author' s notes: Uwa, it's been WAY too long, ne? I don't want to think about it But remember what I said~? I love this couple way too much to leave it like that! I will be finishing this no matter what!

Thank you to every single one of you who have continued to read, review and put this story on alert despite the long time since an update! You helped fuel my desire to complete this chapter. I dedicate this to you.


Chapter XII: Promise

It wasn't normal for someone to be surrounded by pure whiteness and light and still be depressed. Such things would either immediately cheer the person up, or if he or she is so deep in a dark mood, cause the person to flee the bright scene and into a more solemn atmosphere.

However, there Naminé stood in the Pod Room, her hands clenched at her sides and her eyes downcast. In the back of her mind, she knew it wasn't polite to bring her negative energy to where Sora rested, but she had already left the White Room in a huff, an unfinished drawing of Roxas and his friends lying on the floor with a broken crayon beside it. Between the two places, she had nowhere else to go in the Mansion, or anywhere she wanted to go, and she honestly didn't have the strength to travel outside the building now.

"You're you."

Wrapping her arms around herself, Naminé laughed slightly, bitterly. What's worse was that she didn't really even have a reasonto be as depressed as she was. After her little breakdown the day before, Riku had comforted her in a way that took her by surprise.

"You're you," Riku had said, wrapping his arms lightly around her after hesitating a little. "You're not the physical being of some missing piece of someone, nor are you someone's carbon copy. You guys co-exist together, as two separate beings. You have different likes and dislikes than the one you're born from, don't you? It's the same for him. It's like you guys are twins…similar on the surface, but completely different on the inside."

Naminé had sniffled then, raising her hands to grasp at the taller figure's forearms in front of her.

"I'm still confused about this whole Nobody business, but you and him, you guys are special, right? Although the four of you are separate people, you guys are connected, and that's why DiZ's plan will work. And that's why you created your plan, isn't it? To set things right?"

Riku had squeezed her in his arms at that moment, and Naminé had nodded slightly, burying her had into his chest. Words couldn't even describe how much it meant to her for Riku to speak of her plan so positively, especially when he still had his own qualms about it.

"If you're so worried about the whole darkness and light thing, don't be—there's always Twilight. The light before darkness, the darkness before light, that's what you are. That's something that needs to exist, too."

The hooded head bent down so that his mouth was hovering by her ear.

"And if you dare say the worlds don't need that, don't need you, then don't you dare try to deny my need for you…or her need for him. You'll always have a place by my side, in my heart, Naminé."

Choking back a sob, Naminé fell to her knees, wrapping her arms tighter around herself as if trying to relive the feeling of having Riku's strong, protective, reassuring arms around her.

Yes, after hearing that, especially from someone she cared for immensely, she had no reason to be as depressed as she was. But here she was, feelings even worse, if that was even possible. How did she deserve such kindness after everything she did, considering what she was? After a few moments, Naminé decided that maybe being this dejected was a part of her, but she declared to herself that one thing was for certain—

If not for her and Roxas, then certainly for Riku and Olette—

Her plan would not fail.

xoxoxoxox

"Damn that Naminé and her reckless behaviour!"

Riku closed his eyes and hid a shudder as DiZ pounded his fist angrily against one of the many monitors that curled around him. By now, he was used to bandaged-man's bad tempers, but the Destiny Islander liked the peace and silence that existed before the other man's outburst, and he really didn't feel like going out and buying more replacements for the equipment the older man destroyed during such times.

"Calm down," Riku said, though it sounded suspiciously close to an order.

If DiZ was irked by the command, he didn't show it, and instead followed it through. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath before glaring at the corner of his peripheral vision towards the hooded figure that stood behind him. "…What did they talk about?" DiZ demanded in a low voice.

Sighing, wondering why he always had to do damage control, Riku crossed his arms and leaned against the wall behind him. "I got there before they started talking. Roxas didn't hear a thing."

DiZ remained silent as he stared at Riku for a moment longer before he returned his gaze back to the screens in front of him, a hand rising so that he could bite his thumb in thought. He was sure Riku and the witch was hiding something, but he also knew that neither could, nor would, endanger Sora's restoration. "Well, it doesn't matter now. No matter what they said, Naminé has no choice by to fulfill her duty. Roxas's fate cannot be changed, either. Even if he hears…"

The dark-skinned man trailed off, shaking his head as if chasing his unfinished thought away. "There is no where he can escape," DiZ finished, a sense of victory not there previously in the tone of his voice.

Riku chucked softly to himself, bowing his head so that the shadows created by his hood covered the small smirk dancing upon his lips. Yes, they would do their duty, and nothing Roxas would hear or do could change that.

However, what happened afterwards was an entirely different story.

And he couldn't wait to see the look on DiZ's face then.

xoxoxoxox

Sora was floating in what would've been a pitch-black abyss had it not been for the light ahead of him that lit his way. When the brunette emerged from it, he was now floating in a grand library, desperately trying to reach out to a small redheaded girl below him.

Despite everything he's been through, there was something odd about the situation. Roxas wasn't sure how he knew, but it didn't feel like it was one of Sora's personal memories; it was as if Sora was intruding on someone else's past. That, and the girl looked a lot like a younger version of the redheaded girl that frequented his dreams—and Sora hadn't met that girl until she was slightly older on Destiny Islands.

As if the dream had heard his thoughts, the small girl began to disappear, and an image of the girl flashed by before the scene changed.

Sora rushed to the unconscious redhead's side as Riku spoke, "It's up to me."

Static.

The keyblade shook in Sora's hand, as if it was trying to escape his hold. Its power was greater than Sora's, though, and in a sparkle of lights to disappeared from his hands and appeared in Riku's outstretched one, who was standing several feet across from them.

"Only the Keyblade master can open the secret door and change the world," Riku continued explaining.

