Well, I'm back. Hopefully for good this time. I'm sorry for leaving you all again.
Here's another Christmas gift for you all, even though it's already passed. A late Christmas gift, how about that?
Anyways, please enjoy yourselves. I hope this chapter will make up for me being gone for over two months.
"I assume you didn't stop her?" Master Yen Sid asked Lea as he walked back into the chamber.
"No, I didn't, nor could I. When she gets an idea like that in her head, it's kind of hard to stop her."
"So, where's she gonna go? Does she have any idea of where to go?" Riku asked.
"I put her on the right path, I think. There's someone I know, at Radiant Garden. He's smart, and I think he'll be able to help her."
"You think she'll be able to do it?"
"She will, I hope..."
Play: Radiant Garden - KH Birth by Sleep
(Almost put "Spagonia Day" from Sonic Unleashed, but it didn't work as well. So, BBS version it is.)
Xion exited the portal, hearing the sound of pavement underneath her feet.
She looked up, finding herself in the middle of the town square
To her surprise, it was filled with people. Men, women, and children filled the square in every direction.
"What's going on here? There's never been this many people before..."
A group of children ran behind her, nearly running into her. One of them yelled back "Sorry!" before continuing to run.
She crossed her arms, "Finding Zexion is gonna be a nightmare in this place. I mean, where do I even start?"
…
She looked around the square again, scanning the crowd for any familiar faces.
She spotted one, but not a good one.
Someone in a black hood, the Organization XIII hood.
She gasped when she saw them, "What are they doing here?"
Whoever was in the hood turned and walked away from her, down an alley.
"I got to see what that guy's up to. If Organization XIII is here, then...well, whatever it is won't be good."
She went off after him, pushing her way through the crowd of people.
…
…
…
She followed him into an area that was (thankfully) empty area. There was a shop on the far side of this area, and a house to the right.
The figure in the coat walked towards the house, just as Xion ran into the new area.
She watched them walk towards the door, opening it and walking inside.
Xion went to the door, not opening it yet.
"They're in here. There could be more of them inside."
She pulled her Keyblade out, "Better safe than sorry."
…
She then kicked the door open, running in with Keyblade in hand. She looked around, trying to spot the hooded person.
They weren't in there. No Organization hoods. Just four people in a circle, staring at her wide-eyed.
Xion felt embarrassment surge within her, but could only get out an "Uhh…"
Then, someone popped up out of nowhere to her left. An old man in a wizard outfit, sort of like Master Yen Sid.
"What is all this commotion?!" He yelled, noticing Xion and her Keyblade.
"Do we know you? Why do you have a Keyblade?"
"Umm...I-," Xion said, but couldn't come up with an answer. She let her Keyblade fade away.
"I'm sorry. I thought I saw somebody come in here, so...I followed them in."
"You followed them...by kicking down the door?" A man said to her, crossing his arms.
"It was a guy in an Organization coat. I watched him walk through this door!"
"The door you just kicked down?"
"Yes, the door I just kicked down! Someone in a black coat walked through this door! You've gotta believe me!"
The man in front of her said nothing, just glaring down at her.
"Ugh, what's the use? They won't believe me."
…
"Now, every one just calm down." The old man to Xion's left said, "What's done is done, so let's just forget about it and move on."
The man took a few steps closer to them, "Don't worry about the door, I'll have it fixed later. But why don't you start by telling us who you are?"
"Oh, I'm Xion. I'm looking for somebody here in the city, a guy named Ienzo. You know where I can find him?"
"Ienzo, huh?" The old man started scratching the side of his head, "I don't think I know anyone by that name."
He turned towards the others, "What about any of you?"
They all shook their heads.
Xion's shoulders sank in disappointment and she sighed.
"Are you absolutely sure you don't know that name?"
"Positive."
…
Xion sighed again, looking towards the old man, "Sorry again about the door, sir. I'd fix it for you, but I need to find that guy. It's important."
"Oh, no worries my dear. I'll have it fixed up soon enough. But how about sticking around a little? After all, you wouldn't want to miss out on the festival?"
"Well, I'd love to. But, I really need to find that guy. If I don't, well..."
"Don't you worry! We won't keep you for long. We just wouldn't want you to miss out on the celebration."
The old man turned towards the group in the room, "Leon and Yuffie can show you around. How about it?"
