Fading

by Sandfire Kat

Sora is captured by the Organization, who are forcing him to complete Kingdom Hearts faster by bombarding him with heartless. With friends gone and will broken, darkness looms over Sora, threatening to swallow him up. But a friend is closer than he thinks. With this new ally a way out gleams teasingly back at him. But if he even manages to escape, trouble surely doesn't stop there.

10. Chapter 10

A/N: Running out of nifty ways to say that a chapter is edited…. :O

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

There were no words to describe the sudden intense volume that a duck's voice can shoot to in a matter of milliseconds. Not to mention how many eardrums it can ring at one time. Hands flying up to his head, Goofy clamped his hands down over his ears tightly, stiff with surprise as Donald started to show what he was most good at besides magic: throwing tantrums. The white duck was furious, that much was more than certain. Blue eyes blazing and feet stomping on the ground in an allegro tempo, the magician looked fit to kill. Which probably wasn't all that far from the truth, taking into consideration what Genie had just told them. About how, days ago, he had been summoned by Sora only briefly, watching the boy get taken down just before the charm had been broken. This…this changed everything.

Aladdin and Jasmine's eyes flew wide, looking thoroughly shocked over the scene that had now taken place. Where they sat they had gone rigid, and in the depth of her eyes, Jasmine was overwrought with a sense of guilt. But Genie seemed to be oblivious to the duck's incomprehensible shouts and yells, not even glancing over at Donald as he looked instead glumly towards the ground. Where he stood beside the magician, Goofy was stricken, not even able to reach out to try and stop him as he could only stare. He had never seen his friend this upset; he had never heard Genie not talk for this long either. Usually the trio altogether could never get a word in edgewise when Genie was around them. The magical being could talk enough for both of them on any normal day. And yet, after Donald had started to yell, he had grown silent. That had to be a first.

Glancing over nervously to Donald, Goofy felt sorrow like an arrow slice through his heart. He might not be very smart most of the time, but he was able to grasp this much at least. Donald expressed his sadness with anger; it was always like that. And considering that King Mickey had paired the two of them together, Goofy guessed that he was supposed to be there to balance out the duck's anger issues. As the thought occurred, Goofy dropped his hands down to his sides, reaching over instead to grab Donald's shoulders. Before the duck could respond, Goofy began to shake him wildly back and forth, trying to jar him out of the stupor that he had gotten himself into after hearing the news. "Snap out of it, Donald!" he shouted, unusually cross as he looked down at his friend.

The white duck flailed, ready to slap Goofy out of the way. He continued to yell, his words so hurried and rushed that it was nearly impossible to understand what he was saying if he was even saying coherent things in the first place. It was hard to tell with him, really. Finding that shaking him loose of the tantrum was impossible, Goofy let his grip on the magician go, only to reach back and bring out his shield. And before he could give himself a moment or two more to think about it, the dog reared up and smacked his friend over the head with the hard weapon.

At the unexpected attack, the duck squawked with alarm and surprise. He staggered, nearly keeling over as he let out a loud shout. The blow hadn't been so hard as to cause him bodily injury; it was just enough to knock some sense into the shorter one. Nevertheless, Goofy was anticipating a sense of anger after he had smacked him over the head; he was braced for it as Donald quieted, blinking as he turned over to face his friend. However rather than growing even more enraged, the duck did the exact opposite. He literally deflated, his shoulders sagging and the light dying from his eyes as he raised them up to clash with Goofy's.

He wore a lost expression, on that asked the question Goofy had thought over and over ever since they first couldn't find Sora back in Hollow Bastian. "…What do we do now, then?" Without Sora, the quest they had taken would come to a standstill— they couldn't continue without the keyblade wielder. The worlds would go unprotected as well; without Sora to help stop the wave of Heartless, what could befall them? Anything could happen— people could even die. Not only that, but Sora could die as well. If he was in danger, how long did they have to try and help him? Could they even help him?

"We're really sorry," Aladdin said, snapping Goofy back to the present as he was ripped from his thoughts. "It was a few days ago that this all happened. It was…really bizarre. We wanted to try and find you to tell you about it, but we had no way of finding you. So we just decided to wait until you all came through again. Not to mention that we figured there was some kind of explanation for it." He paused, looking at the two in front of him and taking them in for a few beats of silence. "You have no idea where he is?" the prince pressed after this, voice much more subdued than it normally was.

And with that worry there was also a sense of sadness. In not only Aladdin's eyes but in Jasmin's as well. Goofy was painfully reminded of the fact that pretty much wherever he went, Sora formed close bonds with everyone he met. That was no exception to this case, it seemed. Sora had spent many hours with Aladdin, finding an easygoing relationship with the other as they took to competitions— who could get through the Cave of Wonders faster, who could steal more apples from the marketplace without being caught. Though with the latter, Sora always returned afterwards to return what he had swiped. With Jasmine, it was a much less personal of a bond. The princess owed her life to Sora many times over, and the boy had engaged in a few deep conversations with her as well. Though grief and worry was etched in lines over her face just as clearly as Aladdin's.

"No," Donald muttered, looking away from the man. "We thought he just ran off by himself. We had no idea where he was. We were out here in the first place to see whether or not he was here."

Silence formed its way forward after Donald had said this, in which Aladdin and Jasmine fell quiet. And after a few minutes of this, Goofy turned back to Genie, his expression anxious. "You're sure that's all you've got?" he asked, head tilted. "You don't know where he could be? Did he say anything to you?"