The scene jumped back to Sora lifting his unconscious female friend in his arms before it abruptly changed to a sinister-looking Riku, who flung a ball of energy towards his best friend who stood waiting for it alone, Goofy and Donald by Riku's side.

"But I'm not gonna betray Sora, either," Goofy declared, and darted over in front of Sora, using his shield to deflect the attack.

Donald soon ran over to join the other two. "All for one and one for all."

To Riku's surprise, the Keyblade disappeared from his hand in the same fashion it had left Sora, now returning to its original owner, who got into a fighting stance with Donald and Goofy following suit.

"My friends are my power!" Sora yelled.

Fizzle.

Sora tried to shake the redheaded girl awake, but to no avail. Her smiling face flashed by again.

"So, your heart won this battle," a large beast said, and Sora turned around to nod, Riku nowhere to be found where he was standing in the room in the memory a moment earlier.

Crack, fizzle, fizzle.

A cloaked figure walked completely through Sora, and while neither seemed harmed by it, Sora fell onto him bottom, either from shock, the sensation of someone going through him, or both. The Keyblader quickly gathered his wits and turned to look at the person.

Static.

In an attack that resembled the one Riku had earlier thrown, Sora blocked a large wave of blue energy from the hooded figure, directing it towards the large ceilings above instead, where pieces of it came flying down around them as they stared intensely at one other.

Static, code, fizzle.

"It is I, Ansem." The one who spoke looked like Riku, but the voice was a mixture of the platinum-haired boy's and someone who was older and darker, filled with evil intentions. "Lead me into everlasting darkness!" he roared as he lowered his weapon to strike at a bowing Sora who clutched at his heart.

"Sora!"

It was the same situation, the same feeling. He had heard and felt it days before when he and his friends were practicing for the Tournament and Seifer had coerced him into a fight. Now he knew where it came from.

The redheaded girl's image passed by for only a second, and in the next Sora whipped his head upwards, the Keyblade blocking Riku's, or rather Ansem's, attack. "Forget it!" Sora hissed, glaring at the eyes that belonged to his friend as their weapons pushed against each other in a deadlock.

"There's no way you're taking Kairi's heart!"

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Roxas realized this was the first time that Sora was able to say the girl's full name without the memory cutting off before it finished, but before he could ponder the reason why the dream was already moving on.

Donald and Goofy threw their hands up in alarm, trying to stop Sora as he lifted Riku's abandoned weapon, smiling at them in reassurance. After the tip pierced his chest, a glowing heart entered Kairi's body, and she regained consciousness, only to see Sora falling backwards. She rushed to catch him before he hit the ground, but his body disappeared in a cascade of lights as soon as she touched him.

Static, shift, fizzle.

With a group of black little creatures with yellow eyes jumping towards her, Kairi turned around and hugged the same creature that stood behind her as if wanting to protect it—apparently Kairi knew there was something different with the creature she held compared to the ones that were going to attack. Donald and Goofy, who were busy fighting off other Heartless, turned when a shining pink light illuminated the rather dark room. When the sparkling lights receded, Sora held Kairi in his arms.

"Kairi," Sora whispered fondly.

The image of the redheaded girl that had always appeared in between the broken memories smiled and nodded silently, as if pleased that the spiky-styled brunette boy finally remembered her entirely.

Static, code, static.

"We may never meet again," Leon started as he uncrossed his arms,"but we'll never forget each other."

Beside him, Aerith nodded, lifting a hand to her heart. "No matter where we are, our hearts will bring us together again."

Static, fizzle.

Gingerly, Kairi grabbed Sora's right hand and placed something in it. "Take this," she told him. The keyblader looked down at the object, noticing that it resembled a certain fruit. "It's my lucky charm," Kairi continued. "Be sure to bring it back to me!" It was an order, and with the way she placed her hands on her hips and leaned forward, she would not tolerate it not being followed.

Sora smiled, lightly closing his fingers around the charm. He knew what she really meant—'come back to me'. "Don't worry. I will," he replied, and they both knew that he didn't mean the charm.

Kairi, though, still wanted to make sure. "Promise?"

Fizzle.

As Sora lifted the keyblade to seal the keyhole in Hollow Bastion, Kairi's words echoed around him.

"Don't ever forget. Wherever you go, I'm always with you."

xoxoxoxox

A gasp escaped Roxas's lips as he woke up, and he took a quick glance around his room as if to make sure he was really awake and there. It felt like he was being pulled deeper into his dreams lately. Sometimes he'd feel like he'd want to wake up but couldn't, and other times he couldn't tell if he was still dreaming or not. A sigh was released this time after the blonde deemed he was truly awake, but a frown appeared on his lips as he remembered the details of what he had just woken up from.

Sitting himself up, Roxas situated his hands behind him so that he could lean against them instead of allowing his back to bear his weight. "Right…'promise'…" he murmured, remembering how he completely messed things up with his friends by accusing them of things that weren't their fault, especially when he didn't even bother to tell them what he was going through. And truthfully, he didn't think he'd be honest even if they asked him, which was probably why they didn't ask. Why bother if you know you'd be lied to? But they never ditched him, even when he lied to them (he still cringed at the memory of Olette's face during the festival) or yelled and accused them of things.

Like yesterday…

At the back of his mind, he wondered if Sora ever kept his promise, but he shook his head at the thought. This wasn't about Sora or his friends—it was about him and his own. And he, for one, was going to keep his promise. Roxas lifted his right arm and made a couple of striking moves as if practicing with a foam bat before he groaned and rubbed the back of his head. He had to win and hope his friends forgave him. "What a mess…" There was a lot of work ahead of him, but he smiled inwardly—they were worth it. His sapphire gaze swept across his room again, widening as they landed upon his clock. In a flash, he jumped out of bed and ran to get ready.

