Chapter 2: Hard to Catch

"…Yeah, then all of them disappeared, and I noticed it looked a little cleaner than before."

The Master struck a pose of deep intrigue. "Really? You mind showing me?"

When Sora summoned the x-blade, the cloaked academic inspected it closely, drawing the following conclusion, "I'd say we're one step closer. And you're serious when you say it happened right after intercourse with that girl over there?"

Smacked with embarrassment, Sora replied, "Yeah."

"And how many of those 'glowing copies' did you see before they disappeared?"

"I could swear it was six. Hold on—Kairi saw them, too." Turning around, he called over to the princess sitting with Axel and Merlin, "Hey, Kairi—how many of those extra x-blade-copies did you see before they disappeared?"

Definitely watching Sora converse with straight-up air, Kairi called back, though a little delayed, "I, uh…I remember seeing seven, including the x-blade itself. So, six copies."

The Master of Masters processed it, "Right—six copies plus the x-blade. And one of them merged with the original, leaving behind five copies. Sora…do you know what that might mean?"

The non-virgin lad enlisted a sheepish head-rub to accompany his grasp of the situation, then saying, "I…I think I have to do it five more times—"

"Bingo!" The Master of Masters chimed in agreement. "I suggest you get busy again, ASAP!"

Sora chuckled. "I reeeeeally think we should take a break, first. We kinda went at it pretty hard."

Meanwhile, at the picnic table just outside the cottage, Kairi was tentatively avoiding any sort of question relating to her whereabouts in the last hour. The charade became especially difficult to uphold when Axel asked, "Did you learn anything new from Sora?"

"Er—not much. We just walked and talked." She mentally kicked herself, realizing she'd just said that same sentence ten seconds ago.

Giving a brief pause, Axel then observed, "Looks like you went for a swim, too."

"Oh, yeah, that's right, I…I slipped and fell into a…—puddle, and I wanted to wash up, so—"

Axel prodded, "A puddle, huh? Your clothes don't look dirty. Did you quickly take them off right before it happened?"

Merlin urged, "Come off it, Axel. You're badgering her."

On the brink of eruption, Kairi hissed, "I think you know what happened, Axel…!"

"No way, I've got no clue!" the fire-bender denied, although his smirk said otherwise. "Why don't ya go ahead and give us every detail, starting with the best part?"

"UGH!" Kairi huffed, standing up and pacing toward Sora's conversation with an invisible party.

While Axel cracked up, Sora looked back and spotted Kairi approaching him. The Master quickly suggested, "Ask about her vagina."

"Eh—? Kairi, I was thinking about leaving for a bit to catch Master Yen Sid and the king up to speed. But if I leave…" Sora looked dejected.

"I probably won't see you for a while," Kairi finished, her tone mirroring the boy's countenance. "That's…okay, I guess."

"I won't take too long." Hoping to uplift her mood, he held onto her hands, telling her, "I'd be insane to make you wait."

She relinquished one golden smile, replying, "I wish that was more convincing."

"Hey, give me some credit. Being apart is torture for me, too."

They proceeded to do the thing where they stare and smile at each other. Oh, and a kiss followed, a kiss that Axel seemed to enjoy equally as much as they did—if not, more so.

"Wooo-hooo—! A hero's work is never done, amirite?! WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! WOOF—!"

Kairi explained, "Yeah, he might've picked up on our lovemaking."

"You don't say," Sora chuckled. Summoning his super-weapon, he bid farewell, "Don't get too skilled without me."

However, when he pointed his weapon, no portal showed itself, causing him to hum in confusion. Pointing harder, he displayed some frustration when more nothing continued to happen.

"What's going on?"

Also thrown a curveball, the Master of Masters uttered, "Weird. I can't even bring out one myself."

Merlin then called over to the struggling boy, "Having trouble, Sora?"

"Yeah. Can't get a portal to Yen Sid's."