Genie blinked, starting as attention was turned back to him once more. Hopeful, Goofy wondered if he had thought of something else upon question, but the man just shook his head. "It's like I said," he remarked, his voice having a hollow ring to it. "He just summoned me out of the blue; I thought that you all were in a tough situation that needed the expertise of magic." There was no humor in his voice, or any kind of zeal that he would normally have with this. "I knew something was wrong as soon as I got there; it wasn't like any other time that I had been called. It was…different from the very start. I could hear yelling…a lot of it. It was in a place I hadn't seen before— it was this huge room…all white. And there were…four…five people?" There was a questioning lilt to his voice to show that he was not as sure on this fact.

But he went on anyway. "I only recognized Sora's voice. And he was yelling louder than the others, too. Once I got there the first thing I saw was Sora— he was being pinned down by some guy in a black coat." Donald was back to seething by now, and as this point of the story was brought up again, the duck seemed to grow absolutely livid. "He was screaming for me to help. So…I did the only thing I could do— I just assumed that the guys in black were the bad ones, and I started to fire out as many spells as I could to try and do whatever I could. I hit a few of them, but it didn't help Sora. The guy holding him down started to choke him. I tried to get closer, but…" His voice trailed off for a moment. And when he picked up again, his voice was a soft murmur, wounded and just a small whisper. "…It didn't help," he mumbled. "The charm was broken. Someone smashed it. And I was sent back here."

That meant the Organization had Sora. And it also meant that Sora was in incredible danger. He wasn't off frolicking by himself in some world trying to get away. He wasn't even out somewhere trying to track down Riku or Kairi. The thought of Sora alone against the larger group of the villains made Goofy's skin crawl completely. And feeling his stomach churn, Goofy turned his gaze down towards Donald. The duck was still looking away, as if he was unable to meet anyone else's eyes. The pair of them were lost for words and even more lost for what do from here. That much was for sure. When faced with impossible situations like these, the two of them would always look to Sora for a solution; the teenager would always be the one with the answers. And now…he was their new question.

So that just meant that someone else would have to take charge, then.

"We'd better go back to Leon," Goofy decided aloud, not really asking Donald whether or not the idea was a good one as he spoke. Because, really, this was all they had left to go off of. "Thanks for everything." He added as he glanced over to the Agrabah trio. Nobody seemed to appreciate the thank-you, though how could they? Genie only nodded, and Jasmine just returned his gaze. Aladdin offered him a small smile, but the expression did not reach his eyes. "Without you all, we wouldn't have known what was going on." People said ignorance was bliss, though in this situation, was that really the truth? At least before the two of them could assume the least harmful. That Sora was just off on his own, travelling at his leisure. Now they knew it was the opposite. Sora was held captive. Sora was crying for help. Sora was being pinned down. And Sora was being choked.

"I hope you find him," Aladdin said, his voice earnest and more than sincere. "And when you do…could you tell us? We've been…we've been really worried about him."

Goofy's reply was instantaneous. "Of course," he said swiftly, giving him a nod. "As soon as we find him we'll be sure to let you know." The offer wasn't all that satisfying when you thought about it. But it was all he could offer at the moment, and it seemed to be enough for the others who looked a touch happier with the promise. They exchanged a few more words, a few more strings of sentences that really didn't register in Goofy's mind, which was more focused on what to do from here on out. And then they left, in much more of hurry than they had come in the first place.

On the way back to the Gummi Ship, and even as they buckled in and went into take-off, there was a stifling kind of silence that hung in between them. Yet just as Goofy was about to turn towards Hollow Bastian, the quiet was broken. Surprisingly by Donald.

"What are we going to tell them?" the duck asked quietly, unusually subdued. "The King…what will he do?"

Goofy glanced over at his friend worriedly, but he did not reply.

When they landed in Hollow Bastian, they walked straight for Merlin's house. They took no side-tours, and they did not stop anywhere else. When people milling about the town called out greetings to the familiar faces of the heroes, they did not even bring themselves to acknowledge the shouts. With their newfound knowledge, they were oblivious to anything else that was going on around them. They just had to get to Merlin's house. Yet as they got closer and closer to the cottage by the Bailey, their paces got slower and slower. There was more of a hesitance to what they were about to do, and the news that rested on their tongues tasted bitter and awful. And eventually, they stopped altogether.

Standing a mere few yards away from the house, they had stopped together almost in sync. And they stood, just staring blankly at the door, as if they had forgotten how to use it. The weight of what they brought was pushing them down to the ground, and once they relayed the tale that they had just listened to, they would be forcing everyone else to have to hold that burden as well. The thought was sickening, and as if they shared the same thought, they turned to look at one another with shadowed expressions. They both asked one another the same question: 'What do we do from here?'

But apparently they did not need to face the question themselves; it answered for them. The door to the cottage flew open abruptly, and a figure poked its head out from the door. It was Yuffie— the girl was already beaming widely as her eyes landed on the pair standing together. "You're back!" she cried happily. Quickly, she stepped out over the threshold, weaving out and hopping down the steps to rush towards them in a rushed, excited pace. From behind her, the others clustered near the door as well. Everyone was bright-eyed over the possibility of happy news. "So did you find him?" Yuffie asked, more of a demand as she was looking around every which way. "Where was he? What was he doing?"

Yuffie's smile faded little by little as the two of them did not reply at once. And as a frown came to replace her beam, she tilted her head from side to side, looking around the scenery from top to bottom. It was as if she was waiting for Sora to be standing there, leaning against the wall; or to come around the corner armed with a sarcastic remark. "…So?" she prompted hesitantly, her cheer from before now obsolete. "Where is he?"

