Wow, sorry for the long delay. I've honestly been working on this since I finished the last chapter, but it's been extremely difficult for some reason. Enjoy!


Chapter Nine: Reunion

"Are you sure about this?"

"I've done it a million times."

"But that was just you, and that was--"

"Uh, I did it once with you practically dead in my arms."

"But that doesn't count!"

"It was between worlds, too. Kairi, do you trust me or not?"

"I do, but…"

Riku looked at her exasperatedly, having just zipped his Organization coat back on and put the hood up. Kairi sighed in defeat, and walking over toward him, let him put one arm around her waist securely.

She bit her lip and braced her own arms against his, her fingernails nearly digging into his skin through the tough fabric of the coat.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Yeah," she answered shortly, swallowing hard.

She shut her eyes tightly, but nothing could block out the cold wind and odd feeling of sensory deprivation as Riku let his partially clenched fist gather the darkness within himself. She tensed against his slightly trembling body, and as they went, her head snapped back hard against his chest. She thought she could hear him grunt, but soon a shrill, ascending noise filled her ears and blocked out her stillborn scream…


"It's a freakin' key! Why won't it open this lock?"

"Gawrsh, Sora, calm down…"

"We'll find a way out somehow."

Sora stood on tiptoe to peer out the small, barred window that was the only source of light in the cell he and his companions were trapped in.

Goofy sat despondently, his two gloved fists clutching the handles of his shield and letting the bottom edge of it rest on the floor, his small cap askew. Donald stood nearby, his arms crossed and his webbed foot tapping impatiently and anxiously on the damp stone floor.

Sora aimed a halfhearted punch at the reinforced iron door and turned, putting his back to it and sliding down to the floor, letting his legs splay out in front of him, his keyblade resting in his lap.

"I lost her again…I promised her we wouldn't get separated again, and…I let her go…"

Donald looked at him somewhat pityingly, his eyebrows turning upward in concern. Sora's shoulders were slumped, his expression unreadable—he seemed to be talking to no one in particular.

"Don't worry," he quacked, lowering his staff and shaking his head firmly at Sora. "It wasn't your fault at all!"

Goofy turned his head toward the teenager sadly, not saying anything.

"But, what are they doing with her? They could be hurting her…torturing her, I don't know…or worse…" Sora said fearfully, his fingers lacing through his hair and bowing his head.

"They could have already stolen her heart away, for all I know," he spoke into his knees. His hands were trembling slightly with anger—or despair.

Donald looked at Goofy, who met his eyes and frowned slightly. They had never known Sora to be the fearful type. Always the confident one. To see him actually acknowledging the hopelessness of a situation was something they'd never seen before; and frankly, they didn't enjoy the feeling.

Before anyone could say anything, clamoring voices issued from down the hall. Sora's head snapped up, and he scrambled from his spot against the door to peek out of the window once more.

It took a moment before the voices became clear, and the light in the dim chamber was increasing ever so slightly as the others approached.

"…left him alone. With the prisoner. Brilliant. Do you have any idea how much of an idiot you are?"

"How so?"

"They're gone, genius. Don't you know enough about any of us to remember that this Organization's practically a time bomb? Not a single one of us can trust the others anymore. Only ourselves."

"Which brings me to my point—why am I taking crap from you?"

"Because you let a Princess of Heart get away. Maybe you're too thick to notice, but despite the differences in this stupid platoon, there's one common goal: to open up that damn door again. Got it?"

There was no answer.

Shadows abruptly filtered through the dim light that flooded the small cell, and Sora hastily stepped down and ran to the bench Goofy was on, attempting to arrange himself as if he was completely relaxed sitting on the cold stone.

He looked sidelong at the door, not turning his head. Axel's cold eyes appeared in the small window, and when they saw the Keyblade master sitting slumped against the wall, they narrowed slightly with his grin.

Sora reached up and brushed his bangs roughly from his eyes, resigned. He was coming through that door and there was nothing he could do about it. He screwed his eyes tightly shut.

But when a few fleeting moments passed with no sign of the treacherous man entering the room, he chanced a peek.

The pair of eyes was gone.

He could faintly hear a scuffle from outside the door. He looked at Donald, who gave him a blank look.