Walking over, the high-level wizard offered his explanation, "That's because, in response to your sudden arrival, I quadrupled the strength of the magic barrier sealing this forest. Instead, you'll need me to teleport you to Twilight Town first, and then you should be able to travel as you see fit."

"Twilight Town, eh?" Sora had a thought. Using his fancy-shmancy x-blade, he suddenly opened a portal out of nowhere, much to Merlin's chagrin. "Oops. Guess I had a hunch it would work."

"Yes, I suppose you're full of surprises. Now, off you go, Sora. It's past time I resumed training my students."

"Gotcha. I'll see you in a bit. Later, Axel—!"

"Wait—you're coming back?!" Merlin suddenly interrupted.

Sora hesitantly replied. "…Yeah…? Is that bad…?"

"I wouldn't say 'bad' but rather 'inconvenient'! You've already dashed away an hour of training for Kairi and Axel, thus throwing them off schedule, and let's face it, these two need all the training they can get!"

"Thanks, Merlin," Axel chimed from the cottage wall.

Sighing, Sora gradually accepted that he needed to be apart from her again, not knowing for how long. "I hear you loud and clear, Merlin. I'll, uh…just wait until you're done with training, Kairi."

Just then, the Master reminded him, "Don't forget—we have a theory to test."

"But, I…just wanna see her one more time, and then I'll leave you be, I promise."

Looking upon the pleading gaze of the newly bequeathed x-blade wielder, Merlin sighed, remembering he was young once, too.

-X-

"Hey, a lucky emblem!" said Olette, spotting a not-so hidden mickey on a brick wall.

"No fair—I wanna be the eagle eye for once!" Hayner complained.

"You snooze, you lose." After snapping a picture of the emblem, Olette proudly stated, "This oughta be enough for a free ribbon!"

While Hayner and Pence took their turns snapping pictures, Olette's whole body froze as she spotted a certain someone running in from the Station Heights. Without thinking, she said, "No way—Sora's back!"

"You said 'Sora'?" Pence asked, peering in the direction she was staring.

Noticing him grab up a runaway fruit, Hayner raised an eyebrow, as well as a question, "Think he's looking for us?"

"Come on, let's get his attention!" Olette elected, already pacing in Sora's direction.

Meanwhile, the spiky-haired lad was in the middle of getting sidetracked, and as soon as he picked up the rogue orange, he breathed a sigh of relief—

"Sora!" a girl's familiar voice called to him.

Spotting the trio, Sora threw his hands behind his head and greeted them, "Well, well! Long time, no see!"

Pence found that humorous, pointing out, "It's only been a few days!"

"I guess it felt like a lifetime. What are you guys up to?"

Hayner informed, "Just lookin' for money and fame, the usual. How 'bout you?"

"Well, I was just swinging through when a furry little guy needed my help. He had a bunch of fruits and vegetables, and one of them rolled downhill, so I chased it down for him."

The Twilight Town trio stared at the orange before Pence asked, "Someone's collecting fruit?"

"Not sure. The little guy was an actual mouse, so he didn't talk much."

Olette gave a critical observation of the orange in Sora's hand, "That looks fresh. You mind if I hold it?"

"Here."

Rather than take the fruit like everyone was expecting her to do, she decided to hold both it and Sora's hand at one time, then enlisting a few squeezes for good measure. She voiced her breathy approval, "Wow, it's so firm…"

Sora, on the other hand, voiced his affluent boner, "Yep."

Hayner interrupted all that with, "Yeah, I bet it's juicy, too—shouldn't you return it to the mouse-guy?"

"Oh—right."

"We'll go with you!" Olette once again elected for the whole squad.

And indeed, they accompanied Sora on his short trek back to the Station Heights, where the little mouse guy was posted up next to his fruit wagon, eagerly awaiting Sora's completion of the fetch-quest. He seemed especially stoked to reclaim his "firm" orange, for he gave a solid round of applause while beaming from ear to ear.

"Here ya go, little guy—"

"Sora, that's no mouse. That's definitely a rat."

