Chapter 9- Enter the Castle!

"Xigbar!" Sora gritted his teeth and immediately summoned his Keyblade. Beside him, Riku followed his actions. The guests at the party looked at him curiously, before looking at the man sitting on one of the chandeliers.

"We'll fight with you, My Lord!" Yuffie and Cid leaped over their heads and landed in front of them, their weapons already drawn.

"You guys like violence, huh? Guess you aren't as peaceful as I thought when I was here," the renegade Guard chuckled as he summoned his duo guns. "Let's get this party started!


Vexen was causing havoc in another section of the castle. Though he was helping Axel at the same time.

He was creating a giant ice staircase that led from the Garden up to the roof of the Throne Room. The icy road then branched off to lead to the highest tower—Larxene's rooms.

So far, knocking out two of the guards was quite simple. Simply toss a vial of chloroform and at them. It usually shattered on contact, causing the guard to fall down where they were.

But Vexen had more pressing matters. He didn't want Demyx (wherever the hell he was) to get in his way. And he had no idea what the water musician was doing.

An explosion of loud music erupted from the south side of the Castle, the direct opposite direction from where he was working.

Vexen smiled. He didn't have to look after the childish Exile any longer.


"Wow. The Castle really changed," Roxas commented as they ran through the Castle grounds.

"Roxas, you were gone for a pretty long time. I don't expect you to know where the Throne Room is," Axel reminded him.

"Um…I think it's this way!" Kairi pointed down a different hallway.

"You sure?" the Prince asked. But Axel took charge. Pulling out the large map of the Castle grounds, he traced their path and quickly marked the area they needed to go through to get to their destination.

"Kairi's right. We need to go down this hall and turn at the first hall to our left," he announced. Roxas frowned.

"You know, it's probably a good thing that everyone's celebrating at my brother's party. If it wasn't tonight, then everyone would definitely find us."

"Why are we hiding anyway?" Kairi asked. Axel sighed.

"Do I have to keep reminding you two? We have to hide from the Princess and those troublesome guards of hers. Oh, and I forgot about that blasted assassin she keeps with her all the time."

"And if Larxene catches us…" Roxas didn't finish.

"She'll destroy you both, and then she'll take on Sora. With Kairi gone, there really isn't a choice. She might already know we're here. We just need to stay out of her range and find the King before she does."

"Then why are we standing here arguing about whether or not we need to be quiet?" Kairi demanded. "Let's get going already!"

"Of course, of course Your Highness," Axel nodded.

"Aren't you her uncle?" Roxas asked. "Can't you just call her Kairi?"

"Please. Princess Kairi sounds much cooler than Niece Kairi." He waved his hand around carelessly.


"Why that little—" Larxene threw a chair across the room. Marluxia quickly ducked, it bounced harmlessly off the bed. "How dare she came back to steal my throne!"

"Your Majesty, should I start organizing the troops?" Marluxia dropped on all fours on the floor at her feet. Larxene paused in her rampage, thinking hard.

"Don't be stupid, Marluxia," she said finally. "There would be panic everywhere if I start ordering around my own troops out. Father would suspect something."

"What do you plan on doing with the King, Your Majesty?"

"I'll probably get rid of him somehow. Maybe I'll give him to Twilight as a gift. I think they'll just adore him there, you know with all of those politics and stuff."

"But Your Majesty. That's where revolts start. Keeping your Father alive could damage your seat."

"He can't quite get rid of me can he? I'm his daughter. His eldest child. He can't get rid of me, nor replace me. It's a difficult thing for Assassins to understand."

"I know, Your Highness. I cannot even try to understand your higher logic," he placed his forehead on the ground.

"Of course not," she turned heel and left him kneeling there. "Excuse me. I have to reunite with my future sister."


"Here it is," Axel pointed to the large double doors in front of them. "All we need to do is go through them. And mind you, that's not going to be easy."

"Yeah. Dad mentioned before that the doors of the throne room were protected by charms. He didn't know what kind, but he knew that once, someone that wasn't supposed to entered the Castle was knocked into that column over there (he pointed to a column right behind them) because the charms were set against him."

"That makes things more difficult," Kairi agreed. "But how do we get through?"

"Oh please! Kairi! Aren't you engaged to the Prince or something?" Axel rolled his eyes. She paused and nodded slowly. "Then that gives you automatic passage through those doors. I can't go; Xaldin can't even go. We're intruders remember? We're not even from Destiny, so we can't get in."

"I don't know if I can even go in anymore," Roxas looked at the doors sadly.

"Roxas! You're a Prince! Of course you can go in!" Kairi blurted out.

"I don't know about that. I'm quite sure that the door can block anyone who is a current Exile. That probably includes me because I've been living with them for a long time."

"But that's so sad," she cried. "You can't even visit your own country?"

"That's how the Exiles became exiles," Axel reminded her. "We all got exiled from our home country. It seems proper just to think that if you're not welcome in your home country, then where are you welcome?"

"But Roxas wasn't banished!"

"There was a reason he didn't return. And those charms are not going to let him go through. It's best if you go on ahead, Kairi."

"No! You come with me!" she grabbed Roxas's arm.

"Seriously, Princess, do you have to make me do this?" Axel groaned and ran at the door.

He touched the doors without any difficulty, but when he took a hold of the handle, a loud sizzling sound occurred and he was knocked backwards into the pillar Roxas was talking about.

"Oh!" Kairi squealed in shock, Roxas was speechless; he couldn't say anything to calm her down.

"That's—what happens," he groaned as he sat himself up, leaning his back against the offensive pillar.

"Try. We'll catch you. Xaldin can slow down your fall," Roxas urged, pushing her forward.

Kairi walked forward, occasionally throwing looks at the people she was leaving behind. She was going to move on they weren't.

It was unfair.

But isn't life unfair? A voice whispered in her head. She stopped short. This voice wasn't the sound of her own voice inside her head.

"Kairi?" she dimly heard Roxas's voice behind her. She had one hand just inches away from the door handle.

"Well, well, well. If it's not my future sister, Kairi. Oh! And Roxas! And my dearest sister's bodyguards!"

"Larxene!" Roxas cried out when his blonde haired sister walked closer to them. Nobody had expected her to get so close without anybody knowing. It seemed as if the other Exiles hadn't been able to stop her.

"Well now. Let's see," she put a finger on her chin. "My younger brother, Sora, is having his party tonight. And here are some troublemakers to crash his special party. I think I'll be a nice older sister for once and rid him of these party crashers. Good idea is it not?"

"Your best so far," Roxas said sarcastically. Larxene laughed.

"Dearest brother, do not act so bitter towards me. My Assassin didn't know how to properly…put you away. It was none of my business, I assure you."

"Why you little—"

"Is this your bodyguard?" she laughed at Axel. "I never even knew a servant like you could have servants of her own."

"Don't call her a servant!" Axel and Xaldin summoned their weapons. Larxene laughed.

Lightning bolts surrounded her as she summoned her weapons. When they vanished, she had eight long yellow and green kunai in her hands.

"Larxene!" Roxas summoned Oathkeeper and Oblivion. "This is between us!"

"Let's fight Little Brother!" she shouted gleefully. "Let's have a fight that proves you don't deserve to be here!"

"Kairi!" the princess was lifted off her feet by a gust of wind. She landed in between Axel and Xaldin safely.

"Roxas!" she cried out as the two siblings charged at each other, lighting crackling around them, forming the battle perimeter.


edited 10/13/08