"Mmmrrghf…"

A groan issued from right outside the door, near the ground.

"Owww…"

"Oh, crap."

Sora scrambled up and toward the doorway. Pushing his face against the bars, he tried to see what was going on in the outside hallway, but evidently whatever source of light had been illuminating Axel's face had been snuffed out.

"Never…again…"

He knew that voice.

"Argh, that's my back you're digging your elbow into."

"Sorry."

More scuffling.

"Who'd we hit?"

A small stretch of silence. The sound of something heavy being pushed over.

"Axel. I've been wanting to do something like this to him, just never figured out exactly how…"

"Is he…"

"Just knocked out."

"What should we do with him?"

"Just stash him over here, in this cell…"

"Wait. First…"

The faintest sound of…knuckles cracking? A thud, and then a small pained groan.

"Kairi!" a voice hissed, shocked and yet amused at the same time.

Sora swore loudly, before clapping his hand over his mouth. The cries of shock that came from the pair outside the door echoed in the close quarters.

"…my God! Kairi! It's me, I'm in here!"

"Sora!"

"Hey, stand back," the unfamiliar voice ordered firmly.

The trio did as they were told, Sora leaping up onto the stone bench and bracing himself against the wall. Nothing happened for a moment, and all that could be heard was Kairi's quiet urging. Finally he saw a small glow of red near the crack near the doorframe—they were trying to use Firaga to melt the lock.

After what seemed like an eternity, the door was kicked inward with a crash that would have woken the dead, and two dark figures stumbled in blindly.

"Why are we all standing in the dark?" Donald asked sarcastically, before the end of his staff was lit aflame.

Everyone muttered in indignation as they threw their hands over their eyes at the sudden light, but as their sight adjusted, they could see one another clearly.

"Sora!" Kairi cried, reaching forward and putting her arms around him tightly. He reciprocated, trying to reassure his rapidly beating heart that she was real and safe. After a moment they broke apart.

"Are you all right? What did they do to you?" he asked her urgently, keeping his hands braced on her shoulders, looking indignant and relieved at the same time.

"Nothing, they didn't get a chance to do anything, don't worry," she said, shaking her head and her smile lighting up her entire face. "We've got one of them on our side."

"Who?" he asked her, softening, before remembering the other person who had entered the room.

She gave him a significant look, and smiled slightly at him as Riku came up to Sora's side and cuffed him on the back of the head, a sardonic grin on his face.

"Me, you idiot," Riku answered him amusedly as Sora's head pitched forward, and reached up to rub at the spot the other had whacked.

Sora's eyes narrowed. He bit his lip as if he were thinking hard.

"What's the score?"

"Two to eight."

"Holy crap!"

And with that, Riku grabbed him about the neck with one bent arm and ground his fist against Sora's scalp, grinning. Sora grunted and struggled for a moment, but Riku had his advantages at the moment, and his laugh echoed in the dim chamber. Finally Riku let him go, and Sora stumbled away, rubbing the top of his head as if it pained him.

"No way…no possible way! How did you get out?" Sora asked him incredulously.

Riku shrugged and crossed his arms, pure bewilderment painted into his expression.

"No idea. It was weird, though…being in there and suddenly…well, not…" he answered stutteringly, his expression changing as if it pained him to talk about the dreadful doors he had been locked behind. He bit his lip and looked away, seeming to become keenly interested in one of the flagstones that made up the wall.

Sora seemed to understand, nodding silently, but the look of utter shock and disbelief was still planted firmly on his face. He seemed to have to keep his eyes on Riku to assure himself that what he was looking at wasn't just a passing illusion.

"I saw you, though. In Castle Oblivion. Man, I told you to take care of Kairi, and instead you decided to take a nice long nap?" Riku said after a moment, laughing. Sora chuckled guiltily, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand, and glanced sidelong at Kairi, who raised one eyebrow jokingly at him.

"Slacker," Riku remarked, grinning and shaking his head. Sora looked wounded, crossing his arms but half-smiling despite himself. Kairi laughed.

"Maybe we'd better get out of here. You took Axel out, right?" Sora said suddenly, snapping out of his reverie and striding towards the door to peer out. He stifled a small laugh.

