Twilight Town.

Convinced he should wait a few more minutes, he crouched back down at the edge. From there, he saw a dark portal open, and from it emerged…Axel? What was he doing here? Didn't he have other business to attend to? He and Roxas exchanged a few words, shook hands, and just as fast as he showed up, Axel submerged himself back into the darkness. What was this all about? "Indeed, I believe I have been observing the wrong person…" Saix said with a chuckle, and left through his own portal.

Content that his plan was airtight, Axel made his way down the deserted alleyways of the world that never was. He balanced one of his chakram on the tip of his finger and spun it, whistling a tune as he went. At one point, he actually stopped and laughed out loud, surprised at himself for exhibiting happiness. Even with the world in danger, having his best friend back to help him save it was more than enough to put him in a good mood.

However, in his good mood, he neglected to notice the shadow that flittered between buildings, trailing him.

"I'm starting to hear her voice," Axel thought. "Must be getting close, then," he said, grinning.

"Maybe…waiting isn't good enough," Kairi said as she gazed out towards the Destiny Islands. The sun was just beginning to rise, and the melding shades of yellow and orange glinting off the ocean brought back memories of that boy from so long ago. She could feel a new determination in herself rising with it.

And gathering his composure, Axel responded, with as much compassion and grandeur as he could muster, "My thoughts exactly! If you have a dream, don't wait. Act!" and summoned a dark portal behind her. "One of life's little rules. Got it memorized?"

Kairi turned with a start to face him. "Who are you?" she asked, fear evident in her voice.

"Axel. I'm an acquaintance of Sora's." He extended his hand to her, fully expecting her to take it. "Why don't we go see him?"

Her voice raised to a squeak. "…Sora?" But before she could finish her thought, she was surrounded by a quartet of dusks. And now, in her vulnerability, Axel made his move. He conjured another portal behind her, and offered his hand to her once more. "Come on, Kairi. I think we can help each other," he said, spreading as much fake concern as he could across his words. "Hey, I feel like we're friends already."

Taking one last look back to the islands, she sighed, and took his hand. With a mixture of fear and anger, she responded "Well, you aren't acting very friendly," and followed him into the darkness.

As Axel led her through the gap between worlds, he heard a robe shuffling behind him. He casually turned around to see another cloaked figure a distance behind him – a blue tuft of hair spilling from his hood. Upon being spotted, the cloaked figure accelerated to a sprint towards them. Recognizing what this meant, he pushed Kairi into the light of Twilight Town, then followed her in. He would need Roxas's services to pull this off.

Music cuts

Begin playing (Chaos of the Unconscious) by (Buckethead)

Roxas awoke early that morning, just as the moon and the sun were completing their transition. He hated waking up early, but something wouldn't let him sleep, almost as if gaining a heart compelled him to experience all the life he had missed out on. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he searched Olette's guest room for a pencil and paper. Finding it, he scribbled a note to Olette upon it.

"Hey Olette. Couldn't sleep this morning, went out for a jog. Don't wait up on me, I'll catch up with everyone later today.

-Roxas"

Careful not to make a sound, he opened the door to her bedroom and approached her sleeping figure. Her breathing was even, the rise and fall of her chest producing a certain calmness to the air. He allowed himself to watch her figure for just a moment, before gently brushing the hair out of her face and leaving the note on her nightstand. If he gave himself any more time, he may actually forget to leave.

As he jogged his usual circuit around town, he let his mind run blank and his legs carry him as they pleased. Twilight Town was completely still at dawn, save for a few chirping birds just beginning to wake in the distance. In what seemed like a few minutes, but was actually more like a full hour, he found himself back at Twilight Mansion. Taking a seat on the stone bench in the courtyard for a quick breather, he started sorting out yesterday's events in his mind. It wasn't exactly fair to Olette for Roxas to just up and leave her to take care of some Organization that she didn't even know existed, especially right after he came back to her. But could he really tell her everything that happened, and would soon happen? Would she be able to accept that he would be putting himself in immediate danger, taking on something much greater than himself?

He shook his head at that thought. Of course she would trust him; after all, she trusted him when he had her write on the back of that photo without so much as asking him what it was for. She would trust him with anything.

"I'll just have to tell her then. It's only right," he decided, getting back to his feet. As he stood, a dark portal opened before him, and Axel fell from it so fast that he nearly lost his balance. He was sweaty, and out of breath.

"Roxas, I don't have time to explain! Saix saw me with Kairi, I've dropped her off with your friends. Keep him busy!" he shouted, dashing off into the woods.

But before Roxas could stop him to ask any questions, Saix emerged from the darkness, and turned to face him. "Roxas. So good to see you again," he said, his voice null of any emotion whatsoever. "I wish we could have met again under better circumstances, but I currently have a…traitor to take care of."

He took a few steps towards the forest, but Roxas blocked his path with Oblivion. He didn't know what Axel was up to, but he wasn't about to let Saix get to him.

