Thechaosmaster: I'm back baby! Here it is, the next chapter in the DigiHearts series, here the group arrives at Beasts Castle, this has been months in the making, mostly because I hit a massive wall called, Writers Block, but know this, I'm back, and I plan on staying, so there! But I must admit, I didn't think it would take me this long to write one simple chappy, well, anyways, you all know how it goes, so let's get on with the show!

"Goggle-Head" means regular speech

'Goggle-Head ' Means thinking/mental conversations with Hazzado and/or Can

"Goggle-Head " means Hazzado talking

DIsclaimer: Kurivolt: Chaos does not own the rights to Kingdom Hearts, Digimon, or Disney, if he did, Axel most likely would have had his own story and playable quest in KHII and if he owned Digimon, Rika and Takato probably would have ended up together, well then, enjoy!

Chapter 5: The Mystery Of The Rose

The gang of eight had departed for the next world, after destroying several enemy ships, the gang had arrived at the next world, which was a giant castle, Jeri was amazed by the look of the castle and said, "It's almost like the castle in Hollow Bastion, right guys?"

Everyone nodded as they headed to the inside of the castle, then Takato looked around and asked, "I wonder who lives here?"

"Well, we won't find out by just standing out here, now, will we? Let's go and find out." Rika stated, then she headed inside.

Everyone nodded then followed her inside, they soon found the castle to be dark and eerie, with the only source of light was from the candles and from the moon peaking in through the windows. After Sora and Henry closed the doors, Sora asked, "Hey, what is this place?"

Donald looked around and said, "It's huge!"

Takato nodded and said, "Yeah, almost reminds me of home…almost."

"It's sorta gloomy, don't ya think?" Goofy asked.

Rika then asked, "Does anyone else get that ominous vibe from this place?"

Henry nodded and said, "Yeah, it's unsettling, to say the least."

"I wonder who lives here?" Sora asked.

Then the castle shook and everyone heard a loud, familiar roar echoed through the castle. Then Goofy asked, "Hey, does anybody else recognise that?"

Everyone nodded and Takato said, "Yeah, that's the Beast!"

Donald nodded and said, "You're right!"

"So, does that means that this is his castle?" Jeri asked.

"Most likely." Drake hummed.

"Maybe we should check check up on him." Goofy suggested.

Everyone nodded in agreement but then Sora said, "Look!"

Everyone saw a Shadow Heartless dash towards an open door then Donald said, "C'mon!"

Everyone dashed towards where the Heartless dashed off to, and Donald poked his head in and saw that the room had a very decorative interior, a large shag carpet, a massive fireplace in the back, purple wallpaper with a diamond pattern, but what caught Takato's eyes, was the strange, almost magical glowing red rose in a cylinder glass container on the table in the back of the room.

Then Donald asked, "Where did it go?" Then Donald spotted the rose and walked towards it, while the others investigated the room some more.

Henry seemed to be inspecting the fire place and thought, 'While this fireplace seemed to be well kept, it's clearly old, probably about, say fifty years old, maybe even older. However, as old it is, one thing is certain, this thing here, is original, that means that it's an antique. Interesting, hmm.'

Takato and Rika looked around at the paintings in the room and Rika jokingly asked, "Think that the Beast could give you some tips on interior decoration for your castle, Goggle-Head?"

Takato lightly chuckled and shook his head, then he said, "I doubt it. Some of this stuff looks older then we are, Rika! And besides, I think I would like to keep the castle at home looking just the way it is."

Rika shrugged her shoulders and said, "Whatever you say, Goggle-Head."

Then Donald, who has been drawn in by the rose's beauty, went to grab it, when the Heartless showed up making him jump a few feet away and he quaked, "Found it!"

Then the entire room was filled with Heartless and the group called forth their weapons, Takato decided that he could go for offence instead of speed, summoned The Bonds Of Hazard, and Sora summoned his new Keyblade, the Hidden Dragon. The hand guard looked like Mushu's head, and the blade was a burst of flame coming out of the Dragons mouth, it also had the medal that was given to Mulan from the Emperor for a token, then the group was forced to the center of the room and the Tamers looked at one another and nodded.

At first, the Heartless didn't move, then they charged in on the group, Sora swung at one with his Hidden Dragon Keyblade and took out a decent amount of Heartless, Jeri was swinging her sword, The Noble Lion, at yet another Heartless, destroying it.

The whole group was attacking the Heartless that was surrounding them, but even with their large numbers, the Heartless just kept coming, not even Drake could eliminate all of them with his attacks, with how many Heartless there was, the group was going to need a miracle to save them.

Then the whole group was backed to the table where the rose was, and the Heartless just kept coming, "Oh, come on already, I'm getting sick and tired of having to fight all of these guys, if Renamon was here, she'd wipe the floor with these guys!" Rika yelled in frustration.

Takato then yelled, "Really, Rika!? You're gonna go back to the way you were back then!?"

Rika glared at the Goggle-Headed prince and said, "Right now? You better believe it, Goggle-Head! I am getting really frustrated right now, and anything that could get rid of these things faster, would suffice!"

Then Donald yelled, "Somebody help us!"

Just then the doors were slammed open, then slightly closed and two large, hairy, clawed hands pushed the doors open, and everyone saw a familiar creature that kind of resembled a chimera, walked into the room, and the group smiled, that is, until the Tamers saw the look of anger on the Beast's face, then Rika, Henry, and Jeri all got away from the table as they watched Beast swipe away the Heartless, then Drake grabbed Takato and flew up and went to the other side of the room, Sora seeing this asked, "What are you doing?"

When he didn't get an answer, he saw Beast walk up to him and Sora said, "Just in time!" Then Sora was shoved away and hit a wall, then Donald and Goofy were shoved away as well.

Then Beast walked up to the rose and gently picked it up, then he gripped the rose and walked out of the room, not even bothering to acknowledge the others.

Then, Sora, Donald and Goofy got up and with the others, they walked to the door and Goofy asked, "Gee, do ya think he maybe forgot who we are?"

"With this many Heartless around, something must be up." Sora suggested.

Donald was still rubbing his beak and asked, "Why'd he have to do that?"

