So I'll be on vacation starting sunday for two weeks. Hopefully once I'm back I'll be able to find the fervor necessary to start writing a bit more quickly for both fics. For now though, we'll see how much I can squeeze out until sunday.

Chapter 37

An Incredible Encounter

Luna dropped down from the canopy and wiped the sweat from her forehead. Having scouted the area from above the trees had told her two things. The first being that they were near the shore, a pretty good place to make camp before nightfall and also the only area it seemed where they could transport back to the Gummi Ship, of course without Sora that would be useless. The second thing was that right in the middle of the area was a volcano. It certainly explained then why the soil that Luna had examined beforehand had been so rich. Coupled with the tropical climate and she would guess that they were on an island.

She reported these assessments to Donald, Goofy and Stephanie who were glad that they did not have to travel far before having to rest. On their way to the beach, they encountered a few Heartless, new ones as far as Luna knew, who used the environment to camouflage themselves and then attacking when the time was right. Luna was forced into a defensive role in order to protect Stephanie while Goofy and Donald were mainly on the offensive, mixing magic and physical in order to defeat the Heartless.

They soon arrived at the beach to find a cave somewhat concealed behind of a few overhanging trees. Luna pushed aside the foliage and allowed the others through first before going in herself. With not much to see inside a dark tunnel, Luna illuminated her Keyblade and held it up into the air to transmit its effects to their surroundings.

"I hope Sora finds somewhere to rest for the night. I would not want to be out here at dark alone," Goofy said as Luna set her glowing Keyblade on the ground. They sat next to each other, knowing their friend could not share in their warmth.

"He won't go down without a fight. I'm not worried," replied Donald proudly.

"But still... that thing we were fighting was tough. We were just about able to do well with the four of us and if he encounters that thing by himself... and there's also Desiree and maybe even a Chimera-"

"Luna..." Stephanie drew closer to her and playfully poked her forehead.

"Ow! What was that about?"

"You have to believe in Sora, or else, he really won't come back. Please?"

"Steph..." Luna looked at the girl for what seemed like the longest time. It was only natural that she would think this, after all she had probably spent so much time hoping for her father to come back to her and Colette. Maybe in some way, Stephanie had even blamed herself. Maybe she had thought that she simply hadn't believed enough. It was then that Luna once again remembered. This girl was her new younger sister. They had both lost people they had loved and to not show hope now would be unbecoming of a role model sister. With this in mind, Luna gave her a wry smile.

"You're right, you too, Donald. Sora's probably the strongest person I've ever met. After seeing all the miracles he can pull, it would be silly not to put our hopes in him this time. We should worry about ourselves instead right now, Goofy."

Goofy nodded with a warm grin. "So then what do we do then?"

"Isn't it obvious? Get some sleep. That's pretty much all we can do," Donald answered.

"Aw, you're boring, Donald. I was hoping we could sing some songs around a campfire- ooh, or maybe even tell ghost stories. Would you like that, Stephanie?" Luna asked giddily.

"Yeah! Yeah! Stop being boring, Donald!" Stephanie repeated exuberantly.

Luna heard Donald mumble something like "make me look like the villain will ya" under his breath before sitting down next to Goofy and putting his hands on his face in boredom. Commemorating the small victory over the duck, Luna cheerfully skipped over to Goofy and Donald and plopped herself down next to them with Stephanie following in tow.

The next hour or so was spent with the group telling scary stories and quipping jokes until they were ready to sleep. Surprisingly, it was Goofy who told the scariest and most convincing story, so much so that Stephanie had asked to cuddle with Luna for night in hopes of forgetting the whole thing. Luna was fine with that. She was more than willing because she had also been creeped out by the story, though she tried to put on a brave face to indicate otherwise.

As usual, her sleep was not without its troubles. This time she was in a dark room. There were no other objects available in this room except for the two figures standing in front of her, but then they were hardly figures. They were her parents—Luna could recognize them from behind easily what with her mother's familiar platinum blonde ponytail and her father's chestnut brown (identical to her own) and slightly messy hair.

She had seen this scene multiple times outside of this dream. When she was young she would sneak up behind her parents like a predator and pounce on their backs, probably to their annoyance, she could admit in hindsight. Even so, they never showed that they were annoyed. They would always greet her with a smile on their faces or spend time playing with her. It was what she expected now.

