Persona Hearts

Summary: Awakening in a world where hearts can be stolen, Sora joins forces with the Phantom Thieves to find his way home. *Takes place after Melody of Memory*

*Final World*

Walking aimlessly…

Staring at the never-ending road…

Slowly losing his mind…

The regular occurrence for the boy who had done so much for the realm of light, a never-ending cycle of rinse and repeat. Wake up from his forced slumber, never sure if he'd awaken in that world and fight for his life again, or just find himself staring at the skies again, laying the watery ground that never soaked his flesh or clothes. Days become harder to keep track of, for all he knows it could be weeks, months, or years since he was brought to this place.

Sora just sat down with his knee propped and arm resting on it, his usual deep blue eyes have gotten dimmer as he just stares down at the watery ground. So tired, so weary of this horrible cycle that he is forced to endure. He runs his gloved hands through his hair, heaving a sigh of defeat before he looks up to the invisible road he must walk, or rather had to walk to just himself from losing his mind. Sora reached his pocket and pulls out the sole item that was reminding him, giving him the strength to just keep going.

The smooth shell crafted item that has become his beacon of light, his source of hope and a positive reminder to why he is here, and the risks he had taken to save that one person who was so precious to him. But it also came with that horrible sense of loneliness and isolation that tainted this charm, knowing that she was so far from him it was as if they were destined to remain apart no matter what they did, nor no matter how hard they fight to grab the future they seek. One humorless chuckle escapes his lips before he brushes the surface of the charm and thinks on her.

But then, from the corner of his eye, Sora spots something fluttering near him. His head perks up and he sees a butterfly. "What the?", he says softly, never seeing a being like this one. He stands up as the tiny insect flutters around him, glowing in blue whitish light and leaving trails of blue glittering dust. Kinda like that fairy in the world where he flew once, the little creature flies around him before it flutters away from him, almost like it was guiding him.

Curious, with some caution, Sora follows the butterfly, unaware that all around him the world of endless sea and sky was beginning to become distorted and warped, shadowing the world with red and violet. Even when his steps create small splashes, the water turns pinkish and freezes, like time had stopped or slowed around him. Sora's vision starts to blur while he feels sluggish, weakened and his balance takes a nosedive. His steps are uneven, he feels as if he is being pulled from the heart.

"Do not be afraid".

He looks up and sees only a blue apparition of a door, the butterfly fluttering towards it. "Your rehabilitation…has only begun…". Sora staggers towards the door, the charm spreads warmth into his palm as he reached for the door. Once he is just a step away, his body succumbs to the slumber that inflicted his form, and he falls into the door. Falling and falling, he sees his world going black, save for two red eyes staring back at him…

*Metaverse, Shujin Castle*

He wasn't even in Shibuya for more than a week and already this city life was not for him, and nothing had prepared him for this. Of course, he should have known that moving from a small quiet neighborhood to the bustling and densely populated city of Shibuya would be a massive change for himself. But nobody ever warned him that he'd end up trapped in a castle straight from old western medieval times, ruled by the iron fist of the school coach wearing nothing but a cloak that THANKFULLY covered everything.

Ren Amamiya truly, utterly wished he had done the sensible thing and just took community service. At least he knew what would entail from that sentence.

And the day had started so well for him, wake up in his new room, have a nice breakfast (that consists of coffee and curry of all things), go to school, survive being the labeled trouble student, and go home. How hard could that be? Not too much all things considered.

But current situation? DOES make things a little difficult.

Getting off the train to wait around near a shop for the rain to recede, meet another student insulting a teacher for being a perv, and then have that teen lead him to what he hoped was Shujin Academy…which turned into a castle, has knights that obediently serve Kamoshida (pervy teacher) and then throw them both in a dungeon on the grounds of trespassing on the king's land. If that wasn't enough for the poor teenager, they were supposed to be executed because of their crime. A tad is excessive if Ren were honest.

