A/N: Here's the next chapter. Featuring: the world of Twilight Town! Not much going on, as it's a break from all the drama, but it's still an important chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Disney in any way, shape, or form! I only own an OC, Aether, who appears in this chapter.

Note: I changed the cover of this story (see above), and it should give you an idea on what Kairi and Aether both look like in this story.

If you want to see Aether's full design, go to my profile on DeviantArt, same name, and go to my Kingdom Hearts folder in my gallery, or go to my gallery, click 'All' on the side, and then type in 'Aether' in the search bar. Two results should pop, but her current design is the one on the right (the one with the white dress and the Keyblade at the bottom). The left one (all red dress) is for my future plans for her (if everything goes well).

I loved the KH3 Re:Mind DLC! It really did my girl, Kairi, justice! Now, Nomura, you hinted that the next game would center on Kairi (or Sokai in general), so don't screw it up, please!

!~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~3~~R~E~W~R~I~T~E~~!

Let Me Face My Fears

Chapter 6: Toksa

"A dull ache of the soul, a sick pining, a spiritual anguish."

~Keyblade Graveyard~

Useless...

Hopeless...

Helpless...

You can't save anyone.

You can't even save yourself.

You've been taken by the darkness.

Wake up, brother.

You've seen Riku.

Even after you brought him home, he still struggles with the darkness.

And Kairi's entire homeworld was taken by darkness.

Even now, she still gets nightmares about it.

C'mon, you seriously can't sleep forever.

Riku probably feels like he's failed you.

Kairi's probably too traumatized to fight.

All because of you.

WAKE UP!

Sora's golden eyes opened with a sudden start, his entire body trembling, his head resting on his knees, his back leaning against the rock wall behind him. He didn't feel comfortable sleeping on his back like he normally did. He was uncomfortable in his own body – the first time this had ever happened to him. He didn't feel like himself, probably because Xehanort currently had control over him.

"You awake now?" Sora looked up at the owner of the voice that had been talking to him throughout his nightmare.

"Vanitas..." Sora breathed.

Vanitas had not taken off his helmet even once, so Sora didn't know what he looked like, offering a distinct lack of answers to the question of why the two sounded alike, or why they were the same height and body build.

Yet he felt a certain connection he hasn't been able to understand.

But to be honest, that was the least of Sora's worries. He shivered as the memories came back to him.

His heart and body had just been reunited, and boy was it painful. He wasn't expecting it to be. According to King Mickey and Master Yen Sid – who were talking about freeing Ventus at the time – it was a painless process, and he even saw Kairi's heart and body reunited with his own eyes, and she didn't pass out from the pain – so they all knew it would be painless for Ven.

So, it shouldn't have been painful for him.

Sora's fists clenched as he remembered the pain, and why he was subjected to it. Vanitas seemed to roll his eyes, "Get over it. It's not that big a deal."

The small bit of light in Sora's heart alerted him to some past pain Vanitas went through, "You went through the same thing, didn't you?"

Vanitas immediately stopped, as if suddenly defensive, because it sounded more like a statement than a question. "You haven't unlocked my tragic backstory yet, so drop it." His back to Sora, he advised, "Just stop fighting it. Take it from me. It's better that way."

"I can't," Sora muttered.

Vanitas looked back to see Sora struggling to stand on his feet. "You have to. Listen, according to the old man, I'm in charge of you now. So just do as I say." Sora didn't answer. He only continued to painfully stand up.

Sora's legs were wobbly when he finally stood, and he was certain that if he tried to walk, he would only fall flat on his face. "I can't," Sora repeated. "Giving up is not who I am. The other Guardians are counting on me to fight this, and I refuse to let them down."

Vanitas was quiet as he processed that. Sora only reminded him of Ventus. Ugh, it made him sick.

"You poor boy."

Sora and Vanitas both jumped at the old man's voice suddenly interrupting them, with Ansem and Xemnas right behind him, on both sides.

"Xehanort," Sora's faces immediately lowered into a glare as he came face to face with the man who ruined his life, ruined Riku's life, ruined Kairi's life, split them up for over a year, and now was currently trying to quite literally break Kairi's heart - which will kill her if Xehanort succeeds.

Not to mention, Aqua, Terra, and Ventus, and Axel, Roxas, Xion, and Namine, and many other people whose lives he ruined and played with as he was was a child playing with their toys.

This man had to pay for every single thing he's ever done.

"Sora," Xehanort returned. "You threw quite the tantrum when your heart and body were being unified."

Sora did not ease his glare. Vanitas noted the stone cold, very familiar expression on Sora's face.

"I've got a better idea. How about I destroy you both?"

"If it was a problem for you," Sora said, "then I'm not sorry at all."

"You should be," Xehanort replied. "The process is normally painless, yes, but it hurt you because you keep fighting me, fighting to keep the last bit of light in you. I own your body, and soon I will own your heart as well."

"I won't stop," Sora vowed. "For every second for the rest of my life, I will fight you."

Xemnas and Ansem turned to Xehanort, who was quiet, his sinister smile gone and replaced with a displeased frown.

"Well?" Xemnas asked.

"It seems we have no choice," Xehanort closed his eyes.

"What if it doesn't work?" Ansem asked, knowing full well that Sora, in his present state, would be impossible to control, impossible to predict.

"Oh, it will," Xehanort casted a side glance at Vanitas, who immediately tensed up, knowing exactly what he was referring to. "It has before, and it will do so again. Soon, he will indeed become one of us, one of the thirteen Seekers of Darkness."

Xehanort and Sora connected eyes, Xehanort's full of ice, Sora's full of fire.

"Do it," was all Xehanort said, as he watched the scene play out with cold, unfeeling eyes.

Ansem's fist charged up with darkness, and Sora deeply gasped at the sudden impact on his stomach, soon doubling over at the immense pain that immediately sprang up, sinking back to his knees. Xemnas's dark lightning then shot throughout his body, his body going numb.

It hurts.

I can't breath.

Why does it burn so much?

Riku...Kairi...

HELP ME!

Vanitas' thought train took a rather surprising route, however. He knew very personally what Xehanort was trying to do with Sora – conditioning – because the old man had done the same thing to him. Except, Sora didn't have the painful honor of being the master and creator of the Unversed. Each and every training session brought on pain, and every feeling of pain meant an Unversed being born and defeated in training, and an Unversed returning to him was even more pain to bear.

It was an endless cycle that Vanitas was sick of, despite being used to it by now.

What was this feeling?

Vanitas turned his head towards Xehanort, who refused to take his eyes off of a writhing Sora, "You don't think he's broken enough?"

"Broken?" Xehanort scoffed. "He's nowhere near broken. He's still fighting to keep himself tethered to the light. Once we break his spirit, the process will be complete. Only then will he be broken."

Vanitas didn't turn back to Sora. He instead looked away, the scene bringing up painful memories he'd rather forget.

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

~Twilight Town~

Lea, Kairi, and Pluto had just landed their Gummiship in the forest - away from curious and prying eyes – and had just stumbled upon a clearing with fruit laying all over the ground.

Lea stopped, somewhat confused at the sight they stumbled upon, "Wwwhat is this?"

"It's probably an animal trying to collect food," Kairi said. "But don't worry about that right now. I sense Heartless in this area."

As soon as she said that, she heard a voice call out to her, "Help me! I stuck up here!"

Up?

It didn't sound like any voice belonging to Namine, Xion, Ven, or Roxas. It was somebody else, somebody outside her heart, somewhere in the real world.

