Keys to the Kingdom

by MiniJen

Thirteen Keys, scattered across the worlds. Whoever holds them all is destined to rule the heart of all worlds: Kingdom Hearts. As both light and darkness scour the worlds for these keys, Sora finds himself caught between standing alongside his friends as they fight for the light and struggling against the encroaching darkness invading his own heart. KH3 AU.

41. Chapter 40: Dig a Little Deeper

Oh boy I was SO dang inspired for this one! I ended up writing it all in only about 3 and a half days, all things considered, which is crazy because SO much happens in it! And a lot of what happens in it isn't even stuff I had planned, its stuff that just came to me while working on it. Either way I LOVE how it turned out, it really is a major turning point in the story going forward so I hope you all enjoy it! So without any further ado, let's get to it!

---

Chapter 40: Dig a Little Deeper

You gotta dig a little deeper, find out who you are
You gotta dig a little deeper, it really ain't that far
When you find out who you are, you find out what you need
Blue skies and sunshine, guaranteed

The night sky is peaceful and quiet, as still as it ever is, at least until a bright shape suddenly streaks across it. It goes unnoticed by most, and those who do catch sight of it simply pass it off as a shooting star. But what none see is when this "star" touches down in a lonely corner of the city, an armored figure letting its glider disappear as soon as it reaches the ground.

It stands still and silent for a moment, soaking in the atmosphere this brand new world has to offer. It's spent the past several months traveling to countless different places since its departure from the Graveyard. Even more since the chance encounter it had with that odd boy, the boy who bore a piece of Xehanort's darkness and Ventus' light alike.

Sora, it remembers well, along with the earnest promise he had made to help it. He's here in this world, it can tell, but he's not the only one. For as it turns its helmeted gaze in a different direction, it can sense two other hearts here as well. Two hearts that it wouldn't be able to mistake for anyone else.

"Aqua… Ven…" it speaks, its voice hollow, emotionless as it always is. If it still had his heart, it might feel relief, joy, excitement at seeing his two dearest friends again after all this time apart. But only his mind remains in this armored shell; and at the moment, that mind can only focus on one thing: getting back everything that had been stolen from him, once and for all.

Including his friends.

"Soon," it vows as it trudges forward alone, forging a path of its own to find them. "We'll be together again soon…"

---

In the aftermath of their former failed attempt at securing a snack, Tiana volunteers to whip up a midnight meal for the group. It's an offer that none of them are able to turn down as they settle into a good spot for her to prepare it, with Ray claiming they can still make decent time in making it to Mama Odie's by morning even if they opt to take a break.

"So, 'chef'," Sora grins as he sets Tiana down on the ground. "What are we having?"

"Hm…" she glances around, spotting what natural ingredient she might be able to make good use of. "I'm thinkin' swamp gumbo."

"Ohoho! Girl, you had me at gumbo!" Louis cheers excitedly.

"Yes, sounds delicious," Naveen smirks as he takes a seat against a nearby tree. "I'll start with a pre-dinner cocktail and something to nibble on while I wait-"

"No, no, no, your royal highness," Tiana shakes her head, grabbing him by the arm and hoisting him to his feet. "You are going to mince these mushrooms."

"Do what?" the prince asks, baffled.

"Mince the mushrooms!" She hands a small, sharp shard of stone over to him, pointing him in the direction of a patch of small shrooms growing around the area. "Hop to it!"

With that, Tiana leaves him behind, opting to instruct Sora, Ventus, Donald, and Goofy on what other ingredients they can help her collect. As she does, however, she fails to see Naveen struggling so much as even take a single slice of his first mushroom without exerting a great amount of effort. Fortunately, Tiana returns a moment later, stepping in to properly show him the ropes.

"Step aside, mister," she smirks, grabbing the knife from him. With a skillful, speedy hand, she proceeds to dice up the mushroom into miniature pieces in mere seconds, aptly impressing Naveen in the process. He can't help but let out something of a flustered chuckle when she places her hand over his, guiding it to help him get a feel for how mincing should be done. "There ya go," she nods approvingly, stepping back once she sees he's more comfortable.

"You know, I've never done anything like this before," he admits somewhat sheepishly.

"You don't say," Tiana retorts coyly.

"All right," Naveen laughs, but it's a good natured chuckle. A far cry from the cross, teasing manner he might have carried toward her just a few hours earlier. "But when you live in a castle, everything is done for you, all the time. They feed you, dress you, drive you, even brush your teeth!"

"Oh, you poor baby," Tiana says with an air of faux, playful sympathy.

"I admit, it was a charmed life," the prince's smile slowly falls at this. "Until the day my parents cut me off and then suddenly I realized… I don't know how to do anything…"

Tiana pauses at this, her own grin disappearing at this show of rare sincerity from the prince. Upon seeing how suddenly despondent he seems to be, she can't help but look for a way to cheer him up somehow, despite how rocky their relationship had started. "Well, hey," she smiles again, looking down at the mushroom he's successfully managed to chop, entirely on his own. "You've got the makings of a decent mushroom mincer."

"You think so?" Naveen is quick to perk up at this.

Tiana nods encouragingly. "Keep practicing, and I just might hire you."

"Really?"

"No."

Naveen meets this with a dramatic scowl, but he can tell she's joking. And to his credit, he takes it stride well enough, and he even offers to join the others in ingredient-hunting, much to Tiana's surprise. Still, she sends him off, and soon enough everyone returns with what she needs to finish throwing her gumbo together. She cooks it in a pumpkin-turned pot over a small fire, and by the time it's done, the entire group is more than hungry for a good meal. That good meal is enjoyed with good company as they all chat while they dine, sharing stories between bowls full of piping hot homemade gumbo.

"Anyone for seconds?" Tiana offers after Ray finishes another side-splitting anecdote.

"That was magnificent!" Naveen readily offers his bowl over to her to fill it again. "You truly have a gift."

Tiana takes pause at this, caught off guard by such a compliment. Though as far as she can tell from the smile on the prince's face, it's a genuine one that she humbly accepts. "Why, thank you…"

"Naveen is right, Tiana," Ventus agrees as he helps himself to more. "This stuff is so good!"

Goofy soundly nods as he leans back, full. "I've never had gumbo before, but I'm sure this is the best that it gets!"

"Yup, it definitely hit the spot," Donald adds with a content grin.

"I thought those beignets you served me and Kairi earlier were great," Sora chimes in, grinning. "But this was even better. You can bet it's what we'll be ordering once your restaurant opens up."

"Aw, ya'll are entirely too sweet," Tiana chuckles fondly.

"Kairi?" Naveen pipes up as he hops onto Sora's shoulder. "Is this the name of that 'lady friend' of yours Tiana mentioned earlier?"

"Oh, uh… yeah…" Sora glances aside a bit bashfully. "She's-"

"She's Sora's very special lady friend," Goofy interrupts as Donald adds on just as wryly.

"And you can't deny it this time either," he stops Sora short before he can protest. "Not now that the two of you have finally kissed."

"He's got a point," Ventus simply shrugs when Sora desperately looks to him for backup.

"Come on, you guys, quit it!" he hisses, flustered. Especially as he hears the others' amused laughter as he tries to suppress an embarrassed blush.

"So, you got you'self a special gal, huh, baw?" Ray inquires, still chuckling as he hovers near Sora. "There ain't no shame in bein' smitten, now."

"Oh, trust me, I'm not ashamed of how I feel about Kairi," Sora counters quickly, earnestly. "I never could be; after all, I'm pretty sure I've always felt this way about her… and I always will…"

The others all let out a heartwarmed chorus of "aws" at this, which Sora does his best to play off with another small, awkward laugh. Even so, Ray pipes up again after them, taking a light perch atop Sora's hair. "That's sweet as honey, right there," he muses with an approving grin. "You know, baw, you and your gal got me thinkin' bout me 'n my Evangeline."

"Evangeline?" Tiana asks curiously.

"Yup," Ray flies up into the air, letting out a lovestruck sigh. "She the most prettiest firefly that ever did glow. I talk to Evangeline most every night. She's kinda shy-don't say much. But I know in my heart, someday we gonna be together."

"Wait, why can't you just be together now?" Ventus asks, confused.

"She live a bit far away," Ray explains, still gliding higher out of the woods. "But she usually be comin' out 'round this time of night. Lemme see if I can-" He stops short with a gasp, his expression lighting up as he glides out over an open pond nearby. "There she is! The sweetest firefly in all creation…"

"Whoa, really?" Sora quickly jumps to his feet at this, the others following suit. Tiana and Naveen hop out onto a lily pad on the lake, and even as he finishes downing another bowl of gumbo, Louis heads out to take a look too.

"I wanna meet this girl of yours," the gator says, eagerly glancing around. "Where she at?"

"How can you miss her?" Ray hovers up toward the sky. "She glowin' right here there in front ya'll."

The others all exchange a bewildered glance at this, none of them seeing any other firefly in the area aside from Ray himself. "Uh… I think I might be missing something here, fellas…" Goofy whispers to the others, aside.

"You're not the only one…" Donald adds just as quietly and confounded.

At the same time, Sora and Ventus offer each other a confused look at the same time Tiana and Naveen do. And yet, Ray soon elaborates by serenading his mysterious sweetheart, making it clear exactly where and what she is.

"Look how she lights up the sky…"

"Ma belle Evangeline…"

He traces a heart around the brightest star glowing in the night sky, revealing that "Evangeline" isn't a firefly at all, something that Louis is quick to try and point out. "Ha! That ain't no-"

"Shh!" Naveen swiftly quiets him, allowing Ray to continue his wistful ballad.

"So far above me, yet I know her heart belongs to only me."

The others all settle in to listen to the firefly's song, despite how strange it might be that it's meant for a star of all things. Still, they can tell his affections for that star are strong, even if none of the rest of them can quite make much sense of them.

"Je t'adore-"

"I adore you," Naveen tells Tiana, completely catching her off guard.

"Je t'aime-"

"I love you," the prince catches himself upon seeing the bewildered look Tiana sends his way. "I-I am just translating!"

"You're my queen of the night, so still, so bright…"

"That someone as beautiful as she could love someone like me…"

Suddenly, Naveen surprises Tiana again, slowly pulling her to her feet as he takes her free hand in his. She starts, nervous, as she realizes what his intent is. "Oh, n-no, I don't dance," she shakes her head, pulling away. When Naveen tries to lure her back in, she jumps away from him completely, landing on a separate lily pad as she turns away, embarrassed. "I've never danced…" she admits softly, sadly.

"Love always finds a way, it's true."

"And I love you, Evangeline…"

"If I can mince," Naveen smiles as he pulls her pad back over to his. "You can dance."

And so they do.

It's something of an unsteady effort with their feet as small and webbed as they currently are. Tiana's lack of experience with dancing as a whole is also immediately apparent, but Naveen slowly, skillfully leads the way, spinning her around and sweeping her off her feet in the process. On the sidelines, Louis pulls his trumpet out to perform a fitting soulful, romantic accompaniment, while Ray works to light up the lily pads around the pair in a soft, gentle glow. The rest of the group all smile warmly as they watch the couple, Sora in particular finding a welcome burst of nostalgia in observing the pair. After all, it was only one night ago that he and Kairi were caught up in a similar sort of dance, the radiance of the night surrounding them as their budding affections for each other bloomed bright and beautiful inside both of their hearts. The mere thought of it has him wondering just how long he'll have to wait until they can have such a perfect sort of night together again and wishing that it'll be soon.

Wishing that someday, every night they'll have together will be exactly like that one had been, maybe even better. Because as long as he has her, as long as his feelings for her continue to blossom strong and vibrant within him each and every moment of each and every day, then he knows he has everything he could ever need.

"Love is beautiful…"

"Love is wonderful…"

"Love is everything… do you agree? Mais oui!"

By now, Tiana and Naveen have briefly taken their waltz underwater. They emerge from the pond in a graceful leap, lightly landing on another lily pad as the prince dips the waitress slowly, carefully.

"Look how she lights up the sky…"

Naveen pauses as Tiana smiles up at him, the star-Evangeline-reflecting brilliantly in her eyes as she does.

"I love you, Evangeline…"

The song draws to a quiet end as she places a soft hand against the side of his face. Neither of them really realize what they're doing as they start to lean in, their lips drawing in for what might be their second kiss.

Or what could have been if Tiana hadn't broken herself out of the spell the enchanting moment had her under just in the nick of time. "Ah," she stops him, lightly pulling away with a bit of an awkward laugh. "L-Lottie's gettin' herself one heck of a dance partner." Naveen's smile falls as Tiana pulls away, hoping back over to the pond's shore. "We'd best be pushing on."

Naveen lets out a sigh of disappointment and the others watching from the pond's side do too. And yet, amidst that disappointment, not a single one of them happens to see the dark shadows swiftly encroaching toward them from the depths of the forest. Those shadows soon hone in on both of the targets they've been sent to find: the prince-turned-frog, and the viable vessel they were encouraged to use in order to capture him.

The shadows swell silently toward that vessel, unnoticed by all as they successfully pour into his unsuspecting body. They make quick and easy contact with the palpable darkness already existing inside his heart, just as their "friend" had promised them there would be. And through that darkness, they find a conduit to take complete control as a vessel intended for someone else is briefly borrowed for another.

Sora can only let out a small, barely audible gasp when they overwhelm him, his thoughts forced into silence, his autonomy ripped away from him entirely. They force his body into motion, pushing their newfound puppet forward in an initially unsteady, stumbling step. The sudden movement isn't lost on Ventus, Donald, or Goofy as they watch him approach the pond, his movements slow and rigid as his back remains turned to them.