"Yeah? Well you have one more to deal with now. You're not touching Axel."

Saix was taken aback. "Oh?" he mused, seemingly delighted at the idea of Roxas standing up to him. "I see the Key Bearer still has much influence over you. Such a shame that you're on his side, Roxas. You could have had everything." And with a flick of his wrist, Saix summoned his claymore.

"Axel, this better be good," Roxas muttered, before charging Saix, both Keyblades poised to strike.

Music cuts

"So, what's Roxas up to?" Hayner asked, grinning heavily and putting unnecessary emphasis on the word 'Roxas'. Olette rolled her eyes at him. Ever since Roxas showed up, the other two boys prodded her to no end about their blossoming relationship.

"Hayner, do you WANT me to kick your other shin?" she asked, barely trying to conceal her laughter.

Hayner winced, remembering a few days back when he and Pence imitated the awkward manner in which Olette and Roxas were holding hands under a table. They had tried to lace their fingers, but because Roxas' hands were so much bigger than Olette's, she had caught two of her fingers where only one was supposed to fit, and neither wanted to move to fix it. Noticing the two of them cracking up, Olette had swiftly kicked Hayner right in the shins to get them to stop.

"And Pence, you're lucky you were out of reach then, or I'd have got you too," she said, smiling with mock enthusiasm.

"Aw c'mon Olette, don't be sore about it. It was funny! You two are slower than turtles going uphill," Pence said. They all laughed, though it was obvious that Olette was trying her best not to.

"Whatever…" she conceded. "He just got here and all. Maybe now isn't the best time for me to make a huge move on him."

"Fair enough," Hayner said, not wanting to push it too far. "Seriously now though, what's he been up to? It's Saturday, don't tell me he's still sleeping."

"Oh right, sorry. He went out for a jog this morning. Guess he wants to try and learn the lay of the town."

"Or maybe he wants to get super buff so you'll think he's hot," Pence chirped, sticking out his tongue at her. She was about to throw the nearest object at him, when seemingly from nowhere, a girl in a short pink dress fell face first on the floor between the three of them.

They simultaneously jumped with a start, and gave nervous glances to each other. After standing in stunned silence for a few moments, Olette said, with sternness in her voice "Well? Someone check on her!"

Begin playin (Relaxing music (Instrumental piano))

Hayner approached her and shook her shoulder. "You okay?" he asked, as she stirred to a sitting postion, trying to take in her new surroundings.

"What?..." she moaned, still groggy from being knocked out.

"You came flying out of a hole in the wall! You nearly gave us heart attacks!" Pence exclaimed, and the other two nodded in seriousness as Hayner helped her to her feet.

"You should sit for a while. That was a pretty nasty fall," he told her, leading her to the couch where Olette was sitting.

"Thanks…uh…what's your name?" she asked.

"I'm Hayner. These are my friends, Pence and Olette," he said, each waving as their respective name was called. "And you are?"

"Kairi," she answered.

"Well, you crashed in the right house, Kairi," Hayner said. "I like to think that we're the friendliest bunch here in Twilight Town." Olette and Pence high fived, pulling a few giggles from Kairi. Then she stopped suddenly, and tried to get to her feet, but lightheadedness got the better of her, and she fell back to the couch.

"Whoa now, take it easy for a bit," Hayner told her.

"Yeah, sit for a while. What's the rush?" Olette asked.

"I'm looking for someone – a dear friend of mine. We got separated years ago, but I think he may be here."

"What's his name?" Olette asked.

"Sora."

The three Twilight youth turned to face each other. "Sora? Was he the kid with the goofy hair from the other day?" Pence asked.

"Right, and the floppy yellow shoes?" Hayner added.

"That's the guy all right," Olette finished, noting the expression on Kairi's face. "Sound like the Sora you know?"

"That's the one! He promised me he'd find me again, I should have known better than to doubt it!"

Olette clasped her hands to her chest. "What a romantic story!" It reminded her a lot of her own situation with Roxas. Surely if it worked out for her, it would work out for Kairi?

"If you stick around, Sora's bound to show up!" Pence told her enthusiastically.

"Yeah, he said he's coming back," Hayner added.

"Okay!" she chirped, feeling happy again for the first time in years. The feeling would not last long.

"What took you so long, Kairi?" a voice resonated in the air. Axel emerged from a portal of darkness, flooding Kairi's mind with the recollection of being kidnapped just a few hours ago. "Somehow, I just KNEW you'd be here…" he said, calmly approaching her. "I tell ya Kairi, you've got a lot of guts, jumping right into the darkness like that." And as the spectre took her wrist, the two boys were powerless to stop him from dragging her back into the darkness. And just as quickly as she had appeared, now had she vanished.

After the three gathered their senses, Olette spoke up. "We have to do something about this. Let's split up and look for Sora, something tells me he's back. He'll know what to do. Whoever finds him should call the other two, and we'll all meet up at the train station." And with that, the three dashed out of the usual spot, leaving only the fluttering curtain to tell that they had been there.