She approached them from behind and tugged at their sleeves, beaming at them as she did so. Instead of the welcomed smiles she was expecting to be returned, what she was met with was the swatting of her hands away from their own like she were some housefly. She backed away in both fear and confusion as her parents turned to her. Their faces were pale and scarred, their pupils dilated.

Her mother's hands reached out slowly and even though Luna could easily guess where they were going, she stayed in place nonetheless.

"Why? Why did you kill us, Luna?" her mother asked as her hands grasped firmly around Luna's neck.

"I… I'm sorry!" Luna wheezed out. She felt as if her windpipe was being crushed.

"Because of you, all our hopes, our dreams… they all died because of you," her father continued the onslaught.

"I'm sorry…" Luna repeated, water forming in her eyes.

"If you had just listened to us in the first place, none of this would have ever happened. Even worse, you sent an entire world to the flames. What about everyone else who has died because of you?" her mother asked, lifting her daughter into the air. Luna's feet dangled and kicked for escape, but deep down she knew her parents were right, and resistance was slowly crumbling.

"You're right. I'm sorry!"

"It's too late for apologies. What you've done to us can never be undone." Her mother's hands wrapped more tightly around Luna's neck and the latter felt as if she was soon to pass out. Her eyes flickered in and out of focus and when she looked back, it was no longer her mother grasping her. In fact, both her parents had disappeared.

"And they were such nice people too. Maybe you really don't belong with them then. I guess I'll have you live just a little bit longer then," Abraxas said with a grin.

Luna awoke with a start, just in time to hear voices coming from outside. They echoed their way throughout the hollow cave allowing Luna to pick up on what they were saying.

"This cave looks pretty spacey. It might be a good place for the two of you to get some shut-eye," a woman's voice rang out from the dark.

"What do you mean the two of us? You mean you're not sleeping?" a second female voice asked. This one seemed younger like a teenager.

"I have to find your father and give him a good lecturing while I'm at it. Don't worry, we should be back before dawn."

"Aw, why can't you let us come with you?" asked an annoyed voice belonging to a boy.

"Because, Dash, this island is dangerous. Whoever these men are, they will not hesitate to kill you if they get the chance. They're not like those cartoons you watch on Saturday morning where the bad guys slip up and let the hero go. That doesn't mean you'll be completely safe here but it's better than what you'll probably experience with me. Plus, you kids will kind of be in my way."

"What every child wants to hear from their mother, thanks…" the female teen commented sarcastically.

From their conversation they certainly didn't seem hostile, in fact they seemed like they were in a similar situation to Luna and her friends. Either way, Luna summoned Dream Seeker, illuminated the room slightly and slowly moved around the cave to wake the others. She held her finger to her mouth to silence them, the echoing footsteps approaching telling them all they needed to know as to why Luna had woken them up.

They waited with bated breaths, and it did not take long before the three voices took form as human figures in the light. Their eyes met, with everyone unsure of what to say or do—everyone except for Luna that is.

"You're looking for someone on the island, right? I'm sorry, I couldn't help but overhear you from in here. My name's Luna, she's Stephanie, Donald and Goofy," she introduced each of her friends. At the warm welcome, the family's expressions softened.

"Elastigirl, nice to meet you. These are my children, Dash and Violet. So you're not from around here either then I take it?"

"We're pretty much in the same position, I think. We were separated from my friend and maybe there's a possibility that he came across your husband? Then again, this island seems pretty big," Luna said.

"There was one place I noticed on our way down here. I think it might be a good idea to start there. Don't worry, I'll find your friend for you," Elastigirl promised.

"Wait, I want to go too. Don't worry about me, I can fight with this." Holding up the Keyblade in front of her, Luna couldn't help but chuckled as Elastigirl marvelled and oohed at the weapon.

After half a minute of examination, Elastigirl's conclusion was: "It's a key?"

"Not just any key. A giant key," Luna denoted rhythmically. "And it doesn't just unlock and lock doors. Have you encountered any creatures in black or with strange symbols on their chests?"

Elastigirl exchanged looks with both Dash and Violet before replying. "Yeah… now that you mention it, there was something… really strange that attacked our plane as it was coming down to land. I had to make a parachute to save me and the kids in time before the plane blew up."

"You had to make a parachute? You mean you didn't have one?" Donald asked.

"It's complicated. Best way to show you is by example." With that, Elastigirl stretched out her arm, and by stretch, the action itself truly took the word to exaggerated and yet literal lengths. Luna's eyes grew big in surprise, watching as Elastigirl formed all sorts of shapes and lengths with her arms. At the end of the day, the sky really did seem the limit for the super, or was it?