"Uh, Sora?" Ventus speaks up, frowning. "Are you ok?"

He receives no answer. Instead, Sora continues onward, the shadows leading him into the shallows of the pond itself. He only comes to a stop as he comes to stand behind Naveen, startling the still-forlorn prince in the process. "Hm?" he glances back at Sora, who's essentially towering over him, his face all but unreadable from the prince's low vantage point. "Er… yes, Sora? Do you need anything?"

Sora still says nothing, unable to speak, unable to do anything at all on his own volition. All he can do is what the shadows command of his body, as they pull his hands down to wrap themselves tightly around Naveen's tiny amphibian body. The prince lets out a strangled gasp amidst this practically crushing grip, confused and frightened by this unexpected turn of events.

"S-Sora! W-what are-" he stops short, a fearful gasp only barely managing to escape him when he gets a good look at Sora's eyes. Not a single speck of color rests within them, and even their whites have been overtaken as they're both filled with nothing but unnaturally pitch-black darkness, both of them every bit as void and empty as his expression currently is. Naveen's second attempt at letting out a terrified cry at this is cut off, however, as Sora's already unforgiving hold on him is forced to constrict to an even more painful degree. Fortunately for the prince, however, by now the others have picked up on the fact that something is clearly wrong here.

"Sora!" Ventus calls, rushing forward into the pond. "What's going on?"

"What are you doing with Naveen?" Goofy asks, concerned.

"Say something, will you?!" Donald fusses impatiently.

At this, Sora finally glances back at the trio, his face sharpened into a glare, his eyes still overwhelmed by inky shadows. Ventus, Donald, and Goofy all stop immediately, immensely taken aback by what they're seeing and the aura of darkness now surrounding him. At the same time, Tiana hops forward into the pond, already on high alert as Louis and Ray both rush to follow.

"Naveen!" she calls, but the prince is unable to answer.

"Hey now!" Ray exclaims. "What's gotten into that baw?"

"I-I dunno, but I sure don't like the looks of it!" Louis squeaks, trembling all the while.

"Sora," Ventus tries again, slower this time. He keeps his tone steady, careful, trying his best to convey just how worried and how afraid he really is at this unnerving juncture. At the thought that the darkness he's seen in Sora's heart has started spreading to an even more dangerous degree than he thought. "Listen to me. You need to put Naveen down, and-"

Before Ventus can take so much as another step forward, several large, sharp spikes, composed entirely of solid darkness, burst up from the bottom of the pond beneath them. One of them nearly strikes Ventus, and it's enough to get him to stumble back, especially as several more shadowy spikes follow in their wake.

Donald and Goofy's shared panicked cry is what draws his attention back to Sora, who's taken to running out of the pond entirely, Naveen still tight in his hold. Without question, the trio follows, as do Tiana, Ray, and Louis, all of them intent on catching up to the pair to try and make some sort of sense of all this somehow.

"Sora, stop!" Donald shouts, casting a layer of ice to try and impede Sora's path forward. He easily breaks through it with his own dark magic however, several small shards of shadow piercing it completely.

"What's happening?" Tiana asks as she keeps pace alongside Ventus. "Why is Sora doing this?!"

"I don't know!" Ventus shakes his head. "Something's really wrong here. I've never seen him do anything like this before!"

"Neither have we!" Goofy adds just as urgently. "Well… except for that time Maleficent took control of him. Say, Donald, you don't think-"

"No, couldn't be," the magician counters sternly. "This is something different. And whatever it is seems to want Naveen just as much as it wants Sora."

"But why?!" Tiana presses anxiously.

The trio exchanges a fretful glance as they continue to run after Sora, none of them having any sort of good answer for such a question. They pursue him ever deeper into the bayou, his magic sparking up more and more dark spikes to try and stop them from following him. With those obstacles in place, he soon starts to outpace all of them, the shadows driving him onward to some unknown destination. As they force him even further into the depths of darkness than he already is on his own.

Until…

A bright burst of golden light suddenly strikes Sora completely out of nowhere. He's forced to stop as it hits his chest, and a pained scream is pulled out of his mouth, though it's not in his own voice. Instead, it's the cries of the countless shadows that have invaded his body, stealing it as their own. But against the blinding light now enveloping their newfound vessel, they can't remain. They wrench themselves out of Sora in a steady stream, desperate to flee from the light before it can consume them all whole. The shadows vanish from whence they came, finally allowing Naveen to fall out of Sora's now slack grip as he collapses to his knees. His mind is in a thick haze, his breathing heavy as he awakens from the conscious slumber the shadows had locked him under. Within seconds, the others have finally caught up with him, with Tiana, Ray, and Louis checking over Naveen while Ventus, Donald, and Goofy tend to Sora, their countless collection of questions finally able to unfurl.

"Sora! Are you ok?" Ventus asks, kneeling down alongside him.

When Sora wearily glances up, the others are unable to suppress a relieved sigh to see that his eyes are back to normal. That he seems to be back to his usual self, despite everything that had just happened. "Y-yeah, I think so?" he sits up, a hand pressed against his now-aching head. "W-what happened?"

"You tell us!" Donald snaps angrily. "You just took Naveen and ran off!

"And you used that dark magic of yours even after you promised you wouldn't," Goofy adds with a worried frown.

"I-I… did?" Sora asks, his eyes widening with apt alarm.

"You mean you don't remember?" Tiana frowns, hopping over to him.

"Well, I certainly remember," Naveen huffs indignantly. "And I would thank you kindly to not do that again. I would rather not have the life crushed out of me before I have a chance to become human again."

"Crushed?" Sora flinches, nervously glancing down at his hands. "I… I hurt you?" He takes in a sharp, fearful breath, his expression deeply apologetic as he looks between the rest of the group. "I-I'm sorry, I don't know what happened, I just-"

"Hey, it's ok," Ventus rushes to interrupt him. He places a steadying hand on his shoulder, and at the moment, it's the only thing that manages to keep him falling even further into a panic than he already is. "If you don't know what happened, then we'll figure it out together. I promise."

Though Ventus offers him a warm, reassuring smile at this, Sora hardly makes an effort to return it. Because that loss of awareness, that loss of control of his own body and its every action, is something he's become far too acquainted with by this point. It's something he dreads, something he fears perhaps above all else. Especially since it can-and in this case did-lead to his friends getting harmed by his very own hand. And even if that harm hadn't been that serious or severe, he can't bear to think about what might have happened if it had been. If he'd been forced to do something unthinkable, something he couldn't have taken back with a mere apology. And even worse, if he might be forced to do something like that again, to someone he cares about even more.

"Speakin' of things we oughta figure out," Louis interjects tentatively. "Maybe we should see about finding out where that big ol' burst of glowy magic came from just now?"

Before any of the others can speak to this, a loud, cackling chuckle sounds out from the distance. It comes from what initially appears to be another shadow, slowly approaching from the surrounding darkness of the bayou. At least until a small light soon becomes apparent within that darkness.

"Ha!" a small, elderly woman emerges from the fog. She wears a simple white outfit and dark shades over her eyes, and in her hand is some kind of club, though its tip glows with the same sort of golden glow that had saved both Sora and Naveen mere moments ago. "Not bad for a 197 year old blind lady!" she grins, twirling her magical club. The rest of the group stares at her in amazement, though it doesn't take them long to realize who she must be: none other than the very woman they've been searching all night for, Mama Odie herself. "Now, which one of you naughty children been messin' with the shadow man?"

---

"And then a huge wave came and knocked both Sora and I off our feet and all Riku did was stand on the shore and laugh at us the entire time," Kairi chuckles as she finishes recounting another fond childhood tale to Aqua. They've been investigating the La Bouff estate all morning, and in order to pass the time, the girls take to sharing stories, though they still make sure to keep an open eye out for anything suspicious all the same. Though by all accounts, they haven't come up with much, either in finding their foes or any sign of the Key alike. "We didn't really think it was that funny at the time, but all three of us were laughing about it an hour or so later. And the next day, Sora and I got even by pushing Riku into the ocean instead."

Aqua joins Kairi in letting out a small, light laugh, charmed by such a sweet, innocent story. "You know," she says with something of a nostalgic smile. "The three of you kind of remind me of Ven, Terra, and I back before… well, everything that happened…"

Kairi's smile falls a bit at this, especially as she hears Aqua sigh somewhat wistfully. Even so, she makes an effort at cheering her up in the form of asking a simple question that she can only hope doesn't bring back too many bittersweet memories. "What's Terra like?"

Aqua pauses, as if caught off guard by such a question. Even so, she laughs softly, sadly as she glances up at the bright blue skies overhead. "Terra was-is-brave and strong and kind, trusting-maybe to a fault sometimes-but he always means well, and he always does whatever he can to fight for his friends…"

"He sounds like he's great," Kairi says, easily sensing Aqua's fondness for him. "I hope I'll get a chance to finally meet him soon."

"Soon…" Aqua repeats absently, distantly. As if the word itself serves as a grim reminder at how little progress she's really made in bringing Terra back to himself, in bringing him back to her side. Still, she refuses to lose hope so easily, not when he's still counting on her, not as long as there's still a chance she can save him somehow. "Yeah," she finally smiles. "We'll get him back before any of us even know it, I'm sure."

Before Kairi can respond, however, a loud, excited call catches their attention. "Ladies!" Charlotte greets them eagerly, rushing to meet them from the gazebo on the far side of the estate. "Boy, am I glad to see both of you! Ya'll will never believe what just happened!"

"Good morning, Charlotte," Aqua starts with a small, amused chuckle.

"What's going on?" Kairi asks curiously.

"Prince Naveen just asked me to marry him!" Charlotte squeals, hopping up and down in elation. "I'm gonna get to be the princess of Maldonia, and my sweet Naveen and I are gonna live happily ever after, like somethin' straight out of a fairy tale! Isn't it all just so swell?"

Aqua and Kairi exchange a tentative glance at this, their own misgivings toward the "prince" still hanging strong in their minds from last night. "Oh, uh… congratulations," Kairi says with a small, wavering smile. "By the way, is the prince still around? We haven't had the chance to talk to him yet."

"Oh, well, I believe he's still hangin' around the gazebo,'' Charlotte grins, nodding back in that direction. "Probably celebratin' a proposal well done and hopefully not gettin' any cold feet. I know I sure ain't!"

"Uh… Charlotte?" Aqua interjects cautiously. "We know you're, um… excited about all this, but maybe you should slow this wedding down a bit? You said so yourself that you only just met him last night, after all, and besides, something about the prince isn't quite ri-"

"Oh, nonsense, dearie," Charlotte rebuffs her with a wave of her hand. "When it's true love, then it's better to pounce on it and reel it in instead of lettin' it off the hook to get away-or somethin' like that, I've never been fishin' before so I may not have mastered that metaphor there-anyway!" The heiress claps her hands together, her beaming smile still apparent as she begins skipping back toward the mansion. "There's so much to plan: the guest list, the dress, the music, the flowers, the shoes, oh! We're aboutta have ourselves a Mardi Gras wedding!"

With this, Charlotte runs off, intent on finally marrying the prince of her dreams. Even if her new friends still can't help but harbor some strong suspicions about that prince. Amidst those suspicions, Aqua urges Kairi onward to the gazebo, but once they arrive, they're quick to find that Naveen is nowhere to be found. As a result, their investigation is forced to continue as they set out to search for the prince and for answers about all of the recent odd happenings alike. Yet all the while, what they don't see is the pair of sinister figures waiting in the shadows, with an entirely different plan of their own in mind.

---

Mama Odie's "home" is a derelict wooden boat nestled between the branches of a large, ancient tree. It's packed to the brim with all sorts of knick-knacks and chachkies, enchanted or otherwise, and even despite her apparent blindness, the priestess leads the group inside easily enough (even if she uses her own pet snake as a guiding cane to help her do so).

"We're so glad we found you, Mama Odie," Tiana says, hopping alongside the priestess. "Ray and Louis here have been telling us all about you, and you helped us out of a real bind back there in the woods. We've been traveling quite a long way, and we-"

"Now, now, child, let an old lady settle in before ya start rattlin' off like that," Mama Odie interrupts, taking a seat in a large wicker chair. "Good to see you again, Ray. How's your grandma?"

"She's fine," the firefly replies. "Got in a little trouble for flashin' the neighbors again."

"Ohoh! I like that gal's spunk!" Mama Odie chuckles as her snake pulls up a footstool for her.

"Hey, so uh, Mama Odie?" Ventus interjects upon exchanging a brief glance with Sora. "We don't wanna bother you, but we were wondering if you could help us with-"

"You boys lookin' for a key?" Mama Odie suddenly interrupts, catching the group completely off guard.

"Well, shucks, yeah, we are," Goofy nods.

"How'd you know that?" Donald asks, just as baffled.

"You fellas sound like the type who'd been in need of one," the priestess smirks as she begins rifling through her pockets. "Now let's see here… aha! There ya go." She holds her hand out, revealing a small golden skeleton key, along with some pocket lint and a few pieces of hard candy. "One key, and as a bonus, some candy for our lil' froggy friends here."

"Oh, uh… no thank you," Naveen turns the offer down as Tiana similarly shakes her head.

"And, uh… that's not really the Key we're looking for…" Sora notes somewhat awkwardly.

"Are you sure 'bout that…?" Mama Odie asks, an air of challenge in her tone.

"Um… yes?"

"...Ah, well, I suppose the boy who got himself possessed by a whole gang of shadow demons would know better than I would," Mama Odie shrugs and Sora can't help but flinch in shock at such a comment.