Kairi did as the voice told her to – she looked up at the trees.

Sure enough, the voice was right.

Powerwild Heartless – little buggers shaped like monkeys – where in the trees.

Lea had followed her eyesight after Pluto barked at him, who had warned Lea once he realized Kairi's eyeline had stopped. And he pointed out something interesting, "Is that a rat they're cornering?"

It was. The little guy looked just like a normal rat with blue-tinted fur and brown eyes that looked frightened. He connected eyes with Kairi, as if pleading her to help him.

"Help me!" She heard the voice again.

She didn't have to ask. She knew exactly where the voice was coming from. It was the same way with Pluto.

The one talking was the rat himself.

Kairi summoned Destiny's Embrace, and Lea followed suit with Flame Liberator, albeit a little confused.

"Princess?" He asked.

"Focus on the Heartless," she said.

Pluto lowered himself into a running position before running to the tree while Lea and Kairi kept the Heartless busy. Once next to the tree, the dog let the rat climb down the tree and land safely on the former's head.

By this time, all Heartless had been taken care of and the rat watched as the two red-headed humans bent down to his level.

He thanked them, knowing that at least the girl understood him. He had no idea how or why – he just knew she was special, just like someone else he knew.

"You're welcome," she replied. "Do you need anything else before we head into town?"

The rat pointed at a nearby apple and then the direction of the town.

Lea rose an eyebrow in confusion. "Huh?"

Kairi giggled before translating, "All the fruit on the ground is his, and he needs help bringing it back to his home in Twilight Town."

"Oh..." Lea replied, understanding. "I'm terrible at charades, Princess."

"Well, I can actually hear him talking," Kairi explained as they and Pluto helped the rat gather up its fruit.

"Interesting," Lea said. "Must have something to do with the fact that you're a Princess of Heart."

"Maybe," Kairi shrugged.

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

The town was peaceful as Remy led the two Guardians from his perch on Kairi's shoulders. She and Lea were carrying baskets full of the fruit they picked up for him, with Pluto following close behind.

Kairi turned to Remy, "Your home is this way?"

Remy nodded and pointed at the building in front of them.

Lea read the title, "'El Grand Bistrot'? That's new."

"It was being built when we were still training with Merlin," Kairi replied. "Judging by the crowd, I'd say it's doing very well."

"You betcha it is!" came a familiar voice.

Lea and Kairi both turned to see Scrooge walking up to them.

"Ah, Mr. Scrooge!" Kairi greeted him with a smile. Scrooge was someone they saw during their days off from training and were allowed to roam the town for a while. Scrooge frequently brought them snacks to munch on and was the one Lea bought sea salt ice cream from.

"What are you doing here?" Lea asked.

"Why I own this restaurant, laddie!" Scrooge replied. "And my Little Chef has been gone a long time, so I was afraid something had happened to him. But I'm glad to see you two made sure he got back safely."

"'Little Chef'?" Lea repeated.

Kairi smiled and turned to the rat on her shoulder, "He means Remy."

"What?!" Lea asked. "A rat that cooks?!"

"Don't be deceived, laddie," Scrooge calmly replied, as if he was used to this reaction. "Little Chef here is well qualified. Despite his appearance, he's got the heart of a true chef."

"Why do you call him 'Little Chef'?" Kairi asked Scrooge. "He says his name is 'Remy'."

"That's what Aether says too," Scrooge replied. "Real sweet lass, but until I hear Little Chef actually talk to me like she claims he does to her, I'll take to calling him Little Chef."

"'Aether'?" Lea asked. That name was new to him.

Kairi turned to Remy. "Who's Aether?"

Remy pointed to Kairi's left, "Over there. You'll know when you see her."

Lea followed Kairi's line of sight, and both stopped when they saw a girl with pink hair and green eyes buying some sea salt ice cream and then giving them all to the little kids that surrounded her, a kind smile on her face.

"Lea..."

"That's her?" Lea asked. "The light you've been sensing?"

Kairi nodded. "Yeah. She's one of the New Hearts."

Kairi told him about the remaining Princesses. The first four had been found already, and it was confirmed that the sea salt ice cream in Kairi's dream meant the fifth was in Twilight Town. Now all they needed to do was find the sixth on that tundra world (though Kairi had said that they didn't need to worry, since the sixth New Heart was currently out of danger).

"Thank you, Aether!" the kids called out as Aether approached Scrooge and the two Guardians.

"You're welcome!" Aether replied, before turning to the group in front of her.

"Good afternoon, dearie!" Scrooge said.

"Good afternoon, Uncle Scrooge," Aether greeted with a fond smile as Pluto greeted her in the way only a dog would, and he didn't seem displeased to see her.

"You call him 'Uncle'?" Lea asked her.

Aether nodded as she gently scratched Pluto between his ears, before Scrooge explained, "Well, a couple weeks ago, she just appeared out of nowhere, and she had no one, so I took her in."

Kairi paused as she instantly connected Aether's story with hers. For the longest time, the fact that Kairi was new to Destiny Islands and didn't know where she came from was the talk of the islands. The fact that the mayor had adopted her only increased the amount of gossip surrounding her. This gossip was what prompted the bullies to torment her with questions about her real home and real family, questions that Kairi couldn't answer because she simply didn't know the answers.

And she now wondered if Aether was going through the same thing as she herself did.

"Do you have any friends, Aether?" Kairi asked. She knew that to Lea and Scrooge, this was probably a weird question to ask, but it appeared that Aether understood.

The pinkette nodded. "Of course! Everyone's nice and friendly, and Uncle Scrooge makes me feel safe and I love talking to Remy. I feel very welcome here."

"That's good to know," Kairi replied. "You know, I was once how you are now."

"Really?" Aether asked, intruiged. She paused, as if wondering if she should do something – judging from the context of the moment, it seemed like she wanted to ask something. "D-Does the loneliness...the homesickness for a home you don't remember...do those feelings ever go away?"

"The loneliness, yes," Kairi gently smiled at her, hoping to cheer her up. "But the homesickness...even after you remember...no." The pinkette's eyes dropped to the ground, her smile gone. "But as long as you have dependable friends, you'll be okay." Green eyes met blue-violet. "And you will. Because you've made three new friends today. I'm Kairi, he's Lea, and the dog is Pluto."

Aether looked at the red-haired girl in front of her, the spikey redhead towering behind the red-haired girl, and the dog sitting at her feet.

Kairi saw the other girl's smile return. "Hi, Kairi, Lea, Pluto. I'm Aether. It's nice to meet you. Welcome to Twilight Town."

The moment that followed was peaceful and comfortable, and no one minded if it went on forever.

However, the moment was ruined by screams. Aether, Pluto, and the two Guardians immediately turned to the source, all four of them sensing danger.

Kairi saw Hayner, Pence, and Olette running away from a black wave with yellow dots – Heartless.

What was a Demon Tide doing in Twilight Town? Oh yeah...

Aether was here.

"Sorry we can't talk now, Kairi!" Olette saw as she, Hayner, and Pence were running past her and Lea. "We're running for our lives, but it's good to see you!"

Kairi turned to face the Demon Tide head on. "Don't worry. Lea and I'll handle this."

"Wait!" Aether immediately grabbed Kairi's arm. "I may be a stranger, but this is my home. Let me fight with you!"

"But you don't have a weapon!" Lea told her, as he and Kairi summoned Keyblades – Kairi with Evangeline and Lea with Nano Gear.

"Sorry, but you'd kinda be in my way."