But it only gets worse/better for him, witnessing his new friend/jail cell buddy almost biting the dust stirred the old burning will of rebellion within his heart. He called for the strength to rebel against this unjust fate, to defy the pervy king's tyrannical behavior, and save his new friend. And that power came in the form of a "Persona", a being that was freed when Ren ripped off his "mask" and called forth the powerful being. Arsène, the Pillager of Twilight.

Using his newfound power, he and his friend, Ryuji, escaped their jail and made their daring attempts to escape this bizarre world of pervs and knights. And their escape got weirder when they encountered a fellow prisoner and even a Persona user too. An apomorphic being known as Morgana, and with him, their odds of escaping this castle stacked up higher than their chances of perishing to the lecherous man.

"Come on, come on! Hurry up!" Ryuji cried as Ren trails behind him.

Ren picks up the pace as Morgana lowers the drawbridge for them to crossover. So far bar a few patrolling knights, the trio had a much easier attempt in escaping their fates. Granted the only reason they were avoiding conflict as much as they can be that for a worrisome circumstance, Ren couldn't maintain his "Persona" outfit for much time outside of battle. Likely, as Morgana deduced, is that he has yet to fully control his powers. Meaning until he does, if ever, the chances of him being unable to call it in battle are too high for them to risk.

Morgana and Ryuji run across the bridge and as Ren steps toward it, he stops. Turning his eyes to the jail cell, he spots a boy hunched down with his head down. Ren approached the cell and called out to the boy, but gets nothing in response. He hears the other two call him, but Ren looks at the cell, and then nearby hanging up on a wooden key holder, is a key. Ren plucks the key off the rack and out of curiosity, he uses it on the gate.

Loud groaning metals and squeals from the rusty hinges that probably haven't been oiled since they were installed, Ren opens the door and enters the cell, hearing the other two race back to him. The Trickster kneels before the boy and calls him again, soft and gentle. He sees the boy stir slightly but nothing else. Ren placed a hand on his shoulder and shakes him gently, but when that doesn't work he raised his face to see if perhaps there is a clue to his condition.

To his surprise, the boy's eyes were indeed open and there is a slight cohesive awareness within them, but what startled him the most was the sheer vacancy within them. They were dark blue and dull as the light behind them had long since gone out. Ren stares into the eyes, something drawing him into them like there was a gateway to another place.

Strange as it may sound, but somehow…Ren could feel…pain.

A deep pain, something that one couldn't experience and come out as the same person, like a grievous wound that forever scarred your heart and soul. A sadness deep in those eyes that, to him anyway, look like he's been through something rough and just defeated him repeatedly. Ren investigates his hands and sees a beautiful shell-made charm nesting within his gloved hands. When his fingertips touched it, he is rendered speechless.

There is a powerful feeling within it, one touched filled his heart with hope and strength to fulfill something. A connection even, to someone else. He raised his dark eyes to the dull boy's, sensing that pain is only held back by this powerful connection, and perhaps, even more, is only softened by the existence of this charm alone. Was this boy just scared? Or was he…

Like Ren?

"Dude! Come on and get a move on al…ready," Ryuji whisper-shouts but slows when he sees the boy in black and red. Morgana looked at him too with surprise as Ren turned to him.

"He's…he's real," the child-sized cat says. When Ren turned his eyes to him with confusion, Morgana clarifies that everyone else here is nothing more than the cognition of Kamoshida, that only himself and the two teens should be the only "real" people here. And points at the sleeping boy that he isn't a cognition or a shadow, but another person who must have accidentally found himself here.

"Dude looks like he's stoned or something…" Ryuji comments, "How long do you think he's been sittin' here?".

Ren doesn't answer but he starts to help him to his feet, much to Morgana's insistence that they couldn't afford to waste any time. True Ren would admit carrying this guy would slow them down without any semblance of doubt, but he's as real as himself and the others. If Kamoshida's actions have shown him anything, then letting this boy be left behind would be as merciful if he just hands him over to the king himself.

He throws the boy's arm over his shoulder and grabbed his pants' waistline and belt, then turned to the other two with a firm nod. Ren starts to carry the boy out with some effort on his end, while Ryuji follows suit and eventually Morgana sighed deeply with a mixed-in groan before he chases after the two.

