CHAPTER TEN

"Tell me what happened," Leon said.

The group was now in the small house in the Third District back in Traverse Town. Aerith, Leon, and Yuffie were there, listening to the events that had taken place at Hollow Bastion.

"So the darkness is flowing out of the Keyhole…" Leon trailed off, his mind in thought.

Aerith's face wore a worried expression. "No wonder there are more and more Heartless everywhere. The only way to stop them is –"

"To seal the Keyhole," Sam finished grimly. When no one said anything, he added, "Right?"

Leon shrugged. "Maybe. But no one knows what will happen once it's sealed."

"Well, we can't just stay here," Dean said, crossing his arms. "We have to do something."

Sora nodded. "I've got a friend back there."

Dean could swear that he saw the faintest of smiles flash on Leon's face right before Leon spoke. "That's right. You have one more friend to worry about. Riku's Keyblade must have been born of the captive princesses' hearts – just like that Keyhole you saw."

Sam glanced at Kairi. "So without Kairi's heart, the Keyhole remained incomplete?"

Leon nodded. "I'm sure that once that Keyblade was destroyed, the princesses' hearts were freed. Don't worry, Sora. If anyone can save your friend, you can."

A groan from Castiel, who was put on the bed in the corner of the room, drew everyone's attention.

"I think he's coming to," Dean said, rushing to Castiel's side.

Castiel's blue eyes fluttered open, catching Dean's eyes. "Dean." His eyes wandered over to Sam. "Sam."

"It's okay, Cas," Sam said. "You're safe now."

"No," Cas muttered. "No." His eyes rolled back in his head and the angel was gone again.

Aerith stepped forward, putting a hand to the man's forehead. "He's incredibly weak. What happened to him must have taken a lot out of him."

Dean sighed. "Poor bastard."

"He just needs more rest," Aerith reassured Dean.

"I hope so," Dean mumbled.

"So now we just need to get back to Hollow Bastion," Sora said.

"How?" Goofy asked. "All the pathways are blocked or infested with Heartless."

"You should talk to Leon," Yuffie cut in. "He should be able to figure something out."

Sora nodded. "On it."

"We're in too," Dean said.

"Dean?" Sam said, his voice questioning.

"We need to finish what we started," Dean said. "Even if we didn't mean to start it. But it's Cas' mess too and he's in no shape to fix it, so we have to."

Sam nodded at that. "Okay."

Dean turned to look at Aerith. "Can you take care of him?"

She nodded, a soft smile spreading across her lips. "Of course."

"I'm coming too," Kairi said.

Aerith shook her head. "Let the boys go. I want to make sure you're still okay."

Kairi frowned, obviously unhappy. "Alright, fine."

"I'll be back," Sora promised.

Kairi smiled. "You better be."

"Cid, we need to get back to Hollow Bastion," Dean said.

Cid's eyes widened and then he shook his head. "I don't think I can let you do that. The Heartless there are multiplying by the minute. They'd eat your ship up. It'd be a miracle if you lot could get through in once piece."

"Then what can we do?" Sora asked.

Cid shrugged. "Simple. Go around 'em instead of through. Install a new navigation Gummi and take a new route."

Dean crossed his arms. "And where would we get one of those? They don't exactly grow on trees."

"The secret waterway," Cid explained. "When I came here nine years ago, I stored some extra there in case I ever needed them. Never thought a kid and some stragglers would be the ones to use them."

"Thank you for letting us use them," Sam said. "It means a lot."

Cid waved him off. "Please, we all gotta do our part to save our worlds."

"So where are they in the waterway?" Dean asked.

"I hid them in the mural," Cid said.

The group went down into the waterway, swimming through the cavern that was underneath the town. They saw Kairi there, standing on the stones, staring at something down one of the tunnels. They climbed out, catching her attention from her daydreaming.

"Kairi?" Sora asked. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm exploring," Kairi said. "Aerith let me go. She said that as long as I stay out of trouble and avoid the Heartless, I can go where I want."

"What about Castiel?" Dean asked.

Kairi shrugged. "He still hasn't woken up, but I know Aerith is taking good care of him." Her eyes turned back to the tunnel, where a mural of the sun was painted on the stone walls. "It's quite hypnotizing."

"That must be the mural," Donald said.