Kairi hated that excuse with a passion. After all, she was awake and following along on Sora's adventure, and most battle techniques and magic spells she used now where the ones she learned from Sora then.

"She's got her heart, Lea!" She shot back, before turning back to her fellow Princess. "You trust me?"

"Of course!" Aether's response was immediate.

"Then, allow our hearts to connect," Kairi told her, before feeling Aether let her heart connect with Kairi's.

Kairi then allowed herself to be engulfed in light, and when it faded, her clothes had shifted from pink to all white, with a crown modeled after the struggle trophy she had seen the last time she was here, her entire being surrounded by an orange glow – she looked like a sunset. She had morphed into Radiant Form – her Drive Form with Aether – and holding Destiny's Embrace and Bell Tolls – a Keyblade modeled after the bell tower with a sea salt ice cream bar as its charm, she was ready to fight.

Kairi charged in with Attack Haste, and Lea charged in soon after, both of them leaving Pluto to guard Aether, the latter of whom watched the two fight.

Kairi swung heavy and hard. Her strikes were powerful but precise, and her magic was great. And Aether noticed that Radiant Form – her powers – gave Kairi a powerful boost in speed and defense.

Lea fought like a ninja. He was fast and liked to throw his Keyblade, and his primary attacks were fire-based.

She still had a lot to learn about fighting in general – she preferred pacifism – but she did know that they were powerful, and she felt safe with them.

Lea used Cubic Stream – one of Nano Gear's Shotlocks – as Kairi used Faith. The Demon Tide stumbled, but it wasn't enough to completely destroy it. But it was enough to make it go into its second form – a tornado.

Aether felt the darkness coming from the Demon Tide, and it was making her sick – not enough to cause nausea, but enough for her mind to tell her to run.

But she didn't. She wouldn't. Twilight Town was her home now, even if she didn't remember her previous one. Uncle Scrooge and Remy were her family, even if she didn't remember her previous one.

So she dug in her heels and stayed, waiting to see if there was anything she could to help. This Demon Tide scared her, and she had no weapon to defend herself – which made her fear worse – but she stayed.

This is when she heard a scream. Her head turned to the source, and saw the little kids she gave ice cream to earlier running away from the danger. One girl had tripped, and she had screamed because the Demon Tide saw this as an opening to get her.

Aether's feet moved on her own. One minute she was standing next to Pluto and Uncle Scrooge, the next she was tackling the girl and moving her to safety, the Demon Tide hitting that same spot of concrete just seconds later.

"Get out of here!" She told the girl, who nodded and ran away as Aether turned back to the Demon Tide.

"Aether!" Kairi called out. "Use your light with mine!"

"Okay!"

"Let's do this!"

"Light!"

The two used Faith together – an attack called 'White Calm'. This attack blinded the Demon Tide long enough for Lea to weaken it with Nano Gear's Zone Connector. Now that the enemy was open to attack, Kairi was free to finish it off with Radiant Form's final attack – Final Arcanum.

Kairi's clothes flash back to pink as she and Lea put away their Keyblades.

"Good job, Aether," Kairi said. "You were great."

"Yeah, you were a big help," Lea told the pinkette, who beamed at the compliments.

"Kairi!" The mentioned Guardian turned to Hayner, Pence, and Olette, the three of whom were running towards Kairi, happy and cheerful now that the danger was over.

"Nice fightin'!" Hayner said. "Thanks, Kairi."

"No problem at all," she replied. "Hayner, Pence, Olette. It feels like it's been ages."

"What?" Pence asked, pointing out that, "It hasn't been that long."

Kairi giggled as Olette gasped before raising a nail-covered bat and raising it in Lea's direction. "Olette!"

"What are you doing here?!" Olette growled at Lea, who immediately raised his hands in surrender, fear clear on his face.

Hayner and Pence, once seeing Lea – and his very identical appearance to Axel, the one who kidnapped Kairi – immediately raised their fists, all three of them intent on protecting Kairi this time.

Kairi quickly figured this out and immediately stepped in front of Lea to protect him. "Woah, woah, woah! Take it easy, guys. I appreciate the gesture, but Lea's on our side now. Do you trust me?"

The three slowly lowered their weapons. "Yeah, we trust you, Kairi," Hayner replied. "But we're watching you," he told Lea.

"Got it," Lea replied. "Anyways, is everyone okay? No one hurt?"

"Yeah, we're fine," Pence replied. "So does this mean that weird stuff is going down again?"

"You kidding, Pence?" Hayner asked. "When have we ever seen a tornado of shadowy blobs before? It's not 'weird'. This is underprecedented."

Pence thought about this. "Hmm, I guess it is. The creatures from last time were bright white. These things must be new. Man, I can't wait to get to sleuthin'."

Olette gently rolled her eyes. "We're already done with the school project, silly." She turned to Kairi. "Whatever's going on, you wouldn't be here unless you had a good reason."

"Yeah, actually, we have things to do," Kairi said, before pulling out a photo. "But I know you guys are curious about Roxas."

"Roxas?" Olette asked as Hayner thought, the trio looking at the picture Kairi gave them. It was a picture of them with Roxas.

"Oh yeah," Pence realized. "He's the guy that the other versions of us were friends with! We've got a photo just like it," he said before pulling out a similar photo, except there was no Roxas.

"Of course!" Hayner's memory came back to him. "The other Twilight Town!"

The six all looked at the two photos.

"It's like one of those 'spot the differences' puzzles..." Aether said, "except really easy. I guess in that town, you guys are friends with this 'Roxas' person."

Why was she feeling so sad? She could feel this Roxas person's sadness as if he was right there with them.

"Who is he, though?" Olette asked. "Is Roxas part of the other Twilight Town?"

"No," Lea quietly replied. "He's real, and he deserves all the happiness in the world." Aether only nodded – the sadness she was currently feeling had to belong to Roxas.

"Okay," Hayner said, after taking a good look at both Lea and Aether's sadness – and Aether's nod – none of which he could figure out the reasons for. "Olette, Pence, we're going to track Roxas down."

"Really?" Kairi asked, a smile on her face.

"Of course," Hayner replied. "He seems like a pretty cool guy."

"Yeah, he is," Kairi nodded.

"Great," Pence said. "Then, let's start by asking around town."

"I'll leave that to you guys," Kairi said. "I have something to do first."

"Me too," Lea said, before he and Kairi left the scene.

"I'll help you guys out later," Aether told the trio. "There's something I have to check out."

"Okay."

The trio watched as Aether walked away from the scene.

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

Lea sat alone atop the clock tower, two sea salt ice creams in one, and eating a third with the other. The mention of Roxas earlier made him sad, and he was now reminiscing over past memories of Roxas and the girl that was always with them.

"I shoulda been there for you by now, Roxas," Lea muttered. "But here we are."

"Shouldn't you be saying goodbye to your real home?" came Saix's voice.

Lea watched as Saix sat next to him, "Why...?"

"I'm not here to fight," Saix said. "Relax." He took one of the untouched ice creams from him. Lea immediately reached for it, trying to get it back.

"Hey!"

"You can't eat all this," Saix replied. "I'm curious as to why you bought three of them." He was referencing the ice cream. "One for you, obviously. One for Roxas...and a third for good luck?"

Lea turned away, unable to say the honest answer – that it was for a girl he couldn't remember, trying to be tough, "I dunno. Because I felt like it, okay?" He turned back to Saix, as the blue-haired man ate the ice cream he took. "Why are you here?"

"Got it memorized?" Saix teased in his own unique way. "Back when we were still friends, we used to sneak into the castle."