"I… what?" he asks, though Mama Odie offers him no answer as she turns her attention back to Tiana and Naveen.

"Too bad you two don't want this candy," she says, pulling it away from the pair. "It's real special. Would have turned ya'll human."

"Wait!" they both immediately protest, especially as Mama Odie casually pops one into her mouth. However, she merely lets out a loud, cackling laugh at their panic, much to the frogs' immense confusion.

"I'm just messin' with ya'll!" she suddenly hops to her feet, hobbling over to the large bathtub-turned-pot on the far side of the room. "Now, why didn't nobody tell me my gumbo is burning?!"

"You sure this is the right blind voodoo lady who lives in a boat in a tree in the bayou?" Louis whispers to Ray, aside.

"Pretty sure."

"Mama Odie," Tiana attempts to catch the priestess' attention again. "If you-"

"Taste this!" Mama Odie stops her, shoving a spoonful of gumbo into her mouth. "Well?"

"...Hit it hard with a couple shots of tabasco and it'll be the bee's knees," Tiana tells her, her cooking expertise coming in handy once again.

Mama Odie takes her advice, and as soon as she tries another bite, she lets out an excited holler. "Woo! That's got some zang to it! That's just what I needed. Now," she glances back to the pair of frogs sitting alongside her. "Ya'll figure out what you need?"

"It's just like you said, Mama Odie," Tiana notes earnestly. "We need to be human."

"And Sora here needs help fighting off the darkness in his heart," Ventus explains, despite the disapproving look Sora sends his way as he does.

"Wrong!" Mama Odie suddenly counters sharply. "Ya'll ain't got the sense you was born with! Ya'll wanna be human, ya wanna get rid of the darkness in your heart, but you're blind to what you really need!"

"What we want, what we need, is all the same thing, yes?" Naveen infers, only for Mama Odie to scold him once more.

"No!" she scoffs sternly. "You listen to your mama now. What you look like or what you are don't matter. I've had all sorts comin' in here, thinkin' they know what they want me to do. But not a single one of 'em ever know what they need to do."

"...Ok…" Sora says with a skeptical frown. "So are you actually gonna tell us what we need to do or-" He's cut off as Mama Odie suddenly knocks him upside the head with her magical club. "Ow!" Sora groans, rubbing the back of his now sore head. "What was that for?"

"You don't listen for nothin', do ya, boy?" Mama Odie abruptly grabs him by the ear, pulling him down to her level. "Ya gotta dig a little deeper!"

"What?" Sora asks, ignoring Donald's amused laughter behind him at this display.

"Oh, I like her!" the magician grins, glad to see someone else bold enough to tell Sora off other than him.

"It ain't that hard to understand," Mama Odie notes coolly. "See, as soon as ya find out who you are, you'll find out what you need. Take Prince Froggy here."

"Me?" Naveen flinches, surprised as the priestess singles him out.

Mama Odie nods, her manner turning serious. "You a rich little boy who wants to be rich again. But tell me, princey, did all that money ever really make you happy?"

"Er… Well…"

"No!" Mama Odie swiftly fills in for him. "Whatcha need is some self control! And maybe a lil'... somethin' else," she nods discreetly over at Tiana, who's fortunately too distracted with chatting with Louis and Ray to notice the affectionate smile Naveen sends her way. "To help you get a brand new start!"

Naveen nods, deciding to take such sound advice to heart, especially as he keeps his sights set on Tiana. As he realizes that, despite all odds, maybe she might be the thing he's really needed all this time after all.

"Miss Froggy, might I have a word?" Mama Odie turns to Tiana next, who answers her expectantly.

"Yes, ma'am?"

"You's a hard one, that's what I heard," the priestess scoops her up, directing her attention to her gumbo pot. Inside, Tiana catches a vision of the past that makes her heart swell with emotion: a look back at her now-deceased, but much-beloved father. "Your daddy was a lovin', hard workin' man. And you your daddy's daughter-what he had in him, you've got in you. Which is why, for you, diggin' a lil' deeper gonna be tough."

"W-what do you mean?" Tiana asks, confused.

"I mean what I say, girl," Mama Odie crosses her arms. "Keep on diggin' reaaaaaal deep inside yourself, and you'll see what I'm talkin' about in no time, for sure. Do ya understand, child?"

"Yes, I think I do," Tiana nods, a new sense of resolve burning deep within her. "I need to dig a little deeper, and work even harder to get my restaurant!"

Mama Odie lets out a defeated groan at this, knowing that Tiana has missed the point of her advice completely. "Aw, you'll get it sooner or later," she remarks shaking her head as she shifts the subject once again. "And as for you, boy-"

"Uh, sorry," Sora stops her, holding his hands up in doubt. "But I don't think there's much you can do to help me-ow!" he shouts as Mama Odie hits him with her club once more.

"That's because you gotta help yourself!" she snaps, wagging a finger at him. "You done got yourself one of the most terrible afflictions there is, boy-"

"I know, it's bad," Sora interrupts once more, sighing as he rubs his arm. "But I-"

"You-" Mama Odie cuts him off sternly. He flinches as she waves her club at him threateningly again. "Got a real bad case of dishonesty. One of the worst I ever did see, really."

"W-what? Dishonesty?" Sora asks, exchanging a confused glance with his companions. "No, that's not-"

"You wanna get that darkness outta your heart? Then you gotta start bein' honest with yourself that it's there in the first place. And ya oughta try being honest with everyone else about it too."

"I-I am honest," Sora protests, even though he immediately sees the irony in such a lie. Mama Odie "rewards" him for such a remark with yet another abrupt blow to the back of his head and this time, he can't help but think he deserves it.

"Keep on lyin', child, and see what happens," Mama Odie warns ominously. "You'll only end up sinkin' deeper and deeper into those shadows you already waist-deep in. And I ain't talkin' about the shadow man's special 'friends' that hijacked you earlier."

"Uh, yeah, about that?" Ventus speaks up with a worried frown. "How do we keep that from happening again?"

"Ya can't," Mama Odie informs them pointedly. The very admission of such a daunting fact practically makes Sora's blood run cold as soon as he hears it. "Them shadow demons already got a hankerin' for the darkness in his heart. Now that they've had a taste, they're gonna keep comin' after him until they force him to hand over what the shadow man wants."

"Which," Naveen interjects, raising a nervous hand. "Would be me. At least as long as I am still a frog."

"Then that's the solution; we've gotta break that spell," Tiana says, determined. "For us, and for you, Sora."

"Y-yeah…" Sora anxiously agrees, looking away from the pair. The realization that he's part of the problem plaguing his new friends instead of being part of the solution like he usually is hits him hard. And it hits him even harder when he remembers there's not a single thing he can do about it either. That it's all his fault, all because of the defective darkness deep inside of him, darkness that seems all but inescapable, no matter where he goes or what he does.

"Well, if ya'll are set on being human, there's only one way," Mama Odie turns back to her gumbo, stirring it with her club as magic starts to pour into it. "Gumbo, gumbo, in the pot. We need a princess-whatcha got?"

The gumbo changes to reveal an image of none other than Charlotte La Bouff, sleeping away soundly in her bed. "Lottie?" Tiana asks incredulously. "But she's not a princess-"

"Hush up and look at the gumbo," Mama Odie snaps, nodding back towards it. There, Big Daddy bursts into Charlotte's room, clad in kingly clothes as he delivers a tiara to his daughter, much to her immense delight.

"That's right!" Tiana exclaims in dawning realization. "Big Daddy's king of the Mardi Gras parade. So that makes Lottie a princess!"

"Does that count?" Naveen asks warily.

"Yes, it does," Mama Odie nods. "But only 'till midnight, when Mardi Gras is over. So you'd better get hoppin' along, cause you only got till then to get that princess to kiss you," she instructs Naveen sternly. "Once she does-boom! You both turn human! And your shadow man troubles are over."

"Midnight?" Naveen balks in alarm.

"That doesn't give us much time at all!" Tiana adds. Her urgency is fitting, given that the sun's finally risen over the bayou, leaving them with less than a day to get back to the city before it's too late.

Still, as the rest of the group gets in gear to go, Louis lingers for a moment, excitedly inquiring the priestess about his own wishes and wants. "What about me, Mama? I wanna be human too so I can play jazz with the big boys. I want fingers and toes and a belly button-not the kind that sticks out but the kind that goes in and-"

"Jabber jaws," Mama Odie shuts him up by clamping a hand over his snout. "You dig a little deeper, you'll find everything you need. Now, c'mon!" she starts pushing the group out of her house in a hurry. "There's a lot of river between here and the city-so ya'll best get walkin'."

"Wait!" Louis interjects as he happens to spot a shape floating nearby down on the river. One that could very well help them make record time in getting back to where they all need to be. "I got a better idea."

---

Though it takes a bit of doing (and several trips across the stream on Louis' back), the group manages to sneak onto a passing steam boat without being noticed. It's a pleasure cruise, one that's on a leisurely course back toward the city through the bayou, and it's bound to make for a much quicker passage there than walking would be. Yet they barely have time to settle in before they're nearly spotted by a group of passing musicians clad in colorful animal costumes. While Sora, Ventus, Donald, and Goofy have no reason to hide from them, Ray, Tiana, and Naveen take cover as they approach. Louis isn't so lucky, however, given his massive size, so instead, he simply freezes up as the musicians walk by, easily spotting him in the process.

"Whoa!" one of the exclaims, stopping short to glance back at the gator. "Man, that is one killer-diller costume!"

"Hey, gator, can you play that horn?" another musician asks. Louis anxiously complies by playing a short, jazzy tune on his trumpet, impressing the group instantly.

"Come on!" they encourage brightly. "Sit in with us! We're playin' Mardi Gras!"

Louis can't help but let out an excited gasp at this, realizing that the opportunity he's always been hoping for is finally right in front of him. He races off after his fellow musicians, proudly playing his trumpet in tune with them all the while.

"We can't miss this!" Ray chimes in cheerily. "Little Louis finally gonna play with the big boys!"

The others all readily head on after the firefly's lead so they can watch Louis' performance, including Tiana. She does briefly stop short however, upon seeing that Naveen doesn't immediately follow. "Naveen, you coming?"

"Oh! I-I'll catch up with you later," the prince assures and Tiana heads off, though not before offering him another small smile. One that practically makes his knees go weak at the mere sight of. An idea swirls within his mind, one that only starts to solidify as he notices some stray beads and wiring on the boat deck before him. It's not much, but certainly he could fashion it into something special, something for her. Some small way to tell her just how much he's come to care for her in such a short amount of time.

Even so, Naveen isn't the only one to hang back. They're about halfway to the stage deck when Ventus lightly grabs Sora's arm, pulling him aside as the others continue on. "Hey, uh… can we talk for a second?" he asks quietly.

"Sure," Sora nods as they head over to the boat's railing. "What's up?"

"I think we both know what's up," Ventus sighs, his manner and expression both fretful and grave. "You heard what Mama Odie said. You might not want to hear this, Sora, but… maybe it really is finally time to tell everyone the truth."

Sora scoffs at this on impulse alone, trying to play such a serious matter off with a small, fake burst of levity instead. "Come on, Ven, do you really think we should be listening to a lady who cooks her soup in a bathtub?"

"I don't know," Ventus dryly crosses his arms. "I doubt it would hurt when you think about how that same lady was the one who freed you from a bunch of demons controlling your body."

"...Right…" Sora winces, rubbing the back of his neck apprehensively.

"Look," Ventus lets out a small, steadying sigh. "I promised you that I wouldn't tell anyone about what's been happening to you, but only because I think you should be the one to do that instead. I know you'd rather not let anyone know about it at all, but it's better that they hear the truth from you instead of finding out some other way."

"What about that is any better?" Sora counters despondently, staring down at the water below. "No matter how they find out, it won't change anything. They'll still learn about what Xehanort's been doing to my heart… and they still won't be able to do anything to stop it…"

"You don't know that," Ventus protests sincerely. "And you won't know that until you tell them the truth. You never know; what ends up happening when you do might end up surprising you for the better."

"B-but I've already spent such a long time hiding this from everyone…" Sora admits in spite of himself. Still, if there's anyone he can talk about this in confidence with, it's someone like Ventus, someone who's dwelled within his heart for even longer than the darkness now corrupting it has. "I told Kairi that we were going to be together from now on, I promised Riku I wouldn't lie to him anymore. When they find out what's been going on, they'll-"

"They'll understand that you're scared," Ventus places a consoling hand on his shoulder. "And they'll want to do everything in their power to help you. I should know-I already do."

For what seems like ages, Sora says nothing. Instead, he stares at his own reflection in the water, at his blue eyes and brown hair, yet another lie born from the spell concealing the truth away, a mask covering up what he can't bear to face. A small part of him had hoped he could keep wearing that mask forever, that maybe if he continued to keep his longstanding act going, someday he might be able to believe it all too. But deep down, he knows the truth, he's always known the truth, is constantly being reminded of the truth at nearly every turn it seems. It's a terrifying, terrible truth, one he doesn't want to tell, because he knows that the moment he does, everything will change. As soon as he tells them, as soon as Riku and Kairi really know what's going on, they'll either strive to help him as Ventus said… or they'll cast him out for the deceptive, darkness-ridden disaster he truly is.

The second option is something so unthinkable, and so frighteningly likely that it nearly drives him to tears. But if it happens, he knows that it'll be nothing less than what he deserves for lying to them like this. Which is why he sees no use in putting it off any longer. If he's fated to be ripped away from everything he knows and loves anyway, then at the very least he can let it all happen on his terms instead of someone else's. At least he can take the leap over the edge for himself instead of being pushed off it like he always is anymore.