"The mural?" Kairi asked.

Sora nodded. "Where we can find the Gummies we need to go back and save Riku." He headed toward the mural, swimming out before his feet finally found a foothold closer to the mural. The sunny mural began to glow, and from it, two glowing orbs popped out, floating down into Sora's outstretched hands. Where there was once a sunny mural, now was a picture of the moon.

Sora swam back, placing the Gummies into Dean's hand.

"We'll get these to Cid," Dean said, his hand closing around the Navi-Gs. Sam and Dean took off, the voices of Kairi and Sora talking fading behind them.

"You found them?" Cid said, taking the Gummies from Dean. "I'll go fix the ships."

"Thanks," Dean said. "We owe you a bunch."

"It's no trouble," Cid replied. "If anything, it's me who owes you boys." He held up one of the Navi-Gs. "Now if you'll let me go, I have some tinkering to do."

Dean turned to his brother. "I think we should check on Cas."

"I don't disagree," Sam replied.

Castiel was sitting up in bed when the Winchesters entered the small house in the Third District. His eyes had a haunted gleam to them, indicating that he was finally fully conscious.

Aerith smiled at the boys' entrance. "He's a lot better now. I think he's regaining some of his strength."

"Thank you so much," Sam said as Dean went straight to Castiel. "We can't thank you enough."

She smiled. "Of course. I'll give you some time." Then she ducked out of the room.

"Sam," Cas said. "Dean."

"We're here Cas," Dean said.

"Do you remember anything that happened?" Sam asked.

Cas shook his head no, but then he brought a hand up to his head, pressing it into his skull. His eyes were squeezed shut and he began nodding his head yes. "Yes, yes, I remember. I remember everything." His opened his eyes, giving Sam and Dean a heart wrenching look. "I did terrible things."

"You weren't yourself," Dean said fiercely. "It's not your fault."

"Yes, yes it is," Cas replied.

"Tell us what happened," Sam replied calmly, sitting on the table in the center of the room.

"When our world was destroyed," Cas started, "I heard your cries, and I came as fast as I could, but Heaven was such a mess, and there were so many prayers, and the darkness kept creeping in, all over the world…" He shut his eyes, the memories flashing before his eyes. "When I got to you both, it was too late. The darkness had already taken you. Our world met its fate shortly after. I woke up in complete darkness, lost in the inky blackness, before someone pulled me out."

"Maleficent," Dean growled.

Castiel nodded. "Yes, Maleficent. She pulled me from that prison and threw me into a different one. I knew she was bad, corrupted. The darkness that she radiated said as much. You must know that I would never work for her willingly."

"We know, Cas," Sam said softly.

"She pulled me apart," Cas said. "She suffocated me and my grace. Polluted it with darkness. I couldn't see, I couldn't think, I couldn't breathe. This continued for… for I don't know how long. I lost track of time. The darkness became me, and that is all I was." He swallowed painfully. "I helped her, Maleficent, steal the princesses from their worlds. I helped her bring pain to so many. Cinderella, Snow White, Jasmine, Aurora… So many worlds I helped bring closer to the edge of darkness…"

"It's okay," Dean said.

Castiel shook his head. "No, it's not. I am a divine entity. I am not supposed to succumb. I was supposed to be stronger than that."

"It's okay, Cas," Dean said forcefully. "It happened, but you weren't yourself. This is not your fault. Maleficent probably would have made this all happen anyway, even without you."

"Just take it easy," Sam said. "Relax and we'll be back."

Castiel looked up abruptly. "Back? Where are you going?"

Sam hesitated. "We're going back to Hollow Bastion."

Castiel's eyes hardened. "I'm going with you."

Dean shook his head. "The hell you are. You're not coming. You need to stay here and rest."

Castiel swung his legs out from the bed. "I'm going and you're not stopping me. I need to redeem myself, Dean. This is the way to do it." He stood up, coming face to face with Dean. Even though he was a little wobbly at first, he straightened himself out.

"You're not strong enough," Dean protested.

"I will never not be strong enough ever again," Castiel said. "I'm doing this." His gaze turned from Dean to Sam. "Sam?"

Sam nodded, meeting Dean's eyes.

"Sam!" Dean exclaimed. "What are you doing?"