"Yeah..."

"And we made a friend there, a girl," Saix continued. "We apprenticed to Ansem the Wise to rescue her."

"Yeah," Lea gently shot back, "and look where that got us! One day, she was just gone!"

"You gave up."

Lea immediately stopped. Saix struck a chord, and Lea was forced to turn away to avoid Saix's knowing gaze. "I did not give up. One day we're apprentices, the next Ansem the Wise has up and vanished, the day after we're Nobodies, day after that we're doing icky jobs for Xemnas. I couldn't keep up with you."

"Following Xehanort's Nobody was the only way to discover what happened to her," Saix reminded him. "She was his lab rat."

"You found her?" Lea asked, sounding hopeful. "I helped you rise up the ranks, so I hope it paid off."

"I'm afraid not," Saix revealed. "Nary a trace. I started to wonder if we'd imagined her. Maybe she never existed. And then, in time, I awakened to a new purpose. I realized I could be stronger."

"Well, then, you blew it!" Lea said. "Wise up already and just quit."

"Face it. Roxas is just like our other friend." Saix told him, surprising Lea. "Gone forever. You need to accept that."

This angered Lea a great deal. "You wish. I'm getting her back. All of 'em! Especially Roxas! And the girl he and I were with! I'm even dragging you home."

"Including Namine?" Saix asked.

"Huh?" This response surprised Lea. Why did Saix bring her up?

"She is a Nobody just like Roxas, is she not? She deserves happiness too, doesn't she?" Saix, by this point, had finished his ice cream. "The marks under your eyes. They're gone."

"Yeah. Don't need 'em," Lea replied, reluctant.

Saix got to his feet. "Always told you they'd stop you from crying. The upside down tears. Next time we meet, Lea, we're enemies."

"Would you get lost?!" came Lea's outburst, as he flailed his arms around. "Don't make me clobber you!"

Saix only smiled as he opened a Corridor. "Hm. I expect no less."

After Saix's departure, Lea took a deep breath to calm himself.

That conversation didn't make him feel any better.

Lea suddenly felt a light pressure on his knee, and when he looked down, he saw a sad Pluto leaning his head on Lea's knee in an attempt to comfort him.

Lea gently scratched Pluto's ears as he thought about Saix's words.

"Face it. Roxas is just like our other friend. Gone forever. You need to accept that."

"I won't," Lea told himself. "I won't accept that. I won't give up. I never give up on my friends."

But he knew that even if he did manage to rescue all of his friends – Saix, Namine, Roxas, his and Roxas' friend, the girl he and Isa were trying to rescue – his first duty would always be to Kairi. Her heart was breaking, after all, and he knew she didn't like to be protected, but in this case, she needed to be.

And he needed to be there to prevent anything drastic.

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

~Merlin's Timeless Realm~

Kairi worriedly watched Riku punch a tree in frustration after failing to produce a functioning, unbroken Keyblade for what seemed to be the hundredth time.

He was well inversed in his training. His jacket was resting on a nearby boulder – the one she and Lea sat on during training breaks – and she had been watching him for the past five minutes and he still hadn't noticed her.

Seriously, had he taken a break at all? She could see the bandages on his arms and chest – he was still hurt from Aqua's attacks.

"Riku..." she finally spoke out loud.

Sure enough, Riku immediately turned around to face her when he heard her voice. "Kairi!"

"How are you doing?" she asked him as he grabbed his jacket and slipped it back on.

He sighed, "Not good. With each moment that passes, Mickey and Aqua spend more time at the mercy of darkness itself. I can't waste any more time and I've already spent so much here. Anyways, how have you been? Master Yen Sid was rather vague in his update yesterday."

"Because I asked him to be," Kairi revealed. "I wanted to tell you in person." Because she felt responsible.

"Tell me what?" Riku asked.

Kairi paused. He deserved to know. "Xehanort has Sora's heart too."

Like she knew it would, this news struck Riku at his core. He sat down on the nearby boulder, speechless. "No...no..." he was shaking his head. "Sora is..."

"–Not gone yet," Kairi quickly cut in. Riku looked back up at her as she sat down next to him, obviously confused but also wanting to hope. So she explained, "He's been put back together, yes, but I can still sense light in him. But we'll focus on him later. Right now, you need to rescue King Mickey and Master Aqua."

"You sure?" Riku asked.

"It's what Sora would want," she made a good point. "He'll be fine, Riku. For now. His connection to the light is still there."

Riku lightly smiled, unable to deny the truth in that. Kairi was a Princess of Heart, after all. "I can't do any rescuing without a Keyblade."

"I know," she said, standing up and kneeling in front of him. She held out a hand. "Do you trust me?"

"Always," his answer was immediate and absolute.

"Then take my hand and close your eyes," she told him.

Riku did so. He was met with darkness for a moment before seeing the X-Blade.

"According to the old history books, the original X-Blade shattered into twenty pieces, thirteen shards of pure darkness and seven fragments of pure light," Kairi explained, as the X-Blade image before him shattered. "The fate of the thirteen shards of darkness is still unknown, but the seven pieces of light found their way into seven maidens, becoming the hearts of and giving rise to the seven Princesses of Heart. If anyone can help you get a new Keyblade, it's one of us."

"This is your first time doing this, isn't it?" Riku asked.

"Mm-hmm," Kairi replied.

"Then how do you know what to do?"

"Here's a little secret, Riku," Kairi said. "When a Princess of Heart uses her powers, she doesn't think or even just do. She feels and it just happens. My heart knows what to do, and that is usually enough. Now, let's get started. First, we need to dive deep into your heart."

Riku's attention was brought to the Station of Awakening that just appeared. It was a dark blue with an image of Riku holding Soul Eater being the largest – this was his. The other three people on his Station where Ansem – the one who led him to darkness – King Mickey, and Namine – the two that helped him back to the light. "We're here." Riku turned around to see a pink/red-ish Station of Awakening with a picture of Kairi holding a paopu fruit, the other people on her Station being him, Sora, Namine, Aqua, and an old woman that Riku figured was Kairi's grandmother – this was Kairi's heart. "Yours is here too."

"Good," Kairi replied. "It means our hearts are properly connected, so we can continue. I can see deep into your memories, Riku. I know who you were then, who you are now, and who you will be in the future."

"What do you see?" Riku asked, half-curious to what she was seeing. He had quite a few memories he didn't want her or Sora to know about, memories he was ashamed of. So what was Kairi getting from those memories?

"I see someone with good intentions, someone who has made mistakes but always atones for them, someone who fell to darkness to protect their friends, someone with great inner strength. Your heart is brave, Riku. Darkness doesn't control you anymore. You control it."

"Thanks, Kairi," Riku's heart felt warm. Kairi's light was illuminating it and he felt better than he had ever been. "I know what to do now."

"You're welcome," she replied. "You can open your eyes now. We're done."

Riku opened his eyes to see Kairi's smile in Merlin's Timeless Realm. "Thanks, Kairi," he repeated. "I know what I need to do now."

"Good," she said. "But before you do that, let's test out that new Keyblade of yours." She nodded her head at Riku's free hand.

He didn't realize he had produced a new Keyblade until just now. Its handle was black and its blade was very similar to Terra's.

Braveheart.

From a distance, Merlin watched the two begin sparring to test out Riku's new Keyblade. And he smiled.

A victory amongst what felt like a barrage of losses.

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

~Twilight Town~

Aether was standing right outside the gates of the old mansion. The sadness she had felt from who she was sure was Roxas had led her here.

