Draco: NEW EDIT: Sorry for the additional new-chapter notice. I clicked the wrong file again when I was trying to update something and it wouldn't fix until I deleted the chapter and put it back up again. END NEW EDIT

UNGAAH. I finally got Final Fantasy XIII and now I regret ever knowing anything about the series. Fragments of knowledge only make understanding things worse. And I thought these games were mind-screwy when I knew nothing about them. Mulch. Me.

UNGAAAAAAH. I finally got Disney's Frozen on DVD, and I just watched it thrice consecutively, mentally composing different aspects of a Kingdom Hearts III world on each viewing.

And before you ask; yes, Xion even writes Roxas' name like that. Likewise (although not relevant), Roxas writes Xion's name like that.

Characters, weapons, origins © Square Enix and Disney. Monsters, setting, and encyclopedia © Akihisa Ikeda.


Chapter 54: Final Fantasy #2

"Ungh..."

Sora woke up the next morning groggy and sore. Mumbling incoherently, he reached for his phone and flipped it open. 5:00 AM.

"What happened last night?" he asked his crown.

I have no idea.

Groaning angrily, Sora tried to get out of bed. "Cloud," he called, not nearly loud enough for the biker to hear even if he was awake. "Did you get me drunk last ni-"

He cut himself off. He had voicemail.

Did the call cutting off wake me up? he wondered. But he checked the time - no, he got this message at 11:00 last night. Confused, he tapped to hear it and raised it to his ear - and groaned when he realized that his answering machine was still his failed attempt from before he went to Yokai.

"Kingdom Key... wait, stop. Damn it, Sora. I don't care if that is how you answer the phone yourself, you shouldn't set up your answering machine like that. Jeez. Wait, Mulch, is this thing still recording? You gotta be kidding me." Blip. "No, not that one." Blip. "No... I'll be there in a second, Tifa! Come on..."

Beep.

"Hey... Sora... Van..."

Sora shot upright in half an instant. "Kairi?!" he shouted.

"Riku... Naminé... Xion... Roxas. All you guys. I don't know why the hell this payphone lets me call seven people at once. I don't know how I managed to get all of you guys on voicemail. I didn't even know you all had voicemail. Look, I... I've been keeping too many secrets from you. All of you. And Van, I know you said friends let friends keep secrets. But... this is something I never should have kept from you. Any of you. Guys... I'm in a bad way. And it's time I told you the truth. All of it."

+x+x+x+

"My name is Kairi Chikai Bōkyaku. My father is Shin Bōkyaku, CEO of Oblivion Enterprises in the city of Anvāsu. I got into a hell of a fight with him before the school year. I was... I was sick of all the jackasses that attended my old school. Tachibana Academy."

Naminé almost hung up the phone, not wanting to hear. As a witch, she had been insulted and assaulted by human and monster alike - she could understand where Kairi was coming from, at least partially. But Naminé had only ever been attacked by those not of her own kind. For Kairi to feel so oppressed by other humans - she could hardly fathom...

"I found a pamphlet for Yokai, dropped by some guy who... now that I've seen them, I think he might have been in Organization XIII. I told my father I wanted to go to Yokai. Tachibana's got a huge-ass tuition fee, and he was pissed because he'd already blown the dough to get me in there until I graduated. He thought Yokai was a drug dealer's place."

+x+x+x+

"I left, guys. I took my stuff and some of his money and I... I ran. I just ran off. I know, it was stupid and foolish. I spent seven days sleeping in convenience stores. I was pissed. I wasn't thinking. I'm a moron. I- ow!"

Xion panicked, grabbing the phone out of Roxas' hand worriedly. "Kairi?" she cried. "Kairi!"

"Ugh... damn shoulder."

The message continuing like nothing had happened relaxed snow fairy and yoko somewhat as Kairi continued.

"Seventh day after I left home, the bus driver flagged me down while it started to rain. He told me he worked for Yokai and offered to take me there. I came with."

+x+x+x+

"That's how I met you guys. That's how you almost ran me over, Sora. 'Cause I got on a bus, with a silver-haired driver, on a rainy day, run away from home and a rich jackass father. That's how I came to Yokai. Naminé, that's how you got your victim for your flower trick. Riku, that's how you kicked my ass, a week after the year started. Xion, that's how you flash-froze me when you met Sora. Roxas, that's how I got your Keyblade in my arm when the vampire made Xion cry."

Kairi's voice cracked, as though she was the one who was crying.

"And Van... that's how you got your snack tray."