The man she could only assume was Leon crossed his arms over his chest, "Are you sure we can trust her, old man?"
The girl, Yuffie, walked up next to him, "Come on, give her a shot Leon."
She walked up to Xion, "I'm Yuffie. Lemme show you around a bit, Xion."
"Okay, I guess..." Xion said, but she was thinking to herself, 'This is a waste of time. I should be looking for Ienzo, not messing around with locals.'
But before she could say anything, Yuffie was egging her on. So, she stepped over the door she kicked down and out of the house. Leon was following behind her.
…
…
…
Yuffie and Leon led her back to the Main Square, where the crowds had died down slightly, but people still lined along all of the roads.
"What exactly is this entire thing about anyways?" She asked Yuffie.
"It's to celebrate the completion of the Hollow Bastion, or Radiant Garden, Restoration Project!"
"Restoration Project?"
"Our attempt to restore Radiant Garden back to what it was back before Ansem came around, Sora's first journey." Leon answered.
"It took a long time and a lot of hard work, but we managed to finally do it. We actually finished a lot earlier than I expected."
"What do you mean by that?"
"When Ansem rolled through this place, he left everything devastated. The entirety of the city was pretty much destroyed and deserted. Heartless lined every street, kind of like how the people are now..."
Yuffie smiled then, "But thanks to Sora and that Keyblade of his, we were able to restore Radiant Garden back completely! And hopefully, it stays that way."
"I'm gonna get us ice cream! Wait right here!" Yuffie said before running off towards a vendor.
…
"Listen, kid. Xion, right?" Leon said to Xion.
Xion looked up at him, "Yeah. What is it?"
"Just wanna say sorry about earlier. After everything that's happened, it's been hard to trust strangers."
"I get it. Besides, I kicked the door down out of nowhere, so understand."
"Good. You know, you kind of remind me of this one guy I knew."
"Really? Who?"
"Well, I only met him one time, and it wasn't for very long, but he helped us out when the Heartless attacked the city once."
"What was his name?"
Leon brought a hand to his head, "Ugh, if only I could remember what it was..."
He thought it over for a little longer, but shook his head, "Sorry, I can't think of it. I could of sworn I remembered it though..."
Xion waved her hand, "It's okay. It happens to the best of us."
Leon let his hand fall, smiling lightly.
…
Yuffie returned with their ice cream, handing one to Xion, one to Leon, and keeping one for herself.
"Leon, some people wanted to talk to you and I. Wanna come along with me?"
"Sure." He said, walking towards her.
"Xion, why don't you have a look around? You don't want to miss out on anything, trust me!"
Xion smiled, "I might. Thanks you guys."
Yuffie and Leon walked off to a crowd of people, leaving Xion alone.
She looked around the area, examining the square like she had when she arrived.
She saw all of the people, talking and laughing together. All of the children, running around and playing with their friends.
She sighed, "I wish you could be here to see this, Ki."
When Xion looked at the ice cream in her hand, it reminded her of home. Of the clock tower, with Kirux to her left and Roxas and Axel to her right.
She frowned at those thoughts, and felt sadness rip through her heart. She spoke to herself again, "Sometimes I wish I could just go back..."
Then, another memory flashed through her head...
Stop: Radiant Garden - KH Birth by Sleep
Play: Treasured Memories - KH1
She remembered coming up to the clock tower, Roxas and Axel already being there. They were talking about something she didn't pick up on, nor was significant enough for her to care.
For a little while, they didn't talk about anything major, the three just waiting for Kirux to show up.
He finally did, not long after Xion.
"How come you're always the late one?" Xion teased him.
"Well, I like to be thorough when on missions. I don't want to miss a single detail." He answered, sitting to Xion's left.
"Sounds like you're just overachieving." Roxas quipped.
"Am I overachieving, or are you guys UNDERachieving?"
Xion rolled her eyes, "You're such a perfectionist."
"Hey! Don't make fun of me because you two are slackers!"
"Axel, back Xion and I up here, will ya?" Roxas said to him.
Axel just waved his arm, "Nope. You three resolve this on your own."
The three of them bickered back and forth for about five minutes, before Axel finally did butt in and stop the whole argument.
…
…
…
The four of them had fallen into silence, which was rare for them.
Xion finally broke the silence, "Axel? You've been to Castle Oblivion, right?"