He had been here. He had stood in this very spot before. He had glanced up into that window and seen a blonde girl in a white dress.

She was well aware that the people of Twilight Town were convinced that this mansion was haunted, many of them spreading that rumor because they were just so creeped out by it.

But she was actually more sad than scared. Roxas, whoever he was, had gone through a lot of pain.

"Hey there!"

"Woah!" Aether screamed as Hayner jumped in her line of sight out of nowhere, her heart beating fast before realizing who it was that scared her. "Oh, it's just you guys. Thanks for the heart attack."

Hayner began to laugh, "Oh, what? Did I scare you?"

Aether lightly smacked his shoulder, "Stop laughing. I was not scared, thank you very much."

"Don't mind him," Olette told the pinkette. "We realized that we haven't formally met each other yet. I'm Olette. He's Pence."

"Hi," Pence waved at her.

"And the scarer is Hayner."

"Yo!" Hayner said. "We didn't get any leads."

"Yeah, the asking around thing was a total bust," Pence added.

"So, this old mansion is our last hope," Olette explained. "What are you doing here?"

"I have a feeling this is where you'll find Roxas," Aether told them, revealing to them something she was afraid no one would understand. "Or, start on that path, at least."

"Then, it's a good thing we came here," Hayner said. "Let's go in, guys."

"Yeah!" Pence exclaimed. "Another Twilight Town awaits!"

The pinkette breathed a light sigh of relief when none of them asked what she meant. She didn't really feel like explaining. Besides, she didn't really think they'd understand.

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

Once inside the mansion, Aether was led by the other three to the basement, where a large computer was. Pence ran to the computer.

"Here we go!" Pence exclaimed as he sat in the chair. "Let's see...the password was, uh...'sea-salt ice cream', right?" The computer beeped, and Pence continued typing. "Okay, I'm in. Let's get that transporter working. It'll take a few minutes to warm up..."

This was the last thing Aether heard as she let her heart lead her around the rest of the mansion.

Her heart led her to an empty room full of drawings taped to the walls, drawings full of various scenes centered around one boy with spiky, brunette hair.

"I can't turn back anymore. This decision is the best outcome."

At the table, she saw the same blonde girl sitting on one side, and a girl in black sitting on the other side.

"You were never meant to exist..."

Aether felt dizzy, her heart heavy, as these fragments of memories filled her mind. What where these memories? Who lived here? What happened to them?

She needed air. She needed to process all this pain, all this sorrow.

Pretty soon, she found herself back with Hayner, Pence, and Olette in the computer room. She breathed an inward sigh of relief – she felt safe with them.

She made a move to join them, but she stopped when for a moment, they faded and there was a blonde boy in their place, angrily using his weapon to destroy the computer. The memory faded back to reality, with the computer still standing and running.

"Sora...You're lucky. Looks like my summer vacation is...over."

And then another memory came.

"But now...I have to go back to sleep again..."

This memory felt disconnected from the mansion, but there was still something – or someone – that tied them together.

She hated this place. It was evident that nothing good, nothing happy ever came from here.

"I can't wait to see what the other Twilight Town looks like," Hayner was saying, bringing Aether back to reality.

"This is so exciting!" Olette exclaimed.

"Burn this mansion to the ground!" Aether coldly interrupted them. The trio turned to her, worry evident on their faces.

"Aether, you okay?" Olette asked, her, Pence, and Hayner noticing the pinkette's clenched hands, tear-filled eyes, and angry look etched on her face. "What happened?"

Aether shook her head, unable to put her current feelings and what she witnessed into words. "I need air."

The other three could only watch as their new friend raced out of the mansion like her life depended on it.

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

Why did Aether run out? What happened? What did she find that made her so upset?

Hayner, Pence, and Olette glanced up when they heard footsteps getting closer to them. Kairi and Lea had arrived at the mansion, just like they promised.

Kairi noted the computer screen flashing red with the words 'DATA ERROR' on it. "Hey, how's it going?"

"We can't go to the other Twilight Town," Pence explained. "The transporter's been protected."

"From what?" Lea asked.

"I guess from us," Pence shrugged.

"We did send Sora there before," Hayner explained. "It worked then. Why not now?"

"I don't know," Pence said.

"And there's no other way?" Olette asked.

"None that I know," Pence replied.

"Great..." Kairi muttered, crossing her arms, right before her Gummi Phone went off. She picked up quickly and was surprised as to who was calling her. "Ienzo! Hello. Why are you calling me?"

"Hello, Kairi," Ienzo replied. "You wouldn't happen to be in front of a computer, would you?"

"Yeah. How'd you know?" Kairi asked.

"I was tinkering with Ansem's computer – you know, to decrypt the Code that was left in it?" Ienzo explained. "And I noticed that someone had logged in from another terminal. I figured it might be you."

"Umm...that wasn't me," Kairi said. "Or Lea."

"Okay, then who was it that logged in?" Ienzo asked.

"Oh, hi there!" Pence called out. "This is Pence. I'm the one who logged into the computer."

"He's a friend of mine," Kairi explained to Ienzo with a smile. "We can trust him."

"Okay," Ienzo replied with a sigh of relief. "As long as it's a user we know we can trust." He knew Kairi was a Princess of Heart, and her heart was honest to a fault. If she trusted someone, then her friends and allies – who had darkness in their hearts – could trust that person too.

"Yup," Pence said, as Kairi turned the Gummi Phone's camera to face Pence, so he and Ienzo could chat. "But, I'm kind of stuck here. One of the programs is protected, so...I can't run it."

Hayner groaned as Ienzo asked, "Which program?"

"The transporter to the other Twilight Town!" came Hayner's sudden outburst. "It's the only way to find Roxas. You gotta help us."

"Another Twilight Town?" Ienzo repeated Hayner's words in his mind. "And a 'transporter'? Okay...a virtual town inside the computer, made of data. It's a datascape. We used one to investigate Jiminy's journal. Maybe I can do something. Pence, let's get a network set up. My address here is–"

Kairi held the Gummi Phone as the two techno geeks chatted for the next fifteen minutes. She felt Lea's hands suddenly grab hers, startling her.

"Huh?" she jumped in surprise.

"Stay awake, Princess," Lea advised her.

"You were dozing off," Olette explained with a smile. "Lea stopped you from dropping the Phone."

"Oh, sorry," Kairi apologized, mainly to Pence and Ienzo.

"It's alright," Ienzo said. "We're done. Sharing is now enabled, so our computers have successfully networked together, which means I can take control of the terminal there and change the privileges for you."

"Great! Thank you!" Hayner exclaimed.

"What about Roxas and Namine?" Kairi asked.

"Them too," Ienzo reassured her. "For the virtual world to be completely realized, Ansem the Wise would've included Roxas' and Namine's full data in the construction. Meaning, somewhere on your machine there's a log of data that..." he paused, wondering if he should go full technobabble, "...basically, will allow us to decipher Ansem's Code more quickly and analyze the virtual Twilight Town at the same time. Long story short, it's a win for us Guardians."

"Good job," Lea complimented.

"Thank you. Chip and Dale are helping me out here on this end," Ienzo said. "I'll call you back as soon as we know anything more."

"Thanks, Ienzo," Kairi smiled.

"You're welcome," Ienzo said. "Oh, before I forget – a bit of troubling news. It's about one of the Organization's former members. You knew him as Vexen – but to us he was Ansem's apprentice Even. He was recompleted like the rest of us, but hadn't regained consciousness yet. Then, sometime after Lea left, Even vanished. Aeleus and Dilan – the two you knew as Lexaeus and Xaldin – they went out looking for him, but – he's just gone. And I'm starting to worry."