Everyone nodded at Goofy's suggestion, and Takato said, "Alright, time to find out just what's going on here."

Everyone nodded then walked out back into the Entrance Hall, when Donald and Jeri noticed someone at the top the East Hall staircase and both said, "Hmm?"

"What is it guys?" Sora asked the two of them, and everyone turned to Jeri and Donald.

Then Jeri looked over and said, "I think there was someone looking down from the top of the East Staircase."

Donald nodded and said, "I just know I saw a lady top of those stairs as well…"

Everyone looked up and Takato thought, 'Well, if the Beast is here, then that must mean that must have been Belle.'

Then Goofy said what Takato was thinking, "Well… If the Beast is here in the castle, that lady musta been Belle, right?"

Everyone nodded and Sora said, "Yeah, maybe so. Belle might know what's happened to the Beast, too."

Goofy nodded and said, "C'mon! Let's go find her!"

As the gang walked to the stairs they became surrounded by a new type of Heartless called, 'Hookbats,' they were just what they sounded like, red bats with large hooks attached to them, Takato was trying to attack them but they kept dodging his attacks, when suddenly, his Zero's Vaccine Reverse Keyblade caught the hook and was lifted upwards, then Takato had an sudden idea, he then swung his Keyblade at another Hookbat and he was able to use the one stuck on his Keyblade to hit the other ones, then after a few strikes, both Hookbats were destroyed and Takato fell back to the ground and landed on his feet.

Rika walked up to him and asked with a raised eyebrow, "Since when can you use your enemies to destroy other enemies?"

Takato rubbed the back of his head and said, "It was an accident, but apparently that hook on them is their weakness, just grab them with your Keyblade, and then swing them at the other enemies."

Rika thought about it then said, "Wow, talk about using your enemies weaknesses to our advantages."

Henry nodded and said, "We'll keep this filed away for later, for now, though, we should go and find Belle, and try to learn what happened to the Beast."

Everyone nodded then headed up the East side staircase and walked until they reached a long hallway. Then the group saw a large set of double doors and Sora placed his finger to his lips and said, "Shh."

The Tamers rolled their eyes and Rika said, "Airhead, I doubt that we need to keep quite here, this hallway is long enough that from where we're standing, our voices would be only a whisper."

Sora just ignored her and crept towards the door, while the Tamers just walked, and Drake simply flew as they approached the door they heard a muffled females voice say, "Oh. What am I going to do?"

Sora pointed to the door, while Donald and Goofy nodded, and the Tamers and Drake had a collective thought, 'Wouldn't it be smarter to just knock?'

Donald then walked away from the door and said, "Okay."

Then he charged forward and Sora yelled, "Donald! Wait!"

Just as Donald was about to hit the door, it opened up wide and he fell on his beak, then he asked, "Hey! Who opened the door?"

Rika then walked in and suddenly smirked devilishly and said, "Maybe this will teach you to think before you act, Feather Face." (A/N: Yes! Finally! I finally came up with an appropriate nickname for Donald! Yes! Ehem, back to the story!)

Then everyone looked in and saw a women with black sandals, and a blue and white dress, with light brown eyes, and light brown hair, tied up with a blue bow, she looked down and said, "Oh, I'm so happy you're here!" She then picked up the duck and said, "Donald!"

The Tamers had to hold back a laugh, while Rika asked, "Does anybody have a camera? I would love to have this as bribing material for later!"

Takato chuckled at his girlfriends remark and thought, 'She still has her unpredictable attitude. Some might confuse her for being ruthless, but that's actually her way of showing that she cares for someone. She can be kind, but she likes to make fun of people for kicks, and some might think that she is being cruel, but all it is really, is just her way of proving that she's someone's friend.'

Belle heard Rika's little remark, and said, "Sora, Goofy, Takato, Rika, Henry, Hazzardmon."

Everyone gave the princess a wave and Drake said, "I've actually been calling myself 'Drake' for a while now, Belle."

Belle smiled and said, "It suits you well, Drake."

Then Donald said, "Hey, put me down! Put me down! Put! Me! Down!"

Belle smiled then put the duck back on his feet, and everyone saw that his eyes were spinning.

Rika laughed then said, "I'll be sure he never lives this down!"

Takato then folded his arms and asked, "Are you being mean to Donald, Rika?"

The ex Digimon ice queen smiled wickedly and said, "Nooo."

Takato lightly chuckled and said, "Somehow, I don't believe you."

Henry chuckled and said, "That's Rika for ya. Almost makes ya feel sorry for Donald."

Drake smiled and said, "Can't wait to see what she has in store for the gang back home."

Then after looking at each other, the Tamers started laughing, then after things calmed down. Then Belle noticed the other girl and said, "Oh! Jeri, I didn't even recognize you! You look different!"

Jeri smiled and brushed her hand against the hilt of her sword and said, "Yeah, a lot has happened since I last saw you."

Belle then said, "Well, you'll have to fill me in on it later."

Then after Donald regained his bearings, he asked, "Where's the Beast?"

Belle said, "Oh, he must be in the west wing. We don't talk like we used to."

"Did something happen?" Sora asked.

Belle nodded and said, "Yes. Isn't that why you're here?"

Everyone shook their heads and Takato said, "Not really, we were actually on another quest to save the worlds…again." The rest of the group nodded then Takato said, "But if something's wrong with the Beast, then we'll stay here and help out as much as we can."

Jeri nodded and asked, "Yeah, don't worry about it, Belle, we'll figure out what's up, don't worry."

Then Donald asked, "Beast won't talk to you?"

Belle shook her head and answered, "He's been acting strange lately. The only ones who might know why are locked up in the dungeon. I want to help them, but…"

Sora then asked, "Wait a second. Who locked who up?"

"The Beast locked up his servants." Belle told them.

"But why would he do that?" Jeri asked in concern. "I mean, he seemed a little, vicious when we last saw him, but I didn't think he would lock up his servants for no apparent reason."

Takato nodded and said, "You're right Jeri, and the more I hear about this, the more I wonder, what happened to the Beast?"