At least he can look Riku and Kairi in the eyes when he breaks their hearts and shatters his own.

"O-ok…" he finally agrees, his voice barely above a whisper. "When… when we all meet up again, then… I guess I'll tell them everything."

Ventus surprises him by pulling him into a gentle, supportive hug, somehow able to tell that kind of comfort is exactly what he needs right now. "After it's all said and done, I think you'll be glad that you did."

"Yeah…" Sora mutters, wishing he could be that optimistic. Wishing that his hope hadn't started crumbling to pieces around him the very moment this mess began. Wishing that he didn't bear the incredible burden of such a horrible, destructive secret to begin with. "Maybe I will be…"

As their embrace disbands, Ventus continues on to rejoin the others, and Sora moves to do the same, though not before casting yet another wistful glance down at the water. Only to find his reflection is nowhere to be found, instead replaced by a swarm of shadows swelling out of the water toward him, lunging at him in ravenous hunger for the darkness deep within him.

He doesn't even have enough time to take in a gasp before they overwhelm him completely all over again.

---

By the time evening falls over the river, Naveen finishes up his impromptu crafting project, creating a frog-sized ring that he tucks safely away inside a walnut. Even then, his heart flutters with anxiety and dread, but warmth and excitement all the same over what he plans to do. He sighs, casting a glance up at the emerging stars before settling his gaze on a familiar one in particular. "Oh, Evangeline…" he bemoans fretfully. "Why can't I just look Tiana in the eye and say 'I will do whatever it takes to make your dreams come true because… because I love you…?'"

No sooner does he get these words out than a very angry Ray speeds over to him, practically glowing red with fury over what he just heard. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, cap! You makin' goo-goo eyes at my gal?!"

"No, no, Ray!" Naveen hastily corrects him. "I am not in love with Evangeline; I am in love with Tiana!"

"Oooh?!" Ray quickly changes his tune at this, beaming from ear to ear at this welcome news. "I knew it! I knew it! I could tell your two hearts were singin'-er, croakin'-in harmony from the moment I first lay eyes on ya'll!"

"And I can no longer marry Miss Charlotte La Bouff," Naveen continues, resolved. "I'll find another way to get Tiana her restaurant. I will get a job, maybe two, maybe three!"

"I can't wait to tell chère!" Ray cheers, but Naveen is quick to stop him.

"No, I must tell her. Alone."

"Riiiiight," the firefly nods. "You rascal! Least I can do is rustle up some a-ssist-ance for ya, cap."

"That would be much appreciated," Naveen nods as they begin to pull a scheme together. That plan takes place atop the highest point on the boat, right above its lookout point. The prince guides Tiana up there as soon as night fully falls, the stars bright and beautiful above them as the boat continues to glide across the water. The city lights lay afar in the distance, and all is peaceful and beautiful, even if Tiana can't help but be quite confused as Naveen pulls her up onto the platform.

"Where are you taking me?" she asks with a wry, curious smile.

"I just wanted to show you a little something to celebrate our last night together as frogs," he grins, relishing in her surprised, yet delighted gasp upon seeing what awaits her. With Ray's help, he's managed to set up a small dining area for the two of them, complete with low, romantic candlelight and a bottle of champaign (albeit one far too big for the two of them at their current size).

"Oh!" Tiana smiles and Naveen's heart swells from such a beautiful sight. "In all my years, no one's ever done anything like this for me…"

"Please, please, sit down," Naveen ushers her to her teacup seat, pulling the lid off of the small meal he's prepared for her. A variety of finely diced fruits and vegetables, the irony of which is not lost on Tiana.

"You minced!" she chuckles lightly.

"I did!" Naveen proclaims, clearly proud of the accomplishment. "You have had quite the influence on me, which is amazing because I have dated thousands of women and-" The prince swiftly cuts himself off, recanting under the disapproving glower Tiana sends his way. "N-no, like two, three other women at most. A-anyway, listen-" he leans over the table, and Tiana can't help but curiously watch as he fumbles with a walnut, of all things, hidden underneath it. "We could not be any more different; you are practically one of the guys-no, no, no!" he sharply interrupts himself once more, clearly flustered. "You are not a guy-let me begin again-" he leans against the table, only to accidentally flip it over, sending their minced meal falling all over him. "I… I am not myself tonight… this is a disaster…"

"No," Tiana laughs warmly, fondly. "It's cute."

His own smile returns, yet as he prepares to lower himself down to one knee, something on the nearby waterfront happens to catch Tiana's attention instead. "There it is!" she runs over to the edge of the platform, taking a seat to gaze off at the abandoned building in the distance.

"Your restaurant?" Naveen infers correctly.

"Can't you just picture it?" Tiana asks, stars practically in her eyes. "All lit up like the Fourth of July?"

"Yes, jazz pouring out of every window!" Naveen adds just as passionately.

"It should be elegant-"

"But you gotta keep it loose, though, gotta let it swing."

"You know a good ukulele player?"

"Really? You'd let me perform?"

"I'll talk to the owner," Tiana offers a playful pause here before sending the prince a coy smirk. "Owner says yes." The pair let out a cheery laugh at this, one that's capped off with another happy sigh from Tiana as she looks to her future restaurant again. "Folks are gonna be comin' together from all walks of life just to get a taste of our food…"

Naveen starts as Tiana leans up against him, hope rising in his heart upon hearing this. "Our food?"

"Huh?" Tiana glances back at him, confused. "Oh, no, I was talking about my daddy. We always wanted to open this restaurant. H-he… he died before he could see it happen… But tomorrow, with your help, our dream is finally coming true."

"Tomorrow?"

"If I don't deliver that money first thing tomorrow, I'll lose this place forever…" Tiana shakes her head, and suddenly, all of Naveen's dreams start to fall apart. Because he knows that the only way he'll be able to make her dreams happen is if he sacrifices his own.

If he sacrifices the love he has for her to get her what she loves instead.

"Tiana, I love… t-the way you light up when you talk about your dream," he admits, trying his best not to be forlorn. "A dream that is so beautiful, I…" he trails off, taking her hand as he meets her gaze sincerely. "I promise I will do whatever it takes to make it come true."

Even if that means they can never be together. Even if that means he'll never get to have what he truly needs to be happy. But so long as she's happy instead, then that's more than enough for him.

The boat's horn suddenly blows at this, a sure sign that it's about to be docking soon. Naveen sighs, standing as he hesitantly pulls his hands away from Tiana's. "I-I'll go round up the boys…" he says, leaving Tiana alone in her own newfound solemn silence. However, as soon as the prince hops back down to a lower deck, he immediately encounters a familiar figure who already seems to be waiting for him. "Oh, Sora, there you are," he says, initially not paying that much attention to him. "I do not know if you heard, but it is time to…" the prince trails off, his fear immediately spiking as he catches even a single glance at Sora's eyes. As he sees that they're every bit as dark and empty as they'd been back in the bayou before. "Oh no…"

---

"Hey, have either of you guys seen Sora?" Ventus asks as he joins Donald and Goofy in disembarking the boat. Louis was the first to do so, still playing with his band as they make a beeline for the parade. They assume that Tiana, Naveen, and Ray aren't that far behind.

"Not since earlier," Donald shakes his head.

"We thought he was with you," Goofy adds, frowning.

"He was before, but…" Ventus pauses, catching sight of something in the crowded street ahead. Or rather, someone. "Sora…?" he steps forward, hoping to get a better look.

"I see him too," Goofy confirms, squinting. "Say, if I didn't know any better, I'd say he's got a pretty tight hold on-"

"Naveen!" Donald exclaims in stark realization. Ventus and Goofy reach that same horrifying conclusion at the exact same time. "It's happening again! Come on! We've gotta stop him!"

"You guys go after Sora," Ventus says, glancing around the surrounding area. "I'm gonna go find Aqua and Kairi. We'll need their help if we wanna put an end to all this."

"Right," Donald and Goofy soundly agree as the trio splits up. All three of them begin pushing their way through the celebrating crowds, with Donald and Goofy trailing Sora as much as they're able, all in the hopes that they can save both him and the prince again. Before it's too late to help either of them.

At the same time, Tiana hops off the boat herself, accompanied only by Ray as they watch the others run off for some unexplained reason. "Well, there goes the boys…" she notes with a confused frown. "But where's Naveen?"

"Aw, look at you," Ray smirks knowingly. "Where the ring at?"

"Ring?" Tiana shakes her head. "What are you talking about?"

"...Well, if cap didn't say nothin', I ain't gonna say nothin' because ol' Ray sealed up as tight as a drum," Ray shrugs only for Tiana to send him a critical look.

"Ray…"

"Ok!" the firefly immediately folds. "Cap not gonna marry Charlotte, he going to marry you! Soon as he gets himself kissed and turns ya'll both human, he's gonna find a job and get you that restaurant!" He stops himself, covering his mouth as he realizes everything he'd just told her. "I said too much, didn't I?"

"You said just enough, Ray!" Tiana exclaims, happily hugging him. "Come on! We've gotta find him!" The pair hurries along to the parade as it kicks off, and all the while Tiana is beside herself with excitement and elation at the thought of both of her dreams coming true. Of getting her restaurant and getting to be with Naveen, all at the exact same time.

And yet…

The real Naveen is in more trouble than Tiana could ever even imagine. He squirms as much as he can in Sora's unrelenting grip as he carries him down a dark alleyway, but despite his best efforts, he's all but helpless to escape. His already palpable panic skyrockets, however, upon seeing the sinister pair that awaits them at the end of the alley.

"Well, well, well…" Dr. Facilier grins twistedly as he spots his "prize" come into view. "Turns out that boy of yours wasn't a bust after all. You sure that 'master' of yours won't wanna keep him like this?" He patronizingly pats Sora on the head when he steps up to him, silently, obediently, and obliviously. "Ya know, my dear friends do love themselves a nice, young, healthy puppet like this to play around in..."

"My apologies," Luxord says, wearing a similar dark smirk on his face as he stands alongside the doctor. "But the boy is already spoken for in that regard. My master would much rather have him aware of what's to become of him, for him to be awake for each and every step of his inevitable downfall."

"I like the way your master thinks…" Dr. Facilier notes cruelly. He holds a hand out and Sora is forced to place Naveen squarely in it, despite the prince's cut off cries of protest.

"Sora, no-!" he's silenced as soon as Dr. Facilier's hand wraps tightly around his body, covering his mouth.

"Aw, what's the matter, 'your majesty'?" the doctor mocks him with a sneer. "This kid a pal of yours? Always such a shame when ya can't trust your friends. Why don't we see what yours has to say about how he just did all the heavy liftin' in handing you over?"

With a mere flick of his wrist, Dr. Facilier calls his shadowy friends to finally relinquish their oppressive control over Sora. As they swiftly fly out of his body, he falls to his knees, disoriented and dazed from his body being used as a tool by someone else entirely. "W-what… where am I…?" he glances around, his vision blurred and bleary. He stops short, however, a sharp gasp escaping him as he sees the villainous duo standing over him. "Luxord!" he shouts, immediately jumping to his feet. "And… wait, who are you?" he shoots a wary glance the doctor's way.

"Dr. Facilier, at your service," he tips his hat with a cunning grin. "Though I suppose I oughta be the one thanking you for your service, Sora…"

"What?" Sora asks, confused. At least until he spots the prince-turned-frog wriggling futilely in the doctor's hand. "Naveen! N-no, I couldn't have-I didn't-"

"You did," Luxord insists, grinning in cold amusement over his obvious panic. "How sad it is, that even with all of the evidence you've seen, you still find a way to doubt the hand that fate has dealt you. But that hand has proven to be quite fortuitous for us; it has brought both I and my associate here one wide step closer to victory."

Sora's barely listening by this point, his almost-teary gaze solely on Naveen instead. For his part, the prince offers him as much of a sympathetic look as he's able to, clearly not blaming him for what's happened. Of course, Sora only blames himself all the same. "I-I'm sorry," he chokes, his own guilt practically suffocating him. "I didn't mean to-I-I couldn't stop, I-"

"Now, now, don't you worry none about poor little princey here," Dr. Facilier cuts him off, his tone smug and condescending as his grip on Naveen tightens even more. "I'll be sure to take great care of him. After all, he's aboutta make me the richest man this side of the Mississippi…"

Before Sora can get another word out, a shared cry for his name echoes through the alleyway. Within seconds, Donald and Goofy are both by his side, their weapons drawn as they come to stand defensively between him and his foes, ready to protect him from further harm at their hands.

"I think I oughta be headin' out…" Dr. Facilier notes, his smile finally turning to a scowl as he glances over at Luxord. "I trust you can take care of things on this end?"

"I'd be more than happy to," the gambler easily agrees. In an instant, the doctor disappears into the shadows, taking the still-captive Naveen with him for whatever twisted scheme he has in mind. True to his word, Luxord stays behind, fixing the trio with an icy smile as he pulls a deck of cards out of thin air. "No need to fret so prematurely, Sora," he assures with faux encouragement. "There's still a chance for you to settle the score yet-and as a winning bonus, to rescue your little friend, as well."

"W-what?" Sora asks with a shuddering, nervous breath.

"That's enough outta you!" Goofy snaps furiously.

"How many times do we have to tell you?!" Donald adds, every bit of incensed. "Leave Sora alone!"

"You guys, wait," Sora interjects, stepping past them both as he looks to Luxord again. "What do you mean by 'settling the score'?"