Before he won, he had to actually be there first.

xoxoxoxox

Despite the early hour (for a summer day, at least), the streets of Twilight Town were alive and buzzing with excitement. People crowded the pathways and gathered upon rooftops, wondering who was going to win and hoping for a good spot to watch the event. Most of the action was, of course, coming from the Sandlot, where the actual Struggle Tournament was taking place, and at the center of the hub was Pence and Olette. They came early together with Hayner to guarantee great seats, and were currently watching him from the sidelines as he stood with the other competitors.

Well, technically, only Pence was keeping an eye on Hayner as Olette's gaze flittered around constantly as if searching for something—or someone. Pence, finally unable to pretend not to notice the way she fiddled with the hem of her tank top, turned his head towards her and nudged her playfully.

"You're gonna run a hole in it, Letty," Pence chided lightly. The brunette girl ceased her movements but remained quiet. Smiling inwardly, the (slightly) chubby boy began counting down in his head, knowing that his best friend would start talking without having to be prompted by him.

"…Do you think he'll come?"

Bingo.

Pence didn't need to know who she meant by 'him'. It was obvious, after all. After Roxas had left yesterday, there was a tense silence before Hayner, too, took his leave without another word. Olette's shoulders had begun shaking then, and he held her as she cried. He wished he could've joked about it, even now, but there wasn't anything funny about their friendship being on the rocks.

Sighing, Pence shrugged and took a look around the Sandlot himself. "I dunno. You know Roxas—he couldn't be on time if his life depended on it," he tried to joke.

Olette didn't laugh, and instead continued as if he didn't say anything. "Roxas really didn't seem to remember about the Tournament yesterday. And he seemed so…angry with us, like we were letting him down or something. I think…I think he's in trouble, Pence," she said worriedly, catching his eye and fixing him a serious stare.

The headband-wearing boy swallowed at the gravity of the girl's gaze. Olette was really taking this hard, and he'd never forgive Hayner or Roxas if they made her go through this for a trivial reason. "Well, I do believe Roxas when he said he wasn't with Seifer for fun…"

Making a non-committing sound, Olette moved her emerald gaze back out into the noisy crowd. Somehow, she felt like this was bigger than Seifer. "I'm just so worried about him. Did you know I found him passed out on the floor of the Usual Spot a few days ago?"

That caught Pence's attention. "You what?"

"I…I thought, since he's keeping something from us, that I should keep that from him, but this isn't right. He needs his friends by his side; not sneaking around trying to dig up whatever it is he doesn't what us to know. Maybe we should call Roxas just in case, and tell Hayner that—"

Olette stopped and breathed as Pence turned her head so that she was focusing on him again. The expression on his face wasn't one she saw on his jokester's face often and it grounded her in an instant. "Chill, Letty, breathe. I know you have more faith in both Hayner and Roxas than that. Roxas may seem like a flake, but he'll never break a promise. And Hayner's more intuitive than you think—he won't let this ruin the four of us. BFFs, right?"

This time Olette laughed—it must've hurt Pence's 'manly pride' to even utter the acronym 'BFF'. "Mm, you're right. Thank you, Pence."

They smiled at each other before looking out at the stage.

"So…who you gonna root for?" Pence asked after a moment.

"Both of them, silly," she replied, humor clearly evident in her voice. Although they would cheer for both of their friends, they knew who they wanted to win—they bet lunch on it, two to one against Hayner, who had, of course, bet on himself.

xoxoxoxox

By the time Roxas reached the Sandlot, the referee slash announcer had already gathered the constants around to explain the rules, a mandatory yet needless task, so he had no time to talk to Hayner before the tournament began as he had hoped. Apologizing as he squeezed into the huddle, he continuously tried to catch his best friend's gaze, but the other seemed determined to flat out ignore him. By the time the talk was over Roxas was sighing, his dejected attitude a complete opposite of the cheery atmosphere that surrounded him, one that got even more hyped up as fireworks exploded in the sky. He tried to cheer himself up, though, as the announcer moved to center stage to address the audience—all he had to do was win, and he could settle things afterward.

"Ladies and gentlemen, battle freaks of Twilight Town!" the announcer started as the crowd's noise level dropped slightly to hear what was being said. "It's time for summer's most sizzling clash! That's right! Today is the day for the Struggle Battle title match! Our participants are four hooligans who have 'struggled' their way through the preliminaries last week!" The crowd laughed at the play on words that was used—even the announcer couldn't help but laugh at his own joke. "Let's give them all a big round of applause for getting this far!"

Everyone clapped and cheered, with Olette and Pence trying to make the most noise out of excitement that Roxas did indeed show up.

"Good luck you two!" Olette yelled, cupping her hands around her mouth for more volume. Roxas, upon hearing her, turned towards her direction and smiled lightly, doing a small wave in thanks—at least not all of his friends were still angry with him, though he wasn't holding it against Hayner, either.

"So who will be the one to break through the ranks and win the Four Crystal Trophy, as well as a chance to take on the reigning champion, Setzer? And who will leave today as our new Struggle Champion?"

"Seifer, y'know?" Rai yelled at the rhetorical question the announcer posed.

Olette and Pence, in sync like twins, glanced at the muscled teen that stood with the rest of the other Disciplinary Committee across the stage from them before they shouted, "Hayner! Roxas!"

"Setzerrrrrr!" fans of the man screamed, which prompted a chant of his name as the man in question held up the championship belt from his place near the stage.

Laughing, the announcer held up his hand to calm the crowd down. "All right! You guys are all fired up, so you know what comes next: Let's…"

"STRUGGLE" The crowd finished the sentence, which was followed by more exploding fireworks.

After taking a look at the board at the back of the lot as the competitors went to get suited up with headgear and a vest covered in balls, the announcer came back to center stage, carrying two foam bats. "The first match will be Roxas versus Hayner! These two are the best of friends. Will they be able to keep a rift from breaking apart their friendship…?!"

The two people in question looked momentarily shocked, but Hayner quickly gathered his wits and stepped forward to claim a bat, soon followed by a solemn Roxas. It was ironic how the announcer thought the Struggle battle would cause a rift between them—with a rift already existing, the blonde boy hoped the fight would actually bring them together.