Belle nodded and said, "That's what I don't know."

Sora hummed then said, "Hmm. Where's this dungeon?"

"You can get to the undercroft from the west hall. The dungeon is down there." Belle told them.

Sora nodded and said, "West Hall. Got it."

Belle smiled and said, "Please be careful."

Sora gave Belle a thumbs up while Takato gave her a salute, and the others nodded then Jeri said, "Don't worry, we will. And we promise, we'll figure out just what's going on with the Beast."

Belle smiled and said, "Thank you, all of you."

The others nodded then they headed out in the direction of the West Hall, when they were attacked by a Large Body and some Shadow Heartless, after destroying them, the group of eight headed towards the West Hall, once there, they saw the corridors were lined with knights armor and Takato thought, 'Okay, that's kind of cool! Kind of wish that the castle at home looked like this.'

Then Hazzado said, "But, if you remember, the castle back at Hollow Bastion is in nothing but ruins now. So, even if you were able to have knights armor in the hallways, it would be pointless to do so when the castle is in ruins. And besides, I'm not certain if Leon and the gang would allow you to rebuild the castle anyways."

Takato gave him a mental nod then thought, 'True, but it's still my home, and my kingdom, I'm sure that I could rebuild the old castle, if not, well there's still my dad's study.'

The conversation ended when Takato heard Sora say, "There should be a way to the undercroft from here."

Takato then saw a wardrobe out in the distance and walked towards it, then he saw that behind the wardrobe was a set if double doors, and Takato was certain that would lead to the dungeon and it was blocked by the wardrobe, then he said, "Doesn't it seem kind of strange how the Beast locked up his servants in the dungeon, but blocked the door with a simple wardrobe, wouldn't the servants have gotten out by now?"

Rika, who heard his question said, "Who knows? Let's just go and move that wardrobe and free the servants, then find out what happened to the Beast already!"

Sora nodded then walked to the side of the wardrobe and started pushing it and when the door was cleared, he cheered, "Here it is!"

Just then, the wardrobe came to life, and yelled in a women's voice, "Do you MIND!?"

Then she, at least, Takato thought it was a she, jumped back to in front of the door and was about to fall asleep when Jeri yelled, "Wait!" Then she suddenly regain her bearings and said, "Uh, I mean, excuse me."

The wardrobe looked to Jeri and asked, "Yes? What is it?"

Jeri looked a bit nervous, then regained her confidence and said, "We were sent by Belle to release the Beast's servants from the dungeon."

The wardrobe's eyes widened and she said, "Oh, so you know Belle?" Everyone nodded, then she said, "Goodness! You're here to help my friends?" Again, everyone nodded, then she asked, "Well, why didn't you say so?"

This caused everyone to sweat drop, and Jeri said, "Er…"

The wardrobe said, "I'm sorry I startled you. Oh. I used to be human, you know, until the enchantress cast her spell. I was turned into a wardrobe when the prince was turned into a beast."

This cased everyone's eyes to widen and Donald shouted, "The prince is the Beast!?"

"The Beast is a prince!?" Goofy asked in equal confusion.

The wardrobe nodded then said, "That's right. Although his behavior was far from princely at the time."

Takato asked, "How did the prince get turned into a beast?"

Sora then asked a follow up question, "And what's this about a spell?"

Then Henry, starting to put the pieces together, asked, "Are they connected in some way?"

The wardrobe nodded and said, "Indeed. Well, it was a cold winters night…"

Everyone nodded and leaned in to listen more as the wardrobe stood up straight and said, "That's all for now. You can here rest when you rescue the others. It'll give you something to look forward to." This caused a mass anime face drop from the group, after they stood back up and brushed themselves off.

Then Rika angrily growled, "That was so not funny!"

Takato nodded and said, "Kind of reminds me of Terriermon."

Drake nodded and said, "Yeah, or Impmon."

"Or Kazu." Jeri said, and everyone else nodded in agreement.

Then the wardrobe said, "Hurry, now. The dungeon is damp and chilly. Certainly no place for a clock."

Goofy then asked, "A clock?"

The wardrobe smiled and said, "You'll find out soon enough."

Sora nodded then turned to his friends and said, "All right. Let's get going."

Everyone nodded then Jeri turned to the wardrobe and said, "Thank you for allowing us to help."

The wardrobe smiled and said, "It's me who should be thanking you for your help, my dears."

Jeri smiled then the group of eight walked through the doors that would lead them to their destination. After trekking through the long, dark hallway, and down a few flights of stairs, the gang arrived at a large room with a set of large double doors, with two gargoyle like designs etched into them, and a large keyhole in the center of the doors, and two gargoyle statues placed on both side of the doors.

Takato looked around the room, then he said, "Guess this is the place."

Everyone nodded, then Donald walked to the door and tried to push it open, when Takato saw the doors eyes began to glow and Takato said, "Donald, get away from there!"

Donald looked up and asked, "Wha?"

Then the door glowed in a dark purple aura and Donald ran way, the door then became a Heartless called 'Thresholder.' The statues that made up Thresholder have lilac colored bodies, while their horns, heads, arms, belts and chests are dark indigo. Their claws are yellow and their collars are violet, and the door has turned black, and the lock has turned cyan, with six yellow claws covering it.

Takato then grumbled and sarcastically said, "Wonderful!"

The group nodded in agreement, and then they all summoned their weapons, Takato decided to bring out both of his weapons and held them in reverse gripped position, then Rika said, "Alright, guess we have to beat this gate keeper in order to get to the servants, everyone ready?"

The group nodded then they split into three teams, Jeri and Drake, Sora, Donald and Goofy, and Takato, Rika and Henry, the three teams split up to attack at different angles, Drake and Jeri would attack both up front and in the sky, then they would back off and let their friends take over.

After Jeri and Drake finished up their attacks and got out of the way, Takato charged in holding both of his weapons normally and strike at the Thresholder, then he fell back after launching a swirling Fire magic at it. Just as Rika and Henry were about to commence a followup attack, the stone gargoyles around the room suddenly came to life as 'Gargoyle' Heartless, leaving them distracted and having Sora, Donald and Goofy move in forward to charge at Thresholder, whose arms then grew in size then they struck at the trio, knocking them back.