Together the four climbed a flight of stairs that Ren swore must have taken them at least five levels high up, though that could be attributed to the extra weight on his body. Occasionally he would look at the boy and see him still barely conscious, lips parted slightly and eyes dull. The only thing that changed in the past half-hour was his clenching, his right hand holding the charm like it was his lifeblood. Even when Ryuji tried to take it to carry, the grip tightened, and they even heard a low growl from him.

Morgana eventually leads them back to the foyer, where the two boys were previously captured, and claims their escape was just a few steps away.

Or so they thought…

Before they reached the second corridor ahead of them, a splash of crimson bursts before the trio in several numbers, and more knights popped out from the gushes. Ren almost crashes into them and nearly topples himself and the boy. Morgana yelps in surprise akin to a cat and Ryuji throws himself backward in surprise, before looking behind him and curses. The other two look behind and sees to their dismay, Kamoshida and a legion of knights approaching them.

The king wore that smug victorious look, sneering at the two teenagers and cat. His knights surrounded them all, swords aimed at them while having their shields up to form a walled circle. Trapped and outnumbered, the three look around for an exit or anything they could use to get out of here.

"Well well…looks like the rats couldn't make it all the way," sneers the king, gloatingly, "Too bad for you little shits".

Ryuji barked his name in disgust while Morgana and Ren stood their ground, even as Ren's clothes shift back into his Trickster clothes. This was the worst situation they could be in, between being outnumbered, having no clue how to use his full power, or even knowing how to fully maintain this form, but now with the added load of someone's wellbeing on his back, the odds that should have been even for them then is now fully in Kamoshida's advantage.

The king smirks evilly at Ren, then frowned with annoyance. "And whose that? Another rat who dares defile MY castle!?" he demands, snapping his head to the guards. Meekly, the guards revealed that the boy was just in the jail cell when they went on their patrol, nobody had any memory of him ever being caught or seen. The pervert king scowls in annoyance and then looks back at the boy, before cursing. Not even he knew who this prisoner was, stating he couldn't have been from Shujin.

"If he's not from Shujin…then who is he and how did he get here?" Ren ponders as the boy remains docile

"…Kai…ri…".

Ren blinks in confusion but he is pulled from his thoughts by Ryuji screaming his name. Quick as lightning, Ren jumps to the side in time to spare himself and the boy from becoming two halves of themselves, barely missing the taste of steel in his back. He turned around and performs impressive acrobatic flips to evade being sliced in two as Morgana leaps towards the offending knight. He lops off the head and then leaps toward another while Ren dances around to keep the boy safe.

Ryuji tries to tackle a knight to throw them off guard, but he might as well have run into a wall for all the difference he was making. Ren curses as more knights started to attack him and ignored Ryuji after they pinned him down, Kamoshida's orders after all. He narrowly avoids getting a sword to his cheek while he flips around in the air to dodge being skewered, praying the boy was unharmed during this whole ordeal.

But when he landed on his feet, a knight smashes its shield into the Trickster's body and throws him off his feet. Ren and the boy both go flying as he smashed into the wall and the boy rolled onto the ground like a doll. He groaned in pain and spits out blood, quickly scrambling to his feet in time to roll away from another stab. Ren draws his dagger and leaps into the air above the knight. He performs a front flips over it and then when he lands on his feet, he plunges the dagger into their back.

Killing them, Ren looks for the fallen boy being approached by Kamoshida. He shouts for the pervy teacher and runs at him, only to be bulldozed by two knights at once and they pinned him to the wall, binding his arms. Morgana tries to reach for the sleeping boy but between being the only one who could still fight and be swarmed by knights, he was on his own.

Hovering over the boy, Kamoshida delivers a kick to his stomach, laughing at him. He taunts him, mocking him for being such a useless sack, and berates him from sneaking into his castle, demanding if he knew who exactly ruled this place. But when he gets nothing but silence, his cocky arrogant smile leaves his giant jaw endowed face, and it melts into a look of insulted fury. He kicked the boy harder, and this time even lifted him off the ground and throws him at least a foot away from him. His eyes narrowed when he sees the boy was clutching something in his hands.