From where they stood at the forefront of the cottage's entryway, Leon and Cid's eyes darkened somewhat, already anticipating the blow that would no doubt be dealt in less than a minute. They did not seem at all surprised, just like Aladdin and Jasmine hadn't either. They just looked pained. Horribly and awfully pained. Goofy let out a small sigh underneath his breath, turning to look down at Donald. The duck was silent as ever, holding his tongue as he refused to say anything. It was probably for the best, in hindsight. Donald had the tendency to let himself go in situations like these— and that was the last thing they needed right now. So he guess he might as well be the one to say it.

"We know where he is," Goofy hedged out, flinching inside of himself.

Yuffie brightened at once with the affirmation, her beam from before spreading across her face again upon impact of the words. However it was only left to be crushed all over again as the next six simple words were thrown forward like acid.

"He's been captured by the Organization."

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

He was moving through a tunnel once more, but this one was obviously different. Rather than shadows pressing in on him at all sides, it was fog and haziness. It shrouded the teenager with a tight vice, holding him in place with sharp claws and refusing to let him go free no matter how hard he seemed to try and break loose. It was slow process to worm his way out from the cold clamps that unconsciousness used against him; Sora had to force his mind to connect dots, swim forward, and break free of the haziness pressing down like weights. And as coherent thought returned to him string by string, he was able to latch onto more and more things. He had been fleeing from the Organization— yeah, that was it. And he…he must have passed out. Not a surprising thing taking everything into consideration, but…what about now? Where was he?

His eyes blinked open reluctantly, squinting against the dim light that met him. However upon trying to open his eyes, a certain kind of pain burned its way through his mind, and Sora had to snap them shut once more to ward off the waves that were crashing against his skull. Pausing a moment more and steeling himself, he opened them again slow this time, leaned into the pain that it brought and more equipped now as colors and shapes began to click together and make sense. Hopefully they would make sense— oh geez, please make at least some kind of sense.

But despite the efforts to try and make sense of where he was, Sora couldn't manage the simple feat. His head was pounding too much, and there was a distinct sick feeling rooted down in the pit of his stomach. And everything was so dim and dark…concentrating enough to see through it added strain onto his head that he could not manage to force himself through. He did register that he was lying down though, and that there was a certain small pressure over his chest. A comforting sort of pressure though, and he realized that he was in a bed. The mattress was soft underneath him, and a pillow allowed the smallest bit of tenderness to his aching head. Twisting, Sora attempted to throw the covers off and move so that he could stand. The action caused his body to immediately scream in pain and agony, and Sora had to admit that getting up and out of this comfortable cocoon was certainly not on his list of exciting things that he wanted at the moment. But it was a necessity— he had no idea where he was. All he remembered was that voice from before, too distant to make out who it had come from. 'You're coming back with us.' No, he couldn't just stay lying here. Not when he didn't know where he was or who had spoken the ominous phrase.

It took a few minutes for Sora to push himself off from the bed, and when he did the boy found that he swayed unsteadily on his feet, having to reach over and brace himself against the wall to keep from keeling over. Perking and telling his mind firmly to think through things clearer, Sora looked at his surroundings. In the dark, the most prominent thing that he could make out was the window on the far right. It was grand and elaborate, nearly taking up half of the entire wall it was built into. The way it was styled could only mean that Sora was someplace grand, someplace fancy. A castle. And looking outside, Sora could see that it was just as dark out as it was in— clouds were thick outside, and there seemed to be no light whatsoever.

There was the smallest hint of the sound of rain against the roof, and as the thoughts connected together, and as Sora's rampant paranoia began to take hold, his breath caught in the middle of his throat. Cold horror swam over him; he was back in the Organization's castle. "…No…" He whispered under his breath, panic making his chest start to heave rapidly. Was it really all for nothing? Surely it couldn't be! "No!" Forcing his legs to move, Sora turned and made for what looked to be the exit of whatever room he was in. His mind was clouded with too many emotions to be thinking clearly, and he all but slammed into the wall, a pained cry escaping him as he looked down, fumbling with the doorknob. But after a minute, he managed to make sense of the thing and ripped open the door, falling forward and out over the threshold.

Sora did not even look around before choosing a random path to take. He didn't know this castle, he didn't know these halls, and as pain began to fill him up to the brim, he found that he couldn't even hold his head up properly as he ducked it down against his chest instead. With a limped gait, Sora made his way down the hall, resorting to using the wall as not only a guide, but also as a second leg as he had to hold himself up against it. The hallway was not lit in the first place, just as dim as the room that he had left. He could only imagine what was lying along the sides, lingering in the shadows. Organization Members? Heartless? Panic and frustration sang siren songs in his mind. He was sure that if the smallest Heartless in the entire world came up to him at this very second, he would still be knocked aside like he was made of nothing. He was in no state at all to fight; if he didn't try and escape again then he could never make it.

His thoughts were strained and hopeless as they ran quickly through his mind. However they were broken apart as a sudden yell echoed its way over from down the hall, and the teenager went absolutely rigid as it connected with his eardrums. "Sora!" the voice roared, surprise clear in its tone even from where the boy was standing. Sora's hands balled into fists and he only struggled faster, tripping over his useless leg as he tried to push off the wall in a faster rate. He was absolutely pathetic and he knew it in the back of his mind, but it was all he could do now. He might be taken down, but surely he would not be taken down without a fight? There were footsteps behind him, rapid and gaining speed as whoever had shouted began to close the distance in between them. It was clear that they weren't just about to let him waltz off.