"Ugh! Yeash, this guy is one tough door!" Sora yelled.

Takato nodded as he proceeded to do a rapid combo on the door, which then began to twitch rapidly as the Keyhole began to glow in a dark aura, and soon it had a face, Rika saw this and aimed her Keyblade at the face and a beam of light was released from the tip of its blade, and the shadow was launched out of the door, turning the statues back to stone, Takato then scanned the new creature and found that it was called the 'Possessor' the thing couldn't really attack, so the group of heroes were able to attack the shadow known as the Possessor, but soon it vanished into a dark mist, and Thresholder came back to life.

As the group attacked Thresholder, more Gargoyles and Hookbats started appearing, the three Tamer Keybladers each grabbed one with their weapons and proceeded to unleash a onslaught barrage of attacks at it, causing the Possessor to start to struggle against the doors, when Sora used his Keyblade to release it from the doors, then Jeri charged at it, and with three strikes, destroyed the Possessor.

Once the Possessor faded away, everyone turned back towards Thresholder and saw it fade away, revealing a blank stone door. Takato then said, "Whew, that was annoying."

Everyone nodded and Donald asked, "You think the dungeons past this door?"

Goofy nodded and said, "C'mon, we gotta set those servants free!"

"He's right, let's go!" Rika said.

Then Takato opened the door and the group entered the dungeon, and instead of finding people in the dungeon, all that was there was a tea kettle and a tea cup, an antique clock, and a candle holder with three candles sticks, but no people. Then Sora said, "There's nobody here."

"You mean there's nobody to rescue?" Donald asked.

Everyone let out a breath of exhaustion, then they heard a voice with a deep French accent ask, "Did someone say 'rescue'?"

Then they heard another voice say, "Shh. Keep quiet. It might be THEM."

Then they heard a female voice say, "Oh, they look like nice boys and girls to me. Even that strange dragon looks nice."

"We are nice, we're your friends." Goofy said.

Everybody nodded in agreement and Takato said, "Right, we're here to help you guys."

Sora nodded and said, "Yeah, Belle sent us to find you."

Just then the inanimate objects that were sitting on the two chairs and the crates came to life and walked towards the group, and Takato thought, 'Oooookaaaaaay, that's not strange at all.'

Once the four living objects were at the groups feet, they knelt down to be eye level with them. And Sora said, "I'm Sora. Donald. Goofy."

Then Takato said, "And I'm Takato, this here is Drake, Rika, Henry, and Jeri."

Then Jeri asked, "Not to be rude or anything but, what are your names?"

Then the candle said, "Oh, where are our manners, my name's Lumiere."

Donald ran up to the living clock and picked it up, and the clock said, "And I am Cogsworth and… St- stop! D-don't touch! I-I am self-winding, sir!"

Then the tea pot said, "And I am Mrs. Potts, and this is my son, Chip."

Then Goofy walked up to the two, as Donald started to shake the clock and Sora said, "I'm glade you're okay."

Then Lumiere climbed back up to the chair and said, "It is we who are overjoyed to see you!"

Then Goofy asked, "Did somebody put a spell on you guys, too?"

Takato then asked, "Yeah, and what is this about a spell?"

Then Cogsworth said, "Yes, that's right… You heard! It was the enchantress."

Lumiere sadly nodded and folded up his…candle sticks? Arms? Whatever, and said, "It seems so long ago…"

Then Jeri asked, "Do you think you can tell us what this spell is about?"

Mrs. Potts nodded and said, "It was a cold winter's night…An old beggar women came to the castle, and asked for shelter."

Then Cogsworth said, "But the master of this castle, that is of course, the prince…" Then Donald started to mess around with the pendulum of the clock, and he exclaimed, "Stop that! Put me down this instant!" Then Donald brought Cogsworth to the chair, as he continued to tell the tail, "The master turned her away. All because of her, ahem, meager appearance."

"That's awful!" Jeri and Goofy exclaimed and everyone else nodded in agreement.

Then Lumiere nodded and said, "Oui. He was a spoiled prince, so selfish and… how should I say…cruel."

Then Cogsworth yelled, "Lumiere!"

Then Mrs. Potts said, "The old women warned our master not to be deceived by appearances… Still, he would not take her in."

"Then the old women's ugliness melted away, to reveal a beautiful enchantress." Cogsworth said.

Mrs. Potts nodded and said, "She turned the prince into a beast, a shape she thought fitting for his cold heart."

"And to further punish him, everyone in the castle was enchanted, too." Cogsworth finished.

Everyone was silent for a moment, then Sora said, "Wow… That's quite a story."

Everyone nodded then Rika said, "So, the prince was turned into a hideous beast because he couldn't see that beauty wasn't what was on the outside, but what was on the inside. Man, talk about karma."

Jeri looked down and said, "How awful!"

Takato placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "Jeri, unfortunately that is how things are sometimes."

Jeri nodded then Goofy asked "Is there anything we can do to help?"

Then Donald exclaimed, "Let's go get that enchantress!"

Takato shook his head and said, "I don't think that's gonna solve anything, Donald."

Rika nodded and said, "Goggle-Head's right, Feather Face, I think that this is something that the Beast has to solve on his own."

Mrs. Potts nodded and said, "You are correct, miss Rika."

Lumiere nodded and said, "We already know what needs to be done, but with the master out of sorts…"

"He sure was acting weird." Sora said, and everyone else nodded in agreement.

Mrs. Potts nodded and said, "It's almost as if he's forgotten how to trust others."

Cogsworth then asked, "You don't suppose he's been turned into a Heartless, do you?"

Everyone's eyes widened and yelled, "A Heartless!?"

"If they're a part of this, then it's a good thing we're here, right guys?" Sora asked.

Everyone nodded and Donald said, "Let's go find the Beast!"

Cogsworth then said, "Splendid!"

Lumiere then jumped off his chair and walked to the door then he said, "Follow me, messieurs and madams. (A/N: My French is horrible, if anyone can help me translate better, be my guest, and see if I spelled anything wrong.) I know a shortcut." Then Lumiere walked out of the large double doors, and was soon followed by the others.