Axel looked over at her, "Yeah."
"What's it like there?"
"What's it like? Well, there's nothing much. It's just an Organization research facility."
"It's for research?" Kirux asked.
"You know, it seems like everyone gets sent there all the time. Especially you." Roxas said to Axel.
"Although...they never send me or Roxas. They don't send Kirux either."
"That's true. Why is that, Axel?"
Axel looked over towards the three of them, "Well, maybe it's just because they don't need you there."
Xion looked down at her feet, a...different expression on her face.
Kirux noticed it, nudged her lightly, whispering, "You okay?"
She didn't answer him, just saying, "I'm...gonna head back."
She stood up, but when she did, something flashed in her head, and she got dizzy.
Xion fell forward, off of the front of the clock tower.
Luckily for her, Roxas and Kirux both went over the edge to grab her, but Roxas's hand missed. Kirux fortunately grabbed her wrist, and was able to pull her back up with Roxas's help.
…
"Are you okay? What happened?" Kirux asked her with obvious concern.
"I don't know. It just happened randomly..."
"Maybe you're not completely well yet." Roxas said to her.
"No, it's nothing like that." She tried to reassure them, but it didn't work.
Kirux crossed his arms over his chest, while Axel looked as if he was thinking about something.
"I got it!" He said excitedly.
"Got what?" Roxas asked.
He turned back towards the three of them, "On our next day off, let's all go to the beach, huh?"
"The beach? Where did that idea come from?" Xion asked him.
"We should go someplace different for a change."
"You're talking about a vacation with friends." Kirux said.
"Exactly."
He smiled, "I like that idea."
Roxas did the same, "Same here."
Xion was not as enthusiastic, "I'll join you...if I can."
"What are you talking about, Xion? Come on, it'll be fun!" Kirux said to her.
"He's right. Trust me."
Xion thought about it, "A-alright then. Let's go."
…
…
…
After that conversation, the four of them left the clock tower. Axel and Roxas were walking ahead, while Kirux and Xion trailed behind a bit.
"Kirux." Xion called out.
Kirux stopped on the stairs, turning back towards her, "What's up?"
"This beach trip...do you really think it's a good idea?"
"Yeah, I do. I think it'll be great for all of us, especially for you."
"What does that mean?"
"I don't know. It just seems like you need something to clear your head. You've been thinking a lot lately, and...I dunno. You just need a break, y'know?"
"I guess, but..."
…
Kirux went back up a few steps to stand next to her, grabbing her hand.
Xion looked back up at him.
"Hey. You can trust me. This will be good for all of us, okay?"
He was smiling at her, and for Xion...well, whenever he did stuff like this, it just always seemed to make her feel better.
So, she smiled back at him, giving him a slight nod.
"Come on. Let's go home."
"Okay."
The two of them walked away together, out of the clock tower and back to the castle.
Xion didn't realize until later that day that he had never let go of her hand...
Stop: Treasured Memories - KH1
Xion remembered everything about that day, and what they had all promised to do.
Kirux and her had even said, one day before they went to Master Yen Sid, that once Axel and Roxas had come back, they would all go to the beach together.
It was one of the things they planned to do...
She sighed, "We'll get there someday, once you're back here with me..."
She heard someone yell, "Look up there!", so naturally she did.
She saw the man in black again. Standing on the wall that lead to the outer gardens.
She gasped, and ended up dropping her ice cream on the ground.
Play: Night of Fate - KH1
The man put his hand out, and fired a dark bolt of lightning into the sky.
A massive dark portal appeared in the sky, and soon enough, Heartless started flying out from the center.
People started screaming and running into every direction. Some of them bumped into Xion, as she went towards the square's center to see what she could do.
Leon and Yuffie ran up from her right, carrying weapons in their hands, "How did this happen?!" One of them yelled.
"The guy in black I saw earlier! You guys get everyone out of here! I'll find a way to get that portal closed!"
They nodded, running off behind Xion.
Heartless started to finally hit the ground, standing back up in front of Xion.
She pulled her Keyblade out, running towards the Heartless.
…
Most of the Heartless that were coming out of the portal were just normal Shadows, so they didn't pose any real threat for Xion. But getting them to not attack the civilians was virtually impossible.
A group of children almost got pounced on by Shadows, but Xion was just able to get in front of them and dispose of them.