"Oh dear… and here I thought you were wearing a mask and calling yourself Elastigirl because you didn't want to let me know who you were… that was AWESOME!" Luna jumped up and down giddily after the display. Elastigirl retracted her arm back to its normal state, looking quite pleased.

"Well, I technically shouldn't be telling you guys but I feel as if I can trust you. Can you keep this a secret?"

"Scout's honor, ma'am!" Luna, Donald and Goofy recited in unison. Elastigirl laughed and began to explain. She told them that her name was Helen Parr and, along with her husband, Bob, they had been living a quiet life with their two kids, or at least as quiet as one could live while trying to hide the fact that they were Supers. She also didn't hesitate in telling them how Bob had lost his job and had lied to her about it, instead choosing to pick up the remnants of his glory days and don the outfit once more. This had led him and consequently Helen and her children to this island where she believed that husband was in grave danger. When Goofy informed her about the strange robot weapon they had encountered, that thought became all too real.

"Then we need to move quickly. Donald, Goofy, do you think you two could take care of Dash and Violet for me?" Helen asked.

"We don't need to be looked after. If anything, it's more like we'll be looking after them," Dash said throwing a snarky look Donald's way.

Before the irritable Donald could blow a fuse, Helen quickly took advantage of the situation. "You know what, Dash? You are absolutely right. That's why I need you and Violet to take care of Luna's friends. I'm placing my full trust in you so don't let me down, okay Dash?"

"Of course I'll protect them." Dash thumped his chest proudly while his sister looked on with a mixture of smugness and contempt for the boy.

"Wait a second, I understand them but why can't we go?" Donald asked.

Luna nudged her head towards Stephanie before whispering to Donald. "We'll be back soon. Just do this for Helen, Donald."

The duck looked to consider this but there wasn't much choice. Even if he had said no, Luna probably would have forced him to stay. Though Donald was reluctant about babysitting children, Goofy was the opposite. Luna could almost see the cogs in his head spinning as if he were deciding which embarrassing stories to tell about his son, Max.

Luna turned to Stephanie and gave her a hug. "We'll be back soon. I promise," Luna soothed in her ear.

"I know you will, sis." The last word in particular pulled at Luna's heartstrings and she had to fight the urge to just stay in the cave and keep her new sister company. "Um, did you sleep well?"

Luna frowned. "Why do you ask?"

"You were whispering in your sleep. You were apologizing to someone and it sounded like you were crying."

So to make matters worse, she had said it out loud and Stephanie, who should have been sleeping, had heard her. Luna shook of surfacing thoughts and put on a warm smile. "I cried? Well if I did I'm the happiest person in the world now to have such a wonderful sister."

"Aw, you're making me blush," Stephanie cooed, placing her hands on her cheeks.

"Hey, that's enough cheekiness out of you!" Luna pressed her index finger playfully against Stephanie's forehead and then stood up, joining Helen who had been admiring the two from afar.

"Listen, if by some chance they do find you, run. Run as fast as you can. I know that won't be too hard for you, Dash, but try not to leave your sister or Stephanie, Donald and Goofy behind. Violet, don't be afraid of who you are. You have a power, and I know I've told you not to use it your whole life but if you show any weakness for a single second… then you've already lost."
Helen's motivation did little to calm Violet Parr's nerves it seemed, but she nodded anyway, albeit rather shaken by the whole affair. Luna walked up to her and put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry, I was scared too when I first started. I still am, and I'm not entirely sure why I have this power yet or whether I even deserve it. What I do know is that I have friends to protect just like you have your brother and at that point it becomes instinct. If you're worried that you won't be able to meet expectations when it really counts, then don't be. You will be ready."

Violet's quivering lips slowly turned into a gentle smile, and she muttered a weak "thanks" before joining her brother, Donald, Goofy and Stephanie.

Saying their final farewells, Luna and Helen left the cave in search for Sora and Bob.

It was during this time, out in the jungle at night, which allowed Luna to fill in the gaps to the multiple questions she had regarding Supers and the Parr family. She learned about the Supers 'fall' from grace in the public's eyes and how Helen and her husband had been trying to live a life akin to a regular human being ever since.

