Chapter 9: The passing of power

A/N: We're back with another fun filled chapter! And this chapter should be extra fun because we get to see someone special! That's right, it's Hikari! Even though she doesn't play a huge role in this tale, she's still a very important character in this series (she's the main character after all, lol). So for all of you waiting to see Hikari again, fear not, the wait is over.

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts; I just own my oc's.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Enjoy!

/

Lumen took Scrooge's advice and headed for the castle. If she was going to find Unversed, then that would be the best place to start. And now that she thought about it, it made sense.

This castle was the center of this world. Surely that meant it held some connection to the heart of this world?

She didn't know the answer, but she was going to find out. Or rather, she hoped that she didn't.

Running up the many steps, she kept her eyes open for any signs of the Unversed. She wasn't going to let this world suffer on her watch.

"Now where could they be?" she muttered.

A scream could be heard from the top of the steps. It sounded like a young child. Young child in danger.

Panicking Lumen ran up the remaining steps, only to see two young children running away from a group of Unversed. One was a little girl wearing a teal and white dress while the other was a boy wearing an orange shirt with grey pants.

The boy pulled the little girl by her hand as they ran away from the Unversed.

"Ni-san!" the girl cried.

The boy growled in frustration when they reached the wall of the castle and were cornered. He pushed his sister behind him and pulled out a gunblade that looked way too big for him to carry. It was obvious that this boy didn't know how to fight really well, but that didn't stop him from wanting to protect his sister from the Unversed.

Lumen panicked when she saw the two children being cornered by the Unversed. There was no way that they would be able to get away from them easily.

"No! Run!" she cried.

At hearing her voice, the boy quickly spotted her. Lumen pulled out her keyblade and motioned for them to come to her where it was safe.

The boy grabbed his sister and ran for Lumen. When he reached her, he grabbed her keyblade in fear. (A/N: Now you know how Leon was able to wield the keyblade for a tiny bit in the first Kingdom Hearts game ^-^)

The girl buried her face into her brother's shirt when more Unversed appeared.

Lumen gasped when she sensed a vibrant light coming from her. It was just like with Snow White, Cinderella and Aurora. All of them held light within their hearts, but this girl's was deeper. It was as if there was a power sleeping within her.

She shook that thought aside when the Unversed closed in on them. She had to get these children out of here before they got hurt.

Lumen pushed the children behind her when the Unversed grew closer. This was not looking good.

"There's no way I can fight like this" she thought.

An Unversed dove at her, but it was cut down by a mouse.

Lumen was stunned to see a mouse standing protectively in front of her. What surprised her even more was that he was wielding a keyblade!

Who was this mouse? And why did he have a keyblade?

The mouse looked at her from the corner of his eye.

"Hurry!" he cried.

"You gotta get these kids to safety"

"Who are you?" Lumen asked.

"And why do you have a keyblade?"

The mouse shook his head.

"I'll tell you later" he said.

"Right now, we gotta stop these things!"

Lumen nodded in understanding. Now was not the time to be asking questions.

She quickly knelt in front of the children and picked them up.

"Hang on" she said.

She quickly ran down the steps and set them down when they were away from the danger.

"Stay here until the cost is clear, ok?"

They both nodded in understanding.

"Be careful, ma'am" the boy said.

Lumen smiled sweetly to him before she got up and ran back to the mouse. Her back was facing his as they faced off against the Unversed.

"Let's get 'em!" the mouse cried.

The Unversed charged at them first, growing restless with the lack of prey.

Lumen countered them with her magic and shot them back before destroying them with her feather blades shot lock move. The mouse proved to be a very skilled fighter. He seemed to be evenly balanced with magical and physical attacks. He was nowhere near a master level, but he sure wasn't a rookie.

She teamed up with the mouse to perform a magical attack and blasted the Unversed away.

They performed a teamed finishing move and caused the Unversed to wither away upon impact.

When the fight was over, Lumen looked at the mouse and gave him a smile.