"If Cas wants to come, he can come." The younger Winchester hopped off the table. "It's his choice. He's old enough to make his own decisions."

"Thank you, Sam," Castiel said with a small smile.

Dean crossed his arms. "Fine."

"All set!" Cid said, coming back from the ships. Sora, Donald and Goofy had been there already when Sam, Dean, and Cas had arrived. Up until then, it'd been all small talk. But now Cid was here and they all knew they would have to address the problems looming over everything now. "I gotta say, I wish you all didn't have to face all this danger."

"It's just another day for us," Dean replied, shaking him off.

"Well watch yourselves out there, ya hear?" Cid asked, crossing his arms across his chest.

Sora grinned. "You got it."

The group stood on the rocky platforms outside of Hollow Bastion's castle, right in the place that they first started. It was quiet out there, quiet and beautiful. But they all knew that sometimes the prettiest things were the most dangerous. The spray seemed to more obtrusive this time, like a fog that covered the entire falls area.

"Last chance to turn around," Dean mumbled, though his words that were supposed to be barely audible were broadcast around the valley, echoing off the watery walls.

Castiel stepped forward, to the very edge of the rock. "That point was passed a long time ago, Dean." His eyes took in the view, the castle seemingly so far away. Flashes, memories, went through Castiel's mind at the image of that castle. He shut his eyes.

"Castiel?" Sora's voice broke his reverie.

"Let's go," Castiel said, not looking back, though he knew that all eyes were on him.

Inside the castle, they found the library door slightly ajar, so when they were done with the waves of Heartless that kept appearing with every step, they decided to check it out. The library was just as Sam remembered it. Not a book out of place.

At the top of the stairs, they found the Beast with a woman in fluffy yellow ball gown. They both turned as they heard the approaching footsteps. The woman had kind brown eyes with her brown hair up in bun. She looked surprised to see others here, but then her surprise turned to shock when the Beast threw himself in front of her, barring her from Sora and the gang.

"Get out!" he roared, his face furious.

"Beast, it's us," Goofy said, confused.

"Not you," Beast growled. The Beast held out a paw, pointing his claw at the angel. "Him."

Castiel bowed his head.

"What's going on?" Dean asked.

"He is the one who took Belle from me!" the Beast replied fiercely.

"Cas?" Sam asked.

Castiel looked up. "Yes, I did. I was the one who took Belle."

Castiel remembered how he appeared at Beast's castle, in the beautiful, elaborate ballroom. The Beast and Belle were dancing, so entranced with one another, but then Castiel had appeared, his black wings spread out menacingly. The Beast was startled and had snapped out of his trance of civility. Even in his blue suit, the Beast charged at the angel, his animal instincts alerting him to the danger. But Castiel had been ready, and at the last moment, disappeared. He reappeared next to Belle and took her by the arm. The world began to shake, waves of darkness appearing outside of the elegant ballroom windows. But Beast was focused on Belle and Castiel. Though he came running back toward Belle, he was too late. Castiel had disappeared.

Now here he was, standing in front of the Beast again.

"It wasn't his fault," Dean said. "Maleficent made him do everything!"

The Beast roared in response.

The woman, Belle, laid a gloved hand on Beast's arm, and the transformation of the Beast was incredible. Beast relaxed, ever so slightly, and looked over at Belle with big blue eyes. She shook her head at him, a small smile on her face, and stepped out from behind him. Then she approached Castiel.

The angel refused to meet her eyes. "I am sorry for what I did to you." His eyes traveled up to glance at Belle and then the Beast. "To both of you. I was overcome by the darkness. I couldn't… I couldn't see the light." He looked back down at the ground. "I know that I don't deserve your forgiveness, so I do not ask it. But you should know that I am sorry and I will do all that I can to make up for what I did."

Belle smiled, and took his hand. Castiel's head popped up in surprise, his eyes widening with shock. "It's okay. I forgive you." She looked over her shoulder at the Beast, giggled, and looked back at Castiel. "And I know he does too, even if he won't tell you so."

"Thank you," Castiel blurted out. "Maleficent was right about one thing: you are truly pure of heart."

Belle's smile grew. "I don't know about that, but thank you." She looked past Castiel, her eyes traveling to the group behind her. Her eyes grew at the sight of the Keyblade in Sora's hand. "You've come to seal the Keyhole, right? Please, be careful. The darkness is raging deep inside. We've been holding it back, but we can't hold out much longer."