"I'm glad you asked…" Luxord's already calculated grin deepens as he pulls one card out of his deck. "I propose a simple game of 'hide and seek'. I'll head to some other part of this city, and if you can find me before the emblem on this card disappears-" he tosses said card over to Sora, allowing him to see the Organization's telltale emblem branded on its face. "Then not only will I ensure that the prince remains unharmed, but I will also take my leave from this world entirely, relinquishing whatever Key you happen to find into your possession."

"And… if we lose?" Sora dares to ask, even though he knows he shouldn't.

"A novel question, though I find it much more intriguing to leave the conditions of that outcome as a surprise," Luxord says vaguely, ominously.

"There's no way we're agreeing to terms like that," Donald huffs indignantly.

"What other choice do we have?" Sora counters with a fretful frown. "Naveen needs our help-Tiana does too. They'll never get to be humans again if he doesn't get that kiss by midnight. They're running out of time, and so are we. A-and after what I just did… I owe it to them both, and then some."

"But Sora," Goofy whispers cautiously. "We don't even know what'll happen if we lose…"

"Then we'll just have to win," Sora says as sternly as he can. He turns back to Luxord with a firm, determined look, refusing to let his foes get the better of him again. Not now, when there's so much at stake. "You've got a deal."

"Excellent…" the gambler grins as a dark corridor forms underneath him. He steps into it to disappear, pushing their high-stakes round of hide-and-seek into motion. "Then without further ado… let the game begin…"

---

By now the Mardi Gras parade is in full swing, colorful floats drifting down the street as costumed performers toss beads to the excited crowds of spectators on either side. It's a bustling, noisy occasion, yet somehow Ventus manages to spot both Aqua and Kairi amidst it. They stand on the edge of a sidewalk, both of them rather anxious as they watch the parade pass by.

"Aqua! Kairi!" Ventus shouts as he pushes through the crowds to join them.

"Ven?" Aqua swiftly turns to face him. "There you are. I was hoping you'd show up soon."

"Where's Sora, Donald, and Goofy?" Kairi asks, glancing around for any sign of the trio.

"I-I don't really know, but we need to find them," Ventus insists urgently. "Something really bad is happening-I'll explain it all on the way-but we have to hurry and-" He abruptly stops short as he happens to glance over at the parade, or rather, the massive, highly-decorated float passing by. Standing atop the huge wedding cake that composes it is none other than Prince Naveen himself, now a human once more, standing arm-in-arm with Charlotte La Bouff as a priest starts to officiate their wedding service. "Naveen…?" Ventus mutters, bewildered by what he's seeing. Especially since no part of it seems to add up with what just happened moments ago. "Wait, if he's here then… where's…?"

"Is everything ok, Ven?" Aqua places a hand on his shoulder.

"No, this… doesn't make any sense…" Ventus shakes his head. "Unless… have either of you seen Naveen kiss Charlotte yet?"

"Uh… no, not that we know of," Kairi replies, confused by the question.

"Then… the spell shouldn't be broken… how can he be human already…?"

"Ven, what are you talking about?" Aqua asks, not following in the slightest.

"Ugh, ok, so this is a lot to explain," Ventus huffs, trying to tell the lengthy story as quickly as he possibly can. "But the short version of it is that Prince Naveen was turned into a frog by some shadow guy, and when he kissed this waitress named Tiana, she became a frog too. We found them both out in the woods and decided to help them break the spell, which Naveen can only do if he kisses Charlotte before midnight, but then something happened with Sora and-"

"Whoa, Ven, slow down," Aqua interjects, lost in the shuffle. "Maybe you should just start at the beginning and go step by step from there, ok?"

"C-can we focus on what happened to Sora instead?" Kairi asks, suddenly anxious as she remembers Luxord's ominous claims from yesterday. "Where is he? Is he ok?"

Ventus hesitates, knowing that the truth of the matter will only make her worry more. "I… he's-"

Before he can get another word out, however, chaos suddenly erupts in the parade behind them. "Naveen" is thrown backward off of the float just shy of his wedding coming to a close, and along with him, Ventus happens to spot a small green body tumbling down too. As they fall down the towering cake together, the real Naveen rips the talisman off the fake prince's neck, his disguise being torn away at the exact same time, much to the shock of the surrounding crowd. Lawrence manages to nab Naveen however, but he doesn't quite get a hold of the talisman as Naveen kicks it over to Ray, who had come in to free the prince from the box he'd been locked away in. From atop her float, Charlotte screams in horror as she sees the man she almost married, and back in the frenzied crowd, Aqua and Kairi mutually realize that their shared suspicions toward him have been all but confirmed.

"I knew something wasn't right about him!" Aqua exclaims adamantly.

"So if that's not the real prince, then where is he?" Kairi asks.

"I just saw him," Ventus scans the frantic, confused crowd, though any signs of Naveen are quickly lost within it. "But I don't-"

"Hey, baw!"

"Ray?" Ventus glances up at this familiar incoming call. Sure enough, the firefly speeds in, the talisman still narrowly held within his tiny grasp.

"Come on, baw!" Ray shouts, gripping the necklace tightly as he flies by. "We gotta keep this thingamajig away from the shadow man! And we gotta find chère too-cap is countin' on us!"

"What about Naveen?" Ventus asks, concerned. "Is he ok?"

"He fine, but he won't be if we don't get goin'!" Ray urges as he continues on down the nearby street.

"Right," Ventus nods, resolved. He pales a bit, however, upon seeing the ominous shadows swarming over a surrounding building, already chasing Ray and the talisman down. Ventus tries his best to shake away the dreadful notion of who they might end up controlling to reclaim it. "We need to find Sora too. And the sooner we do, the better," he says simply. It's enough to prompt both Aqua and Kairi into action, but fortunately not enough to tip them off to the full scale of the matter. If all goes well, then he hopes he won't have to at all.

"Then let's hurry," Aqua advises and Kairi nods her immediate agreement. They run off after Ray as he flies toward the city's massive graveyard, yet almost as soon as they clear past it's entrance, a sizable horde of Nobodies appears in their path to block their way.

Luxord doesn't come out into the open as he spectates from the sidelines, hearing the trio's mutual cries of frustration with the monsters as they begin to fight them. Their firefly friend continues on his way with the talisman regardless, though the gambler doesn't pay him much mind. After all, he's after a different prize here than his momentary partner, one that will service his master's ultimate ambitions well. And Luxord knows well that prize can only be won so long as not a single one of Sora's friends can come to rescue him from the scheme he has in store. So long as not a single one of them sees what's about to happen, not until the truth is finally, fully unfurled.

---

Sora isn't at all surprised to see that the symbol on the card Luxord had given him starts fading away far faster than he would have liked. Their time limit to help Tiana and Naveen by midnight is already tight enough on its own, but now, with the gambler's "game" on the table, that time is constrained even more. Still, he runs through the city streets alongside Donald and Goofy, searching for any sign of Luxord's whereabouts they can find. However, as they start to cut a shortcut through the town graveyard, they happen to spot a familiar frog sitting in the shadows one of the headstones, clearly forlorn.

"Tiana?" Sora stops short, Donald and Goofy nearly crashing into each other as they do the same. "What are you doing here? Where the others?"

"I couldn't tell you…" Tiana mutters, her knees pulled to her chest. "Well, I could tell you where Naveen is. Ray told me he had plans to propose to me, but-"

"Wait, really?" Goofy interjects, surprised by this development.

"Aha! I knew you two had a thing for each other!" Sora exclaims with an enthused smile.

"Sora, focus," Donald scowls, knowing they don't have time for this.

"Right," he flinches, turning back to Tiana. "You were saying?"

"Naveen was going to propose…" Tiana recounts, shaking her head sadly. "But then he went off to get that himself that kiss, turned human, and married Lottie instead… He didn't even think twice about me…"

"That's not true!" Sora immediately insists. "We just saw Naveen, and he definitely wasn't human."

"Yeah, he's in big trouble!" Goofy adds urgently. "That shadow fella has him-"

"B-but don't worry," Sora interrupts, not wanting to detail his own role in how that happened. "We're gonna get him back."

Tiana takes pause upon hearing this, relief and hope filling her heart as she wonders if what she saw back on the parade might not have been what she thought. If Naveen still intended on reserving his love for her and her alone.

She soon receives even further confirmation of the trio's story, however, as Ray flies in, some type of odd necklace clutched tightly in both of his hands. "There ya'll is!" he cries, dropping the talisman squarely into Sora's hands before he zooms over to Tiana. "This proves what we saw ain't what we thought we saw!"

"What is it?" Tiana asks as Sora lowers it a bit for her to see.

"It's a voodoo haycall," Ray explains hastily. "The shadow man, he been usin' it for the-" He's abruptly cut off as the telltale cackles and calls of the shadow demons start echoing through the graveyard, a sure sign that Dr. Facilier's "friends" are already well on their way to reclaim the talisman. "You can't let the shadow man get this, no matter what! Now run, ya'll, run!"

Not needing to hear any more, the trio and Tiana do exactly that, taking off through the graveyard together with the talisman in hand. Meanwhile, Ray stays behind to face the shadows, hoping to fend them off, or at the very least distract them long enough for his friends to get away. "Don't make me light my butt!" he threatens, just shy of charging at them. His light is small, but it's enough to pierce the darkness the demons are composed of, driving several of them away as soon as he draws near. "I'm gonna get ya! I got a lot more of me! Who's next?!"

Before Ray can take out any more of the monsters however, he's suddenly struck by an unseen hand that comes completely out of nowhere. He slams into a surrounding gravestone and collapses to the ground hard, injured, but not completely out of commission yet. That is, until none other than Dr. Facilier steps in and coldly, cruelly crushes the firefly's tiny body completely under his shoe.

And then, he simply walks off, as if nothing even happened at all.

None of the others are privy to Ray's painful fate as they continue fleeing through the graveyard, several shadows still hot on their trail. "W-what do we do now?" Tiana asks as she hops alongside Sora as fast as she possibly can.

Sora doesn't answer right away, instead glancing down at the talisman in one of his hands and the card in the other. The emblem on its surface becomes dimmer and dimmer by the second, another sign that they have no time to lose. It's either come out on top in the gambler's game or face whatever mysterious consequences he has in mind for their loss. "We need to find Luxord," he says, gripping the talisman tighter. "That's our best bet at finding Naveen too."

Before they can make much headway in this plan, however, a sudden obstacle appears before them in the form of a flock of Nobodies. The trio call upon their weapons as Tiana hops onto Sora's shoulder for safety from such a monstrous horde. And yet, as they prepare to fight the Nobodies off, they're all too quickly reminded of the just as palpable threat surging from behind them.

"Sora, you've gotta run!" Goofy warns out of seemingly nowhere.

"What?" Sora asks, his grip on his Keyblade tightening. "There's no way I'm leaving you guys to fight these things off alone!"

"You have to!" Donald insists urgently. "Those shadow demons are after you just as much as they're after that necklace! If they take control of you again, it won't end well for any of us!"

Sora prepares to argue with this, but as he notices the shadows racing toward them, toward him again, he caves under the thought of losing all sense of control to them once more. Of being forced to hurt his friends even more than he already has. "Ok," he tentatively agrees, exchanging a resolved nod with Tiana as he runs off with her in tow.

"We'll catch up with you soon!" Goofy calls after him as he and Donald combat the Nobodies to give the pair an opening.

"Be careful!" the magician adds, though Sora only barely hears him as he runs even deeper into the surrounding maze of headstones.

"So what's the plan?" Tiana asks as she clings onto his jacket for dear life.

"Uh… I don't really have one outside of tracking down Luxord and that shadow guy to get Naveen back…" Sora admits, glancing down at the card. Even more of the emblem has faded by now, and he has no idea how much time is left before it's gone completely.

"Well, what if the shadows catch up to us?" Tiana glances back at the horde of darkness still chasing them relentlessly.

"They won't as long as I can outrun them," Sora assures with far more confidence than he really has. Still, he keeps running, knowing that it's the best he can do. Both to save his friends and himself.

He's so caught up in getting away that he doesn't even notice another pack of Nobodies on the prowl as he runs past an opening revealing them. The monsters are already preoccupied, however, with besetting another group entirely. Kairi and Aqua take out as many as they can, even as more appear in turn to take their place. Ventus joins them, though he stops short upon so much as catching a glimpse of Sora running by in the distance. Running from the pack of wicked shadows intent on taking over his body for their own twisted purposes once more.

He acts on impulse, not even relaying his plan to Aqua or Kairi as he blows a path through the surrounding Nobodies using a powerful wind spell. He rushes through the gap, hoping to give Sora some much needed backup, barely even hearing Aqua's confused, concerned call coming from behind him.

"Ven!" she shouts, trying to pursue him. She doesn't get very far, however, before the Nobodies converge once more, forcing her back into the former fray. "We're not getting anywhere like this…" she huffs, disgruntled as she scans the monsters surrounding them.

"What should we do?" Kairi asks worriedly as she takes another Nobody down.

It's a question Aqua doesn't have much of an answer to as the Nobodies only keep coming, regardless of how many they defeat. She's prepared to keep fighting them though, especially now that Ventus has moved on into some unknown danger without her.

And yet… she soon finds that she doesn't have to keep fighting them. As someone else entirely leaps in to do so in her stead.