"Not bad" she said.

The mouse smiled back at her.

"Same goes to you" he said.

With the Unversed gone, the children slowly came up the steps to make sure the cost was clear. When they only saw their saviors in the area, they quickly ran to them.

Lumen knelt in front of them when they reached her and smiled at them.

"Thank goodness you're both alright" she said.

She turned back to the mouse.

"Thank you" she said.

The mouse nodded in gratitude.

Lumen felt that introductions were needed, so she introduced herself.

"My name is Lumen" she said.

"I'm a keyblade apprentice under my father, Master Eraqus"

The mouse looked surprised at the mention of Eraqus's name. He quickly bowed to her in respect.

"I'm Mickey" he said.

"I used to be Yen Sid's apprentice"

Lumen gasped. He was a student to Master Yen Sid? Her father always talked highly about the former keyblade master. He was a legendary keyblade master who fought in battles long ago. He was a very respected man, much like her father.

The fact that she was meeting a pupil of such a powerful keyblade master was a true honor.

"It's such an honor to make your acquaintance" she said.

"My father talks so highly about Master Yen Sid"

Mickey smiled.

"The same goes for Yen Sid" he said.

"He's told me a lot about your father and that he had a daughter who can use the keyblade. Never thought I would run into you. It's a true honor"

Lumen blushed in embarrassment.

"T-thank you" she said.

She looked back at the children and focused on the little girl who was holding onto her brother's hand.

"I sense light within this girl" she said.

"You think that's why they attacked her?"

Mickey rubbed his chin in thought.

"Yep. I think ya might be absolutely right" he said.

"If ya ask me, she must be somebody pretty extraordinary"

The girl looked like she didn't know what they were talking about, but she listened intently. Her brother gripped her hand tightly as if he knew what they were talking about.

Lumen nodded slowly.

"Yes" she said.

"I'm quite certain that she's someone that we need to protect"

Mickey smiled and held out his hand.

"Let's join forces!" he said.

Lumen chuckled a little and accepted his hand. At least she had someone that would help her when she needed it.

"We pupils need to stick together" she said.

Mickey laughed a little when he let go of her hand.

"Right" he said.

His ears twitched as if he heard something far away.

"Uh oh. Looks like I need to get going" he said.

He bowed to Lumen respectfully.

"It was nice seeing you, Lumen" he said.

"If you ever need help, just give me a call"

With that, he ran off to who knows where.

Lumen watched as Mickey ran off, leaving her behind with the children. She was amazed that she met a pupil of Master Yen Sid.

"Wait until dad hears about this" she thought.

She was pulled out of her thoughts when she felt someone tapping her shoulder. She turned around to see the little girl was the one who did it. She shyly hid her face into her brother's arm as she looked at her while her brother held a serious look on his face. Lumen could tell he acted a real mature for his age.

"Thank you for saving us, ma'am" the girl said shyly.

Lumen blinked before she smiled at them.

"It's nothing" she said.

"I'm just glad you both weren't hurt"

The boy looked around the area, as if checking to see if there were any more Unversed around.

"What exactly were those things?" he asked.

"I've never seen them before until recently"

Lumen frowned a little. She couldn't tell them that they were monsters made from the darkness. It would terrify them.

"I don't really know" she lied.

"Have they been a problem for you two?"

The boy shook his head.

"Not really" he said.

"But when we were heading for the park, they just suddenly appeared and chased us. I don't know what they wanted from us. We're just kids after all"

Lumen sighed sadly. It seemed the Unversed had no limits to whom they would attack. They were willing to go after children for goodness sake!

The boy looked at her and raised an eyebrow.

"You alright, ma'am?" he asked.

Lumen quickly composed herself and smiled. First rule when it came to children was to always put on a smile. Whenever they saw an adult upset, they always assumed it was their fault.

"Oh, y-yeah I'm fine" she said.

"By the way, I'm Lumen"

The boy nodded slightly.