"Uh…who gave him the giant bruise on the shin?"

Kairi's eyes widened innocently, as she stuck her foot out and pointed to her boot. Soon, the cell was filled with the din of the three teenagers' laughter.

As their laughter faded away and Riku stopped clutching his side, they became aware of distant echoes. A crash, and then footsteps.

"Crap," Riku hissed, and Kairi immediately withdrew into the shadows, pulling Sora down with her. Their silver-haired friend shut and put his back to the door, crouching low enough that someone peering through the barred window couldn't find him with their searching eyes.

They could hear soft whimpering as the footsteps approached. Kairi tensed, listening closely, as Sora tried not to breathe beside her.

"No…let me go…"

Silence.

A shadow passed by the door. A slight sound of tinkling chains told them the stranger was unlocking the cell next to them. A grinding creak as it swung open.

A horrified gasp.

"What the…Axel?"

A muffled thump, as whomever it was gave the unconscious man a dig with his foot.

"Let me go!" a female voice hissed.

All that could be heard in response was a grim and satisfied chuckle. A rustling, as something heavy was dragged along the floor.

A clang as the door slammed shut into its metal frame.

Quick as lightning, Riku swung the cell door open swiftly and emerged into the hallway, shutting it behind him firmly. His silver hair was pressed against the barred window.

A small gasp of shock as the stranger noticed Riku.

"Xaldin," Riku said curtly.

The treacherous man came into view of the barred window, and Sora could see his lip curl.

Kairi was afraid something terrible would happen, but Xaldin walked right past Riku and his footsteps echoed down the hallway.

"That was almost too easy," Sora breathed near Kairi's ear.

She nodded silently, as her heart slowed its frantic pulse.

"Coast is clear," Riku whispered through the window, and the odd assortment of characters made their way out the door. "They're not too bright, are they?"

"Hello?" the female voice they had heard earlier issued from the cell on their right. "Is someone there?"

A face appeared in the small window of the cell.

"Belle? Is that you?" Goofy asked, his eyes widening.

"Yes! Oh, thank heavens!" she said in relief, her brown eyes shining in the torchlight. "Is that the Keyblade master?"

"Yeah! Hang on, we'll get you out of there!" Sora said, moving close to the door. He held his keyblade firmly in one hand, and held the lock with the other, hacking at it as precisely as he could. When he had little success, Donald pushed his hand out of the way frustratedly and put the end of his mage's staff to the lock, muttering under his breath as the lock glowed bright red with heat.

Kairi looked to the right and saw Axel slumped against the wall, evidently left there until he woke up. He appeared to have a bad bruise along the hairline from being knocked over by the two teenagers. His spiked hair was a shock of red against the dull wall.

"There!" Sora said finally, and the lock broke clean off. The door opened and Belle stumbled out, her nicely combed hair in disarray and her golden gown soiled.

"Thank you! Thank you all, so much!" she said, putting both gloved hands on Sora's shoulders and nodding in turn to each of them.

Kairi's eyes narrowed slightly. This woman looked strangely familiar…

"Are you…a princess of heart?" she asked tentatively.

"Unfortunately, yes," Belle replied, while trying to smooth her wrinkled dress.

"I am too," Kairi said, meeting her eyes.

"You're…the one they couldn't find! Aren't you?" Belle said to her, straightening up and getting a better look at her. Kairi nodded and smiled halfway.

"Well then, pleased to meet you. But I should probably tell you that we mustn't meet again. By the look of things, they're trying to round us all up again. Thankfully they aren't doing a very good job…" she remarked, looking past Kairi to the unconscious Axel against the wall.

"That's right!" Sora said, clapping his hand to his forehead. "Guys, we'd better get out of here!"

"Will you be all right here, Belle?" Riku asked the princess solemnly.

"The Beast is here. I'm sure I'll be fine," she asserted, gathering her skirt so she could walk faster.

"Let's go!" Donald quacked, and the group set off down the dim corridor.


Yeah…well, that chapter wasn't the greatest, but at least now I know exactly how the rest of the story's going to go. I was stuck on this for quite a while. Anyway, LOVE REVIEWS!