He approached him and reached down, ripping out the item and holds above the docile boy. "The hell is this piece of junk?" he asks no one, looking at it like it was filth. The boy's body twitched as the head goes lower, downcast while the teacher berates his item, mocking him. "This is important to you? Hmm…be a real shame if someone…broke it?", Kamoshida says with a malicious smile on his face.

As he laughs at the idea while the trio struggle, the boy curls into a ball…

"You're not giving up…are you?".

With a startled gasp, Sora opens his eyes and finds himself in the darkness. Nothing was here, not a sound to be made save by his own making, he feels neither warmth nor cold from this strange dark place. Panicking, Sora looks for the charm and when he looks up, all he sees is a Darkside clutching the charm that held him together in its giant ugly clawed hands, ready to crush the small piece of light. Sora almost reaches out to stop them, weakly and even…hesitantly.

Where was he? Who was that voice who called out to him? And why…why was he so scared?

Oh…but he knows.

Looking at his hands as they were shrouded in shadow, the light had grown dimmer and dimmer as he remained trapped in a world of endless seas and skies, his faith in one day reuniting with those who held such significance spots within his tender heart growing weaker and weaker. That charm, that charm is all he has of her…the one person who he'd die for repeatedly. A bond between them that withstood everything the worlds had thrown against him.

It was so easily snatched away from him…was it…truly hopeless?

"This trial may not be faced alone, you know".

The voice calls to him again, not the one who guided him here per se, but another that sounded strong, powerful even. Like a true master of the legendary weapon, he carried within his heart, and it even sounded…comforting to him.

"Time and time again, the bonds you have forged have guided you to walk your road to the end…time and time again, your bonds have stood against the world's worst…and now, here you stand with those bonds still connecting to your heart…" it says. "Now forge one with me…and live…walk your road with your head held high, so that one day, you may return to those who held your heart together".

"I am thou…thou art I".

Sora sees before him a pair of dark blue lights in the form of eyes and a mask…and without a moment's hesitation, he grabbed the mask…

Before Kamoshida could crush the charm, Sora leaps to life and snatches the charm in his hand with inhuman speed, so swift and dazzling it was like he moved faster than light itself. The pervert stepped back with shock as Sora held the charm in his hand once more, head down to stare at it before he raised his face to the king, his men, and Ren's team. With glowing yellow eyes, Sora reached for his face and grabbed hold of the mask that binds his other self, and with a cry, he rips it off.

A splash of crimson flies from his face before he is engulfed in holy fire. A powerful shockwave booms from him, shattering the windows, shaking the ground, bellowing winds blow all around, and ripping the carpet. The wave even sends nearly all the knights aside, crushing their beings with raw power alone, even the teens and Kamoshida had to force themselves to stay grounded by grabbing the ground.

With one more yell from the white fires, they vanished before the eyes of those who witnessed something spectacular. Standing there in armor that resembled the nobility and justice of a true king, Sora stands tall. Wearing a massive set of plate mail armor that was large as a man, black and red steel with shoulder pads circular with black dragon heads carved into it, arms matching his third adventure clothes color scheme with metal greaves with his crown stamped on the backhand.

A chain-mail skirt of sorts around his waist to behind his knees while wearing black steel armored pants, boots like his normal ones with more metal, and even a horn on the toe tips. Resting in his left hand is a giant shield the size of himself, red-rimmed on the outer line while being bright white with the black dragon stamped on the face of the mighty shield. In his right hand is a remodified keyblade, dimple key with silver edges, the blade was shining like rays of the sun with the ring guard being small and round like a circle, his crown as its token.

On his back is a long dark velvet cloak reaching to his feet with the dragon king embroidered on it, his head wearing a helmet shaped like a dragon's head, black and dark blue with piercing red eyes above his. The top half of Sora's face is shielded in armor while below his cheeks and jawline is wearing a dragon's maw.