"We?" Sam asked.

Belle nodded. "The other princesses and I."

"We'll take care of it," Sora reassured.

The princess smiled. "I'm sure you will."

"We'd better get moving, then," Dean said. He looked at the Beast and Belle. "I'm sorry we can't stay and chat, but we really need to get going."

"Of course," Belle replied.

"Are you coming, Beast?" Sora asked.

The Beast hesitated. "No. I must stay here to protect Belle. Nowhere in the castle is safe."

Sora nodded.

Dean started towards the library doors. He looked over his shoulder as the others trailed behind him. His eyes briefly met Belle's and the Beast's. "We'll fix this."

Belle smiled and the Beast nodded solemnly right before Dean turned and left the library, all of them headed for the grand hall.

The castle chapel still held all the darkness and mustiness that it carried the first time the group was here, but now it held some new, not-so-sinister faces. There were five princesses inside, all standing around, their faces anxious. One of them, a blond with a pale blue dress and matching gloves, stepped forward.

"We've been waiting for you, Keyblade master," the blond said.

"Where's Ansem?" Sora asked, entering the altar area of the chapel. Everyone except Castiel was with him. Castiel had elected to stay in the shadows near the entrance of the chapel, unwilling to reveal himself to the people he had so wronged while under Maleficent's influence.

"Gone," she replied.

Another princess spoke up, this one also a blond but she had her hair down and wore a darker blue dress. "When the Keyhole appeared, darkness poured out of it. It swallowed Ansem, and he disappeared."

The princess in the pale blue spoke again. "Though Ansem is gone, the flood of darkness hasn't stopped. We're working together to hold it back."

"We need you to do that just a little bit longer," Sam said. "Just a bit more time."

She nodded.

The princess in the darker blue was looking off into the distance. "I cannot forget the look on huis face. As the darkness engulfed him, he was smiling."

"I'm so sorry, how rude of us," the one in the pale blue dress said. "I'm Cinderella." She gestured to the princess in the dark blue dress. "This is Aurora."

Aurora waved. "Nice to meet you."

Another princess stepped up. She wore a dress that had a blue top and yellow button. Her black hair was cut short to frame her face with a red bow on top of her head. She had a voice that was high-pitched and sweet. "I'm Snow White." She gave them a small smile.

"I see why they call her that," Dean muttered, noting her incredibly pale skin.

Sam elbowed him in the ribs.

A little girl smiled at them next. She had on a blue dress with a white apron over it. In her blond hair was black bow. "Alice."

"Oh, I remember you," Dean said suddenly.

"I don't believe I know what you're talking about," Alice said.

"No, no." Dean shook his head. "I heard that you were kidnapped. I was at your world. It was all that white rabbit could talk about."

"That silly white rabbit and the mean old Queen." Alice crossed her arms. "The only good thing about getting kidnapped was getting away from them. She was going to cut off my head, you know."

"That's tough."

Sora's face lit up as the last one stepped forward out of the dark corner where she'd been hiding. "Sora, it's so good to see you." Jasmine came toward them. "It's good to see all of you, but you must hurry. Darkness is pouring from the Keyhole."

"It's all we can do to hold it back," Alice spoke up.

"And I don't know how long we manage that," Snow White added.

"We're on it, don't you worry," Dean replied.

Jasmine nodded. "Thank you. Tell Aladdin that I'm sorry, if you see him. I can't go back until everything is right."

Sora nodded. "If any of us see him, we will. Promise."

"Thank you," Jasmine breathed.

"We're counting on you, Keyblade master. In the meantime, we'll do what we can, too," Snow White said.

"Who's that?" Cinderella asked, her eyes catching movement in the darkness near the entrance. "Is someone there?"

Dean hesitated. "He's a friend of ours."

"He's kind of shy," Sam added.

"Oh," Cinderella said. She directed her next words toward the shadows. "You can come out. We don't bite."

"I don't think that's a good idea." Castiel's voice came from the dark corner.

Jasmine's eyes went wide. "I know that voice."

Castiel stepped into the light, pain clear as day on his face, growing even more so when the princesses stepped back.