A pained noise wrenched its way from his throat, and Sora's face was overcome with a deep scowl of not only concentration, but also determination. He pushed himself further, and whoever was giving chase let out another surprised grunt. And sure enough in response as well, their pace got faster too. Come to think of it, there seemed to be more footsteps than just one set— it sounded like two at the very least. His heart sank down to his throat as he considered the idea to bring down the hammer. More than one person giving chase meant the Organization. What else could it mean?

Anger melted through his bones, bitterness and sadness giving fuel to the fire as he slowly came to terms with the fact that no matter what he did, he could not get away from these people. After all, this was his third or fourth try to break away. "Get lost!" Sora yelled without looking back, seriously considering bringing forth his keyblade to throw back at the people giving chase. He might as well pull out all the stops while he was at it. However as soon as he was starting to conjure up the angle that he would have to fling it in, the ensuing footsteps suddenly stopped. Instead there was an unexpected bout of silence, and probably pretty stupidly, Sora started to slow down, surprise over the change making him come to a little reluctant of a halt.

However as soon as Sora stopped, there was applied as heavy weight against his back, causing the boy to tip forward and find himself sprawled back against the ground. A strained yelp came out from clenched teeth, and Sora felt a wave of not only pain but also horror to wrap around his throat. For a brief moment he convulsed and lunged, trying to get out from underneath the grip of whoever was pinning him still. But after he struggled and strained, realization dawned over him that he had already lost. The fact was a hard one to swallow, but it was more than true. He was drained of energy, even more so after he had tried to run. His ankle was bent and aching and every slight movement of his body caused his burns to prick and twitch awfully. He couldn't outrun this person even if he wanted to so bad. And he couldn't outfight them either— not in his condition. So, shame burning through every inch of him just like his injuries, Sora ducked his head and became limp.

Yet no sooner had he given up, the pressure keeping him in place was gone. Whoever had taken it upon themselves to chase him down and hold him there suddenly retreated, pulling off of the teenager and stepping to the side. Sora's eyes snapped open at this, and confusion created a momentary lapse in his mind. "Are you alright?" a voice asked, low and filled to the brim with concern. For a long, almost torturous moment, Sora could not figure out what he was supposed to do. He could only remain on the ground, staring down at the floor with fear-flooded eyes as he trembled.

But eventually, shaking as he did so, Sora managed to reach out and push himself to the side, rolling over cautiously so that he was on his back instead. He was left wrought with even more confusion upon the sight that met him, and for a long while he blanched, intelligence slowly connecting in his eyes bit by bit. And ever slow slowly, he began to try and push himself up into a sitting position. "B-Beast?" he fumbled, the large, furred animal looking down with an obscene amount of worry at the child. "I—" His mind was spastic, words failing him repeatedly as he stammered. "I didn't— what did—?"

"You shouldn't be up," his friend said in a much softer voice than he had used before. As Sora struggled with the simple task of getting up, Beast leaned down and reached forward, his hands going under the boy's arms as he helped him as gently as he could. As Beast laid his hands on him, Sora hissed sharply as pressure was applied to his injuries through this. But after enduring the pain, he was able to sit upright, though he was forced to wrap his arms around his stomach to try and staunch the feeling of nausea festering there. He grimaced, hanging his head as he tried to most past it all, though it was proving awfully hard. Beast studied him, distress clear even in each line on the man's face. And hovering over him gingerly, Beast uttered out the phrase that Sora had told him long ago, years back when he had first met the other back at Hollow Bastian. "You shouldn't move when you're hurt. It'll only make things worse."

Sora was still muddled and confused, scrambling for purchase on thing as best he could. "I gotta— I...I have to…" He looked around, now being able to connect the dots and register where he was. What must have happened. He was in Beast's Castle in the East Wing, the familiar statues of battle-ready knights, the familiar carpeting and drapes lining the halls around him. Yes— he knew exactly where he was now that he could see and make sense of who was across from him. How could he have missed it? He's been here enough times on missions and such, had he gone blind in a fit of paranoia? He must have. "I have to go…" What was he trying to say again? His mind was so hazy that it was difficult to know; he struggled to force himself to clear it.

"Beast, what's going on?" Another voice came into earshot from the other end of the hall. And out of a new awful habit, Sora's joints locked together as he went rigid in fright over the newcomer. Even when he had Beat crouching in front of him, no less than two feet away, he couldn't help but jerk backwards slightly in a recoil. Beast noticed the boy's reaction, and his eyes narrowed in acute concern. But as Sora's head whipped back towards where it had come from, Sora began to relax as he saw yet another familiar form. Belle was coming quickly down the passageway, her brown hair tied back into its trademark, neat ponytail. "I heard running, I didn't know what was going on! I was starting to worry whether or not there were more-"

The princess broke off midsentence, her eyes finally landing on the battered boy that sat loosely beside Beast. She stopped, a hand flying up to cover her mouth as it muffled the small gasp that escaped her. At first she seemed overjoyed at the sight of the boy, yet after a few seconds her gaze clouded over to match Beasts'. "You're not supposed to be up yet, Sora; you should still be resting!" Her voice turned brittle and almost harsh, resembling that of a mother's. It was as if Sora was her disobedient son that had disobeyed a direct order. The words left a stinging mark on the end of them, and Sora's face clouded over, his guilt coming back up in a swell from the back of his throat. Seeing this, Belle shook her head, going forward still until she was just as a close to the boy as her prince was. "Nevertheless. I'm just so glad that you're okay," the brunette murmured, her expression softening at once with the change in demeanor. "When I first found you on the ground, I wasn't all that sure… I thought that maybe you were too injured….that…" Her voice trailed off and it was clear by her expression that she was rendered unable to finish her train of thought.