Olette's keen observation threw the animal-loving lad for a loop. He sputtered, "I, uh…didn't know there was a difference?"

Pence posited, "I think mice are supposed to be cuter. This guy's got some charm, but he ain't beating out the cuteness of a mouse—sorry, little rat-bro."

The little dude found their banter insulting and unnecessary, for he rolled his eyes and tapped his foot ill-temperedly. Expertly peeping the body language, Sora said, "Aw, ya made him mad. Come here, little fella. I think you're A-O.K.!"

Olette admonished the friendly boy currently extending his hand, "Don't do that, Sora! He'll crawl on you!"

Laughing it up, Sora said, "Relax! He's not gonna—"

And then it happened so fast, from the little legs scampering up Sora's arm to the impressive leap to the top of his spiky head. And somehow, through perilous, rat-borne trickery, the little scoundrel was able to assume control of Sora's extremities, causing him to flail about until flipping off Olette and Pence.

"Holy smokes!" Pence yelled.

"That thing's a freak of nature!" Hayner declared, thence being flipped the bird against Sora's will as well.

"Get him off of me!" Sora shouted.

Entering a battle-stance, Hayner aimed a fist, yelling, "Hold still! I'll knock 'im loose!"

While Hayner swung wild, Olette shrieked, "You're gonna punch him in the face!"

"Yeah, please don't," said Sora.

"You'll thank me later!"

However, before a single punch landed, the little trickster jumped down from Sora's head and back to his fruit wagon, offering a smile of mischief and mayhem, a surefire recipe for entrees of pure villainy.

Yeah, anyway, after the trauma subsided, Sora wiped his brow and said his goodbyes, "Well, that was crazy. Anyway, I've gotta get going! I promise I'll stay a bit longer next time—"

"You're leaving already?!" exclaimed a disappointed Olette.

"Yeah, it's kind of urgent. I promise it won't take long, and really, it was great seeing you all again!"

And with that, Sora waved and jogged in the other direction. Meanwhile, Pence called back, "Oh—well, see ya, Sora! Lookin' good by the way!" After receiving the to-be-expected look of suspicion from Hayner, the Dogstreet representative explained, "Gotta admit, the guy's got this glow these days."

Crossing his arms, Hayner was all like, "Tch, I guess."

But then, Olette said, "Pretty sure he's always like that."

-X-

Elsewhere, in the badlands of a world far off, Master Xehanort called a meeting with a few of his newly formed Organization members. Stuck in concentration atop a rock pillar, he knew something was afoul in the web of schemes he'd yet to call his own.

Finally, Xigbar arrived, followed by Luxord and then Marluxia. The master waited, allowing more time for Ansem, Xemnas, and Vexen to finally show themselves.

"Good. You all made yourselves available."

After a brief lull, Xigbar chimed, "Well?"

Xehanort closed his eyes. "It would seem every single one of us is nearing unavoidable destruction."

Marluxia repeated cautiously, "This is your prediction, that we'll be destroyed?"

"Yes, I'm almost certain the end of all we know is approaching quickly." Opening his eyes to peer upon the other seekers of darkness, each on their own respective pillar, Xehanort exclaimed, "Kingdom Hearts has already been summoned!"

Many gasps resounded, followed by Vexen questioning, "What? How can that be possible?"

"Yeah, what gives?" Xigbar asked. "I don't even see Kingdom Hearts!"

Xehanort explained, "Somehow, it has been summoned, but not fully. In the sky, it has yet to manifest, but a sliver of its power has been revealed."

Ansem crossed his arms, solemnly fortifying the master's thesis, "I, too, can sense Kingdom Hearts's power. It is infinite yet infantile."

"And rather difficult to trace," Master Xehanort added. "I sense it's power resides remarkably close to a source of light, perhaps one of its protectors."

Luxord commented, "One would call that the ace of a lifetime."

Nodding, the old master continued, "It would be wise to find the source of this power as soon as possible, for not even I can determine it's alignment with our scheme."