"Whoever can knock the most balls off his opponent within the time limit is the winner!"

With that, the announcer patted both boys on the back before retreated to the sidelines. The horn sounded, stating that the time has started, but neither of them had even moved a muscle. Hayner, finally, had looked Roxas in the eye now that they were face to face, but what Roxas saw there didn't make him feel any better—he knew that this was when he had to step up, but it was easier said than done. How could he knock down someone who was already down because of him?

Olette and Pence watched with increasing worry as Roxas's gaze began to drop, and Hayner's grip on his bat tightened before he held it up and pointed it directly as his best friend.

"Oi, get ready!" Hayner said roughly. "Or are you not even going to do it?" Honestly, what did you come here for if you're just going to stand there, Roxas?The leader of their group of four was angry, though probably not entirely for the reason Roxas was assuming.

Roxas flinched despite himself, slowly raising his gaze to meet Hayner's again. "…sorry…I…yesterday…" God, he couldn't even say a proper sentence! As he closed his eyes and shook his head, Roxas missed seeing Hayner getting more and more upset. He didn't even know what hit him until he was on the ground, a few balls short, and Hayner towering above him, huffing from the effort.

"Uh-oh! Hayner makes a preemptive strike!"

"Yesterday?" Hayner scoffed as he rested his bat on his right shoulder, trying to ignore the bewildered expression on Roxas's face. "I went to sleep and forgot all about that stuff!"

That only confused the attacked boy even more. "Then what's with all this sulking?!"

An annoyed and angry look dominated Hayner's features now, though whether it was because he was called out on it or because of the use of the term 'sulking', Roxas wasn't sure. He didn't have time to ponder on it, either, as Hayner came at him again—but he was prepared this time and dodged all of the other's strikes.

"I just can't stand you acting so stupid right before a match!"

It was Roxas's turn to look annoyed. "That's not what this is really about, is it? You're just really mad, aren't you?" About yesterday.

"Of course I am! You're not telling me anything—I thought we were best friends!"

The comment caused Roxas to pause a second too long, allowing Hayner to connect a rather hard blow on him that not only brought back down to the ground, but made him lose 90% of the balls attached to his outfit.

"Oh-ho! What a powerful blow!"

The announcer's words bounced off the two combatants as if nothing had boomed over the loud speakers. "Olette and Pence are worried, too. They thought something must've happened to get you seriously upset like that," Hayner continued, looking down at the fellow blonde as the other rubbed his cheek.

As if to contradict his words, Olette and Pence's cheers for Roxas specifically carried through the rest of the crowd's noise, though in their defense they didn't know what was being said up on stage.

"…Don't you trust us?" Hayner finished with a whisper.

Lowering the hand that was rubbing his cheek, Roxas closed his eyes, absorbing the care and love, as cheesy as it sounded, that he could feel from his friends. He wanted to protect them by keeping them in the dark, but they were still in danger and now didn't even know why. Roxas was going about everything the wrong way. He had said it and heard it before—his friends were his strength. Smiling outwardly, Roxas made a decision.

"Thank you."

And with that, Roxas struck.

As the ball-less Hayner landed sprawled on the stage face up, the bell rang. "Oooh, now the time is up!" the announcer said as he appeared on stage again, watching the helpers count not only the balls strewn across the lot, but what was left on each competitors vest and headgear. "What's the official ball count?"

"Are you okay?" Roxas asked his best friend as he loomed over the other while they waited for the results. He knew he hit him pretty hard, considering the other didn't have a single ball on him.

Hayner was silent for a while, wincing as he moved to take off his headgear, but when he was free, he smirked up at the fellow blonde-haired boy. "Feeling better?" Nothing relaxed a person like letting it out physically, and considering he was on the ground feeling sore, Hayner was pretty sure Roxas let it all out.

Chuckling, Roxas rubbed the back of his neck. "Better." He held out a hand to help Hayner up as the announcer approached them with the results.

"And the winner is Roxas!" The man raised Roxas's arm as the crowd cheered, and Roxas couldn't help but get caught up in the moment, waving to everyone with his free hand. "Not even friendship will slow this kid down! And Hayner put up a great fight, too, for his first trip to the finals." By the time Roxas returned his gaze to his friend, the other had his shoulders slumped.

"Aww, man, but now I don't feel so good!" Hayner exclaimed. After thanking the announcer slash shopkeeper and insuring him that the skateboard gift was well received, Roxas walked over to his best friend and wrapped a sympathetic arm around the other's shoulders, both not paying particular attention when the competitors for the next match were announced. "Those guys were betting on our fight with our lunches…" Hayner continued, gesturing to Pence and Olette as they held up Hayner's lost food.

Roxas laughed at the sight before the sound trailed off as he became lost in thought. They bet on me even though it wasn't sure I was even going to show up? No…to them, there was never a doubt. They believed in me…just like how I should believe in them. Sliding his arm off Hayner's shoulders, Roxas nudged the other playfully. "Don't worry; I think I can sway them to share."

"Out of the way!"

The two blondes turned around to look in the direction of the new voice that interrupted them, only half-surprised to see that it was Seifer. Although they didn't hear the next fight being announced earlier, only Seifer would barge around as if he owned the place.

"You in a rush to lose?" Hayner taunted as he moved towards the stairs to get off the stage.

The leader of the disciplinary committee didn't answer, seemingly too busy scowling at Roxas. Roxas narrowed his eyes, ready to start something if need be until he noticed Seifer's gaze was a little off. Blinking, he looked to his side and jumped when he saw Vivi standing right beside him. So that's who Seifer was staring at. But when did Vivi… Roxas froze as the kid looked up at him and chuckled almost darkly. The sound raised goosebumps on his skin. Was Vivi always like this?