"I just don't think that it's down to altruism or some plain sense of justice that Bob is involved in this. He just really gets some kind of… rush out of it. He's been deprived of it for a while now so I can kind of understand, I mean, even I miss those days, I won't deny it but… there a certain duties and responsibilities that we have to carry out now, and that means leaving that all in the past. It's when I'm looking forward and Bob is looking back that it just creates an entire rift in the family. We can't be a normal family, who am I kidding?"

After listening to Helen's self-analysis of her family, Luna chuckled. "Well, you've got me there. You guys are in a strange predicament. I think I'm like Bob in that situation. Right now I'm struggling to figure out who exactly I am as well. I want to move on with my life and focus on the present but the past isn't exactly kind to me. I've done terrible things."

"How so? Wait, do I even want to know?" Helen's voice turned into that of a mother about to scold her child for something naughty.

"That depends if you're willing to hear me lecture myself for a good hour or so. I promise it will probably be longer than your own by a wee good margin," Luna said.

Helen seemed to consider this. "Well we're stuck in the middle of a jungle for who knows how long, but when I find I'm short on time I usually skip to my conclusion and work my way backwards from there."

Luna nodded hesitantly. "Right, well… my parents are dead because of me," was what she wanted to say but, as she imagined when she was forming what to say in her head, there was no simple way to tell a person such a thing and still manage to maintain a normal conversation and atmosphere afterwards.

Instead she said, "I'm sorry. It's not something I've come to terms with yet and it's quite a painful memory. You won't think badly of me for not telling you, will you? I mean you've told me everything about you and I haven't-"

"It's okay. We all have our secrets. I'm the one wearing a mask here," Helen pointed out.

"True, though I still feel bad about it," Luna said.

"Well, if you want you can tell me what you're doing out here then. How did you even end up here?"

That, Luna could answer. She explained how they had been chasing after someone which had inevitably led them to the island where they had been separated from Sora soon afterwards. She also told Helen about the Highwind and how they travelled from world to world as a way to make up for not being able to tell her about her past, though she could tell that Helen had a hard time understanding the whole thing.

"So what you're telling me is that there are whole other worlds beside this one, with lots and people and different customs? How do you even keep track of that sort of thing? I can barely keep track of my own life as it is," Helen mused.

"It is disheartening having to make friends only to leave them behind soon after. You' always have to look forward and never back, that's what my master told me. It's why I probably never could be a Keyblade Master. I don't know how Sora does it sometimes," Luna said.

"Then why are you travelling? I mean there's the obvious answer of making new friends…"

"I don't know. I guess I keep going because I'm afraid… afraid of looking back while everyone else is moving forward."

"Aren't we all," Helen replied. It was something that caused Luna to stop in her tracks. Of course! How could she be so selfish as to think that she was the only person afraid of moving forward? It must have been some kind of universal truth that a person's greatest fear was being left behind. If that was the case then why did she feel as if her circumstances were so different from anyone else?

"Is there a problem?" Helen stopped after noticing that Luna had been strangely quiet and turned to see her a few metres away.

"No. I've just come to the realization that I'm probably not gonna get any sleep tonight is all. Let's continue," answered Luna, her mind in an otherworldly plane from the one her feet were grounded on.

Meanwhile, in the cold and hollow cave that Luna and Helen had left, Dash, Violet and Stephanie watched in both amusement and fascination as magic flew and circled around their heads. Waves and sparks of red, yellow and blue erupted from Donald's staff as he reluctantly put on a magic show for the three children. After making the mistake of starting a fire to warm them, there was no way he was getting away with it without consequences. It just so happened that these consequences came in the form of annoying children demanding he waste his energy to please them.

"Can I stop now?" Donald repeated. It had come to down to where Donald had stopped counting how many times he had asked.

"I think you've tortured him enough, Dash. Just go to sleep," said Violet, rolling her eyes at her childish brother. Despite her words, her voice conveyed some sadness now that the magic display had finished.

Dash, who had been giggling and clapping in delight at Donald's tricks, gave a resigned sigh before he stood up and started wandering around the room.

"Dash, sit down before you get me into even more trouble with mom," Violet shouted as the boy got farther.

"It's always about you, isn't it? Hey, this cave is pretty spacious. Maybe there's treasure down here, or Tony Rydinger," Dash teased.

"Will you shut up already?" Violet hissed threateningly, her words sharp like venom.

"HEY, TONY! I THINK VIOLET LIKES YOU!" Dash's loud voice travelled down the tunnel, ricocheting off the walls and creating an even louder echo. For Violet, it was obvious torment.