Xemnas offered, "One theory suggests that we may be dealing with an artificial version of Kingdom Hearts. But one would assume it could still be found physically."

"Regardless," Xehanort continued, "I'll be sure to monitor every development stemming from this mysterious source of power. Ansem, Xemnas, I want you to keep a close eye on our opponents, especially Sora—and Vexen, have more Replicas prepared by tomorrow. We must maintain dominance of the stage."

-X-

"The Master of…Masters?" Yen Sid repeated. "Such a name harkens back times of yore…"

Unsure of the situation, Jiminy Cricket asked, "And you're sure he's here with us…in this very room?"

Sora nodded, glancing at the nearly fictitious foreteller beside him. "He's here."

Goofy muttered to Donald, "Do ya think he's seein' things?"

Donald muttered back, "I think he's bluffing…"

"I heard that—!"

"I am beside myself," said Yen Sid, staring in wonder at the cross-key super saber in Sora's possession. "To sit in presence of such a legendary key, the key above all other keys…"

"But Sora said it's incomplete," Jiminy pointed out, also inspecting the weapon. "Looks like it's missing a few pieces. Do ya know how to upgrade it?"

"Kinda-sorta…" Sora trailed off.

Donald wasted no time in channeling the power of pushy, "Well? Out with it!"

"I mean, I'm pretty sure I upgraded it once already." The boy in question inhaled one good time, then, "It happened right after I fucked Kairi."

Panning his head from left to right, Sora was met with the stunned gazes of Goofy, Yen Sid, Jiminy Cricket, and then Donald, and all four struggled to form a single cohesive sentence, resulting in a complex series of confused anime-moans.

Yen Sid asked, "You've been to see Kairi?"

"Yep, I saw her."

"But that should be impossible—her location is sealed away by Merlin's magic!"

Sora revealed, "Merlin told me I might've broken the spell. I guess this x-blade comes with a lot of neat tricks."

Astonished and agitated, Donald bid for more details, "You're saying you and Kairi…got busy in the training world meant for training and training only?!"

"Yeah, that's the gist." Noticing the disappointed facial expressions, Sora added, "It just kinda happened."

Out of everyone there, Yen Sid found it, "Interesting. Engaging in coital relations with Princess Kairi caused the x-blade to upgrade itself, but it presently appears far from complete. Sora, do you wager a repeat of the process would yield another upgrade?"

"You mean 'doing it' again? The Master and I both have that hunch, which is why I want to return to Kairi just in case it does work."

Jiminy became overly curious just then. "So, was it weird? 'Doing it' while the Master of Masters was watching?"

"What in the sweet holy kupo?!" the Master shrieked. "Sora—tell them I was nowhere near—!"

"Oh, no—the Master was off looking for clues!" Sora diffused. "Kairi and I were completely secluded!"

Everyone breathed sighs of relief. The cricket journalist then admitted. "That coulda been a weird situation, Sora."

"Yes, that is quite fortunate," Yen Sid echoed. "Yet, I would continue to remain cautious around this Master of Masters if I were you. He may convey a lack of knowledge, but logically, he should know the most out of all of us."

"Well, that sounded backhanded, but okay," the invisible coat-master noted.

"I'll keep an eye on him. And hopefully, we'll find a way to make him visible so you guys can believe me."

"Indeed." Waving his hand majestically, the high wizard brought forth a pair of unique suitcases atop his desk. "And off of your unexpected return, I'd like to request a delivery of these new clothes to Kairi and Lea."

"Oh, nice. You think the rest of us will get new outfits, too?" Sora seemed genuinely curious.

Yen Sid replied, "King Mickey and Riku have already acquired their new vestments. They received them shortly before they departed."

"Aw, man. So, what about me?"

"You returned sooner than expected, Sora. You'll have to wait a bit longer for your specially-crafted outfit. But—there is one thing ready for you."

Sora nearly did a backflip. "Really?!"

-X-

"You know, I couldn't help but notice you seemed a bit more…how should I say…eager to see Sora, today," Pence deftly analyzed.