Sora holds his shield closer to himself and raised Dragon's Key high and with one single swipe of this majestic weapon, he decimates Kamoshida's remaining knights. Only the king acting like a coward was he able to be spared from meeting an early demise, ducking his head and throwing himself to the ground. The knights perished by the power of the true king, who stared down the quivering man. Kamoshida scrambled backward until he falls on the stairs leading up to his castle's floors, shaking in terror.

"W-W-What the hell…!? Who are you!?" he demands without an ounce of his arrogant-filled authority.

"Not your prisoner anymore, that's for sure," Sora says, "I dunno who you are or where I am, but the next time you even think of touching this," showing the owner of his heart's good luck charm, "We're not going to be as nice".

"W-We?" squeaks the king.

Sora huffed, his shield disappearing and reappearing on his back, grabbing the sword and stabbing it into the ground straight. A being from bright golden flames roars to life behind him from above, it spreads its mighty wings so far that shadowed Kamoshida in darkness, a humanoid dragon with black scales and reddish flesh, piercing red eyes with overwhelming power pouring from its very being. "The real king of the castle, Bahamut!", Sora proudly proclaims.

One last scream of terror from the cowardly tyrant echoes through the hall before he runs for his miserable life, leaving the thieves and knight behind. When he was gone, Sora's armor shines for a brief moment before it vanishes and leaves him in what Morgana and Ren guessed was his other self's clothes.

Sora now wears a dark red t-shirt with a black and white jacket, the top in black with the lower half is white with two dark blue belts wrapped around his waist with a buckle shaped like a heart. Baggy black and white pants in reverse pattern to his upper clothing, black shoes with red steel tips, and two dark red straps around the body of the shoes. His glovelettes were black with red wraps around them, fingerless. His crown necklace hanging freely down his neck while a crimson red version of it is embroidered on his back.

His mask is dark red and shaped like a dragon's skull, reaching from the sides of his forehead down to his jawline, the center having an outstretched upper maw of the dragon while his eyes were encircled.

He blinks and looks at himself with a "whoa" and starts to turn and twist himself to see what he wearing. "Where did all this come from? And…where am I?" he says to himself, looking around the castle for the very first time since he came to this world. Even now he knew this wasn't the final world anymore, yet it was a world he has never set foot in, nor could he shake this oddness. Looking at his hands, he feels something was off about him, something lacking.

"Oh man…don't tell I lost my powers…again," he groaned and slumped, "Riku's never gonna let me live this down…".

Then he straightens up and turns to the trio, Ryuji's jaw nearly hitting the ground while Ren and Morgana stare at him with wide eyes. Sora blinks and then with his usual friendly smile, waves at them with cheer in his voice.

"Hey there!" he greets.

"HI THERE!? DUDE!" Ryuji screams, "What the actual HELL was that!? How did ya do that!? Who the actual EFF are you!?".

"Oh, I'm Sora," introduces the spiky-haired boy, "And I…actually, I dunno how I did that but, hey! It helped didn't it?".

"Yeah…gotta give him that," chuckles Ren, shaking his head. Ryuji opens his mouth again before he sighed, too exhausted from the whole ordeal to care anymore. "Name's Ren, this here is Ryuji, and this little guy is Morgana".

Sora grinned brightly but before he could ask more about them, the cat leaps into the air waving his paws. "Come on! No time to waste, Kamoshida is gonna send more after us if we waste any more time!" he stresses, "Let's get you guys outta here!".

"Right, come on!" Ren says with a nod and gestures to Sora to follow. With a nod, Sora follows the Trickster and his team out of the castle.

Unaware of this new journey of his has only begun…

A/N:

…so yeah…this was a thingy.

Originally I was planning on using KH instead of the TWEWY, but considering how little attention the latter gets, I figured they deserve an epic crossover adventure. That said, I really wanted to write more KH stuff again and I wanted to get this out there.

Now I know the ending kinda hints there's more but after Neku's story? You know how it goes. That said…ya never know…

Anyways: my questions for this!

Q1: Thoughts on this?

Q2: Sora's Persona and forms?

I will explain more later and I am thinking of something with the main story, but at a later date due to work obligations. Thanks for reading this! Stay awesome but more importantly stay safe!