"You are seriously asking for it!" Violet yelled. She moved fast and tackled Dash from behind. Dash kicked and flung his arms left and right as he tried to get out of Violet's grasp, but her forcefield repelled Dash's uncalculated strikes and sent his arms to the ground.

Donald lay down and lazily balanced his hand on the side of his face while watching the two children go at it. Goofy scratched his head and looked at him.

"Shouldn't we do something about them before it gets out of hand, Donald?" he asked.

"Huh? Oh, oh yeah. Now, now, stop fighting," Donald said disinterestedly. He let out a yawn and his eyes wandered downwards, focusing on some pebbles jumping up and down nearby instead. Wait a minute… jumping up and down? Donald cocked his head to the side curiously as he stared at the moving pebbles. They were… vibrating?

It was only when Donald placed his hands and ears on the ground below him that he realized that the cave they had stepped into was not in fact a cave at all. He looked up just in time to see a light from up ahead. With little time to break Dash and Violet away from each other, Donald picked up his staff and pointed upwards. A sphere of water formed and hung above their heads for a second or two before losing its perfect shape and falling onto their heads.

"Get up! We need to leave, now!" Donald yelled at them.

"Huh, why? And what did I do to deserve getting drenched? I mean for Violet's it's not anything she's not used to-"

"If you say ONE more word, I will-"

"If you don't want to be burnt to a crisp I'd advise moving," Donald pointed quickly at the roaring fire that was engulfing the darkness of the tunnel and fast approaching them. Dash and Violet looked behind them, and were already off the ground and running along with Donald, Goofy and Stephanie (however the panicking Dash was outpacing them even when the trio had gotten a headstart).

They reached the exit of the cave and dove to the left just in time as flames roared and gargled out of the cave's mouth. Almost coincidentally, or maybe not so, they looked up to see a burning star being launched into the night sky from a volcano somewhere near the middle of the island.

"That's no star. That's a rocket," Violet said when Donald asked whether it was in fact a shooting star. "So then maybe this whole entire island has a network of underground tunnels. I can't imagine this cave was the only one."

"So what do we do now?" Stephanie asked with an annoyed frown. Now that Donald thought about it, kids shouldn't usually be up this late at night but here were three of them who probably weren't going to get much rest tonight.

"We have no choice but to sleep in the jungle. We'll look for your parents and Sora and Luna tomorrow if they're not back yet since they won't know we moved." The best thing Donald could do right now would be leading them out of danger and somewhere safe, he figured.

Donald had never been a fan of kids, what with his own experience of taking care of his nephews. It had been the primary reason that he had been reluctant to take Stephanie with them and while he was still not thrilled with bringing her along, being outnumbered certainly didn't help either. He just had to approach this in the same way he had been approaching it with Stephanie so far. The only thing that was different now was that he was stuck with three of them instead of one. Well, two he hoped. He assumed Violet could be dependable enough given she stopped fighting with her brother.

The group left the beach and made their way into the jungle in hopes of finding somewhere decent to rest. They were careful to make sure that they chose somewhere close to the beach for obvious reasons and it was decided that Donald and Goofy would take turns keeping watch while the kids slept.

"Well, we've always been asking for a vacation. A little school time off never hurt anybody," said a smiling Violet as they settled down in their camp for the night. She turned to Stephanie. "Have you been travelling with Goofy and the others for a while then? Must beat going to school, huh?"

"They're all going to be so jealous when I go back, hehe. But I wish I didn't have to," answered Stephanie sadly.

"I know the feeling, but you want to see your parents again, right?" Violet asked.

"My dad's gone. My mom told me that he's a star up above looking down on me. If he is, I wonder if he's proud of me for helping him."

"Helping him?" Violet asked.

Stephanie nodded with a hum. "Mom told me that dad wanted to find out what was out there. He helped someone called Ansem with the research. Together they were looking into space travel."

"Oh, I get it. So by travelling with your friends, you're hoping that you'll be able to understand your dad more, right? That's touching. Uh, sorry to hear about your dad though. My parents can be pretty annoying at times but I can't imagine what it would be like without them." Violet lay down on the leaf-covered ground and looked to Stephanie. "I'm sure your dad's proud of you but I'm sure he also wants you to be safe."

"I know," Stephanie answered after mirroring Violet's pose. Her eyes wandered up to the sky where countless stars seemed frozen as if part of a beautiful still life painting. She wondered from which tiny light her dad was looking down on her from.