"Yo, Roxas, let's go," Hayner called, catching his attention. By the time Roxas returned his gaze to the shorter kid, Vivi was looking at Seifer.

"Yeah…" Roxas answered distractedly, shaking his head as he ran to catch up, leaving the two new competitors alone on the stage. So weird…

"Don't mess with your elders," Seifer said to Vivi in a tone that promised lots of pain if it wasn't carried out.

The announcer quickly made his way off stage as well, as if he could feel there was something serious going on but wasn't sure what it was. "Whew, just look at those sparks fly! I guess Seifer didn't expect to fight one of his own boys!"

Tension hung heavily in the air until the bell rang, signaling the start of the match, and without missing a beat Vivi flew at Seifer, who jumped away, though Vivi was in hot pursuit.

"When did Vivi get so tough?" Hayner asked in amazement as the two of them joined Pence and Olette. The other three shook their heads and shrugged in silent response, completely astounded as they watched Seifer struggle to fight Vivi.

"We did leave the preliminaries early last week, though," Pence offered. "Maybe we missed something."

xoxoxoxox

Elsewhere, far from the cheering crowd in the Sandlot, Riku tiredly yet determinedly entered the Pod Room of the Old Mansion, having just finished his own battle that had a lot more at stake than a trophy and some bragging rights. It was there, standing silently in front of Sora, where Naminé found him minutes later after finding out he had returned from his sudden departure following an impromptu meeting with DiZ.

"Have they come?" she asked rather rhetorically as she slowly made her way towards him. Only the XIII Order could start a panic with DiZ and worry Riku like that.

"Yeah…" was the low reply, only audible by the fact that no other noise was present in the room.

When she reached his side, cerulean eyes took the sight of him in, instantly noticing the tear in Riku's right sleeve and the red gash that could be seen through it. "You're hurt…" She reached a hand out but he swiftly moved out of her range by only a step, his amber eyes never leaving Sora. Naminé lowered her hand and frowned slightly—she hated when Riku would treat his needs secondary to everything else.

"It's just a scratch," the taller of the two offered as explanation for his evasiveness. After a pause, Riku went on to say that must've been on his mind for sometime. "The number of the invading Nobodies is increasing. We can't hesitate."

Naminé's eyes became downcast for a moment before she, too, looked up at Sora. "I know. Just a little longer…" For all of us.

Meanwhile, down the hall, several rooms away, the words 'Target Lost' blinked upon the main screen in front of DiZ. He slammed a fist against it in frustration. "Those damn vermin. He's hidden from the program? Tch, don't think my eyes will be deceived by your inferior skill," he hissed before returning to work.

xoxoxoxox

No one in the Town noticed the brief numeric digital code that encompassed the surrounding buildings as all attention was on center stage, where Seifer flew to the ground as the buzzer sounded.

"I-I'm not sure what just happened..." the announcer started, disbelief evident in his face as the final count on the balls was given to him, "But...uh...the winner is Vivi! Seifer is brought down, and Vivi makes it to the finals!"

"Seifer!" Rai cried from the sidelines as Seifer sat up, shaking his head from the disorientation. Even if they were on the same side, Vivi should've thrown the match for their leader, right? That was what he would've done, anyway.

"Whoa, that Vivi really did it," Hayner muttered, watching the little mage laugh as Seifer pulled himself up and walked off the stage. "Don't get caught unprepared, Roxas."

Roxas could only nod in awe, moving his gaze from Vivi to the stomping Disciplinary Committee leader as he made his way around the stage towards the exit on their side of the Sandlot, Fuu and Rai running after him.

"Seifer, there's still third place, y'know!" Rai reminded.

"Like I care!" the beanie-wearing teen hissed back.

Hayner and Pence tried to hold back their laughter as Seifer neared, though were unable to when they saw how beat up the blonde male was. Their rival just lost to a kid who was supposed to be on the same team? Priceless.

"You sure got owned, huh, Mr. Leader?" Hayner taunted.

"Shut it," Seifer warned in a low voice before stopping briefly in front of Roxas. "That's not Vivi."

Although Seifer didn't bother to turn and look at him, Roxas could tell that the other wasn't just saying that to save face—he was dead serious about the Vivi on the stage being an imposter.

"Trash him."

And with that, Seifer and company left the Sandlot without looking back.

"What did he mean?" Olette wondered aloud as she watched their retreating backs. "Who else could it be but Vivi?"

"Maybe he's just saying that because he's been totally humiliated," Pence offered with a shrug, taking a bite out of his hotdog.

Roxas's eyes narrowed, turning to look at Vivi who remained on stage waiting for the next match, unnerved that the pointy-hat-wearing boy was staring straight back at him. He hated to admit it, but he could understand what Seifer meant—something was definitely off about Vivi. Reluctantly, as if it was dangerous to take his eyes of him, Roxas moved his gaze to the announcer he ran off stage and approached his group of friends.

"It looks like Seifer's withdrawn from the Struggle tournament for third place," the announcer informed them, though he was looking at Hayner when he said it.

"So I'm in third now?" Hayner asked excitedly. It wasn't the most 'noble' way of winning by default, but hey, a win was a win, and the spiky blonde was going to take it. "All right!" he exclaimed, high-fiving his three best friends.

The announcer smiled slightly and nodded before looking at Roxas. "You better get up on stage. The final match will start soon."

"Good luck, Roxas!" Olette said, giving him two thumbs up.

"You got it in the bag!" Hayner assured him as Pence quickly massaged his shoulders.

"Thanks guys," Roxas said before trekking on stage. After gearing up, he walked over to where the announcer and Vivi was, accepting the bat that was handed to him.

"I expect fair play from both of you," the announcer reminded sternly before turning to the crowd. "Well then, these are the two who have advanced to the final round: Vivi and Roxas! Which one of them will be left standing?"

It was hard to make out anything with the crowd yelling different things, but for the blonde-haired combatant, he could hear his friends cheering for him the clearest, and Roxas smiled over at them before he felt something strike him across the head.