"That was you?" Sora asked, slowly piecing the puzzles together. Though it was much harder than it would be at any other time. It felt like he was five years old, staring down at a jigsaw game and having to have his mother move his arm where it needed to go.

"Yes, I was just coming down from dinner," she said, her brown eyes searching his blue ones anxiously as she moved to crouch down in front of him. "I was almost ready to turn the corner, when I heard something— it sounded like something fell. I thought it was just a piece of furniture, but when I went back to check, I found you lying there instead." She paused for a moment, thinking. "You gave me a quite a scare," the princess added, her tone sharp with anger, though its bite was rendered less so as it was overpowered by her relief at seeing the boy functioning once again.

Sora managed a smile. "Sorry 'bout that," he said, reaching up and rubbing the back of his neck.

Doing a quick once-over of him, Belle went on, the firm sternness in her voice returning fully now. "You really do need to go to bed; it's not a question this time. You look ready to fall over again." She reached over and grabbed Sora's hands gently, intertwining their fingers and making sure her old was firm but wary as he move to stand up, helping him do the same at the same time. Sora grimaced deeply, a thick noise of pain coming from him as his legs wavered and shook like jelly underneath him. But all the same he stood, yet Belle kept her hold on him just in case he fell over, which seemed more than likely as he surveyed him over. "I tried to give you some potions," she said, her voice curled backwards slightly as if in guilt. "But they only did some good. Not a whole lot could be done. Once you got up I was going to bandage your wounds."

Sora nodded, waving off the unneeded apology quickly. Belle hesitated a moment or two, as if not sure whether or not her next statement would be appropriate. But she seemed to win the mental debate in her mind, and after her pause, she asked: "Where are Goofy and Donald? Usually the three of you are never apart." Beast made a small noise in the back of his throat, obviously questioning whether or not the question came in good taste. After all, Sora was beaten up pretty badly and found all on his own— to any normal person the reason behind the situation couldn't be good. But despite the noise, Belle pressed. "I would have thought you guys had been separated, but when they never came looking for you, I got really worried. What's going on? Did something happen?"

The question brought a lump to his throat— once that suddenly proved much too big to even try to swallow around. Using her held in staying standing, Sora looked at Belle with a slightly agonized expression, weighing the possible answers that he could give. Belle seemed even more worried at the boy's features, and lying to such a face seemed more than cruel. All she had done so far was help him, really. But already he could hardly deal with the situation; he didn't want to force this on her as well. Deciding it was better she not know the truth, Sora managed to make his voice casual as he ducked his head a little bit, giving a small nod. "The Gummi Ship…crashed…before I came here. Goofy and Donald got separated from me." The boy hesitated before branching out hopefully: "…Have you seen them?"

But Belle shook her head after a moment's pause. Sora deflated significantly, and the woman watched the change carefully. But if she found something awry with his given explanation, she did not pry further. The princess turned instead, helping the teenager along as she started to go back towards the room that Sora had fled in his out-of-it state. Beast turned and took up his other side, helping him keep upright as well. The boy was grateful for all the help— he probably needed as much as he could get right now. The teenager was still limping heavily, a little worse now after he had forced himself into that run just a few minutes ago. But he didn't think too much of it, his preoccupied thoughts moving instead to rest on another topic of interest. "Belle…" he started, the princess perking and turning at the sound of her name. Sora stumbled a little bit and grimaced, though he kept going. "…What were you thinking before? When you heard running?" he asked, his mind flying to the words that she had said before. "What did you think I was? You said that you were…worried that there was more of something?"

Belle started with surprise. She had started to reach over and open the door, but now she was stopped short. Her hand was resting on the doorknob, and she almost looked like she had forgotten how to function entirely. The brunette's eyes held traces of doubt, and she turned to look at Beast with a worried expression. And to Sora's surprise, the prince's words were sharp and barbed as he said: "He doesn't have to know. At least not right now anyway." The response was starting— usually Beast was so gentle and kind towards Belle. Now something seemed wrong; really wrong. The teenager's face fell, and he turned to look from one to the other. Belle seemed to be less offended than he thought she would be though. The princess only fidgeted, biting down on her lower lip in a nervous fashion.

"He deserves to know, though," the girl objected, her brown eyes flashing down to Sora's as she said this. "After all, it might be something that he already knows about. It would certainly explain why—"

"Belle, he would have said something by now if he already knew," Beast said adamantly. "He doesn't need this."

"But maybe he just thinks we don't know."

"We might as well not take the chance, then."

"But look at him!" Belle's voice sharpened by now. "If anybody deserves to know it's him!"

"Belle that might be the reason he's like this," Beast hissed.

"Then why keep it from him in the first place?"

"Keep what from me?" Sora demanded, piping up from where he was propped between the two. Immediately they turned to look at him, as if they had forgotten he was there in the first place. Silence weighed in between the three, and Sora pressed on through it. "What's going on?" he asked. "Tell me." It was clear by the looks on their faces that it was something bad— something deeply troubling or worrying. The expression was second nature to the teenager now. It was the one he wore nearly twenty-four hours now.

Belle drank in the boy's expression, and there seemed to be a resolution in her manner. She did not glance over at the Beast, and when she spoke, her voice relayed the clear idea that she was not going to allow any more questions. "He has a right to know," she stated firmly. "We can't keep something like this from him." Beast seemed frustrated at the conclusion, though he did not object as Belle opened the door to the room, taking Sora and helping him walk over to the large window on the adjacent wall.