Then the gang watched as Cogsworth climbed up the stairs that led to the door guarded by the suits of armor, and he walked right in front of them and cleared his…cogs? Then he yelled, "Allow our guests to pass!" It was so loud, that everyone covered their ears in response.

Then, to everyone's amazement, they watched as the armor did a center face, (A/N: Yes, that is a real military position, I know it, because I took four years of JROTC in high school.) allowing access to the door, then Takato said, "Wow, that's incredible!"

Everyone nodded in agreement, as the other people turned furniture walked through, and Cogsworth looked to the group and said, "After you."

Takato and the others nodded, then they walked through the doors and into a deep corridor which led to a big opened up area, then Sora asked, "All right, how do we get out of here?"

Lumiere looked at Sora and said, "I'm afraid we won't be marching out that easily."

Rika rolled her eyes and said, "Nooo, because that would have been too simple."

Takato looked at his girlfriend, then he folded up his arms and asked, "Rika, can you at least try to be a little nice?"

Rika looked at her Goggle-Headed boyfriend and said with a smirk, "I could be, but where's the fun in that?"

Takato sighed in defeat as Lumiere said, "Ahem, anyways, as I was saying. You see, the door leading to the other side is concealed by a sort of contraption."

Henry then asked, "What kind of contraption?"

Everyone heard Cogsworth say, "Observe."

Everyone turned around and saw Cogsworth standing underneath a crank, he then jumped up and landed on the crank, bringing it down, and everyone heard a low creaking sound, the sound chains rattling, and they all turned and saw what looked like a lantern lowering down, but it looked weird, it looked like it was encased in darkness.

Then Donald said, "The lantern came down!"

Lumiere nodded and said, "Indeed it did."

Rika rolled her eyes and sarcastically said, "Thanks for pointing that out, Feather Face. Now then, what does this have to do with anything?"

Lumiere looked at the ginger haired girl and said, "If we could but light all the lanterns in this passage, the secret door would open…"

Mrs. Potts looked to the kids and said, "But, as you can see, the lanterns are already burning—with an enchanted flame."

"You must put out this enchanted flame before I am able to light the lanterns properly." Lumiere told the group.

Goofy then asked, "Can't ya just throw some water on 'em?"

Henry shook his head and said, "I don't think it's as easy as that, Goofy."

Mrs. Potts nodded and said, "I'm afraid you're right, Henry, it's just not enough. But if you use the power of light…"

Takato, Rika, Henry and Sora, all looked at each other and Sora asked, "How about we try using our Keyblades?"

Mrs. Potts and Lumiere looked at one another and Lumiere said, "Let's give it a try." Then Mrs. Potts jumped up and added a little water, while Sora unleashed a beam of light from his Keyblade, extinguishing the dark flame, and Lumiere once again lit the lantern, lighting it up in a normal flame. Then Lumiere said, "Bravo!"

Then Mrs. Potts said, "Only three lanterns left! If we work together, we'll have that door open in no time!"

Sora then said, "Piece of cake!" And for once, everyone nodded in agreement.

But then Lumiere said, "Again, it is not quite so simple, mon ami. Certainly you cannot expect Cogsworth to hang from that handle forever?"

Then Cogsworth yelled, "What? Why? Lumiere! You—"

Just then, Cogsworth saw a hand grip the handle, then he looked up and saw Jeri standing there with a kind smile, then she said, "I've got this, don't worry."

Cogsworth looked at her for a while, then he said, "Thank you, Jeri, your kindness and generosity has no end. Thank you." Jeri happily nodded, then Cogsworth let go of the handle, leaving Jeri to keep it in place.

Then Rika said, "Well then, now that that's taken care of, let's get to work!"

Everyone nodded, then a few minutes later, the last lantern was lit and Rika went to let Jeri, "That was the last one, Jeri. We're all set."

Jeri smiled and let go of the handle and said, "Alright then, that wasn't so hard!" Then she let go of the handle.

Rika nodded then the two walked back to the others and Rika asked, "Okay, that was the last one."

"Are we all set?" Sora asked the three living objects.

Then Lumiere nodded, and said, "Oui. The secret door should open now."

Everyone waited for a while, then Rika folded her arms and said, "Well? Nothing happened."

Then Cogsworth said, "No need to worry." (A/N: Anybody else hear the phrase 'That's when I worry the most.' When that was said? Hehe heh.^_^' ) He then turned around and pointed to a block that was sticking out, then he said, "Just push that block over there—the one that's sticking out."

Drake said, "I've got it." He then flew over to the block, and pushed it into the wall, then everyone watched as the wall slowly fell into the ground, revealing a secret passage way.

Then Lumiere said, "Now I must check on the castle. I fear my absence has been too long."

Mrs. Potts nodded and said, "I'd best be off, too, dears."

Sora then said, "Watch out for Heartless!"

Then Mrs. Potts, Chip, and Lumiere left, then Cogsworth said, "The master's room is at the very end of the west wing. I shall go on ahead and wait for you."

Everyone nodded then walked towards the West Hall, then Jeri said, "I must say, this castle is quite different then the one at Hollow Bastion, right, Takato?"

Takato nodded slowly then he had a sudden thought, 'It's strange, even after a year of remembering my past, it still seems that there are parts of it that I seem to be forgetting. Because, for some reason the name 'Hollow Bastion' doesn't sound like the proper name for the place. But if that's true then, what could it be? I think that the next time we're there, I should go and check to see if my dad's old study is still there. Hmm…'

Takato then pulled out the report titled 'Ansem's Secret Report #2' and was about to read it, when Rika said, "Hey, Goggle-Head, c'mon, we're leaving!"

Takato looked up and saw that everyone was ahead, then he put what he believed to be his fathers note away, then he said, "Sorry, Rika! I'm coming!" Takato then started running up the stairs, after a while, the group of eight made it to the end of the west hall, while fighting off Gargoyles.