Pence was the one to find him.

"Heeeey!" Hayner shouted at the rest of the group, Olette running by his side. They formed up in a circle to break the news to Sora.

"So, how do you guys know Kairi?" he asked, still fully unaware of the events that transpired just minutes ago. Everyone hung their head in sorrow. Together, they recapped the story to Sora. "Wow, Kairi was really here!" Even if she had been kidnapped again, the fact that she was indeed still alive fueled his ambition. There was hope after all!

"Sorry man…" Hayner groaned.

"Hey…it's not your fault. C'mon, cheer up!" But given a few seconds, the brightness faded from his expression. "Like I can even say that…"

Finally, he exclaimed, "I gotta help Kairi!" with such force that Goofy dropped the trophy Seifer gave them, and the four jeweled orbs split off, each youth catching one, and Sora saving the blue one. As he held it to the sun and watched it sparkle in the Twilight, Olette again noticed his figure change, ever so quickly, to that of Roxas. And then just like that, it was gone again.

Then, without warning, the jewel began to float in front of him, and he fired a beam of light into the sky from some foreign sword. When the light subsided, he turned to them, a new determination in his face. "A new road is open. And Kairi and Riku are waiting on it!"

"You better get going then!" Olette encouraged.

"But you better come back too," Hayner added.

"Promise," he said with a grin.

Music Fades

Begin playing (Inferno) by (Buckethead)

Both organization members were exhausted. The battle had raged for hours without claiming a victor. Suddenly, a wave of realization washed upon Saix.

"Oh, you are very clever, Key of Destiny. I didn't think you'd keep me busy this long, but I will still have the Key Bearer on OUR side!" he shouted, and disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

Roxas collapsed to his back. It's a good thing Saix decided to stop there, he didn't know how much longer he could have fought. He was still alive of course, but then all Axel wanted him to do was distract him, right?

"Good job, buddy. We pulled it off after all." Axel rested a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Sorry about that, but I had to let the Twilight kids see me kidnap Kairi in public, that way they'd tell Sora…" he trailed off, expecting to see Roxas filling in the rest.

"And then Sora would have a vendetta against you…" he added.

"And therefore a vendetta against the entire organization! Exactly!" Axel finished, that childish optimism back in his expression. "I would have just dropped her off in front of Sora and kidnapped her there in front of him directly," he went on, "But Saix caught me taking her from the Islands. I couldn't afford to be waiting on Sora to show up for that long with Saix chasing me. It's too risky. So I had to have you distract him for me."

"You really thought this through, didn't you?"

Axel scratched the back of his neck. "I do my best. But I didn't plan on getting caught so early. The rest of the Organization will be on to us now. And they'll stop at nothing to get her back. Things will be a lot harder from here on, I'm not sure it's safe for you to stay here."

"I know. But I have to explain myself to Olette first."

"Oh, you whole people and your relationships…Very well. We don't have to start right away." He chuckled, and disappeared into darkness.

Xemnas laughed a hearty laugh – the kind of laugh he hadn't felt in a long time.

"This was their master plan? Saix, see to it that Sora is told the truth. Tell him Axel is no longer acting in our best interests, and not to take his actions as our own. As for Roxas…I have new plans for him. I do believe we may be able to work this to our advantage."

"Of course, my liege."

Music Cuts

Begin playing (Sea Wall) by (Buckethead)

"Wow Roxas, I had no idea you had been through so much," she said, feeling guilty that there was nothing she could do to help him.

"Well, it could be a lot worse. I could still be floating in nothingness. You've done plenty for me, Olette. Now let me do something for you," he answered with sincere gratitude. "You brought me back here. For that, I owe it to you, maybe if not the whole world, to stop Xemnas and everything he's working towards. I had to tell you, because I didn't want you to think I just up and left without properly thanking you."

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Neither of them really knew where they would go after they said goodbye. Finally, Roxas took her hand, and said "I can't lie to you, Olette. I'm scared. I'm terrified. I may not come back here in one piece. Xemnas is ruthless, and the rest of the organization is no less powerful than he is. But you gave me this life, so I owe it to you. Even if I perish, I will always be with you in spirit."

Faced with the prospect of losing him, Olette was overcome with emotions that she had no idea she possessed. Knowing full well that this may be the last time she saw him for a very long time, she pulled him to herself and kissed him like she had never kissed anyone before. All the tears and passion built up over the years melded and exploded over them like a meteor shower. He could see the emerald green of her eyes reflected in the plant life, could feel the carefree brush of her breath in the wind that surrounded them. He held her tight, her hair falling between his fingers, her cheek soft and yielding like water. And when they finally opened their eyes, Olette was positively glowing with all the brilliance and vivacity of the moon overhead.

And Roxas never knew with more certainty that the world was worth saving as he did when Olette whispered in his ear, "Make sure you come back alive."