Put on the spot, Olette first reacted with a look of astonishment, then she "pssh'd" and "chh'd" a few times, then a totally believable gasp happened, followed by her airtight defense, "I was not eager!"

Hayner assisted Pence's allegation, "Uh—yeah, you were! You were the first one to start chasing after him. Twice."

"Chas—? I wasn't cha—I was just—"

"Just being eager," Hayner once again assisted.

"Plus," said Pence. "You seemed totally shocked that he had to leave so early. I mean, granted, he did dip rather quickly, but you took it the hardest."

"And what was up with all that orange-squeezing?" Hayner questioned. "You were totally holding hands with the guy!"

"Was not!" Olette borderline shrieked. "And I didn't take anything hard! I was just—shut it—I was just expecting him to hang out a bit longer. And maybe update us on the whole Kairi-getting-kidnapped situation…"

Reclining on a stack of boxes, Pence offered one more piece of context to support his claim, "Well, I just want to point out that you've never been eager to see Sora. In fact, you've usually displayed the opposite attitude any time he shows up."

Olette threw in some doubt, "What? When…?"

-Enter Flashback-

Catching up to Olette outside the Usual Spot, Pence strolled with her and commented, "Pretty random, those guys, huh?"

"That Sora-boy was dressed weird," Olette stated as fact. "His friends seemed normal enough, but I'm not sure what's going on with him."

Pence shrugged. "Well, at least he was coolheaded—"

"Plus, he seemed kinda dumb. Like, doesn't he do homework? He must want to flunk."

"Uh…"

-Enter Another Flashback-

Having caught up to Hayner, who'd been in a little mood all day that day, Olette and Pence quickly brought up the three newbies who wandered into their chill spot.

"We had to have seem him around town somewhere," Pence debated.

"I guess you're right. I do feel like I know him," Hayner pondered, letting his cold heart thaw just a little bit. But then Olette gave her analysis:

"Well, if he lives here, he clearly hasn't been to the clothing store. We should probably show him where it is."

Hayner and Pence just…stared.

-Enter Yet Another Flashback-

"Wow…that tear looked real," Hayner commented, standing in shock inside the train station. "It feels like there's a connection between us."

Watching the train leave, Pence added, "I hope he comes back. Maybe we'll hang out as friends and go to the beach."

Olette threw in some more doubt, "Well, he'll need some money to do that, and I don't think he has any—"

"Olette, you're killing me," Pence died slowly.

-Last One…For Now-

Walking back to the Usual Spot with Hayner and Olette, Pence said, "Man, I sure hope Sora and Kairi find each other. They seem so nice!"

Hayner agreed, "I know! Makes ya wonder how they act around each other…"

Olette said, "Well, for their sake, I hope they can work a job. I can totally see them dropping out from all the school they miss—"

"Holy crap, Olette!" Hayner shrieked.

-End Flashbacks-

"Didn't you actually tell him to get a job one time?" Hayner asked. "Like, to his face?"

Olette grumbled, "Well, honestly, he looks like he's doing better for himself, anyway, so maybe that's why I'm nicer!"

Pence pressed square for Doubt, "Uh, I mean, kinda. But what, it's been like a few days?"

"Ugh—whatever. I'm gonna go pick up some ice cream. You two want some, too, or what?"

"Nah, I'm tryna watch my weight," said the slick-back bad boy, grabbing a magazine.

Pence also rejected, "Watching mine too. I'm watching it real good."

Rolling her eyes, Olette said, "Suit yourself. I need some fresh air anyway."

And so, she strutted her stuff all the way out of there, roaming the heights while checking her phone's notifications. Then, that voice reached her from around the corner.

"Don't worry, Donald and Goofy. I should be back by tomorrow. Wait, actually, I should be back later tonight. I mean, I think…?"

Olette reacted fast; she hung back, froze, turned around, and froze again. She ultimately decided to turn back around, making it seem like she was further away from the corner than originally initiated. Without looking too awkward or too normal, the Princess of Smarts expertly caught Sora's attention as he rounded the corner.