"I'm Leon and this is my sister, Hikari" he said.

Hikari smiled as she waved. Her smiled quickly vanished when she saw something on Lumen.

"Your arm is bleeding!" she cried.

Blinking in confusion, Lumen looked down at her arm to see that it was in fact bleeding. It seemed one of the Unversed managed to scratch her and she didn't even know it. It didn't hurt, but it wasn't a good idea to leave it like this. She needed to heal it fast before it became infected.

Leon was one step ahead of her as he let go of Hikari's hand.

"I'll go get our mom" he said.

"She's really good when it comes to healing"

He looked at Hikari and gave her a stern look.

"You stay right here" he said.

"Don't run off or those monsters will appear again"

Hikari nodded.

"Yes, Ni-san" she said.

Leon nodded and quickly ran down the steps to go retrieve their mother.

When Leon was gone, Hikari's face fell. Lumen was curious as to why the girl was suddenly sad.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

Hikari shook her head as she looked at the ground.

"I just feel bad" she said.

Lumen raised an eyebrow.

"Feel bad about what?"

Hikari sighed.

"I feel like I can't do anything by myself" she said.

"I always have to have my big brother take care of me and keeping an eye out for me. It makes me feel like I can't protect myself"

She looked at her sadly.

"You even got hurt because I couldn't get away from those monsters" she said.

Lumen looked at the girl sadly. She was way too young to be thinking so poorly about herself. She was just a child. There was no way that she would be able to defeat those Unversed by herself.

"Hey, don't worry about it" she said softly.

"None of this is your fault. Those things will go after anything that has light. And as for me, this was my own fault for being reckless. You have nothing to be ashamed of"

Hikari looked at her sadly.

"Really?" she asked.

Lumen smiled a little and nodded.

"Really" she replied.

"And besides, you're strong"

She pointed towards her heart.

"In here" she said.

"It's not about being physically strong. It's about having a strong heart. The body can endure a limited amount of strength, but the heart will just keep growing. The fact that you already have a strong heart proves that you're a very strong person"

Hikari's face seemed to light up at that.

"Really?" she repeated.

Lumen nodded.

Hikari giggled.

"I didn't know that I was that strong" she said.

"Maybe then I can make my wish come true"

Lumen raised an eyebrow.

"What wish is that?" she asked.

Hikari giggled some more before she smiled at Lumen.

"To protect the ones I love!" she declared.

Lumen looked stunned by her statement. This girl was no older than four years old and yet she was determined make her goals come true.

It reminded her of how Terra was when they were little. He worked hard to reach his goal, even though he was just a child. He wanted to prove to everyone that he was capable of making his dreams come true, even though he was young.

Perhaps this girl was the same way.

Her keyblade appeared in her hand suddenly. She didn't know why she was doing this, but her heart was telling her she was doing the right thing. If this girl wanted to make her dreams come true, she was going to help her.

And by doing that, she was going to give her a little help.

Keyblade wielders were allowed to perform a special ceremony where they would choose a successor that would follow in their footsteps. To make sure that their story would continue on in the generations that were to come. And to make sure that the light would always be with them.

Even though Lumen wasn't a keyblade master, she was the daughter of one. She held certain titles that not even Aqua was able to carry.

Holding the hilt out to Hikari, she started the ceremony.

"In your hand, take this key. So long as you have the makings, then through this simple act of taking…its wielder you shall one day be. And you will find me, friend-no ocean will contain you then. No more borders around, or below, or above. So long as you champion the ones you love"

Hikari looked at the keyblade nervously. She didn't know what to expect, but she would give it a try. Slowly, she brought her hand up and wrapped her fingers around the hilt. When nothing happened, she looked at Lumen.

The keyblade apprentice smiled brightly. The fact that the keyblade was still in Hikari's hands proved that she was a worthy wielder of the keyblade. With that much light in her heart, it was a given.

"Hikari!"