"Uh-oh! Before the start of the match is even signaled, a pre-emptive strike comes from Vivi!"

"Aaaah! That was dirty!" Pence yelled as Hayner and Olette watched on worriedly.

Roxas was barely able to stabilize himself before Vivi was attacking him again. Though he was able to block the next few attacks, it came at such a force that it pushed him back.

"What an unimaginable fierce move for such a small child!"

'That's not Vivi.' That was what Seifer had said. No way! Roxas thought as he continued to defend.

Hayner made fists out of both hands as he watched his best friend struggle to keep afloat. "C'mon, Roxas! This is the championship match! Concentrate!"

Gasping as Hayner's words echoed inside of him, Roxas held onto them, gathering his resolve. That's right. I'm so close. I didn't come this far just to lose! Real Vivi or not, I'm winning this fight! Jumping back to avoid another attack, he planted his back foot down solidly before pushing off it, springing forward to make his first offensive attack. As he pulled his bat back to strike, he noticed that the Sandlot had gotten deathly quiet, and before he could land a hit, a whirling wind had surrounded Vivi, causing his strike to bounce off.

"What?" Roxas stepped back, looking around as he found the cause for the silence—everything and everyone was frozen. "This again?" He looked back at Vivi as the wind died away, revealing a Dusk in the child's place, and then another three popped up around the stage. Whirling around, he checked it make sure his friends were safe, though knew they wouldn't be for long—four against one wasn't good odds, especially with the ineffective weapon he was yielding.

As if hearing his thoughts, in a shimmering array of lights, his foam bat disappeared, and he held a keyblade in his hands instead. "Again…" he whispered, half relieved and half dejected. He was glad he was going to be able to protect those who were important to him, but why did it always have to happen to him?

Using his frustration and fierce protectiveness as his fuel, Roxas moved swiftly to defeat all of the white beings that had appeared on stage with him. It was strange, though- they wouldn't attack him unless he went at them. It was as if they were there to make sure he didn't leave, and would leave him alone otherwise. The blonde wasn't going to take any chances, though, and he breathed in heavily when he had finished clearing the stage, feeling extremely tired as the adrenaline left his system.

But something was wrong. Time was still frozen all around him. Did he miss one?

Roxas jerked as he heard clapping coming from behind him, and he turned to see a hooded figure in a long black robe standing several paces away. "Finally we're able to meet again, Roxas. And you're still as good a fighter as I remember," the man, going by his deep tone, said as he began walking towards the Keyblade bearer. The blonde boy tensed as he neared but didn't say anything, and it confused the hooded man.

"I had to go through a lot of trouble to get here, y'know! You can at least say something," the unknown man continued, eyeing Roxas before grabbing the boy's helmet and staring at it before tossing it away. The sharp intake of breath from the shorter male didn't go undetected by him, but he chose to forgo that detail for a more interesting one. "What is this all about?" the man asked curiously, motioning at the odd attire of the boy. When Roxas continued being unresponsive, the hooded figure sighed and put a hand on his hip. "Wipe that stupid look off your face," he half-growled, annoyed.

Finally snapping out of his panicked daze by the insult, Roxas jumped back to put some space between them and growled himself. "Are you the guy who took Olette's munny pouch?" he demanded. It seemed it was the other's turn to be silent, for he received no answer. "Who are you!" Roxas yelled.

The hooded man raised both of his hands in front of his chest in a defensive gesture, as if he could stop the verbal attack with a physical action. "Hey, hey, what are you saying? It's me, Axel." He then moved his hands to pull down his hood, revealing flaming red hair.

"Axel?" Roxas repeated in a harsh yet confused tone, wondering why the guy said it as if he should have known the other. Yet the name did leave him with an odd feeling...

"Tch," Axel muttered at the lack of recognition as he twisted his head to the side. "Talk about blank with a capital 'B'. I guess the reports were right. Man oh man, not even the Dusks are gonna be able to crack this one." Lifting his hands slightly from his sides, large fiery chakrams appeared out of nowhere. "Guess I've got no choice then," he finished, the words sounding dangerous and threatening as he gripped his weapons.

Fear welled up in Roxas's eyes and he backed up a couple of more steps. "W-wait a sec, what's going on?!"

The blonde male never got an answer though as Axel rushed towards him and sliced through the air mere inches in front of his face. Roxas managed to dodge that attack, along with a couple of others after that, but before he could question why he could parry Axel's attacks or consider an offensive attack of his own, Roxas found himself hitting the ground hard with only the Keyblade between him and one the sharp spokes of the redhead's chakram.

"Come home," Axel said in almost a whisper before his eyes hardened slightly and strength made it back into his voice. "Number XIII of the Order, Roxas. 'The Keyblade's Chosen One'."

An invisible force swirled around the stage, unnoticed by the two on the actual platform. Back in the Old Mansion, DiZ grinned devilishly as the words 'Target Found' blinked rapidly on the screen. "Found you," he mused triumphantly.

Roxas struggled to find the words to correctly convey his utter bewilderment. "What was that...I'm...you're wrong..."

Seeing the lost and helpless look in his partner's eyes, Axel loosened the pressure he was putting on the Keyblade. Its wielder, whose confusion was slowly turning into anger, pushed up in order to be freed completely. Number VII of the Order allowed it and got to his feet, watching as Roxas stood up as well. He gave the boy a few seconds before he sighed and hefted one of his chakrams over his shoulders. "So then what's that you've got in your hand?"

Slowly, Roxas glanced down at the keyblade he held in his hand. The longer he stared at it, the more the anger bubbled inside of him. It was this, this was ruining his life. He numbly realized at the back of his head that the weapon he welded didn't do Sora any good, either, if his dreams were anything to go by. "This thing," Roxas spat out, gripping it tightly, "who knows!"