***Meanwhile***

Inside the Beast's room, we see the beast talking to a member of the Organization, who said, in a man's voice, "It is time you dealt with Belle. She's scheming to take everything you have." The cloaked man then walked behind him and said, "This castle, your precious rose. And then—your life. Trust no one. Feed your anger! Only anger will keep you strong." The man told the Beast.

The Beast said, "I've had enough of strength. There's only one thing I want—"

Then the cloaked man asked, "What? To love, and be loved in return?" Then the man asked, "Who could ever love a beast?"

This caused the beast to turn back and roar and the Organization member, then the group of nine burst into the room, and when the eight heroes saw the cloaked member, they all summoned their weapons and took a battle stance, while Cogsworth took shelter behind them. Then the cloaked man said, "See? She has accomplices."

Then the cloaked man backed up, then he waved his hand, then summoned a wall of energy in the back part of the room, right where the rose was, then he disappeared in a corridor of darkness, after the Organization member left, everyone dismissed their weapons, and Sora, Donald and Goofy walked up to the Beast, while the Tamers were on edge, Takato looked to his friends and quietly said, "Somenthing's not right. Stay on guard."

Everyone nodded in agreement, then they too walked up to the Beast, then they walked up slowly to the Beast, then Sora cheerfully said, "Hey, Prince."

Then the Beast let loose a loud roar, causing the whole caste to start shaking, and Cogsworth said, "Oh, dear! Master!"

Then the Beast jumped at the group, and everyone dodged out of the way, and Takato summoned his Bonds Of Hazard and said, "Beast! What has gotten into you!?"

Then the Beast looked at the group and let out another loud roar, then the others took a battle position, then Drake charged in and locked claws with Beast, and he said, "Beast, snap out of it! We're your friends! Don't you recognize us?"

Then the Beast threw Drake up into the air and Takato yelled, "Oh, no! Drake!"

The Hazard Dragon recovered in midair and opened his wings to stay midair, then he said, "Something's wrong with him! Be careful!"

Everyone nodded and Jeri jumped out of the way just in time to avoid being clawed to bits, then she said, "This is not looking too good right now!"

Henry nodded then blocked an incoming attack and said, "Yeah, does anyone have any ideas of how we can stop the Beast!?"

Rika charged at the Beast and hit him with the back side of her Keyblade, pushing the Beast back a few inches, then she said, "Well, I doubt that the usual beating him upside the head 'till he comes to his senses would work."

Then Cogsworth said, "If one of you could make him lose his bearings, I could probably get him to snap out of it!"

everyone nodded then Rika and Henry clashed their Keyblades together to block the Beast charging at them, then Takato ran forward and held his Bonds Of Hazard in reverse grip, then he hit the Beast with the backside of the Keyblade, causing Beast to fall to his knees, then Cogsworth ran up to the Beast and yelled, "Please master! Compose yourself!" Then the clock hit him with a blast of energy, and sent him flying back, and caused him to hit the energy barrier, then Cogsworth started charging up another blast of energy, while the heroes protected him, then Cogsworth fired a massive blast of energy at the Beast who fell down to his knees and the dark aura that was enveloping him, disappeared.

Everyone sighed in relief and Takato thought, 'Thank goodness that's taken care of.'

Then he and the others walked up to the Beast who opened his eyes and asked, "Cogsworth… what happened?"

Then the clock nervously said, "Well, Master… ah, you see… that is… How should I say…ah, actually…mmm…"

Then Rika, who was getting tired of the clock beating around the bush said, "Listen, Beast, that creep in the black hooded coat was trying to get you to give into the darkness, and while that was happening, you ended up locking your servants down in the dungeons!"

The beast then asked, "I did what?"

Then Cogsworth said, "Ah…you did!"

Then Sora asked, "Who was that guy you were talking to? The one in black?"

Rika nodded and asked, "That black hooded creep?"

The Beast took a big gasp and said, "Xaldin." The Beast did another breath and said, "…That's his name. He came from the darkness… He used my anger to control me. He took all my sorrow, my sadness, my pain— and turned it all into rage." He explained, "There was nothing I could do… I could no longer see the truth."

Then Goofy said, "Well, I'll be. That must be why you threw all of your friends down there into the dungeon." Everyone looked towards Goofy in surprise as he explained, "You wanted to make sure that you didn't hurt ' em, right?"

Then the beast asked, "Was that it? Was it to protect them?"

Goofy then said, "Sure. We know you're good inside."

Takato then said, "Yeah, there's no doubt about that!"

Everyone nodded in agreement then Cogsworth said, "Their right, Master. We've all seen how kind you can be. After all, Belle can see the goodness in your heart, but I'm afraid that you've yet to—"

Just as Cogsworth was about to finish, Beast stood straight up and said, "Belle!" Beast looked down in sorrow, then he said, "I've mistreated her… I've mistreated her and been so selfish."

Then Sora said, "She didn't say anything about that."

Beast then gripped his head, looked down and said, "She'd never tell anyone of my cruelty… she's too good."

Then Cogsworth said to the group, "You see, I'm afraid he judges himself far too harshly."

Then Sora asked, "Why don't you just go talk to her?"

Beast then turned and said, "But…"

Then Sora butted in and said, "No excuses! C'mon on, we'll go with you."

Beast looked around and saw that everyone was nodding in agreement, then Beast sighed, then said, "Alright, I'll go."

Takato smiled and thought, 'Well, at least we've made progress.'

Then the group of nine headed out of the West Hall, and started back for the East to talk with Belle, but once the group got back to Belles room, all they found was the wardrobe. Then the wardrobe yelled, "Master!"

Then Donald said, "Everybody's safe now."

The Wardrobe smiled and said, "Wonderful! Thank you!"

The Beast noticed that Belle wasn't in the room and asked, "Where's Belle?"

The Wardrobe said, "Why, she left in a hurry. Something about going after this…man in black."

Then the Beast roared, "WHAT!? Why doesn't she do as she's told?"

The wardrobe closed her eyes and turned her back to the Beast and said, "Temper, temper! Her spirit is what makes Belle so special."

Then Sora said, "We'd better go find her!"

The others nodded then Rika said, "C'mon, we've wasted enough time here!"