"It's okay." Sam tried to soothe them. "He's okay now. He's not going to hurt you."

"I know that you all know me," Castiel began, "as the man who took you from your homes. I apologize and I cannot even begin to ask for your forgiveness as I do not deserve it. As I told Belle, I will do whatever I can to make up for my mistakes."

"You spoke to Belle?" Snow White asked.

Castiel nodded. "Yes."

The princesses glanced at one another before Jasmine spoke up. "We forgive you."

Castiel blinked uncomprehendingly. "What?"

Cinderella smiled. "It is in these times that we must show the greatest kindness. If we can't be kind to one another, then it will only be a matter of time before we are all lost to the darkness."

"'Purest of hearts…'" Castiel trailed off.

"What?" Dean asked.

Castiel glanced at Dean before looking back at the princesses in front of him. He had stepped forward during the course of the conversation. "Something Maleficent said once that is only becoming clear to me now." Then his eyes hardened. "We should get moving, so as the efforts here were not made in vain."

The grand hall was empty now, and almost destroyed in some places. The temperature dropped drastically the moment that they stepped inside. The Keyhole was exactly in the same condition as it was last time they were here, only now it had the ability to be sealed.

"It doesn't look like the Keyholes we normally seal," Goofy said.

Sora held out his Keyblade in an attempt to lock it. "It's not working."

"Well, they said that darkness was pouring out of it," Sam said. "Maybe there's darkness blocking it?"

"Then how do we get it out?" Donald asked.

Castiel stepped forward, walking until he was right in front of it. He reached a hand out toward the Keyhole, saying, "We go through it." His hand disappeared into the portal, then Castiel stepped inside.

It was a strange world inside, the colors distorted into reds, blues, purples, and black. It was clear and empty and huge. Essentially, it was a void. At the very end, so small that it could be barely be seen, was the true Keyhole.

Behind Castiel, the others had come through and had started walking towards the Keyhole at the very end of the big space. But something didn't feel right to Castiel, and he could tell the others felt the same way. Their movements were stiff and on-edge, practically expecting something to come out at them at any minute. If they could've avoided this, something told Cas that they would have. But there was no choice but to move forward.

That was why it was no one's surprise when a huge beast took form from the shadows, blocking their path with its might feet. It was a behemoth of a Heartless, the insignia plainly tattooed across its pale blue chest. Its black hooves crashed down on the floor, creating shockwaves and its navy fur waved when it roared. Out of the side of its face were two gray horns with another one that glowed at the top of its head. Its yellow eyes fixed on the puny beings in front of it. It walked forward, the ground vibrating underneath its heavy hooves.

Each step shook Dean's entire body. "Everyone, scatter!" The group split up, automatically dividing into Sam, Dean, and Castiel headed to the left and Sora, Donald, and Goofy running to the right.

"Alright, let's go," Dean said, Bravura held tightly in his hand. He ran toward the beast, who seemed to be moving in slow motion. He swung at the beast's leg, but when Bravura hit it, the blow merely glanced off, not even a scratch on the creature.

The leg Dean had tried to hit lifted up and crashed down onto the ground, creating a shock wave that threw Dean off his feet.

"Thunder!" Donald yelled, lightning flashing around them.

The Heartless shook his blue pelt, seemingly unharmed by the magic. It roared and its horn began to glow white.

"Take cover!" Sam yelled, his mind making the assumption that there was some sort of attack to come. Glowing things seemed to have that disastrous effect so Sam got as far away as possible from the beast.

Stronger, more powerful lightning bolts rained down on the group, and Sam could hear the yells of everyone around him getting shocked. Dean barely missed it as he was under the creature, but everyone else was hit by a bolt at one point or another. When they subsided, Sam realized that they needed to find a weak spot for it as its hide seemed to be took thick or the creature too large for anything they did to really do any damage.

Then an idea came to Sam and he knew he had to try it out. "Fire!" A fireball formed at Archfiend's point and flew toward the beast's glowing horn. It hit, but the Heartless seemed unaffected, a blue sheen appearing where the fireball hit.

"How the hell do we kill this thing?" Dean asked, backing up to be next to his brother.

"I have no idea," Sam replied over the roar of the beast.

"Look, up there," Castiel called, his eyes locked on the monster's face.