A massive, powerful Keyblade comes in first, thrown from some unknown vantage point. It slashes seamlessly through the wall of Nobodies around them, obliterating a good number of them on the spot. The owner of that Keyblade soon lands squarely in the space before both girls, their tall, armored figure standing tall as it reclaims its weapon. A sharp gasp escapes Aqua the moment she sees it, but all Kairi can do is watch this stranger in apt bewilderment as it hacks away at whatever monsters are left with ease. The remaining Nobodies are conquered in mere seconds, leaving a strange, unsteady sort of peace behind in their wake. A peace that is only filled by the soft clanking of the stranger's armor as it turns around to face them.

"What…?" Kairi shakes her head incredulously. She has half a mind to be afraid of this powerful being, whoever they might be, but she can't help but feel… safe around them somehow. As if they're a much needed friend amidst a horde of foes. "Who…?"

"I-I can't believe it…" Aqua whispers, tears welling up in her eyes as she stares solely at the figure. As she takes in the sight of that armor she hasn't seen in over a decade, armor that she'd know anywhere. His armor. "Terra…?"

---

For his part, Sora manages to outrun the shadows longer than he expected he'd be able to. He hopes he can continue to do so long enough to get out of the graveyard, perhaps somewhere bright enough that the shadows won't be able to follow. But he never gets that chance. For as he rounds a corner into an open spot at the heart of the graveyard, he finds an entirely new horde of demons already waiting there to meet him.

"Look out!" Tiana warns as Sora turns to run back in the opposite direction. Only to be counteracted by the same shadows that chased them all the way here.

"Oh no…" he whispers as the shadows start to surround him. Their hollow gazes are greedy as they leer toward him, eager to rejoin with the darkness they've come to crave inside of him. He knows all too well what's about to happen here, but this time, he resolves to try and fight it, even if he's not so sure he really can. "Tiana, hide!"

Tiana hesitates, not wanting to leave him alone against such a threat, but in the end she folds, jumping out of sight to hide behind a nearby headstone. As she does, Sora happens to remember the talisman he's still holding onto and, realizing just how dangerous it might be to keep it in his possession now, he prepares to throw it her way. Yet before he can even raise the necklace all the way, his arm is forcefully brought down, the talisman tight in his grip as his eyes go dark, as his mind is lost to the void of shadows viciously commanding his body once more.

"Sora!" Tiana cries, horrified at what's happening to him. She starts to emerge from her hiding spot, only to quickly retreat as a tall, sinister figure steps out into the open, approaching Sora with a satisfied smirk on his face.

"Looks like you came through for me yet again, Sora," Dr. Facilier says, holding a hand out to receive the talisman. The shadows force Sora to drop it firmly into his open palm, and Tiana's heart sinks to her stomach the moment he does. Especially as she remembers he has no say in any of this in the slightest. "I simply can't think of a way to thank you enough for all your help."

"I believe I might have a few ideas in mind…" Luxord speaks up as he emerges from a dark corridor. He slowly walks past Sora, eyeing the card in his hand before offering a calculated nod to Dr. Facilier, who succinctly snaps his fingers. As soon as he does, the shadows pull themselves away from Sora once again, freeing them from their hold, but hardly from any unsavory act they might have driven him to do.

His breathing hitches as he struggles to maintain his footing, his vision hazy when he glances up at the dark duo standing before him. "N-no…" he gasps, horrified when he sees Dr. Facilier triumphantly holding up the talisman. The talisman that, without a doubt, he must have handed over to him. "You can't-" he cuts himself off, steeling is resolve as he turns his focus on Luxord instead. "I-it doesn't matter. It's all over for both of you anyway. I found you, which means I won, fair and square!"

"Did you now?" Luxord asks, simply nodding down at the card. When Sora takes a glance down at it, he's met with a sight that leaves him practically speechless. Against all odds, the card is completely blank, not a sign of any sort of sigil remaining on it in the slightest.

"W-what?" he shakes his head, distraught. "But… but how-"

"It seems as though you're not as quick or as clever as you think yourself to be," Luxord concludes coolly. "Now, since I'm the one to emerge as the victor, I believe I'm entitled to a prize in your place. The only question is… what will that prize be…?"

Sora takes a stumbling step back, wavering under the piercing, downright dangerous look the gambler sends his way. Whatever he's after here can't be anything remotely good, whether it's the Key he still has yet to claim or otherwise. He briefly considers that he might be the 'prize' in and of himself, that he's just accidentally gambled his own freedom away, just as he'd done with Maleficent before. And yet, that doesn't seem to be Luxord's aim as he glances over at Dr. Facilier instead.

"My good doctor, do you have any suggestions on what spoil I should claim as my own?" he asks knowingly, almost as if this entire thing is a scheme set up between the pair all along. The more of it unfolds, the more Sora realizes that's probably exactly the case. A plan crafted solely for the purpose of trapping them in their twisted net.

"You know, I was just thinkin' about how delightful it would be to see our young friend here fall down a peg or two…" Dr. Facilier muses, conjuring up his cane out of thin air.

"I couldn't agree more," Luxord nods. "Do as you wish with him. I'll savor the honor-the prize-of having a front row seat…"

By now, Sora finds himself trembling, a heavy wave of fear washing over him as the pair set their malicious sights solely on him. He turns, looking for some way out, some way to escape this terrible trap, but the shadows swell up on all sides of the clearing, mending themselves into walls to keep him from getting away. Leaving him alone with two monstrous men who pose to do so much damage to him both inside and out.

"Come now, boy, you don't wanna slip off so soon," Dr. Facilier consoles as he takes a steady step forward. "Not when I still need to thank you for bringing both princey and my handy lil' talisman here back."

"P-please…" Sora chokes, trying his best to summon his Keyblade or his magic or anything that might be able to help him here. But amidst his rising terror, the most he can do is something he ultimately knows won't even work in the slightest: beg. "Just… just leave me alone."

Dr. Facilier merely lets out a pitiless sneer at this plea, pressing forward as the tip of his cane glows a bright, otherworldly green. "I gotta say…" he notes as he glances Sora up and down. "That's one heck of a glamour you've got on you, boy. Haven't seen one this impressive in a good long while. Which is why I can't help but wonder… what might you look like without it…?"

Sora doesn't even have time to process what the doctor just said before he throws the tip of his cane up high into the air. In an instant, the entire surrounding collection of spectating shadow demons lunge themselves at him in full, devastating force. And yet, this time, they don't even try to take over his body.

This time, they take something else from him completely.

They claw at his skin, pull at his hair, scratch into his eyes, engulf him in a thick, maddening torrent of pure, piercing darkness. It hurts, it hurts so badly but he can't even so much as let out a scream or cry for help. He can't fight them, can't even try. All he can do is stand there and let them steal from him, let them steal the last line of defense he has against the secret he's so desperate to hide.

Tiana watches it all unfold with wide eyes, her tiny heart racing as she wishes she could do something, anything to save Sora from this evil onslaught. Yet just as she prepares to take a risk and venture out to try, the shadows suddenly slip away from him entirely, leaving behind a boy who looks so similar… yet so starkly different now all the same.

Sora's head is swimming as he falls to his knees, his vision dull, his heart pounding, and his stomach tossing and turning relentlessly. He feels weak, sick, shaken as he tries to make sense of what just happened to him. It's only as his sight finally corrects itself that he manages to catch his first glimpse at his hands. And it's only as he sees the darkness drenching his arms, the crimson covering his fingertips that he realizes exactly what the shadows have taken from him.

He sits up with a start, drawing in a sharp gasp as he pulls his gaze over to a newer, more reflective headstone standing not too far away. Luxord and Dr. Facilier are all but forgotten as he takes in the sight of his own reflection and everything that's suddenly returned to it. In the time that the glamor spell had kept it all hidden, the visual signs of what's been happening to him have only gotten worse. More of his hair has turned white, with unnaturally snowy streaks clashing against his own brown that's clearly starting to lose the battle against it. Likewise, his eyes are a mangled mess between yellow and blue, bright gold blotches corrupting the calming tides he's so used to. The shadows on his limbs leech up past the tops of his gloves now, reaching onward over his lower arms and even now creep up his shins too from somewhere below his boots. Overall, his own appearance horrifies him, the mere sight of it sending him into a state of shock as he realizes it's now out in the open for everyone to see. As he realizes just how little he even looks like himself anymore, how far he's already fallen in such a short amount of time, how close he clearly is to losing himself completely.

And how powerless he truly is to try and stop that from happening after all.

He finds some small sense of relief when his reflection is suddenly covered by the telltale viel of gold surrounding him. That voice reaches him again, even amidst his fear and grief and heartache, asking him a question that seems so ill-fitting now. Yet it poses it to him all the same.

"Do you have what you need?"

"N-no," he speaks without thinking, mostly because he can barely even manage that much at this point. Still, it's true. He thought he'd had enough to get by in the support of his friends and a glamor spell to keep them from ever pulling that support away from him. But with that spell gone, their support will certainly soon follow. Now that they can see just what he's becoming, he has no doubts that, far sooner than later, he'll find himself completely and utterly alone. "No, I-I… I don't! I never have! I-I…"

He trails off into a sob as a glowing Key appears in his hand, a Key born of desire, of longing for something he'll never get to have again. No sooner than it's there, however, then it's pried out of his grip by none other than Luxord, who's quick to wrench it well out of his reach. "Wait!" Sora cries, struggling to stand, to reclaim at least something that's been stolen from him here.

"On second thought," Luxord largely ignores him as he admires the Key in his grip. "This will make for a much more handsome prize instead."

"You can't-" Sora tearfully protests, desperate not to lose another Key. To not have to tell his friends that he was too weak to keep that from falling into the Organizations' hands too.

"This was quite an enthralling game, all things considered," Luxord continues, summoning a dark corridor to take his leave with the Key in hand. He offers a cordial nod to Dr. Facilier, who tips his hat in a formal farewell, their bargain now reaching its end. "We simply must do it again sometime when you're finally on our side of the board, Sora. Until then, I'll be sure to send the master your sincerest regards."

"Stop!" Sora cries, though he's drowned out by two other calls for his name instead.

"Sora!" Donald and Goofy push through the wall of shadows, their weapons drawn as they rush for their young companion. Luxord uses this opportunity to disappear into the darkness, taking the Key along with him before Sora can even try to rise to reclaim it. At the same time, his companions stop short, sharing a stark gasp as they catch sight of Sora and see what they both thought had been securely hidden away.

"D-Donald, Goofy…" he reaches a trembling hand out to the pair as they hurry over to give him the support he so clearly needs.

"Sora…" Goofy places a comforting hand on his shoulder. "What happened?"

"What did you do to him?!" Donald snaps, fixing Dr. Facilier with a fierce glare.

"Hey, now! Don't blame me, gentlemen," the doctor remarks with a broad, casual grin as he leans against his cane. "All I did was put an end to your boy's little masquerade."

"Not for long you didn't!" Donald exclaims, furious that his carefully-casted magic had been undone so callously. "Sora! Hold still; I'm recasting that spell right now!"

"Y-yes, please," Sora practically begs, tightly closing his eyes so Donald can do exactly that. He feels that same sort of warmth that had come over him when the glamour had been cast before. But when he opens his eyes a moment later, he's met with shocked stares from both of his companions instead of what he thought would be relief. "What's wrong?" he asks, though he receives an immediate answer as he looks back down at his hands. Which are, by all accounts, still covered in every bit as much darkness as they had been before. "I-it didn't work?!" he exclaims, pulling on a small piece of his hair to see that it was indeed still white. "Why didn't it work?! It worked perfectly last time!"

"Now, just hold on!" Donald interjects, prepping his wand once more. "Let me just try again and-"

"You might wanna spare yourself the effort," Dr. Facilier interrupts with a smug smile. "Any of you fellas ever heard of a hex before?"

"A what?" Sora asks, distraught and confused.

"You… cast a hex on him?!" Donald lets out an enraged shout at this, racing forward to attack the doctor directly for his wicked deeds. He's quickly stopped, however, by the shadows grabbing him by the leg, holding him upside down as he continues fuming and thrashing about in an obvious fury.

"Donald, what is he talking about?" Sora presses as Goofy manages to pull the magician free. "What's a hex?"

"It's a curse that blocks out certain types of magic," Donald explains hotly. "This one's gotta be against glamour magic, I'm sure of it. Which means as long as it's around-"

"Y-you can't recast the spell…" Sora finishes as the sickening realization dawns on him. That he can't hide this, not anymore. That he's stuck with the inescapable evidence of what's happening to him in the color of his eyes, the shade of his hair, the shadows on his skin. That every ounce of hideous shame he carries is now out there in the open for anyone to see, even the two people he doesn't want knowing about this the most.

He lets out a small, strangled cry of despair as his crimson-tinged fingertips dig into his white-washed hair. He doesn't even notice as his magic reacts to his sorrow, several large, deadly dark spikes bursting up out of the ground behind him. Still, even if their appearance is lost on him, it doesn't go unnoticed by his companions.

"Sora…?" Goofy attempts to reach him, but it's no use. Sora's all but lost to his emerging, burgeoning grief over everything he's just lost. Over everything he knows he'll never be able to get back, not now. Perhaps not ever again.

"Well, with that, I reckon I'll leave you boys be," Dr. Facilier concludes, playfully tossing his talisman up and down. "There's no use in any of ya'll bein' cross about how this all turned out. That's just how it goes in this madcap world of ours. Most often, when ya get what you want, you lose what you had. Ain't it just tragic?"

While Sora's still weeping behind them, Donald and Goofy rise to the occasion in his place, hoping to somehow get even with the doctor for what he'd done to their young companion. However, before they can, Tiana is the one to beat them to it.