"You think he's on their side?" Lea asked.

Ienzo sighed, "I think it's a real possibility. He's a devious researcher. Just be careful, and watch your backs. Good luck, Pence and friends." He then hung up.

"So, who's Namine?" Hayner asked. "And what are the 'Guardians'...and them?"

Kairi and Lea met eyes, both wondering if they should explain everything to civilians or keep them safe and in the dark.

But they were civilians that had helped them once before.

Besides, Kairi knew what it was like to be in the dark about things. She hated it.

So she went right for it.

"Roxas is Sora's Nobody," Kairi explained. "And Namine is mine. Both of their hearts are currently within mine, because Sora...is in a bit of trouble. Nobodies are born when people lose their hearts and become Heartless."

"Like the Demon Tide you saw earlier," Lea cut in. "That was a tornado of Heartless. And the squiggly things you saw before were Nobodies. But Roxas and Namine are a special kind of Nobody, hence why they have human forms."

"But Namine...is special," Kairi said. "I'm a Princess of Heart, and what that means is that I basically have no darkness in my heart. Darkness is required to become a Heartless and have a Nobody, but two years ago, I hid my heart within Sora's, and he turned into a Heartless to free me. That's what created Roxas and Namine."

"Namine..." Olette muttered. "I'd like to meet her. For some reason, whenever I hear her name, I feel a sense of loneliness, like she's always been trapped."

"I guess, in a sense, she still is," Kairi softly replied, before pointing to her heart. "Now that she's apart of me again, I figured that everything was alright. But it's not. Everything is far from fine. Because she can't eat sea salt ice cream, feel the wind on her face, none of it. And if she could, it would be different for her. Her time was short, but she lived it, and that makes it hers. What right did I have to take those feelings and experiences back? They don't belong to me. Nothing's as it should be. Not for her or Roxas." Or Xion for that matter.

"Kairi..." she heard Namine muttered.

"That settles it!" Hayner exclaimed. "We're saving both Roxas and Namine!"

"We know where their hearts are," Lea explained. "They just need bodies to occupy."

"Alright," Pence said. "We're on it. Now, what are the 'Guardians'? And what are they guarding?"

"The Guardians of Light," Kairi said. "We are a team of seven Keyblade wielders that guard the light against the darkness, which is currently being controlled by the thirteen Seekers of Darkness."

"The 'them'," Lea clarified. "We're basically the good guys. And if you three can help us save Roxas and Namine, then we'll forever be in your debt. Especially since we need to focus on the war against the Seekers."

"Leave Roxas and Namine to us," Hayner vowed. "You guys don't need to worry about anything except the bad guys."

Kairi and Lea both smiled. "Thank you," Kairi felt extremely grateful for Hayner, Pence, and Olette in this moment.

But she felt bad in noticing just now that something – or someone – was missing.

"Where's Aether?" She asked. Why didn't she notice the pinkette's absense until now?

"Oh, she left," Hayner replied.

"She seemed to be upset," Olette explained. "She didn't tell us why, or what she saw, but it really seemed to break her."

"She wanted to burn this mansion down," Pence relayed Aether's last words to them.

"You need to find her, Kairi," came Roxas' voice from within her heart. "Now."

"I need to find her," Kairi easily agreed with Roxas, because she was worried about Aether. "Does she have any place she likes to go? Y'know, like to think?"

"On top of the clock tower," Hayner told her. "She once told us that watching the sunset calms her down."

"Right, thanks," Kairi said. "Before I forget, Roxas wants to let you guys know that he's grateful for your efforts in finding him and he's waiting for the day he can officially meet you guys for real. But before that happens, he has something else he needs to do." Because he was a Guardian of Light, like Lea and Kairi, and he needed to save Sora, his Somebody.

"We'll be waiting for you, Roxas," Olette answered. "Right here in Twilight Town. And Kairi? Make sure Aether's okay. She may be new, but I don't think any of us would take it well if anything happened to her. As Mr. Scrooge likes to say, she puts the 'light' in Twilight Town."

"I don't sense any darkness around her," Kairi admitted, connectng her heart with Aether's. "She's not in any immediate danger. But don't worry. You can count on me. Lea, stay with them. I'll call you as soon as I find her."

Lea nodded as Kairi raced out of the mansion.

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

Sure enough, Aether was sitting on top of the clock tower. Kairi found her sulking, her knees to her chest and her body wrapped in a ball.

She looked so small and vulnerable.

"Aether?" Kairi softly called out.

Aether's pink head lifted up and turned to Kairi. Her green eyes had obviously been crying, as they were now red and puffy. "Oh, hey, Kairi. I'll apologize for my outburst later. I just can't step another foot in that mansion."

"Hayner, Pence, and Olette are not mad at you," Kairi softly assured her as she sat down next to her. "They're just worried. They suspect you found something while you were exploring. Did you?"

Aether took a deep, shaky breath, wondering if she could trust Kairi to understand, "Most people don't know this, but I have a tendency to pick up the broken pieces that people leave behind. That mansion holds nothing but pain and sorrow. Loneliness, reluctant resolve, finding out your entire life is a lie, and faint traces of eternal sleep. Four broken hearts who deserve to see the world through their own eyes."

Within Kairi's heart, she felt four separate sudden strikes of sadness and guilt. Of course. Aether picked up the broken pieces of Roxas, Namine, Xion, and Ventus.

"Would you go back to that mansion if you knew it held a chance at saving them?" Kairi asked.

"Yes," came Aether's answer. "If it's for them, I could brave it."

"Please, let me talk to her," came Roxas' voice again.

"Do you know their names?"

"No, but I wish I did," Aether replied. "That way I could find them and let them know that everything's gonna be okay."

Kairi smiled, "You just did," before letting Roxas take over, knowing that Aether's True Sight would let her see him as Roxas, and not Kairi like normal people would.

"Huh?" A confused Aether turned to face Kairi only to find a familiar looking blonde in her place. "Y-You're...Roxas?"

He smiled and nodded, before handing her a sea salt ice cream bar.

Aether took it as she told him, "Hayner, Pence, and Olette are looking for you."

"I know," he replied. "And they know right where I am. But before we meet in person, there's a couple of things I need to do first. I just want to thank you. Not many people think of Nobodies as their own people."

"Why not?" Aether asked, not understanding that probably due to her being a Princess of Heart. "You have emotions. I know, because I can feel them as if they were my own."

Roxas was quiet as he digested that. "You pick up the broken pieces that people leave behind?" He repeated her words to Kairi.

"Yeah," Aether explained. "My heart automatically synchronizes with others'. Whatever they feel, I feel it too. Pain and suffering are what make up the broken pieces, and those feel the most suffocating. I can't control it. I don't even know if it can be controlled. And I don't like to share this information with anybody. Most people don't understand."

"A Princess of Heart would," Roxas muttered, causing her to turn to him. He continued, "People gravitate towards you, Aether, because your light manages to fix their broken fragments, mostly without you even trying."

Aether smiled, before telling him, "You have a strong heart, Roxas. You're broken, I can feel it, but you still get back up."

"So do you," he replied. He knew that she was just making an observation, and he didn't mind, because he meant his as a compliment.

Aether smiled as Roxas changed forms, Kairi letting someone else take over. In Roxas' place was a familiar blonde haired girl.

"Your light is strong too," the blonde girl said. "It's very nice to meet you, Aether. I am Namine, Kairi's Nobody."