"It's outside," she said as they walked together. "It's been like that for about an hour. We didn't really know what to make of it." An hour? How long had he been out? All judgments pointed to a very long time— his head was still fuzzed over and hindered with sleep and exhaustion. He thought of asking the woman, for surely she would know, but he bit the question back quickly. Instead he kept silent and came to a stop beside her as they met the window. Belle made sure that he was steady before letting go of him, and once she did, Sora rested against the glass, leaning over and looking down towards the castle grounds. And at first he was just confused, staring into the darkness outside and not really looking at anything. Just black

But that was just it. Slowly, his mind pieced together what he was really looking at. The shadows on the ground were not made by the trees outside or the looming castle walls; rather, they were shadows themselves. A whole gathering of Heartless were outside, much too many for Sora to count, let alone fight. A cold sensation of horror settled deep inside the boy's chest, and his breath caught in the thick of his throat. Belle glanced at him worriedly, and Sora's hands balled into shaking fists at his sides. Most of the shadows were trying to find a way inside as they scurried and jerked forward along the base of the castle, but the other majority of them were merely standing there, eyes glinting evilly in the darkness of the night.

They were looking up at the top of the castle. Sora felt a wave of panic as they seemed to be looking straight up at him. While Belle and Beast must be worrying about an attack or some kind of ambush, Sora saw something else entirely. He saw a message. And it was clear as day. 'You can run, but not for long. Because we'll find you.' Heartless harbor a great fear of the keyblade; that was one of the first things Sora had learned. Leon had been the one to tell him about this. They would stop at nothing to find the key and destroy it— destroy Sora and put an end to light. With the teenager running away and disappearing like he had, Maleficent would have wasted no time in sending out hordes of Heartless after him. They would find him quicker and faster than anything or anyone else.

Slowly, Sora backed away from the window, his steps slow and careful, as if he was walking on glass. "…You said they got here a while ago?" he asked in a soft tone of voice, looking over at Belle and Beast with a shadowed, almost haunted expression. The woman hesitated a moment under the weight of his strained gaze, but she nodded nonetheless. The confirmation caused a wave of emotions to press down against him, and Sora could almost picture himself going under, drowning in everything that was pushing him towards the depths. Did he even believe that he could keep afloat with all of this? Or was he just fooling himself? "I have to leave," he whispered, the few words dropping like stones as they exited his mouth.

"Go? But— but you can't!" Belle cried, astonished. "It's alright, they won't come inside. Beast barricaded the door! Without that, they don't have any other ways of getting inside. They won't hurt you— I promise. You're safe here."

"No. No I won't be. You don't understand," Sora said quickly, shaking his head as he ducked away from the pained woman's promises. "I lied to you earlier." Guilt was laced through every syllable, and he tried to ignore the way that Belle's face fell, or the way that Beast took a small step forward towards him. "Beast, do you remember Xaldin? The person who tried to turn you into a Heartless?" The man let out a low growl and nodded his head. "He's a part of the Organization. And they're trying to come after me. I escaped from them, and I came this far, but I can't keep going for much longer."

He paused, swallowing with a bit of difficulty. And when he went on, his voice was strained and punctured in a certain kind of pain. "The Gummi Ship didn't crash. I have no idea where Donald or Goofy are. Or if they're even alive." Belle let out a small gasp at this, and her eyes rounded out with even more apprehension as she took a step closer to the younger boy. Her expression was wrought in pain, and she tried to reach out to touch Sora, as if try and console him. But Sora was too busy struggling to overcome the wave of emotions triggered by his last string of words. "But what I do know is that once they see the clog of Heartless like this, the Organization is going to know in less than an instant that I'm here. Please just let me go. I can go back to Hollow Bastian, I can try and find Yuffie or Leon."

Beast paced forward. "We can help protect you here," he said, looking at the boy expectantly.

But Sora shook his head. "You've done enough," he said. "And the last thing I want is to bring the Organization into your castle and bring you into all this. You're not a part of this fight, and I'm sorry for all the trouble that I've already caused you." It was obvious that he was leaving no room for objections or questions of any kind. "Please?" he asked, once they still looked unsure. "Once I get to Hollow Bastian, I'll be able to reorganize myself there." If only he could land where he was really wanting to in the first place, he might actually stand a chance. But he couldn't do anything here— Belle didn't know how to fight and neither did anybody else in the castle save for Beast. And two against the entire group of Nobodies didn't really prove a successful fight. With Hollow Bastian, he would have all of his friends backing him up and making sure that he would not be dragged away for a second time. And he wouldn't be endangering anyone else either, like he would with Belle if he stayed here.

It was a loaded thought process, but thankfully the other two seemed to grasp at least its basic concept. The couple shared a long, mixed look, and after what seemed like forever, as Sora watched them with a slightly tensed look, they seemed to come to the same conclusion. Belle turned and gave a reluctant nod, watching as the boy experienced a significant touch of relief. And then, knowing that there was very little she could do in the first place, Belle took a small step forward. "At least let me patch you up," she tried. "At the very least just let me bandage up your wounds."

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

Belle watched Sora leave, her eyes haunted by regret and her posture stiff, as if she was worried that by standing still she was making a grave mistake. Nevertheless, she did not object any further to what the boy had requested, and he had let him go free like he'd asked. The kind-hearted princess had put bandages tightly around Sora's arms and legs, and the burns that were a blistering red there. She wrapped a bandage around his head carefully, having eyed the irritated wound there with a little bit of anxiousness. Across the gash splitting his cheek she pressed down a patch of gauze, and around the boy's ruined ankle, she tried to apply the best kind of splint that she could, though she was no doctor. She did not know how the boy could walk with such dignity in the face of danger, leaving by himself for that matter. But his head was held high, and his strides were sure, despite his adopted limp. He was truly the perfect fit for the keyblade. She would never wonder again what made him stand out among others.