And with that, the group of nine then left Belles room, and returned to the main entrance, then they heard Belles muffled voice say, "I'm warning you! You'll be sorry!"

Then everyone looked around and Beast said, "Belle! Where are you?"

Then Belle's voice yelled, "Beast! Help! I'm in the ballroom!"

Everyone turned and rushed towards the large double doors, once they were through the doors, everyone saw Belle running to the large glass doors and Beast yelled, "Belle!"

Then Belle said, "I'm alright!"

Just then the group saw a massive black sphere with several twisted tentacles sprouting out of it. Two of the tentacles were large and each one was sporting two metal bands around them, while the rest were smaller and placed more haphazardly around it's body. The tips of these tentacles were orange, and it had a large maw with sharp teeth, and it was wrapped up in chains, Takato's scan told him that this creature was called 'Shadow Stalker.' Then the Shadow Stalker dived into the floors, and transformed the entire ballroom, into a horrified, nightmare version.

Then the groups took a combative stances, Takato with both of his Keyblades, Sora with his Hidden Dragon, Henry, with his Soul's Guardian, Rika with her Force of Balance, and Jeri, with her Noble Lion and then, they charged at the Heartless, but once the group got close to it, it merged with the walls and started launching waves of energy at the group, Drake was able to avoid the attack by flying into the air, then the Heartless separated from the walls, and flew up to the chandelier and merged with that, then it started unleashing waves of energy at the group, attacking everyone in the room, then Takato charged at the chandelier with both of his Keyblades, and proceeded to unleash a fierce combo on the Heartless, and soon, Jeri charged in and ignited her Noble Lion's sword in Fire and unleashed a triple combo on the Heartless, making it begin to struggle against the chandelier, and then Henry used his Keyblade to release the Heartless from the chandelier.

Then the Beast started swinging at the Heartless, until it disappeared into the floor, everyone looked around anxiously, searching for the missing Heartless, until Takato saw something beginning to glow underneath Rika's feet, with a reaction timing of just a few short seconds, he was at his girlfriend's side and knocked her out of the way, just in time for the Heartless then launched itself upwards, right where Rika was standing, Rika looked towards Takato and said, "Thank's, Goggle-Head."

Takato nodded and said, "No problem, now then, let's deal with with this guy!"

Just then, Drake lit his fist in fire and yelled, "Pyrofist! Hiya!" Then Drake sucker punched the Shadow Stalker, knocking it straight into the wall, while the Beast unleashed a ferociously clawed combo, which Jeri followed up by being launched upwards by Goofy's shield, and then slamming her sword at the Heartless, followed up by Sora and Henry launching a twin upwards slash followed by Goofy throwing his shield enhanced by Donald's Thunder magic, then Takato held both of his Keyblades in reverse grip and struck at the Heartless, followed up by Rika slamming her Force Of Balance right on top of the Heartless's head.

Then the Heartless started shaking violently, and became engulfed in a shroud of darkness, Takato feeling something off said, "Something's not right. The Heartless should've been destroyed by now."

Henry nodded and said, "Yeah, but instead, it's encased in darkness, what could be…"

Henry's question was interrupted when the the ball of darkness pulses and then it exploded to reveal a new Heartless called "Dark Thorn" it was massive, and had black skin and was wrapped in teal colored thorns, and both of the things wrists and ankles still had manacles on them. The chains on its arms were broken, but the chain connecting its feet is not. It had a heart shaped hole in its chest, it has a large, toothy maw and beady, glowing yellow eyes, and three long red claws on its creepy arms. Then Drake blinked a couple of times, then he calmly said, "Well, you don't see that everyday."

Then as the group retook their battle positions, but were shocked when the Dark Thorn turned invisible, and everyone had a hard time finding it, and then they all had to split up as the chandelier dropped from the ceiling, then Takato thought, 'Man, it just went from bad to worse, how are we going to fight this thing, if we can't even see it?'

Then Takato heard Hazzado's voice say, "Takato, listen to me, the Heartless has the power to use the shadows to hide itself, preventing any light from being casted upon it."

Takato then mentally asked, 'How do you know this?'

Then Hazzado said, "Remember the Stealth Sneak you guys fought in the Deep Jungle? It had almost the same ability, but this time you won't be able to use the creatures shadow to your advantage, but you can still track it."

Takato, thanks to his years of being a Tamer, and having to chase Drake, when he was still Guilmon, around from time to time, sensed an oncoming attack, coming from his right, dodged just in the nik of time, then the young prince asked, 'How will I be able to sense where this thing is?'

Hazzado then said, "Look carefully, and closely around you, you should be able to see the disturbances that the Shadow cloak gives the Heartless. But be warned, once you hit it, you have to strike with quick and powerful combos, once you do so, try to use the room to your advantage, anyway you see fit."

Takato nodded then began to search the room fiercely, then, for an instant, he saw something in his peripheral vision, and then he charged at it, and slammed his Bonds Of Hazard on it, hitting something, but then he was struck, and sent flying backwards, then he used Arial Recovery, and landed back on his feet, then he turned to his friends and said, "Guys!" Everyone turned to the young Tamer of Hazard as he said, "You have to look carefully to spot this thing, watch out for any kind of disturbances in the air, and if you see any, strike hard and fast!"

the others nodded, not needing any kind of explanation for how the Goggle-Head knew this, then they moved out to keep their eyes peeled, then Takato had a sudden idea come to him and turned to his partner and best friend, then said, "Drake, catch!" He then threw both of his Keyblades at Drake, who then caught them, as Takato took out his D-Ark and a Modify card and said, " Digimodify! Targeting activate!"

Just then a small green gizmo appeared over Drake's right eye, then he looked around and spotted the Heartless, and charged at it with both Keyblades, and brought both of them down, then Takato seeing where the Heartless was, rushed towards it, and with Drake handing him back the Zero's Vaccine Reverse, he jumped on top of the Heartless, then he jumped even higher, and latched himself in the chandelier, and brought it down on top of the Dark Thorn, then he started swinging the chandelier around, with the Heartless still attached, and everyone watched as it suddenly became visible again, and after Takato stopped swinging, he and the others charged at their revealed target.