She rushes out from her hiding spot, thoroughly incensed by everything she'd just seen to the point that all of her former fear is replaced with raw, outright outrage. Because how dare this twisted man so carelessly harm so many people she's come to care about, from Naveen to Sora to even herself. So she leaps high, catching Dr. Facilier completely off guard as she snatches the talisman out of his loose hold, intent on getting it as far out of his reach as she possibly can.

"Tiana!" Donald and Goofy exclaim, startled by this sudden turn of events. Even Sora glances up, alarmed as he watches her run off with the talisman tight in her tiny hands.

"Ya'll stay here and keep doin' what you can to help Sora!" Tiana calls back as she hops further into the graveyard. "I'll take care of this thing!"

They don't have much of a chance to argue as Dr. Facilier issues a fierce command to his 'friends', determined to get his precious talisman back once and for all. "After that frog!" he yells and the shadows do as he says, surging after Tiana with every bit of intense speed they carried before. Dr. Facilier races after them, finally leaving the trio alone, all three of them awash in an unsteady, uncertain silence in the wake of the disaster that's befallen them.

For their part, Donald and Goofy linger close to Sora as he continues sobbing softly, his face buried in his hands so he won't have to look at his reflection, so he won't have to see what he'd give anything to hide away again. Eventually though, Goofy is the one to pose the weighty question all three of them are currently thinking: "What do we do now…?"

Donald simply shakes his head sadly and Sora says nothing as he pulls up, staring down at his darkened hands with a numb, empty expression, tears streaking down his cheeks all the while. The trio's shared despondency is soon interrupted however, by the arrival of someone who's every bit as shocked to see Sora's current condition as Donald and Goofy has been before him.

"S-Sora…?" Ventus balks, slowly approaching the trio. "What… what happened to you? Your hair, your eyes, they're-"

"I-I know…" Sora shudders, wrapping his arms around himself tightly. "The spell that was keeping it all hidden, i-it's gone. And we can't-"

"Sora!?"

He freezes upon hearing this call echoing through the graveyard, and suddenly he forgets to breathe, to blink, to even think as she shouts out for him again. He doesn't know where she is, but she certainly must be close enough if he can hear her that clearly. Too close, as far as he's concerned.

"K-Kairi…" he whispers tightly, drawing his shadowy hands close to his chest. "I can't let her see me like this."

"What?" Ventus asks as he extends a hand out to help him stand. Sora accepts it, but he's still clearly unsteady as he rises, a lasting effect of the energy the shadows must have sapped from him alongside the spell.

"Donald, Goofy, we need to go, now," Sora insists, turning to his companions.

"What are you talking about?" Donald shakes his head, bewildered. "We can't leave yet!"

"What about the Key?" Goofy adds, just as confused.

"The Key is gone!" Sora exclaims, and the shame in his tone is clear as he admits this fact. "Luxord already took it. We don't have any reason to stick around here anymore, which means we have to leave. I-I… Kairi can't find out," his chest tightens as he glances at his reflection once more, reeling at just how wrong it looks. How wrong he looks. "I won't let her find out," he repeats, his breathing shallow to the point that he can't keep up with it as he speaks. "Not like this…"

"Sora, you said you would finally tell everyone!" Ventus protests, gripping his arm tightly to keep him in place. "Now there's no reason for you not to anymore. It's time to come clean. You need to; for everyone else, and for yourself."

"I can't!" Sora harshly yanks his arm away. The gold in his eyes seems to glow in the low light of the graveyard as tears start to well up in them once more. "I said I would tell them when I was ready, but I'm not ready right now, not even close! I-I need more time to prepare, to think. If Kairi shows up and sees me looking like this, I… I'll…" He stops himself, letting out a sharp sob as he imagines the look that would no doubt fill her face if she does see him now. A look of complete and utter betrayal over the lies he's told her, a look of hatred over what's all too quickly becoming of him. A look he can't bear to see, one that he refuses to see so long as he can help it. "I have to figure out a better way. That's why we have to go."

Donald and Goofy exchange a worried glance as Sora looks to them, his expression pleading and tearful. They know just how long he's already put telling the truth off, to the point that it's become a severely unhealthy habit for him. But considering just how horrific that truth really is, it's not like that's something either of them can really blame him for.

"If we go, do you promise you'll tell everyone the truth?" Goofy asks sternly, yet sincerely.

"I will," Sora nods with as much confidence as he's able to. Which, given his current circumstances, isn't a great deal. "As soon as I figure out a plan for how to talk to them about it, I'll go back and tell everyone everything, I promise."

"Even Riku and Kairi?" Donald presses and Sora nearly wavers as soon as the question is asked. Even so, he forces himself to face it with a nervous nod, if only for the sake of leaving as quickly as they can.

"Y-yes. Even Riku and Kairi."

"But Sora-"

"Ven," Sora turns to him, tears still in his eyes. "You have to cover for us with Kairi and Aqua."

"What?" Ventus scoffs incredulously. "Sora, what am I even supposed to tell them? That you guys just decided to leave the rest of here without telling anyone but me?"

"Y-you'll figure out some other way to get off this world," Sora hastily assures, since that's largely the least of his concerns right now. "Just… tell them we went after Luxord so we could get that Key back. They'll believe that, right?"

"Something tells me they're both smart enough not to…" Ventus remarks, crossing his arms.

"Please, Ven," Sora begs, and the tone of his voice, as broken and distressed as it is, proves more than enough to wear Ventus down completely. "I need you to do this for me. A-and I know I shouldn't ask you to because you've already done so much for me already, but I need you to help me one more time. Please."

Ventus sighs, guilt already settling in his stomach as he finds himself nodding slowly. "Ok…" he relents wearily. "Just try not to take too long, alright? If you're gone for more than a day or so, the others will start thinking something's up for sure."

"Don't worry," Sora assures with as much of a smile as he can possibly manage. "We'll be back before anyone even knows we're gone." His grin quickly fades as he turns back to his companions, their expression fraught with the same sort of apprehension as his. "Come on, you guys. We should get going."

Ventus stands by, watching in solemn silence as the trio starts to set out, both from the graveyard and from this world entirely. Yet before they fully slip away into the night, Sora briefly glances back his way for one final goodbye. "Thanks, Ven," he says softly, sadly, with another smile that only serves to make Ventus feel so much worse than he already does. "I knew I could count on you."

---

"I gotta hand it to you, Tiana, when you dream, you dream big," Dr. Facilier says to her in the illusion he's crafted for her. She's human again, standing within the very restaurant she'd always dreamed of creating, in all of the pristine elegance she'd hoped it would have. Yet in her hands, she still grips the doctor's talisman tightly, making sure to keep it out of his reach as well as she's able, even amidst her palpable awe. "Just look at this place! Gonna be the crown jewel of the crescent city," he gestures to the restaurant and it's glamorous atmosphere. "And all you gotta do to make this a reality is hand over that little ol' talisman of mine…"

Tiana shakes her head, refusing to be taken advantage of so easily. Not after the awful things she's seen this treacherous man do already. "N-no…" she steps back nervously. "This… isn't right."

"Come now, darlin'," Dr. Facilier coaxes coolly. "Think of everything you've sacrificed. Think of all those naysayers who doubted you. And… don't forget your poor daddy." He pulls the curtains of a nearby window aside to reveal a vision showing none other than Tiana's father. "Now that was one hard working man. Double, sometimes triple shifts. Never letting on how bone-tired and beat down he really was. Shame all that hard work didn't amount to much more than a busted-up old gumbo pot and a dream that never got off the back porch."

Tiana sighs, the grief that always comes with the thought of her father not living long enough to see their dream become a reality not lost on her. And, seeing that he already has her strung along, Dr. Facilier continues to reel her in. "But you? You can give your poor daddy everything he ever wanted. Come on, Tiana," he leans in, his voice soft, smooth, convincing. "You're almost there…"

Almost there. Almost to where she's always wanted to be, to what her and her father have always wanted to have. And the talisman is almost, almost in the doctor's waiting hand. Until…

"My daddy never did get what he wanted…" she says, remembering Sora, remembering Naveen, remembering herself, remembering that this man had been the one responsible for hurting them all so very much. And all the while, hoping that her father really would be proud of her for what she's about to do. "But he had what he needed," she swiftly pulls the talisman out of the doctor's immediate range. "He had love. He never lost sight of what was really important."

"C-careful with that!" Dr. Facilier snaps almost anxiously as Tiana holds the talisman up high. "Easy!"

"And neither will I!" she tosses the charm down. Yet before it has a chance to hit the ground, it's abruptly stopped by the shadows. They hand it back over to Dr. Facilier, who laughs wickedly as he rips the illusion away, immediately turning Tiana back into a frog in the process.

"Ya'll should have taken my deal!" he pins her down with the tip of his cane, standing over her threateningly. "Now you're gonna spend the rest of your life bein' a slimy little frog."

"I've got news for you, shadow man," Tiana smirks as a new, timely plan comes to her. "It's not slime; it's mucus!" She abruptly lashes her long tongue out, stealing the talisman back from the doctor once again. This time, she seizes her opportunity, smashing the charm squarely against the stony ground. It explodes into an array of bright colors, the very earth shaking underneath it as a result of its power being lost. Tiana wisely hops away as the doctor panics, scooping up its ruined remains with trembling, terrified hands.

"No!" he cries as dark spirits begin to swarm around the graveyard. "How am I ever gonna pay my debt back now?!" Suddenly, the headstones behind him come alive, shadows emerging from them as they descend on him viciously. "F-friends!" he forces a smile onto his face, hoping to ease their obvious fury with him. "D-don't you worry! I got lots more plans! This is just a minor setback in a major operation! A-as soon as I whip up another spell, we'll be back in business! I just need a little more time!"

Before Dr. Facilier can make an attempt at getting away, however, his very own shadow stops him, holding him securely in place as the demons continue to converge upon him. He lets out a horrified scream as they begin to drag him away, pulling him into the very same shadows he first called them out of. "I promise I'll pay ya'll back! I promise!" But the shadows don't heed his desperate pleas. Instead, they consume him whole, forcing him to fall into the immense darkness that he'll have no hope of ever escaping from. He's still screaming as he meets his demise, until, in a sudden flash of magic, it all stops.

And all that's left behind of Dr. Facilier is nothing more than a headstone etched with his face in his final seconds, forever frozen into an eternal scream.

As shaken as Tiana is by watching all this madness unfold, she's soon broken out of it as she happens to hear the nearby church's clock let out a loud chime on its rapid approach toward midnight. And as soon as it does, she realizes that both her and Naveen are running dangerously short on time to break this curse, once and for all. Without hesitation, she hurries for the church, hoping to find the prince and Charlotte alike somehow. Who she does encounter first however, just so happens to be someone else entirely.

"Sora!" Kairi calls, her voice echoing all around the graveyard. Upon encountering that strange armored figure, Aqua had sent her away to search for him, wanting to have a word with the stranger alone. While concerned, Kairi did as she was told, hurrying through the area in the hopes of finally catching up ith Sora. Of finally reuniting with him after over an entire day apart. "Sora, where are you?!"

"Kairi?" Her call is answered, not by Sora, but by the small female frog hurriedly hopping her way. "Kairi! It is you! It's me, Tiana-from the diner yesterday, remember?"

"Tiana?" Kairi gasps, baffled as the frog hops into her hands. "Ven was right, you really did turn into a frog! How-"

"There's no time to explain," Tiana shakes her head as the clock rings out once more. "I need you to get me to that church as fast as you can, please. It's very important."

"Oh, o-ok," Kairi nods, letting Tiana sit upon her shoulder as she breaks out into a quick jog. "I'll make it very fast. I need to get back to looking for Sora. I'm sure he's somewhere around here, but-"

"Er, uh… Kairi, hon…" Tiana speaks up with a fretful frown. "Sora… he's been-"

"You've seen him?" Kairi looks to her, surprised, yet hopeful. "Do you know if he's ok or not? I'm really starting to worry about him…"

Tiana hesitates upon hearing this, knowing that Sora was anything but ok when she saw him a few moments ago. As unsure of how to tell Kairi everything that happened as she is, she simply offers her a tight, terse smile instead. "Y-yeah," she nods, even though she knows it's a lie. "He's right as rain. I'm sure you'll be able to meet up with him again soon."

Kairi lets out a relieved sigh at this, glad to know that Sora is unharmed amidst the unfolding chaos. And even more glad that she'll soon have a chance to stand by his side again, to have his arms folded securely around her, to feel his lips placed lovingly against her cheek.

To be together with him again, just as he promised they'd always be.

---

In the moments that follow Aqua asking Kairi to leave her alone with the armored warrior, neither of them say anything. A strange, uncertain sort of silence fills the nighttime air, her blue eyes bearing into its metallic form with a million questions she doesn't even know how to ask. Still, she starts with the most obvious among them, venturing it in little more than a whisper.

"Terra…" she says his name again, taking a small, unsteady step toward him. "I-is… is that really you…?"

The armor doesn't lie to her. It shakes his head and she feels her heart grow heavy as it does. "Not entirely," it speaks, his voice sounding so much like his, yet so different. It lacks his warmth, his kindness as it comes out strangely hollow, metallic almost, not a single ounce of emotion in it to speak of. "His heart and body belong to Xehanort-"

"Y-yes…" Aqua sighs, glancing down. "I know."

"I'm what was left behind when the rest was taken," she swiftly looks back to the armor at this, bewildered by such a thought. "His memories, his mind."

"So… you know who I am?" she dares to ask, her hope rising once more.

The armor nods. "Aqua… of course. You are one of my-his most precious memories, after all."