"I hope Goofy and Donald are okay," Belle said in a whisper, her expression saddened as the two found themselves alone again. Beast blinked at this, though after a pause he turned and reached out, wrapping his arms around his princess and pulling her close. Belle frowned, leaning her head to the side and biting down again on her lower lip. And after another long passage of time with little to no noise in the castle, Belle went on. "Goofy was always so nice; he was always complimenting my dresses. And the little duck was so fluffy." She pursed her lips with an almost contemplating expression. "But I don't think that he liked it when I held him." A frown pulled down the edges of her mouth. "…they can't be dead," she rasped. "…It's too awful. It's horrible."

"I'm sure they'll be fine." Beast assured her, ever faithful. There was a gap of quiet, when Beast spoke again and almost contradicted himself. "And even if they aren't," Belle turned to look at him with this. "I've seen Sora go one without them. I was there when he did. …He would be just fine."

Belle was not so easily swayed. "I'm not sure," she said. "Did you see the injuries that were all over him? I think he's in a very deep kind of trouble. He's looking for help as it is. And…if his friends aren't there for him…" She paused, reaching up and drawing a hand through her hair with a sorrowful flinch. "We could have just sent him to…" Her words trailed off, and it was obvious that she could not complete the thought. It was too sickening a thing to try and accomplish.

However she couldn't even have finished it if she wanted to in the first place. Because no sooner did her words trail off into oblivion did the corner of the room suddenly become alive. A thick wall of shadow erected itself in the far reach of the bedroom, and there was a sharp snapping sound to announce its appearance. Belle jerked with shock at the sudden change, the peace that had formed itself inside of the castle shattering into a million pieces as the princess let out a sharp scream of surprise. Beast stiffened, caught off-guard as well and blanching for the briefest of moments. And in that small sliver of time, a sudden burst of figures rushed out from the portal of darkness, sprinting forward and making for the two like swarming bees.

One of the men in dark grabbed Belle, taking both of her arms and locking them behind her back as they wrenched her away from Beast. She screamed as she was dragged sharply away, crying out for Beast as she thrashed and struggled. Beast immediately began to become enraged, snarling and trying to make his way over to his princess. But the rest of the men had lunged for the large animal, and as they piled on top of him and forced him gradually to the ground, the prince was beside himself. He clawed and swiped blindly, screeching and yowling and fighting his hardest to get closer to Belle.

"If you know what's good for you, you'll stop fighting!" one of the men in cloaks yelled.

As if to support the warning, the man holding Belle jerked her closer, a knife suddenly flashing out to press against the sensitive skin of her neck. As the freezing touch of blade registered, Belle screamed even louder, her eyes filled with fear and horror as she ceased any movement, going still save for the trembles that lanced up and down her spine. These were the people Sora had been talking about, they must be. A primal sound of fear sounded deep in her throat, and Belle wondered wildly what they could want from them. Going by the wounds that the boy had, these were not people that could be messed with. The thought, and the fear that came with it, made her go still, like stone in the man's hands.

"Belle!" Beast cried out, his voice filled with rage and anger, yet an underlying layer of fear as well. "Why are you doing this?" He yelled towards the others, still trying to fight against the holds of the other men in black. "Let her go! Don't you dare hurt her!"

"I dunno," the man behind Belle drawled, his voice a stark kind of relaxed in comparison to the situation that was playing out before them. "I think I'll just keep her for a little bit. But then again, I'm getting pretty tired. In fact, I think I feel a stretch coming on." The man pulled his arm out to the side just slightly, the blade of the knife just barely puncturing the princess' skin as a small red line tracked its way underneath her chin. Belle immediately yelped in pain, closing her eyes tightly as she could feel a touch of blood warm her pale neck. Beast immediately tried to rush for her, his eyes blown out with panic at the sight of what he was powerless to stop. But that made the disguised man only press the blade in more. "Uh-Uh," he said, as if he was speaking to a dog. "You stay still; or her head comes off."

Belle inhaled sharply, letting it out in a high-pitched scream. "Beast! Help!" she wailed, her voice cracking in its volume.

"Belle!" he called back, his voice just as wrecked. But he kept his head nevertheless, ceasing movement as he locked desperate eyes with his princess. He was unable to save her without killing her in the process. Sniffling, Belle kept where she was, the knife blade stinging her split sin painfully. "Don't hurt her!" The Beast was left reduced to pleading now. What else could he do, really? "Take the knife away! Don't kill her!"

"Oh, we won't kill her," a different voice arose after this, a dark aspect to his voice as he spoke. The man who had spoken stood in the doorway of the room, his hood drawn up just like the rest of them as he shrouded away his face in blackness. Beside him stood Maleficent, Beast recognizing her from when he was helping Sora back in Hollow Bastian. The witch's eyes were alight with dark humor as they surveyed the scene playing out in front of them. It was as she was watching a particularly comedic movie that she could not look away from. Behind the sorceress, the pack of Heartless that had previously been outside were now crammed into the hall behind her, twitching and writhing in a degree of anticipation. They were obviously poised to attack as they walked over one another and urged themselves closer and closer towards the action. "As long as you do a small little favor for us."

"What kind of favor?" Beast grunted, reluctant as his gaze never wavered from Belle.