He slammed the keyblade to the ground, hearing it make contact with a loud 'clank', and watched it bounce and slide away from the momentum. Shortly after, though, Roxas began to feel a sensation his hand, and in an array of lights the keyblade reappeared in his grip. Wide blue eyes stared down at the object that he had just thrown away, his heart beating fast at the implications of it returning to him meant.

Taking the blonde's shocked silence as a decent enough acceptance to his words, Axel readjusted his stance, readying to leave. "There's no point in overstaying here, right? You've figured it out, haven't you? This town, it's his creati-"

The sound of running data and the swirl of code behind Roxas caused the redhead to stop, and he glared and lowered his hand from his shoulder to prepare himself for combat. "Tch, and here he comes," he muttered.

Roxas turned around as the code disappeared, revealing a man so heavily dressed in red material that you could only barely make out the other's right eye. The fifteen-year-old jumped slightly as two flaming chakram's flew past him and towards the new mysterious being, but the attack was deemed ineffective as the weapons simply bounced off an invisible shield and returned to its owner.

As if his life wasn't just threatened, the man dressed in red turned his attention to Roxas calmly. "Roxas, this man speaks nonsense. Open your eyes and stop dreaming."

"...Dream?" Roxas repeated, feeling chilled to the bone as if death had just walked past him.

Axel growled and faced his best friend. "Roxas, don't let him deceive you! Come back with me!"

"Weren't you in the midst of a match, Roxas? Aren't you going to become the champion?" DiZ continued unperturbed.

"Shut up!" Axel yelled, but before any questionably child-friendly words could escape his mouth, he found himself beginning to disappear into code. What...damn it!

Inwardly pleased that he was able to quiet the XIII Order member, DiZ took a small step forward and gracefully gestured towards the still frozen-in-time Hayner, Olette and Pence. "Roxas, should you really give up on a promise you made to your best friends?"

"Promise..." the blonde boy reiterated, numbly watching as the keyblade changed back into a foam bat.

As if a bunch of copies are his real friends, Axel thought angrily to himself. "Roxas! Remember who your real best friend is!"

DiZ smirked as Axel was rapidly being disintegrated into code, and made one last comment before the other disappeared completely. "I will never give Roxas to you of the XIII Order."

With that, DiZ disappeared himself, leaving Roxas alone on the Struggle stage. "What...just happened..." he breathed out to himself, his heart still beating wildly amongst the complete stillness of the area around him. Slowly, he glanced around, his eyes instantly falling upon his best friends, frozen in the middle of whatever actions they had been doing before the dream started.

Dream...this most definitely has to be a dream.

"Hayner...Pence...Olette... Hayner! Pence! Olette!" Roxas started off in a whisper before he shouted at the top of his lungs.

Sora, Riku, Kairi...friends I don't know. An island, strange fruits...a place I don't know. In the dreams, I lose myself— become another person...in a world where I don't matter.

"The only one who can seal the door to the worlds is the hero who wields the keyblade."

I don't know.

"Roxas, do you remember your true name?"

I don't know.

"Come home, Number XIII of the Order, Roxas. The one chosen by the keyblade."

I'm just dreaming.

"Roxas! Hey, snap out of it!"

Feeling himself being shaken, Roxas opened the eyes he didn't realize he had closed, shutting the mouth that had been open in a scream he couldn't remember doing. Hayner stood in front of him, the fellow blonde's hands on his shoulders where he had been shaken back to reality with. Pence and Olette stood on either side of Hayner, looking both confused and worried.

"Huh? You guys..." Roxas started, sounding just as confused as his friends looked.

Hayner raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you dreaming? Look, you're the champion!" He picked up crystal trophy from the ground where he had placed it down prior to shaking Roxas and placed it in his best friend's hands.

The match between Roxas and Vivi had ended so fast no one really knew what had happened. One second the two were battling it out and then the next Vivi was lying on the ground and Roxas was standing in the middle of the stage like a shocked statue. When his friend had made no move to accept his reward after his name was announced, Hayner had gone up to get it from the equally puzzled announcer.

Gingering, Roxas held onto the trophy, looking around the now lively Sandlot. His sapphire gaze rested on the sitting Vivi, who was rubbing his head and looking around as if he wasn't sure what had happened or how he had gotten there.

Dreaming...

Out of the corner of his eye, Roxas noticed a figure in a long, black-hooded coat leaning against the wall near where the concession stand was and felt his blood freeze. Before he could blink and make sure, though, a helmet was patted onto his head by Hayner, pushing his hair into his eyes. By the time he had lifted it from obstructing his view, whatever he may or may not have seen was no longer there when he looked again.

"Roxas...?" Olette asked gently, noticing how distraught Roxas was. She followed his gaze, but when she found nothing she returned her eyes back to him.

"What's up?" Pence questioned lightly, wondering why their friend didn't seem as happy as he should be about winning the trophy.

Taking one last look at where he thought he had saw someone, Roxas shook his head and forced a smile at his friends. "...Nah, it's nothing."

"Setzer! Setzer! Setzer!" the crowd began cheering as last year's champion strode onto the stage.

Tsking, Hayner turned his back on the guy and focused on Roxas. "Win the title match, too! Tear that huge belt right off him!"

Frowning slightly at Hayner for pushing more responsibility on a clearly preoccupied Roxas, even after he had already fulfilled their promise, Olette smiled warmly at the shorter blonde. She grasped the trophy from the other as Pence moved in to prepare Roxas for the final battle. "Don't push yourself too much, okay, Roxas? We won't be upset if you don't win this one."

"Though we won't be upset if you win, either," Pence chuckled, patting his friend heartily on the back before the three of them scampered off to watch from their place in the sidelines.

Seeing that the two combatants were ready, the announcer approached them for some final words. "Play fair now, you two. You're at the top of the bracket. May the best man win!"

"There's only room for one up here," Setzer said in a low voice as the announcer walked off. He turned towards Roxas, lifting the foam bat to rest against the crook of his shoulder and neck. "Hey, Rucksack. How about you throw the match for me?"