A long silence. Sora's rosario gleamed quietly as Van realized what Kairi was saying.

"Look, I don't regret my time at Yokai Academy. Don't think I did. But... it's changed me. I threw my old cell phone into the street so hard it got stuck in someone's car. I've got a bullet hole in my shoulder from half an hour ago that's already stopped bleeding. I punched the yakuza who shot me so hard he got thrown in front of a semi two lanes across."

+x+x+x+

"I don't know what I'm supposed to do. My father's business is closed for the day. He'll gut anyone who comes within three feet of his doorway at this hour. The coffee shops are flooded with yakuza. Every other restaurant is long closed. The only place to stay in Anvāsu is a love hotel. I'm tired. I'm hungry."

A long pause.

"...I'm scared."

Riku closed his eyes as Kairi began to sob on the other end of the line.

"Please... If any of you have a way to come find me, please... I need you guys. I don't know what I was thinking. Telling you not to come with me. But if you can... please..."

The words faded, and Riku resisted the urge to hang up early as Kairi's sobs echoed into his ears for several long minutes.

"Hotel Hearts... 670... Symphony Street... Ask for... Oblivion... Oath."

There was a fumbling clatter; then the dial tone sounded as Kairi hung up.

+x+x+x+

"Sora?"

Tifa looked around the bar, confused. She had gone to see if Sora was still out cold, but his bedroom was empty. The bar was just as empty - if a hell of a lot cleaner - and as Tifa started towards Cloud's office she wondered if maybe he was still worrying about Kairi.

Then she opened the door and saw the note taped to Cloud's laptop.

Kairi called. Needs my help. Gone to the city of Anvāsu. Took Fenrir. Left the drinks in the Hardy.
~Sora

+x+x+x+

Zack was pacing furiously. Aerith was sitting at the table, her breakfast gone cold. Firion, Leon, and Guy were standing against the wall. Firion and Guy were trying to look idle. Leon was glaring right at Maria, who was standing at the door with a guilty look on her face, pulling the string of her bow worriedly.

On the table was a note.

Rokusasu and I got a call from Kairi. She asked us to come find her. We'll be in the city of Anvāsu if you need us.
~Xion

+x+x+x+

"Lucky..."

Selphie was sitting at the table of her and Naminé's dining room. She was the first to admit that she loved a good fantasy story - which meant that the note that had been left for Selphie to find at the dinner table had her rather envious of her good friend.

My friend's in deep s#%* and I'm gonna go lend her a hand. I'm gonna be in a city called Anvāsu. Don't follow me.
~Naminé

+x+x+x+

"Typical. I trace his call, and he leaves without me."

Kēji Kiseichū was leaning against the counter, with a hot cup of coffee in his hand, and some Maria and Draco parody he had found online playing through a surround sound speaker that he had specifically designed for when Riku wasn't home (Kurai didn't usually approve of Kēji's music choices).

I'm gonna be in Anvāsu. Don't worry about me.
~Riku

+x+x+x+

It took her a long while to realize she was diving.

Kairi glanced at the void around her, tears parting from her eyes. It was so long since she had experienced this - the headfirst fall towards the station that acted as the first layer of her heart. Her body in the real world was weak with sadness - and so, too, was her being here drained by the tears as her skyclad figure connected with the station.

The darkness had faded from the curled heart that marked the station.

She lay there for a long moment before a gentle hand connected with her shoulder. She glanced back to see her darkness kneeling next to her - but no longer bare. Small gatherings of deep black dove feathers were scattered across her central body, forming miniscule patterns that covered the bare minimum of her modesty and formed a few fancy designs across her sides boot. She still had the ghoul's blood-web arcing around from the punctures on her neck, still had the necrous white dragons around her arms, but now they seemed more part of her figure, rather than just strange additions.

A small smile rose on Kairi's face; but it was a weak smile, an expression cracked by sorrow.

And when she spoke, it was with a voice steeped in sadness.

"You look like a Void wraith."

The shadow only shook her head, darkened hair drifting across her hair.

"And you look like hell."

Her own voice was saddened in itself.

"What do I do?" Kairi murmured. "I don't know what I'm doing. I don't know why I thought I could come alone. To this city. To this hell. I'm a wreck..."

"Don't talk like that," her darkness reprimanded her. "Your friends will have got your message. They'll be coming. You just need a little support to pull yourself together. All you have to do is wait."

Kairi shook her head. "In this city?" she prompted. "I wasn't paying attention before. I thought it was just jackasses at Tachibana. But this place is just..."