"Stay behind me!" She said to the children, who obeyed without question.
More Heartless came towards them, and Xion protected the children until Yuffie came over and got them to safety.
Xion struck another one down, and by this time, a bunch of Large Armors dropped in front of her.
She wasn't fazed by them. She twirled her Keyblade in her hand, and pointed it skyward.
A tornado appeared, and it swept up the Large Armors and a few Shadows that had shown up. They all swirled around in the wind before the tornado dispersed and they were sent flying. All the Heartless that were caught in the tornado disappeared after landing.
…
One final Heartless appeared out of the portal. A massive, dragon like Heartless flew down and landed on top of one of the buildings. It was a large and dark brown, with red spikes on the end of its tail.
It roared at Xion, who was stunned quite a bit.
"Geez, that thing is huge! How am I supposed to take that down alone?"
Thankfully, that Heartless decided that flying away was a better idea. It took off, flying around the area a few times before flying away from the city.
Xion was confused, but she just ignored it. She went to the center of the square, pointed her Keyblade towards the sky. She shot a beam of light in to the portal in the sky, and caused it to close.
Stop: Night of Fate - KH1
Her Keyblade fell back to her side, as she exhaled, "Thank goodness that's over."
She sensed someone behind her, and there he was. The guy in black.
"Hey! Just who do you think you are?!"
"Don't keep me waiting..." She heard him respond, although he didn't say anything out loud.
"What are you talking about? Who even are you?!"
He said nothing in response, and his figure faded into nothing.
"Hey!" She yelled, but he was gone before she could do anything.
…
"Wow. What you did was quite impressive." Somebody said to her right.
A man was walking up to her. He was tall, had long gray hair that covered his right eye. He was wearing a lab coat.
"I've seen plenty of Keyblade wielders in my life, but none have done something like that."
He stopped about two feet in front of Xion, "Might I ask, have we met before? You seem awfully familiar."
"My name is Xion. I was in the Organization with you, back when you were a Nobody. You're Ienzo, right?"
"Yes I am. Now it's all coming back to me. I remember you perfectly now."
"Good to know, but anyways. Ienzo, Lea sent me here because...well, I need your help."
"Lea? Good to see he's doing well still. In any case, I would be happily obliged to help you. Please, come with me and you can explain everything."
"That's perfect." She said, following him.
"So, you wish to restore Kirux's heart, but don't know how?" Ienzo said, picking up a book on the desk.
"Yeah. I mean, destroy the Heartless and the Nobody and that would do it, but...I have no idea where to go or what to do. You know what I mean?"
"Well of course, destroying the Nobody and Heartless is the most effective way to restore a person. And once that person who's lost their heart is recompleted, they should return to the place it happened."
"I understand all of that, but...how do you know if it's his Heartless or Nobody? They all look the same, except for the Organization members."
Ienzo looked down into his book, "Unfortunately, that part would most likely be a guess."
Xion's shoulders slumped down.
"However, there's nothing to say that a person's Heartless or Nobody would gravitate towards worlds that that person holds close to them. Any come to mind?"
Xion thought for a second, "Umm, Twilight Town, and...Traverse Town maybe?"
"Traverse Town...that's the world people would be sent if the world they lost their heart would be made unavailable. It might be worth taking a look there, see if you can gather any clues as to his whereabouts."
"Okay."
…
"Now, I want to make sure you can stay in contact with me. Please, wait here one moment."
He walked towards the lab, and arrived back a second later with a device in his hand.
"Here, take this."
Xion grabbed it, "What's this. A phone?"
"Yes. It'll allow you and I to communicate, even though we're in different worlds. I've been preparing them for Sora and everyone else, but since you're here I might as well give you yours now."
"Wow. Thanks Ienzo. You've been really helpful."
He smiled to her, "I am happy to help in any way I can."
She nodded to him, pocketing the phone, "I'll see if I can find anything. If I do, you'll be the first to know."
"Of course. Good luck to you, Xion."
"Thanks again, Ienzo." She said, heading towards the door and departing the lab.
So, did y'all like that? Please tell me if you did. I actually put a lot of effort into this one.
I'm hoping this one will be the catalyst that gets me to start writing again. I've really missed this, and I've missed you all.
Anyways, leave a review please. See you soon.
-Broncozfan623