Sam and Dean looked up, catching sight of Sora running along the monster's back and up to its head where its horn glowed with magical power. When Sora struck the monster's horn with his Keyblade, it howled in pain, even as Sora struck it again and again.

"That's how we kill it," Castiel said, running over to the creature and jumping onto its hind leg. His speed was superhuman, even in his weakened state, and he was already at the creature's horn before Sam and Dean could move even two steps.

The beast doubled over after a few more strikes from Sora and Castiel and its head lowered to the ground, in reach for all. All six of them were striking the beast's horn until it finally fell over with a great crash, shaking the entire floor. Castiel and Sora hopped off of the beast's remains, and then the beast faded away, its pink heart floating up to the sky.

"Now let's go and seal that big Keyhole!" Goofy said.

They all turned to walk down the long corridor that would lead them to the Keyhole when a male voice called them back, "You did it."

"It is Leon," Castiel said matter-of-factly.

Sora turned around and ran back, out of the portal and back into the grand hall.

"Should we follow him?" Goofy asked, scratching his head.

Castiel's eyes were fixed on the Keyhole. "Every second we allow the Keyhole to remain unsealed increases the chance that something will come out of it."

"I guess that means we'll seal it without him," Dean said. He glanced at Bravura. "I always wanted to try that thing he did."

It took a few minutes to get to the end of the dark corridor where the Keyhole lay in wait. Dean held out Bravura like he'd seen Sora do before and he willed it to lock the Keyhole. The familiar white light formed at the tip of his Keyblade and shone into the Keyhole. A click echoed off the walls and then Keyhole disappeared.

When the group re-entered the grand hall, Yuffie was talking. "Besides, I couldn't forget you even if I wanted to!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sora asked while Yuffie smiled.

Leon's attention turned to the group that had walked out of the portal. "Is it sealed?"

Sam nodded. "It's sealed."

Leon looked relieved. "Thank you."

"What are you doing here?" Dean asked.

"Like we told Sora, we came in Cid's ship. This place was our childhood home," Aerith replied.

"This place has a dark history," Castiel said. "The darkness that resides here is stronger than any other world. That is why Maleficent chose to make her home here."

"It wasn't always this way," Leon replied curtly.

"Everything will return to normal should Ansem be defeated," Aerith said softly.

Sora's face was crestfallen. "She means that even though our worlds will be restored, we'll never see each other again. The barriers between worlds will be up again."

"It is better that there are barriers than the darkness that reigns now," Castiel said.

"Don't worry," Sam said. "We'll defeat Ansem."

Sora nodded. "If it means keeping everyone safe then that's what I'll do."

"Are you guys headed back to Traverse Town?" Dean asked.

Yuffie shook her head. "Not now. We want to stay here a while. There's a lot to see."

Dean nodded. "Be careful. I'm sure that even though the world is sealed, it's not completely safe."

"I'll watch out for them," Leon said.

Back in the chapel, the princesses stood around, all anxious about something. Alice's face lit up when she spotted Sora and the gang emerging from the dark hallway. "Thank you, everyone. I think the darkness has begun to weaken. I can feel the effect of sealing that Keyhole."

Jasmine's face was still anxious. "But I can feel a powerful darkness growing somewhere far away, just beyond this world."

"It's the heart of the darkness," Aurora expanded on Jasmine's statement. "It must be where Ansem went."

"We'll head there next, then," Sam said.

Cinderella nodded. "Thank you for doing this, all of you. You are all truly guardians of light."

"Your courage can bring back our worlds," Snow White said, gesturing to the princesses around her.

"Once the darkness is gone, all should return to its original state," Aurora said.

"Kairi will be back on the island?" Sora asked.

Cinderella nodded. "Most certainly. And you all should return to your worlds as well."

"I can't go home until I find Riku and the King," Sora replied, frowning.

"Perhaps you'll find them along your way," Aurora replied.

Sora nodded.

"We should get moving," Castiel said.

"He's right," Dean said. "We have no time to waste."

Sora nodded again, the resolve to defeat Ansem in his eyes and to find Riku and the King.

As they left the chapel toward their ships, all of them knew that they were headed straight into the darkest pit of the worlds, straight into a fight for not only their lives, but the lives of all who lived in this ever expanding universe.