Her darkness shook her head, sitting down in front of Kairi. "It's the way you feel," the shadow observed. "You're depressed. You're scared. It's attracting the dark things to you. Like those yakuza. You need to lift your spirits a little bit."

"How?" Kairi murmured. "How do you expect me to 'lift my spirits' at a time like this?!"

There was a moment of quiet as her darkness tapped the floor of the station.

"You could read Chibi Vampire."

A beat passed before the two of them started giggling at the comment, their laughter echoing around the station.

"I'm not so sure that's a good idea," Kairi admitted. "I'll just blaze through it, and I didn't like the look on Sora's face when he finished the last one."

"Well, you need to find something," her shadow insisted. "Come on, Kairi. I thought you were stronger than that."

Kairi shook her head. "I'm not the strong one," she insisted. "That's you. That's the blood. I'm just..."

She fell quiet when her darkness set a hand on her lips. "I'm not talking about how hard you hit," she insisted. "I'm talking about your heart. You ended up at Yokai Academy. You didn't run. You didn't hide. You stayed and survived. That kind of determination - that's what you need. Come on."

"But I..."

Her darkness held out her hand - and her sunset gold island flower appeared between her fingers. "Don't make me draw this," she insisted. "I've been eager for another round and I know I'm gonna win this one."

Kairi smirked, wiping the tears out of her eyes and forcing herself to her feet. Light began to gather around her like flowing water, forming her strapless dress of white dove feathers as her haous black dragons arced over her arms, and her own flower appeared in her hand. "You sure about that?"

"See, that's the Kairi I know!" her darkness cheered, pushing herself to her feet as she closed her grip on her flower - and the dagger's edge of black shadow appeared from the bloom as she took a fighting stance.

One leap was enough for Kairi to cross the station as she tightened her own grip - and from her bloom emerged the massive sword blade of shining white and waves of blue that still managed to level between her shadow's eyes.

"En garde!"

"Alez!"

+x+x+x+

Riku skidded to a stop in front of the door to a gas station - having started skidding three blocks ago.

There was a very suspicious dent in an empty car sitting nearby. Curious, Riku stepped inside to find the counter was empty; sitting in a chair nearby was a man in a dark blue suit and tie with dark blue hair styled like a college grad cap. An empty can belonging to an energy drink was in one hand. "Excuse me," the werewolf called, prompting the man to look up, "is that wrecked car yours?"

"Yeah, that's mine," the man snapped, taking a long draught from his can. "Some prankster around the town of Anvāsu throwing things."

Remembering what Kairi said about her cell phone, Riku asked him, "I don't suppose you could take me there?"

The man crushed his can and tossed it towards the trash. "And what's in it for me?"

"My not kicking your ass?" Riku offered.

The two locked eyes on each other for a long time; then a snicker passed through Riku's lips, prompting both of them to start laughing.

"I'm Mohō Senmoka," the man in red prompted, holding out a hand.

"Riku Kurai," the werewolf replied, stepping towards him and taking the hand. "Take me to Anvāsu, and I'll find some way to pay you back."

Senmoka shook his head. "Don't worry about it," he insisted. "Just don't complain about my vehicle - it's not exactly a smooth ride."

+x+x+x+

Kairi hit the station.

Hard.

Her darkness landed next to her, holding her dagger at her side.

"This is really crushing you, isn't it," the shadow murmured.

"What did you expect?" Kairi replied. "You're me. You should know how I feel. I thought a little rush from a fight might be able to get my spirits up, but... it's hopeless. I don't know what I was thinking."

"Kairi, stop," her darkness reprimanded. "You can't just sit here, broken like this."

She sat down next to Kairi, tapping the station with the shadow blade emerging from her flower.

"You should go talk to your father."

Kairi turned. "What do you-?"

"You need to speak with your father," her shadow rephrased. "Face to face. Speak with him equally. That's the best course of action you can take right now."

The words caused Kairi to lower her gaze, closing her eyes as the station started to fade.

"I'll try..."

+x+x+x+

Naminé couldn't believe she was hurtling down the highway in a convertible, heading straight for the tunnel that the bus driver had brought her through.

She had been certain she would crash before she got anywhere near here.

Eventually, she managed to get the car to a stop without crashing, throwing the door open and stepping towards the tunnel. She set one hand on the wall as her chain started to glow, trying to pinpoint the link to Anvāsu - and then starting when she heard a crash of water, turning back to the car to see it had gone off the road and into a slightly flooded ditch.