From the phone in his hand, Donald's quackcent rang through, "Well, don't get sidetracked. And don't forget to use protection."

"Oh, hey, Olette!" Sora greeted. "Say hi to Olette, guys!"

Giggling at the colorful pair on camera, Olette waved and said, "How do you do?"

While Donald grumbled, Goofy commented, "I think it's too late for that first thing, Donald."

The duck mage insisted, "Just don't forget about using protec—"

Deciding to cut the conversation short, Sora said while nervously tapping around the screen, "Okay, so, yeah—see you when I see you!"

"Don't forget to be a gentleman, Sora! Ahoo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hooOOoo!"

Unfortunately, Goofy's toxic laugh completed in its entirety before Sora could hang up, but Olette seemed unfazed. In fact, she was wholly focused on the new gizmo in his hand.

"Wow, cool phone!" she swooned.

"Yeah, it is kinda nice. It takes pictures and everything—!"

"What?! Let's take a quick selfie!"

"A 'selfie'…?"

After a quick and wholly unnecessary explanation, Sora and Olette posed together for a photograph, and after snapping more than a few, the eager lass requested, "Oh, you should send me that one!"

"'Send you one'…?"

"Do I have to explain everything—?"

"No, no—I've got it. Uh…so, I'm pretty sure I hit this button, then I go here, and…now it's asking me for a 'contact number'?"

"Here, I've got you."

Three, two, one—bam. Sora just acquired a girl's number in less than an hour of gaining a phone. Aside from winning, Sora was also grinning, albeit awkwardly. Completing that side-mission, he hit send and said, "Welp." Then, for whatever reason, he segued into, "I can't wait to try all the 'apps' on this thing."

"Oh, right! Do you have Kupo Plus?"

"Kupo-What?"

After a brief and superhumanly patient explanation from Olette, Sora found himself downloading the new and popular app for posting pictures and videos. And also a Twitter-clone and a Snapchat-clone, but we won't dive into that here.

Olette added for clarity, "They're all great ways to keep in touch with people. Even celebrities use them!"

Watch out, watch out, watch out, "Like you?" Cheekiness outta nowhere.

The socialite girl found that infinitely amusing, so she laughed, deflecting, "Whatever~. So what were you getting into?"

"A girl named Kairi," said the Master with a chuckle.

"Oh, that's right—I kinda have to deliver this to Kairi!" He motioned to the pair of suitcases he'd put down to better take selfies and download apps. And flirt. "She's pretty close by, but there's a secret passage I have to use. Sorry—that means I have to go again!"

"Oh, Kairi's okay…?" Olette had visibly deflated upon hearing that name.

"Oh—yeah, she's doing well! Uh…and not kidnapped."

She replied with a small delay, "Cool, um… Yeah, I don't want to hold you. I guess hit me up on whatever if you figure out how the apps work…"

"Sure thing, Olette." Holding the suitcases, Sora summoned his x-blade, pointed it at the wall, and—

"Oh my gosh—Sora, what is that!?"

"Oh, uh…?"

The incognito Master remarked, "Maybe use some discretion next time—just a suggestion."

"It's kind of my new weapon, and…I'm using it to train Kairi!" That was the best he could come up with.

Seeing straight through that, Olette pressed square for Doubt, "There's definitely more to it than that."

"Yeahhh, there kind of is. But it helps me get to Kairi's world—speaking of which, I have to go right now! See ya hopefully sooner than later, Olette!"

"R-Right! Nice seeing you, Sora!" She didn't move immediately. "Sorry, I really wanna see what you're about to do with that thing."

"Okay—stand back."

Sora's x-blade revealed an enchanted portal on the wall, leading back to the sequestered training grounds. Nodding at the astonished girl, he chuckled and leapt inside, letting it close behind him.

"Wow…"

She glanced at her own phone, smiling at the selfie they just took.

"He's such a doofus…"