"Roxas! Focus!" Hayner yelled.

Olette cupped her hands as best she could around the trophy to amplify her voice. "Try your best, Roxas! You can do it!"

"You got this, Roxas!" Pence hollered.

The said boy glanced at his friends, their voices seeming infinitely louder than the rest of the crowd. His friends, who were always on his side, getting him out of whatever situation he found himself in...

"Let me win, and I'll make it worth your while," Setzer continued, smirking.

...And this guy wanted him to sully that by throwing the competition?

Roxas glared at Setzer and got into a fierce fighting stance, his mind no longer foggy or confused. If he focused on his friends, nothing else mattered. "Get real! And my name is Roxas," he corrected the older man for his earlier comment, though somewhere deep inside he felt he was answering Naminé's question that she had asked him yesterday as well— "Do you remember your true name?"

Setzer glowered darkly before getting into a fighting position as well. "Then I shall show you what they call the harshness of reality!"

The bell rang, and the two charged at each other with a battle cry.

xoxoxoxox

The wind from the top of the Clock Tower felt refreshing to the four teens who sat at its edge. The Sandlot had been crowded, stuffy and sweaty, and being in a roomy area with just the four of them was the perfect ending to a hectic and busy day.

"Hey, put it on right!" Hayner said disapprovingly, moving behind Roxas to adjust the championship belt perfectly around Roxas's waist.

Olette and Pence giggled as Hayner's fussy attitude and Roxas's embarrassed expression. "It suits you, new champion," they said to Roxas in cheery unison as Hayner moved back to his seat in between Pence and Olette.

Roxas felt like if he smiled any bigger his face would crack in two. Holding the crystal trophy in front of him, he began to pull off one at a time. He tossed the emerald one to Pence, who fumbled with it before grasping it tightly, the ruby one to Hayner, who caught it with one hand expertly, and gently gave the topaz colored one to Olette, who gave him a smile and gaze that was heavy in emotion.

Taking the last sapphire crystal for himself, Roxas held it out in front of him so it caught the eternal sun's light just right. "As promised," he said with accomplishment, watching as his friends held out their crystals as well.

"Thanks a ton, Roxas!" Pence exclaimed happily.

"One more treasure for us to share," Hayner said softly, though the wind blew the words into all of their ears.

"Let's make a toast!" Olette said, twisting around to open her bag, pulling out four wrapped sea salt ice cream popsicles.

"Sweet, ice cream!"

"Thanks a lot, Olette!"

The brunette girl grinned and held up her popsicle. "To Roxas, and our friendship that can and will get through anything!"

"To Roxas and our friendship!" the other three chorused, and a peaceful and comfortable silence fell upon them as they ate their treats.

Roxas watched his friends as they ate, feeling completely at ease and wondering how he could question or doubt any of this. He held up his crystal again, in awe of how beautiful something so simple was. These are the friends I know, the place I know, the world I belong in...

"Ah, ah, Roxas! Your ice cream!" Pence exclaimed in alarm.

Looking down, Roxas noticed that his ice cream was melting steadily when he was immersed in his thoughts, and it had almost completely slid off the stick. On instinct, he leaned forward to try and slide it back down the stick, and felt his heart stop as he found himself following the falling ice cream.

"Roxas!" Olette screamed, and Roxas stared with wide eyes as the terrified faces of his friends became further and further way.

So high...I wonder if I'll die. It's funny. I don't seem to be hitting the ground... What's happening to me? Olette's voice...this falling feeling...it feels like that first dream I had before all this craziness started...

"His voice always used to be there...but now it's gone. I can't think of his face, or his name. I feel awful about it. So I told myself—I'm not going to the island until I remember everything about him."

That voice...it sounds like... "Naminé...? Naminé, what's happening to me?"

"...Who are you? And that's not my name. I'm Kairi."

"Kairi...? I know you. You're that girl he likes. That's weird, you're here. Is this a dream?"

"Huh? It could be...but wait! Who's 'he'? Please, a name!"

"I'm Roxas."

"Okay, Roxas, but can you tell me his name?"

"You don't remember my name?" a voice outside of Roxas had said, popping in and answering as if it had always been around, listening."Thanks a lot, Kairi! Okay, I guess I can give you a hint. Starts with an 'S'!"

That was all Roxas knew before his world went black.

xoxoxoxox

"Are you okay?" Selphie asked as Kairi stirred from her sudden fainting spell. One minute she was trying to convince her friend to go to the island and the next Kairi was laying on the ground.

Holding onto her head, Kairi nodded and slowly got to her feet, staring at the island in the distance. The redheaded girl wasn't quite sure what had just happened, but thanks to that Roxas kid she finally remembered what had been troubling her for months.

Kairi's wide smile at Selphie was all the warning her brunette friend got before she was racing off towards the beach's shoreline that was across from the separate island.

When Selphie had finally caught up, she saw her friend releasing a bottle into the water. She stopped to catch her breath before running over to Kairi's side. "Kairi? What's wrong? What was that? It's wrong to pollute the beach, you know!"

"It's a letter..." Kairi started, too much in an euphoric mood to take Selphie's reprimanding too seriously. With a heavily emotional gaze, she watched the tide take the bottle with her letter in it farther and farther away.

"I wrote it yesterday, to the boy I can't remember," she went on, almost speaking to herself. " I said that no matter where he is... I'll find him. One day. And when I stopped writing, I remembered we made a promise, something important. This letter is where it starts. I know it."

Selphie glanced at her friend before watching the bottle leave their sight completely. "Wow...but...you don't even remember his name, right? And you have no address to put on it... Will he get it?"

Kairi's deep cerulean eyes sharpened in determination. "He will. Because I remembered his name. Starts with an 'S'. Right, Sora?"

Restoration at 79%.

Two more days until complete memory restoration.