"Well, shit," she muttered. How am I going to get to Anvāsu anywhere near time to help Kairi now?

A howling from the tunnel caused her to yelp, leaping away as a familiar bike materialized where the shadows stopped, and moving at highway speed and a half, sideways. Her gaze followed the motorcycle as Fenrir skidded to a stop thirteen paces away, and a familiar head of spiky hair leapt off quickly, stepping towards her.

"Sora!" she called.

"Naminé," Sora mused. "I was worried you wouldn't have transport. I already called Zack's place; Roxas and Xion are on their way already. Riku won't pick up the damn phone, but I won't be surprised if he's already met up with Kairi by now." He turned to the car.

"Don't ask," Naminé pleaded.

Sora sighed, stepping towards the car. "I'll drive," he insisted as Naminé rushed towards the passenger side.

She was already in and had her belt on when a thought occurred to her. "Um... do you know how to drive a car?" she asked, turning to Sora as he shifted gears with slight difficulty.

His crown gleamed.

"No."

+x+x+x+

"I'll take a large Twin Sisters sundae, please."

Kairi was at the counter of a grill-and-chill known as Pandemona. Waking up in Hotel Hearts had left her feeling miserable; she had decided to grab some ice cream to held calm her mind until such time as she was in any condition to speak with her father, as her darkness had suggested. She still had her father's credit card in the bottom of her bag, but she decided not to try using it until she needed to, instead using the cash she had managed to maintain.

Her sundae was in her hands before too long - a vanilla-and-chocolate wheel blend of soft-serve ice cream - and Kairi quickly took off out the door, grabbed her staff, and headed towards Hotel Hearts again. She had asked her friends to come find her, and she was really hoping that they would show up before she went to speak with her father; since she had directed them to the hotel, she figured her odds of meeting up with them were at their best there.

"No way...!"

The voice that caught her ears was definitely directed at her. It was also a decidedly familiar voice. Kairi spun 180 on her feet, looking around for the source. It didn't take long for her to see it - a silver-haired figure rushing towards her, dressed in clothes that did not belong in Anvāsu.

"Riku?" Kairi called. Then, when she realized that this was the guy she most expected to have been knocking on her door last night; "RIKU!"

A beam rose on the silver's face as Kairi charged towards him, tackling him with a hug. He clearly did not expect the force of the blow to knock him over, though, running the two of them to the ground and nearly breaking his back on Kairi's staff. Some of her ice cream sank into his hair as he tried to push Kairi off him. "Woah, woah!" he laughed. "Easy there."

"I'm so glad you came," Kairi murmured. "I wasn't sure if any of the others would be here before I ran into trouble, but you got my call!"

The panicked cries only got the response of chuckles as Kairi got to her feet. "Well, what did you expect?" he murmured. "You can't expect me to leave you here, can you?" His face lit up. "Oh, yeah, I almost forgot."

Kairi was shocked when he reached into his pocket and drew out a familiar cell phone.

"I found this in someone's car."

A moment passed as Kairi looked between the phone and the smile on her friend's face before she grinned back. "You little wolf!" she snapped. "You would go looking for that, wouldn't you?"

"Yeah, I would." Typical Riku response. "You've got voicemail."

Kairi's grin fell. "Yeah, I'm not in the mood to listen to it," she admitted.

"It?" The confusing question made more sense when Kairi gave him a funny look. "I checked your history. There are three messages on there."

"Oh," Kairi murmured, realizing her phone wasn't password-locked. She sighed upon realizing that she had thrown the phone away without thinking about whether or not her father was the only voicemail she had. "This is gonna take a while." She tapped the screen to listen to them. "You lead," she told him, "I've gotta listen to this."

There was a confused look that almost didn't belong on Riku's face until he chuckled, nodding and taking off as Kairi followed him, raising the phone to her ear. Remembering her shadow's advice to speak with her father, she decided to listen to the message he had left.

"Kairi... It's your father. I'm not sure if that stick I found on the roadside was yours, but... it was my only clue where you might come. I don't know if you got a ride back to town for supplies, or if you're out in that field, or if you're already gone. I charged your phone and put it there because that's my best chance of you finding it. I just..."

A long sigh.

"I'm just calling to say I'm sorry."

Kairi jolted at that.

"Look, we've both said some things and done some things that... I regret that they took place. You were right. I was only concerned about my money and my business. I wasn't thinking about how you felt. When I shut down your phone, I was still mad. But... I know now that everything I've done was a mistake.