She falters at this, unable to hold back her tears as she finishes bridging the distance between them. "Terra…" she takes his hands, still so much larger than hers. But they're cold under the armor, unfeeling. There's no body below that metal, she reminds herself bitterly, no face under that mask. No heart beneath the husk of a form he's been reduced to now.

"No, I'm not him," it tells her simply. "Not yet. Not without what Xehanort stole from me years ago. That's why I came here; I need your help, Aqua. You and Ven."

"Of course," Aqua agrees without a second thought. "Anything. We'll bring you back-we'll make you whole again, I promise. We'll do whatever it takes."

And yet, the armor simply shakes its head, pulling its hands out of hers. "Now isn't the right time or place. The only way this can work is if we go back to where it all began. To where we were torn apart in the first place."

"The Keyblade Graveyard…" Aqua correctly infers, her tone grave.

"Yes," the armor agrees. "If we go there, if you and Ven are there, the heart is sure to follow, and with the heart, will come the body. And then, between the three of us, we'll drive Xehanort out-"

"And you can reclaim what's rightfully yours," Aqua finishes, resolute. "Once and for all."

"Right," the armor says succinctly. "I've waited over a decade to bring Xehanort to justice. With your help, I'll finally be able to make that happen."

"And then we can finally be together again," Aqua adds with a small, wistful smile. "All three of us, just like we were before."

"...Only time will tell," the armor says vaguely as he glances away. "I'll be waiting for you at the Graveyard. Come whenever you can; and be ready for a fight. Xehanort won't give up that easily."

"Trust me, we all know that by now," Aqua nods indignantly. She watches as the armor calls upon its Keyblade-his Keyblade-once more, shifting it into a glider so it can take its leave. "We'll be there, Ven and I both will."

"Good," the armor says, climbing aboard its glider. "I'll see you then. And when I do, we're finishing this, no matter what it takes."

Aqua solemnly nods as she watches the armor begin to fly away, though just as it starts to take off, Ventus happens to emerge from the graveyard just in time to see it go. "W-what?" he gasps, stopping in shock as he sees the armor, recognizing it even from a distance. "Terra…?" The armor only briefly glances his way, but says nothing, instead jetting off on its glider before he can even hope to catch up. "Terra! Wait!"

"Ven," Aqua stops him just shy of summoning his own armor and glider to follow. "It's ok."

"B-but that was Terra!" Ventus protests, his eyes set on the sky as he watches the armor fly further and further away. "Terra was here! We have to go after him, we have to-"

"It's ok," Aqua repeats firmly, her hands on both of his shoulders. "Because it's finally time for us to get Terra back." She smiles as she watches the armor, Terra's armor disappear into the sea of stars above. "We'll save him…" she promises both herself, Ven, and Terra alike as she repeats the armor's final words in a warm, earnest refrain. "No matter what it takes…"

---

In the aftermath of the disaster the Mardi Gras parade had turned into, Big Daddy orders Lawrence to be thrown in jail for impersonating the prince and deceiving his daughter. Kairi and Tiana approach the church just in time to see him get hauled away, but their focus soon shifts to Charlotte as she sits on the chapel steps, accompanied by none other than the real Naveen himself, still a frog, just as he'd been before.

"Goodness gracious! This is so much to absorb," the heiress remarks, clearly beside herself. "Let me see if I got this right. If I kiss you before midnight, you and Tiana will turn human again?" Naveen nods, casting an anxious glance over at the clock as it counts down the fading seconds to that time. "And then we're gonna get ourselves married, and live happily ever after, the end?!"

"Y-yeah, more or less," Naveen shrugs begrudgingly. "But remember, you must give Tiana all the money she requires for her restaurant. Because Tiana… she is my Evangeline…"

Even though her and Kairi are still a good distance away, Tiana hears this clearly, smiling softly as she realizes his feelings toward her are sincere after all. They must be, if he's willing to go to such great lengths just to make her dream come true.

"Anything you want, sugar," Charlotte agrees, applying a new layer of lipstick before eyeing the prince wryly. "Pucker up, buttercup."

Naveen sighs as he does so, preparing to get that all important kiss. At least until it's abruptly interrupted just before it can happen. "Wait!" Tiana calls as Kairi sets her down so she can hop over to the pair.

"Tiana?" Naveen gapes, turning to face her.

"Tiana?!" Charlotte gasps, shocked to see her best friend really is a frog after all, just as the prince had told her.

"Don't do this," Tiana begs Naveen as she hurries over to him.

"I have to do this," the prince argues. "We are running out of time!"

"I won't let you!"

"It's the only way you can get your dream."

"My dream?" Tiana stops short as Naveen turns away from her. "My dream wouldn't be complete without you in it…" He looks back at her, awestruck as she offers him an affectionate smile, admitting something she can't deny any longer, something she'll never deny again. "I love you, Naveen."

"Warts and all?" Naveen asks, pulling her to her feet as they stand together, hand in hand.

"Warts and all."

Kairi smiles as she spectates on this sweet scene from the sidelines. It easily reminds her of her own close bond with Sora, and makes her heart yearn to reunite with him even more than it already does. Likewise, Charlotte is touched by the pair's adoring display, to the point that it brings her tears as she realizes that who she thought would become her prince charming ended up being that very thing to her best friend instead. And surprisingly, she's perfectly fine with that. "All my life, I read about true love in fairy tales," she begins gently, happily. "And Tia, you found it! I'll kiss him, for you, honey. No marriage required."

Charlotte hoists the prince up, pulling him in for that kiss. And yet, just before their lips meet, the clock starkly strikes twelve behind them. "Oh my word!" Charlotte gasps, alarmed. "M-maybe that ol' clock's a lil' fast!" With this, she quickly kisses the prince, and yet, nothing happens. Even when she tries again, over and over again, not a single one of her kisses does anything to turn Naveen or Tiana human, much to everyone's apt despair. That after coming all this way and going through so much, it had all been for nothing in the end. Or perhaps, maybe it hadn't.

Charlotte offers her sincerest apologies as she sets Naveen down alongside Tiana again. Yet even still, the couple share a soft smile as they accept their fate. Because even if they have to spend the rest of their lives as frogs, at least they'll get to spend those lives together. And for both of them, that's easily enough to make all their dreams come true and then some.

"Tiana! Naveen!" a distraught, sudden cry from Louis catches the pair's attention. They hurry over to meet the gator as he gently carries something in his hands, yet before Kairi can curiously follow the couple, she receives a call of her own.

"Kairi!" Aqua runs to meet her, Ventus trailing not far behind.

After exchanging a brief nod of farewell with Charlotte, Kairi hurries to meet the pair halfway. "Aqua! Ven! There you are!" she exclaims, relieved. That relief is quick to fade, however, upon noticing they're not accompanied by anyone else. "Wait… Sora's not with you?"

Aqua shakes her head, suddenly concerned. "I thought he would be with you."

"A-actually," Ventus speaks up, swallowing hard as he does. A part of him thinks that this could be the perfect crossroad to reveal the truth, to explain the real reason why Sora isn't standing here with them. But then he remembers what Sora had said just shy of their parting: "I knew I could count on you." He's counting on him, just as Ventus had counted on him in the same way to shield his heart for over a decade. He's counting on him, and even though he knows lying is the only way he can do so, he refuses to let him down. "Actually, uh… Sora, Donald and Goofy left this world already."

"What?!" Kairi exclaims, alarmed.

"Why would they do that?" Aqua asks, baffled.

"Um… well…" "Because the glamour spell is gone." "Because Sora's too afraid to tell you the truth." His mind practically begs him to say either of these things. But what comes out of his mouth is something entirely different. "Because that Luxord guy got the Key, s-so they decided to chase after him to try and get it back…"

"They shouldn't be doing that on their own," Aqua shakes her head disapprovingly. "That's far too dangerous."

"At the very least they could have told us where they were going themselves," Kairi adds just as fretfully. "That's not like Sora, to just… go off without saying anything…"

"T-they were in a hurry," Ventus offers them something that isn't a lie for a change. "But Sora said they won't take long, so… y-yeah…"

"I still don't like that he ran off without saying goodbye," Kairi says with a worried sigh as she pulls out her Gummiphone. "Maybe I should call him-"

"N-no!" Ventus protests, though he quickly recants back into a faux calm. "I-I mean… he's probably really busy getting that Key back. Maybe you should just… wait to check in on him?"

"I just wanna make sure he's ok," Kairi insists as she dials him up. Even though Ventus is certain he won't answer in his current condition, he lets out a relenting sigh, wishing that Sora had never put him in this difficult position to begin with.

"If they took the ship, then we'll have to figure out some other way out of this world," Aqua muses a moment later.

"I know how to summon portals-oh sorry, Merlin told me they're technically called 'light gates'," Kairi speaks up as her phone keeps ringing. "They're like the dark corridors the Organization uses, but made of light instead. A-anyway, we can use them to get from world to world if we don't have the Gummi Ship."

"Yes, I've heard of them before," Aqua nods, smiling. "The ability to conjure light gates is a very special skill that few possess. You should be proud of the fact that you can, Kairi."

Kairi tries her best to return her grin, though when her phone stops ringing she simply lets out a defeated sigh instead. "No answer… That's so weird. Sora's never not answered any of my calls before…"

"L-like I said, he's probably busy," Ventus insists, though Kairi doesn't seem to be buying it. Like he had told Sora, clearly she's far too smart for the simple lie he'd told him to give her.

"Maybe," she mutters, more to placate Ventus than for any other reason. Especially as she wonders exactly what happened between when she saw Sora last and now, as she wonders where he is, what he's doing, and why he failed to tell her he was leaving in the first place. Something is clearly wrong here, she can tell, even if Ventus apparently won't. Which is why she feels obligated to be the one to take matters into her own hands this time. To be the one to search for Sora, instead of the other way around. "Um, Aqua? Is it ok if I don't go back to the tower right away? I want to do a little… investigating, if that's alright."

Though Ventus shakes his head in silent, anxious protest, Aqua, unfortunately, agrees without hesitation. "I don't see any problem with that. But first, can you open a light gate up for Ven and I?"

"Of course," Kairi nods, summoning her Keyblade. "Where to?"

Aqua and Ventus look to each other knowingly, their former resolve returning as their thoughts both turn back to Terra. As they both decide that they don't want to waste one more second without him by their side. "To the Keyblade Graveyard."

---

Ray didn't survive the crushing step Dr. Facilier had landed upon him in the graveyard. Tiana, Naveen, and Louis solemnly surround him as he dies, staring up lovingly at his Evangeline all the while. The tiny group returns to the bayou with his body in tow, their hearts mutually aching over their fallen firefly friend. His large family attends the service they hold for him, a vast collection of dim lights drifting across the water as they lay his remains gently upon its surface. Tiana and Naveen send him off with a flower each while Louis plays a slow, sad requiem on his trumpet. And just like that Ray is gone, drifting off into the fog, his loyal friendship and brave sacrifice gone, but certainly not forgotten.

But then…

The clouds clear, parting to reveal the starry skies above. The brightest among them by far is Evangeline, as usual. But this time, she's not alone. Another radiant star has come to take its spot in the sky right beside her, a star that, without question, the entire group down below knows must be Ray. Finally together with his beloved Evangeline, just like he'd always wanted.

Inspired by their miraculous union, Tiana and Naveen decide to have one of their own the very next day. They pick a bright, beautiful spot on the bayou, and ask Mama Odie to officiate. They share a bit of sadness that their new friends couldn't make it to celebrate the occasion with them, but by all accounts the entire group-Sora, Ventus, and the others accompanying them-seemed to have disappeared without much of a goodbye at all that night. The couple can only hope they're safe and well as they keep them in their thoughts while Mama Odie brings their ceremony to a close, with much of the bayou's animal population watching as witnesses to their wedding.

"And so by the power vested in me," Mama Odie declares with a small chuckle. "I now pronounce ya'll frog and wife. So get to it, hop-along! Give your lovely bride some sugar!"

Naveen doesn't hesitate to do exactly that, lovingly kissing Tiana as the crowd around them cheers. And yet, as soon as their lips touch, a bright burst of golden magic fills the air surrounding them, enveloping the kissing couple completely. They don't even notice, however, as they slowly lift into the air, that shimmering glow still blanketing them as it at long last breaks the curse their first kiss had brought. For when they finally pull apart and open their eyes, Tiana and Naveen find that they're no longer frogs; they're human.

"Like I told ya'll," Mama Odie pipes up as the couple tries to make sense of what just happened. "Kissin' a princess breaks the spell!"

"Once you became my wife," Naveen turns back to his bride in dawning realization. "That made you a-"

"A princess," Tiana playfully curtsies in the stunning green ball gown she now stands in. "You just kissed yourself a princess."

"And I'm about to do it again…" Naveen does exactly that, lifting Tiana up into the air and spinning her around as they share another beautiful kiss. As they celebrate their happily ever after, and all the dreams they'll get to enjoy in their lives together.

And yet… a happily ever ever after for some, is only the start of the story for others. For somewhere worlds away from that blissful ending, an all new chapter of an entirely different, far more twisted tale begins to turn.

As a heart that once stood against the darkness only continues to fall ever further into its depths.

---

Sohohohoh! I LOT happened in this one, huh? Some pretty major plot developments kicked off if you ask me, and they're kickstarting us into part of the story I've been looking forward to writing for a REALLY long time as we head into what I like to think of as Keys' third and final act (don't worry though there's still a TON of chapters left, approx. 30 to be exact!). Either way, we're building up to some intense stuff around the bend, so if you wanna see more PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE A REVIEW! (seriously thi story needs more of them so if you like what you see leave one!) With all that said, until next time! :3