"I'm not sure what a Nobody is," Aether began, "but Namine, you deserve as much as Roxas does to be your own person. So, please don't introduce yourself as anyone except 'Namine'. You're you. No one else."

Namine smiled, "I know, and thanks to you, I don't feel so lonely."

"You're welcome," Aether watched Namine fade into a black haired girl – who looked very similar to Kairi.

"Sorry we made you cry," the black-haired girl apologized.

Aether shook her head, noting her drying tears. "It's alright. I'm an emotional person anyways."

"I'm Xion, and I was never supposed to exist," the girl explained the source of her pain.

"But you do," the pinkette gently shot back. "Every breath you take, every tear you shed, every sea salt ice cream you share with your friends – all the experiences you have are real, and that makes them yours."

Xion was tearing up, "Right. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Xion," Aether replied as Xion changed forms to a boy who looked just like Roxas.

But she knew from their different hearts that it wasn't Roxas.

"You're the one I saw sleeping," she said.

The boy smiled, "Yeah, that's me, but it's a long story. My name's Ventus, but you can call me Ven."

Aether repeated, "'Ven'. Okay." She paused, noting how, even though his heart was completely filled with light, like hers and Kairi's, it was missing something. "Your heart is incomplete. There's a piece missing."

Ven seemed to know exactly what she was talking about, "I know. That's part of the reason my body is still sleeping."

"How long have you gone without it?" she asked.

"Almost fifteen years now."

Aether saw a chance to connect with his missing piece, and she took it, "He's lonely."

"Huh?"

"Your other half," she explained. "He's been conditioned to feel only pain and to take that pain out on you. He doesn't actually blame you, not the most at least, but he is jealous of the fact that you have friends and he...doesn't. People love your company, yet he wonders why no one seems to genuinely care about him."

Ven was quiet as he took that in. When he replied, he was soft, "How would I feel...if our roles were reversed?"

"Who knows?" Aether shrugged. "Maybe differently. Maybe the same as him. Or, maybe we'll never know. You two were once the same person, but he's gained a heart of his own."

Ven smiled, "Right. I hope you never have to go through what I did. And if you ever do, don't lose your kindness. It's your greatest strength."

Aether returned his smile, "And your bravery is yours."

Ven faded back into Kairi. She was herself again.

Princess Aether, the Fixer.

"Feel better?" Kairi asked, before taking a bite of her sea salt ice cream.

"Lots," Aether replied. "Thank you, Kairi. I feel safe with you."

"You're welcome, Aether."

The two then watched the sunset together in comfortable silence.

Because if Aether felt safe here with Kairi, then who was she to take that away?

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

Kairi and Lea had left the next morning, needing to get back to their mission to secure the sixth New Heart. With Riku fully healed and with a new Keyblade that he had admitted better suited him than Way to the Dawn had lately, he had gone to find a way back into the Realm of Darkness. Besides, Kairi's mental health had greatly improved and the fifth New Heart had been secured.

Basically, there was no reason for them to be in Twilight Town now.

Aether had apologized to her three new friends for her outburst. They had forgiven her, and now the four were staking out the mansion, seeing if someone would come there.

From behind a couple of trees, the four watched as two guys in black coats exited a dark portal, one man had white hair and dark skin while the man following him had blonde hair and light skin.

"Here we go," Hayner whispered to the other three.

"It's about time," Pence whispered back.

"C'mon!" Olette led them to the wall surrounding the mansion, and the four listened to the following conversation.

The two Ansems were unaware of the four kids eavesdropping on them.

White-haired Ansem turned to blonde-haired Ansem after stopping right outside the mansion. "What now?"

Blonde-haired Ansem was looking at Namine's old window. "Please, don't do this. I have created enough victims already."

White-haired Ansem did not hold back, "Yes, you have. All the children sacrificed in the name of your research...So make things right."

Ansem the Wise knew exactly who the white-haired man was referring to, "I told you I did not take her. Her disappearance was why I put a stop to the research."

White-haired Ansem shot back, "And that makes you honorable? You used Roxas and Namine and threw them away. I doubt there's a merciful bone in your body. You took the girl, and hid her. You also ran experiments on your own Princess. Now, show me the data you are hiding here. Master Xehanort needs that sketchbook."

Ansem the Wise sadly sighed, "Roxas and Namine...If there is any reason that I still draw breath, it is to atone for what I did to them. And I did not authorize the experiments on young Kairi. Those were done without my permission."

The four kids still eavesdropping gasped at the three names the blonde man spoke.

"He said 'Roxas' and 'Namine'," Pence said.

"And Kairi," Aether added. Why did he mention Kairi?

"Yeah," Hayner nodded.

Olette readied herself for a fight, "That man needs us."

The other three nodded, "Right."

Ansem the Wise continued, "If you do find the mystery girl, what is it that you expect will happen?"

"The child's memory holds a mystery to unravel – one concerning the battle we seek between light and darkness. You know something and that...is why you stopped the experiments," the white-haired Ansem replied.

"You are completely deluded, Xehanort," Ansem the Wise glared at his counterpart. "And I don't know what you want with Namine's sketchbook, but there's no way I'm telling you where it is."

White-haired Ansem lowered his glare, "We shall soon see." He grabbed Ansem the Wise's shoulder and pushed him towards the entrance.

This was it.

Pence came out of hiding. "Yoo-hoo!" The two Ansems paused when they heard the boy call out to them. "'Scuse meee!"

White-haired Ansem turned and asked, "Who are you?"

"Oh, well, I'm looking for a friend who used to live here," Pence replied, not showing any fear.

White-haired Ansem turned back around, "No one lives here. Begone."

Pence tried his best to stop them, "But sir..."

But white-haired Ansem was quick to stop him, "No, no, no! Not one more step. Get out!"

The dark-skinned man walked toward Pence, while Olette grabbed Ansem the Wise, and the two ran off together. "This way!" she told the man she was leading away.

Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, took quick notice of Ansem the Wise being led away, but his attention was brought back to the boy Pence due to him being joined by a pink-haired girl.

That was her. He found her.

Aether stood in front of Pence, intent on protecting him from whatever this man had up his sleeve. She could sense darkness in him. She knew he was up to no good.

"Hey loser!" Then came Hayner's flying kick to the back of the man's head. But Pence and Aether both watched as a big shadow monster – like a Heartless – suddenly appeared and grabbed Hayner's foot before his kick could land. "Or not!"

"Hayner!" Pence called out.

The big Heartless threw Hayner against a wall, but a familiar squiggly, silver colored creature saved him by wrapping itself around him. Six more of the silver creatures appear, surrounding the black-coated man and the big Heartless.

"The squiggly things?" Pence asked as the Dusk protecting Hayner got off of him and reformed, joining the other six.

"They...protected me," Hayner muttered.

Aether watched the Dusk that had protected Hayner position itself so that it was directly in front of her. They had protected Hayner, and were now protecting her.

She then turned to Hayner and grabbed his arm, pulling him to his feet, "This is our chance! Hayner, Pence, let's get a move on!"

"Right!" Aether made a move to follow the two boys back to the main part of town, but suddenly felt the wind get knocked out of her as two big Heartless hands wrapped around her.

Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, made no move to stop the boys, who didn't seem to realize that their New Heart friend wasn't following them. He addressed the Dusks that had shown up to save the kids, "I serve the Organization. This is treason." He paused. Silence, but the Dusks did not budge. "Hm. I see what is happening. Have it your way then."