The man pulled down his hood, revealing his face. His eyes were a piercing shade of yellow, and they seemed to burn right through the two in front of him. "We just need a little bit of information from you," he said smoothly. "Now, we know that the keyblade bearer was here. There's no denying that claim. But he seems to have gotten away from us. Again." There was clear disdain in every part of the man's voice as he said this, and Belle was reminded yet again of the array of injuries that Sora had. The way that she had found him unresponsive in the foyer. "But that's alright," the man with the yellow eyes went on, almost calm. Too calm. "Because you're going to tell us where he ran off to. And you're going to tell us right now." There was silence in the room now, the quiet only interrupted with an occasional noise of discomfort from Belle, who was struggling not to hyperventilate. Growing impatient, the man snarled. "Where did the brat go?"

Beast bared his teeth. "I don't know," he growled lowly. "He didn't say."

The man narrowed his eyes, not saying anything for a long moment. His gaze was critical and narrowed, and the way he judged Beast made it seem like he was giving the prince time to backtrack and correct himself. But as Beast registered the look, he only turned to glare up at the man. The man with the yellow eyes seemed faintly disappointed, and he let out a long sigh before turning over to the man who was holding Belle tightly. "Hmm…" he mused. "Well that's just unfortunate," he sighed, his voice laced with fake sorrow that came off as berating instead. "Anyway. Go ahead, Xigbar."

Belle shrieked as her captor began to press down on the knife once more, something akin to a laugh coming out from the depths of his cloak. Beast immediately reacted to this, beginning to struggle once more as he lashed out for Belle. "Stop!" he screeched, tearing at the ground and proving to be a very difficult thing to handle for those who were holding him down. They struggled against him, just managing to keep him down by the edge of their teeth. "Stop it!" Beast roared, his voice seeming to shake the entire castle. "Stop it! Please! We don't know where he is!"

From where she stood, Belle began to cry loudly. Not only from the pain inflicted from the weapon, but also from the realization of what was going on. These people were looking for Sora. And it was either that they would do that very thing, assisted by the one of the boy's close friends…or they would both die. Struggling to overcome the panic that was overcoming her, she tried to breathe through the pain that filled her as the knife blade sank into her. "Please!" she yelled, her voice coming out clenched in panic. "Please; we don't know where he is!" she sobbed. "He left and he didn't tell us where he was going! Please you have to let us go we can't help you! We can't!"

The man's voice rose into a sharp yell, almost enough to match Beast's volume as he thundered, obviously more than enraged. "You're lying through your teeth!" he yelled, Belle flinching deeply at the scream. "We know we know where he's going and we're not in the mood to play anymore games!" As he said this, Xigbar moved his knife, pressing it deep into Belle's shoulder without any warning. The princess immediately screamed in agony, her face creasing over with the emotion as she staggered. Beast roared in fury at this, but again, he could not move at all to protect her. Not with the many men holding him down and the many weapons keeping him put. "Please!" Belle screamed, her voice grating against her throat now as tears tracked their way down her face. "Please stop please please please!"

"Let go of her!" Beast roared.

"We'll let go of her as soon as you tell us where Sora is," the man said thinly, his eyes narrowing into poisonous slits. "It's time to choose— whether you want to protect yourselves, or some puny little brat carting around a key," he hissed. "And it's time to make your decision soon because it looks like your pretty little princess is in a little bit of pain." Belle's sleeve was coated with thick blood now; she was struggling to maintain a good front, but it was clear that the toll was taking on her, and the way that she was biting down on her lip showed that she was trying her best to stick through the pain. It just slowly becoming impossible. And the fact was plain with the way she began to cave in on herself, screeching as Xigbar twisted the knife cruelly in her skin.

"Belle!" Beast yelled, desperate and quickly running out of options on what to do.

"There's a simple fix," the leader hissed, his jaw locked backwards as he surveyed the two with distaste. "Tell us where the keybearer is. He's not something special to protect. He's just a teenager that's way out of his league. So what's holding you back?" When Beast still did not reply, too busy watching as Xigbar began to drag the knife down the length of Belle's arm, the man grew furious. "Tell us where the keyblade wielder is!" he yelled. "Or watch as your princess dies in front of you!"

Beast looked back and forth. He was reeling; he had no way to go.

"Don't!" Belle screamed, nearly crumpling down to the ground now from blood loss. "Beast don't do it!"

She wasn't going to last long. Even from this injury she would faint and lose consciousness. And then what happened after that? Surely it would only get worse from there.

The man standing before them scowled deeply. "Make a choice," he growled, looking over at Beast with a penetrating look. "Her…or some child you hardly know."

Beast growled deep in his throat, trying to throw off the people pressing him down. But just like the other times, it was a fruitless effort. He gasped shakily in and out, looking as in pain as Belle was with the knife jabbing and in and out of her. And again, Xigbar slashed her arm, another deep cut etching through her skin to match the other one. Xemnas held the animal's gaze, his lip curled with disgust. "I grow tired of waiting," he growled. "Xigbar, don't hold back."

The man complied.

And the room snapped into life, the tense atmosphere shattered as Belle began to scream, long and loud as she was struck over and over again. Beast snarled and yowled, beside himself as he jerked forward desperately. The sight was an awful one to witness, and one of the masked Organization Members looked away inconspicuously. However the leader of them all only watched with cold indifference, his voice low and threatening as he spoke through the shrieks in his same angrily calm manner. "Just tell us where he is," he growled, his eyes boring into the two like embers. "Make your choice.

"The clock is ticking."