Each member dealt their own personal attack, Drake, still holding the Bonds Of Hazard, flew up high, right above the creature, and dived down, spiralling, with the Keyblade acting sort of like a drill in that regards, Sora, calling upon Goffy's assistance, entered his Valor form and summoned his Star Seeker, and with both of his Keyblades, charged at it with Henry at his side, then they unleashed a terrible combo attack, which was followed by Jeri and Rika rushing in and strong with magic enhanced strikes.

Then the Beast would attack like a savage animal, and try to cut the thing to ribbons, and Takato would slam his Zero's Keyblade downward, using it just like the hammer it looked like, but before they were able to continue their assaults, the Dark Thorn turned invisible again, making Rika become more angry, then she looked around the room, and saw the disturbance that the Heartless was making, she then charged at it, and lit the tip of her Keyblade on fire and slammed it down as hard as she could, then she jumped on the things head and launched herself upwards, just like how Takato did and said, "Let's see you withstand this, you freak! Hiya!"

She then brought the chandelier down on the Heartless, and took it for a ride once again, and once the Heartless was visible, Takato, Rika, Henry, Jeri, Drake, and the Beast, all charged at it from different points, and with one final combined attack, they finally defeated the Heartless, proof shown by how the Heartless started shaking violently again, but soon started shaking rapidly, and have one last roar, before a large glowing heart came out of it, and it soon faded into darkness. And with the Heartless defeated, the ball room soon changed back to normal.

Then Sora and the others cheered and Sora said, "We did it!"

Then a voice behind the group said, "So you think."

Everyone turned behind them and saw the Organization member standing behind them, then Rika said, "Perfect, now we've got an audience."

Takato then looked at the member and then he and everyone else charged at him and Beast yelled, "Xaldin!"

But just as t the group caught up to him, he disappeared in a C.O.D. (A/N an abbreviation of Corridors of Darkness, if you will.) with his only words being, "Farewell."

Then Beast asked, "What does he want here?"

Sora then said, "He must be with Organization XIII."

Beast turned to Sora and Rika and the others nodded as Rika asked, "Ever heard of the Nobodies?"

Then Henry said, "When a strong hearted person turned into a Heartless, a Nobody's created, too."

Jeri then said, "You see, the Organization…they've got control of all the Nobodies."

Goofy then said, "That's right. And they were gonna make you into a Heartless. That way, they could get that Nobody of yours and have control over it."

Everyone nodded they they all turned as they heard Belle's voice say, "You're all right!"

Beast then yelled, "Belle!" Then he dashed towards Belle, and tried to explain what has happened, but Belle looked upset.

Then the servants entered the room, and everyone was waiting to see what would happen, then the Beast softly said, "Belle… I-I'm sorry—I… wasn't myself. I hope I haven't done anything to hurt you."

belle just kindly smiled, this caused Beast to smile, then Beast said, "Forgive me."

Then Belle said, "I knew you weren't yourself. You don't have to apologize. But I hoped… that you might have changed a little bit." She said, sounding like a mother scolding her children for breaking a lamp, and said, "I wish you could start trusting me."

Beast looked down in depression, and Lumiere said, "Oh, I'm afraid that time is running short."

Sora then looked down and asked, "What do you mean?"

Lumiere asked, "Remember the rose?"

Donald then asked, "From the Beast's room?"

Cogsworth then said, "Precisely. You see, if the master can learn to love, and earn love in return, before the last petal falls…"

Then Lumiere finished, "The spell will be broken."

Sora then put his hands on his hips and asked, "Really? You think he's gonna make it?"

Mrs. Potts nodded and said, "We think so."

Goofy nodded and said, "Yep, I think you're right."

Then Sora said, "I HOPE you're right…"

Just then, everyone's Keyblades appeared, then Takato pointed his Bonds Of Hazard in front of him, and suddenly he was in a world where it looked like light and darkness coexist, then he looked up and saw the rose and aimed his Keyblade at it, then Keyhole appeared right above it, and Takato watched as his Keyblade launched a beam of light into the Keyhole, sealling it.

Then The Beast walked up to the group and asked, "What happened?"

Then Donald said, "The gate is open!"

Then Belle asked, "Do you have to go?"

Everybody nodded and Henry said, "Yeah, we've got more worlds to visit, and more places to keep from falling into darkness."

Then Rika said, "Pluse we've got to kick those Organization XIII guys'…"

Then Takato said, "Rika, language, please."

Rika looked towards Takato and smacked him upside the head and said, "I will not be told how to speak by the likes of you, Goggle-Head, but fine, we've still got to deliver the Organization's butts to them on a silver platter."

Then Goofy said, "Now, no more arguin', okay?"

Jeri nodded and said, "Yeah, and remember to look out for one another."

At this, Belle and the Beast looked at one another and Belle have the Beast a look, causing the Beast to try and hide his face, then Lumiere said, "We'll see to it."

Then Mrs. Potts said, "Take care, dears."

"You are welcome here anytime!" Cogsworth said with a bow.

Then Sora said, "If you hear anything about Riku or the King, the Heartless, the Organization—anything at all—let us know!"

Everyone nodded they Sora said, "Okay, gotta go!"

Then everybody waved goodbye to the group, who were ready for their next destination.

***Obtained Cure Element***

Thechaosmaster: Ah, don't you just love Rika? And did Takato break the fourth wall by having Rika watch her language? I'll leave you to decide. But as for Drake using Takato's Keyblade, we have seen Riku using Sora's Keyblade time to time, Roxas basically gave Xion his Keyblade, and other times as well, That I'm sure has happened that I don't know about. Well, see you all next time, and … Oh shoot! I almost forgot something, I don't know what kind of animals to turn The group Into Once they Reach The Pride Lands, Rika Is Going TO Be A Kyuubi, probably With two tails. Why? Because I feel like it, But I Want Options from You Guys, For The others Drake Included, And Please, Have them Be Somewhat Unique, and I Don't Care If Henry Becomes a Rabbit, Because I Might do That Anyways. So, See you ALll Next Time! Next Time: A ghost From The Past.

CHAOS CONTROL!