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

Olette had led Ansem the Wise to the sewers. They stopped once they felt they were safe in order to catch their breath. Hayner and Pence soon joined them.

"Are you guys okay?" Olette asked.

"Yeah, I think," Hayner replied as he and Pence caught their own breath.

"Yeah," Pence added. "Nobody knows the twists and turns of Twilight Town better than us."

"What about Aether?" Olette asked, quickly noting their missing fourth.

Hayner and Pence immediately glanced behind them. "What?!" Pence exclaimed. "She was right behind us!"

"She may have been taken by Xehanort," Ansem the Wise regretfully cut in. "She is a Princess of Heart, one of the seven they need. I'm afraid only the Guardians of Light have the power to get her back."

Hayner, Pence, and Olette hung their heads, sad that Aether was gone. Lea and Kairi, according to them, were the only two available for such a task.

"She'll be alright," Ansem the Wise reassured them. "They're not looking to kill her. They need her alive. But you three...you are Roxas' friends."

"That's right," Hayner replied. "So you know him, too?"

"Oh yes. Quite well."

Pence spoke up, "Guess it was worth staking out the old mansion after all, because this guy here is what I call a lead." He took out the photo of them and Roxas and showed it to Ansem.

"That's the only proof we have that Roxas was our friend," Olette explained. "And we also know about Namine."

"Tell us about them," Hayner asked. "We wanna know them better."

"Very well," Ansem agreed. "Though most of their pain is my fault." He then turned to the shadows. "Whoever you are, come on out."

"My dear master," another man in the same black coat stepped out from the shadows. "You are safe."

"Even, is that you?" Ansem the Wise apparently knew him. "So...those Nobodies were your doing." Four Dusks showed up behind Even, causing the three kids to cower in fear.

"Don't worry, you three," Even reassured Hayner, Pence, and Olette. "I do not wish to harm you." He then bowed to Ansem. "I have been waiting for this. Gave up a normal life in order to plant myself in the Organization. And when I heard Xehanort had gone looking for you, I realized it was my chance to find you as well. For you see, I, too, wish to atone."

Ansem simply stared at him.

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

Back at the mansion, Aether struggled against the Guardian's tight grip. There was no out and she was running out of breath.

"What do you want with me?" she asked Ansem, her captor.

"We need you to open the door."

That answer didn't explain a damn thing. Seeing as the answer she just got was cryptic and came from a man her instincts told her not to trust, she turned to the one holding her.

When the Guardian first appeared, she saw it as a big Heartless, but now that the two were officially meeting face to face, she saw a different appearance.

The appearance of a brunette-haired man, fully decked out for battle. Her True Sight was telling her that this was the Guardian's true form, and she could sense light in him – light that was being trapped by darkness.

"I know who you are," she told him, "who you really are. You don't belong with them, so why are you doing this?"

Ansem, apparently, did not like her words, so he motioned the Guardian to tighten its grip enough to knock her out.

Aether felt her world go black, and that's all she saw until an orange light shown in the dark, turning into a stained glass window with an image of the man she saw. On the window, she saw Ven, a bald old man, a blue haired woman, and a black-haired man.

"Because I have no choice," Terra replied, seeing a red-colored Station of Awakening of the girl he was talking to. The two people on her Station were Uncle Scrooge, Remy, and Kairi. "My chains are too strong."

"You do have a choice," Aether shot back. "The darkness only has a hold of you because you are allowing it to. I can sense your light. I know it's there. So fight back!"

That was the last thing he heard, the last thing she said before she blacked out completely.

!~~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~~!

~Keyblade Graveyard~

"What do you mean he's fighting back?" Xehanort asked Ansem, the remaining Seekers standing in a circle.

Ansem nodded to the pink-haired girl lying on the ground in the middle of the circle, "She sparked his hope, and jumpstarted his light once more. Soon, he will be uncontrollable."

"Speaking of 'uncontrollable'," Saix spoke up, "what of Sora?"

Xemnas glanced down at the disoriented boy beside him, who was panting and breathing heavily. "The conditioning failed. All we've managed to succeed in doing is harming him physically."

"Do you have young Namine's sketchbook?" Xehanort asked.

Ansem reached into the folds of his coat and pulled out the sketchbook that he had searched the entire mansion for. "Right here."

Vanitas asked, "You sure about this?"

Riku Replica cut in, "Since when do you care about morals, Vanitas? It's the only way to control him!"

Vanitas didn't take his eyes off of the dazed Sora as he shot back, "Of course I don't care about morals, you idiot. I care about negative emotions. If Sora becomes a blank slate, he won't feel anything. The more pain he's in, the more negative emotions I feel from him. The more negative emotions I feel, the stronger the Unversed are."

"To answer you, Vanitas," Xehanort spoke up, "yes, I'm sure. We need him on our side."

Vanitas could only watch as Xehanort took Namine's notebook in his hands.

He felt a deep connection to Sora, the one who gave him his face, the one who prevented Ventus from dying – twice. Seeing Sora in so much pain brought back memories that didn't sit well with him.

This feeling...was this sympathy?

Was it because of sympathy that didn't want anything else to happen to Sora?

Because Vanitas knew that once Xehanort completely erased Sora's memories, he'd lose all of who he was.

To Be Continued…

!~~K~I~N~G~D~O~M~~H~E~A~R~T~S~~3~~R~E~W~R~I~T~E~~!

A/N: Sorry that it's so long. While I love Kingdom Hearts, I just recently got into the fandom. So if I get anything wrong, I'm sorry. Please, no flaming. Instead, just politely inform me in a PM or review, so I can correct any mistake I make.

FYI: I would love some feedback on Aether. No flames, please. Just tell me what you think and what I can do to improve her. And don't even think to add 'she's weak' or 'she can't fight', because she's not supposed to know how to fight yet. And no, Aether is not Subject X, before anybody asks (I have a theory that she's Skuld, because her theme – the stars – would line up perfectly with Isa and Lea's theme with the moon and sun, respectively; also, the theory that Ava is Kairi's grandmother is one that I have 100% gotten behind).

I'm really sorry that I'm torturing Sora so much in this story, but if this situation were to happen in canon, I believe that Sora would be fighting until his dying breath to keep himself connected to the light. He does have a strong heart, after all. Also, don't take Kairi telling Riku that "we can worry about Sora later" as her not caring. She does care, but she feels that as long as she can still sense some light in him, then Sora is not lost to them yet. Besides, we have some lost hearts to rescue before we rescue Sora.

Also, it never occurred to me until after watching Remy's origins movie ("Ratatouille") and reading the Kingdom Hearts TV tropes page, but now that I think about it, it makes perfect sense. Remy is a rat, and the only characters in the movie that refer to him as 'Remy' are rats, while all the humans refer to him 'Little Chef', because Remy can't talk to humans, hence why in the canon KH3 game, he's only known as 'Little Chef'. That being said, I will adhere to this logic in this story, which is why only Kairi and Aether (who are Princesses of Heart – who can talk to animals) refer to him as 'Remy'. If you're thinking this headcanon came out of nowhere, keep in mind that in this story, Kairi knows what Pluto's saying. In Lea's words in Chapter 2 (the Moana chapter): "Hey, Princess, you can talk to animals. Can you understand what this dog is saying?"

The fifth of the six New Hearts is Aether from Twilight Town (and my OC). Next World: Coco/Land of the Dead (in honor of Halloween and Day of the Dead, however belated it may be).

Also, if anybody has any ideas or questions, or even suggestions about where to take the story next, please PM me.