"It's not worth it anymore. Oblivion Enterprises has turned into a hell. Once I realized what I had done to you, I was in no condition to run my own company. I delegated every part of the company to someone else and just... left. By the time I was back in form, they had taken my company and turned it into the most morally disgusting thing I had ever seen since that news scandal about Shinra Electric Power Company. And... now I realize that they've always been like this. They've always been wanting to make deals with the less favourable companies. I should have fired them all a thousand times by now. But I didn't. I was able to see past all the horrors.

"...You made me see past all the horrors."

Kairi's breath had become heavy.

"Kairi, if I know my daughter, you'll have found Yokai Academy by now. You'll have made friends - proper friends, not the jerks at Tachibana. You'll have some of the highest grades in the class, and it won't be because I forced standards on you. You certainly won't be selling drugs. You're better than that.

"I won't blame you if you hate me, Kairi. But all that money I'm still getting from Oblivion isn't worth is anymore. I know you took one of my credit cards with you, and I'm going to do what I can to make sure you're still able to use it. It's yours to use, however you see fit. Go ahead. Do what you want with it.

"And if you... I don't even know what's wrong with me. Asking this of you. Me, the asshole father who drove my daughter to run away. But if you can find it in your heart to forgive me... please. Please. Come home."

Kairi came to a stop.

"If you do... there is a home waiting for you."

There was a long moment of silence. Kairi hadn't even realized she was still walking.

Then the tone sounded, and the next message started.

"Kairi, I am so sorry."

It was her father again, and he sounded like he was panicking.

"One of the chairmen at Oblivion Enterprises got pissed when he realized I was putting my funds into helping you if you ever come back. He reasoned that if you weren't aroun, then I'd be willing to work at what the company has now become. He's hired an assassin to hunt you down. He's an absolute monster - a professional killer. No one ever tracks him because the fingerprints he leaves belong to his victim's friends. I'm begging you - do not trust anyone. Please. I-"

Then the line went dead, and the next message nearly started.

Kairi panicked, pausing the voicemail and looking around. She was standing just at the entrance to an alleyway she had seen Tachibana students using, and with a quick movement she grabbed the back of Riku's shirt, prompting the silver to turn and face her. "What is it?"

"Shh," she insisted. "Come on." She beckoned to the alley, and he nodded, stepping inside as Kairi glanced around. Once she was certain that no one was going to come after her, she stepped after him.

"What is-"

He didn't see her hand shift on her staff until it was too late. Kairi lashed the narrow end of the weapon up across his face, causing him to stumble back as the staff turned through the air. She didn't give him a chance to recover, instead grabbing the wood as soon as it came close enough and slamming the blunt end into his chest, knocking him to the ground before aiming it at his face.

He coughed weakly for a moment, and Kairi could see streaks of fur starting to rise on his arms. "What are you doing, Kairi?" he demanded. "It's me-"

She cut him off with a harsh laugh. "Please. 'Kairi'? Whenever we're alone Riku always... just... calls me 'Kai'."

A moment of quiet.

Then the impostor swore, fur tearing out on his arms and his face elongating as he took Riku's werewolf form.

"Never should have relied on that ass with the silver hair," he snapped, grabbing the walls as he pulled himself to his feet. "Figure's I'd pick the one friend of yours who'd be that close, isn't it?"

He shot forward at half light speed, the air around him rippling with a sonic boom.

Kairi only smirked.

"No."

She spun the staff in hand and thrust the sharp end into the impostor's shoulder, tearing a yell of pain as Kairi raised her chained hand and punched him in the face with a crack, slamming him into the earth with enough force to rip up payment. No sooner had he recovered than Kairi landed on him with a two-foot kick, tearing the staff from his shoulder; the combined blow was enough to tear Riku's form off her opponent - revealing a figure with dark blue hair that looked like a grad cap.

"Thanks for falling for it, though," she mused through a mouthful of fangs. "Now you can do me the favour of dying."

In an instant, she had driven her staff into the pavement next to the doppelgänger's neck; then her clawed hands managed to pull him out from under her own feet as she raised him above her head, glaring at him with bloodred eyes. The impostor only had time to realize how absolutely screwed he was before she hurled him across the street and into a metal mailbox in front of the post office.

Headfirst.

Kairi slipped her phone into her pocket and turned away as the vampyric changes faded, glancing at the holy chains bound over her wrist.

Four links were now webbed with cracks - two in either direction from Alexander's padlock.


Draco: I'm gonna have to make this three. Which just so happens to be my favourite Fantasy gameplay-wise.