The two of them jumped when they saw Leon bringing a woman with them, obviously their mother.

Lumen quickly dismissed her keyblade and gripped Hikari's shoulder.

"You have to keep this a secret" she said.

"Otherwise the magic will wear off"

Hikari smiled and nodded.

"Got it"

Lumen smiled and quickly remembered something.

"Oh, and before I forget"

She placed her hand over Hikari's heart and cast a spell over it. The girl's heart glowed for a moment before it faded.

"I just placed a spell on you" she explained.

"One day when you're in trouble, the light within you will lead you to the light of another. Someone to keep you safe"

Hikari smiled at that.

"Thanks!" she said.

Leon quickly came over to them with their mother in tow. Lumen noticed that she held a powerful aura around herself. She had long brown hair that started to reach her waist and had bright green eyes like her daughter. She was like a carbon copy almost.

Their mother smiled softly at her.

"I'm Taiyouko" she said.

"Leon told me that you protected him and Hikari from a bunch of monsters?"

Lumen nodded.

"Yes"

Taiyouko smiled softly.

"Thank you so much" she said.

"I just don't know what I would do if anything happened to them"

Lumen smiled softly.

"That's my job" she said.

Taiyouko smiled a little as she nodded.

"Well, let me repay my gratitude by healing you"

Her hand glowed for a moment before she waved it over Lumen's arm. The wound healed instantly and showed no traces of it ever being injured.

Lumen looked at her arm in amazement. That was very powerful magic. She could practically feel it.

Taiyouko smiled when she saw her handy work finished.

"Well, at least that's taken care of"

She looked up at the sky to see where the sun was.

"Oh! Looks like it getting late" she said.

She looked at her children.

"I better take you two to the park before it gets dark"

Hikari cheered at the prospect of going to the park.

Taiyouko looked at Lumen one last time.

"I'm sorry to leave so suddenly, but I need to go" she said.

"Thank you again for saving my children"

Lumen nodded in understanding.

"I have to get going too" she said.

"I hope you don't run into any of those monsters"

Taiyouko smiled and grabbed her children's hands.

"We'll be sure to keep an eye out" she said.

Hikari waved goodbye to her new friend.

"Bye!"

Lumen laughed a little and waved as they left. She watched as they slowly made their way to the stairs.

Hikari looked up at her mother as they walked.

"Hey, mommy" she said.

"Could you tell us that story?"

Taiyouko laughed a little at her daughter's request.

"But you and Leon have heard it hundreds of times" she said.

"Please?" Leon pleaded.

Taiyouko smiled and shook her head.

"Oh, alright" she said.

"Long ago, people lived in peace, bathed in the warmth of light. Everyone loved the light. Then people began to fight over it. They wanted to keep it for themselves. And darkness was born in their hearts. The darkness spread, swallowing the light and many people's hearts. It covered everything, and the world disappeared. But small fragments of light survived, in the hearts of children. With these fragments of light, children rebuilt the lost world. It's the world we live in now. But the true light sleeps, deep within the darkness. That's why the worlds are still scattered, divided from each other. But someday, a door to the innermost darkness will open, and the true light will return. So, listen you two. Even in the deepest darkness, there will always be a light to guide you. Believe in the light, and the darkness will never defeat you. Your heart will shine with its power and push the darkness away. "

Hikari smiled brightly when the story was over.

Lumen smiled too as she heard it. The light within her heart seemed to glow as if it knew what the story was about.

As she saw Hikari vanish, the voice from her dreams rang through her head.

"Hey…can you hear me?"

"Hikari…" she said softly.

She placed her hand over her heart.

"Something tells me that I didn't run into you by accident"

She would never realize how true those words would be until much later on in her journey.

/

A/N: Yay! We saw Hikari and Taiyouko again! Don't worry; this won't be the last time that we see them in this story. We'll see our lovely keyblade mistress again soon. And of course we'll be seeing a future love interest of hers too.

Please review and tell me what you think!

Ja ne!