Smaller, More Honest Souls

by MasterCaedus

Following the cataclysmic events of RWBY season 3, Remnant is in disarray and team RWBY is torn apart. Ruby and JNPR are the only ones chasing after Cinder Fall to exact justice. Worlds away, Sora fights the final battle for Kingdom Hearts against Xehanort and to gain justice for those he has hurt. Who is Salem, and could these battles be part of the same war against the Darkness?

20. Dying Light

Chapter 20: Dying Light

Sora roared and continued to run, alone, towards Salem with his weapon raised. The Keyblade was burning with the Light of his Heart, a blade erupting from its surface to elongate the weapon into a huge blade of power. He brought it down in front of him in a powerful, two handed slash that crashed into the incoming beam of Light. The young man was taken aback by the incredible resistance the energy attack exerted against his weapon, a testament to the sheer power of the woman behind the attack. Nonetheless, Sora was able to bring the Keyblade down all the way and bisect the energy. The two halves flew away through the bloody mist, one eventually crashing into the far off mountain and turning the once huge stone into glowing ash. Sora glanced down – he had slid backwards through the dirt almost four feet from the sheer force of the blast.

Sora shook it off and ran right at Salem once again, this time firing off Firagas at where Salem stood. She merely clasped her hands in front of her, red and black eyes intently studying the abilities of the young man opposite her. As the burning balls of magic came near her, she raised one hand lazily and flicked her wrist. Four small hexagons of Light appeared directly in the paths of the Firagas, and the explosions all bounced right back towards Sora.

The Keyblade Wielder's eyes widened and he flipped over the first to reach him, burying the tip of his weapon into the attack to send it into the ground. From there he twirled in midair and slapped the next two away with a single blow before raising a Reflega to block the last one. He landed in a roll, the four explosions expanding behind him like a wild fire. There was a loud ding as the explosions hit a wall – Sora realized that it was one of those containing barriers his enemies used against him when they wanted to deal with him alone. That just meant he didn't have to worry about accidentally hurting his friends.

At this point, Sora was probably only a few steps away from where Salem stood. "Do not think to limit yourself against me, Child," Salem demanded, hand glowing as she raised it suddenly. Sora dove to the side as the hair on the back of his neck began to stand up, narrowly avoiding a deadly explosion of Light that shot straight up from the ground. Unfortunately for him, he rolled right into another and shouted out in pain as he was sent flying a few feet upwards.

He righted himself quickly, however, and the Keyblade began to glow with power. Sora raised it above his head and roared, throwing it right at the woman. The Keyblade flew at her, spinning like a saw. She leaned slightly to the side, avoiding the Keyblade that was coming her way effortlessly. Sora hit the ground and brought his hand back. There was a flash and the Keyblade returned so he could throw the weapon at her again. Again, she moved around the attack. Sora tried again and again, only for the woman to easily dodge the series of attacks as if they were barely moving.

When the Keyblade came towards her for the final time, Salem fired off a thin beam of light towards the young man, sidestepping the Strike Raid as she did. The blast hit Sora square in the chest and he tumbled backwards. The Keyblade flashed into his hand, tip buried in the ground to slow his path through the Dust, only stopping completely when his heel tapped against the barrier holding him in. The young man scrabbled to his feet and dashed out of the path of another stream of energy. The Dust where he had been standing a moment before was incredibly flammable and, despite his dodge, the resulting explosion sent him flying away again. With a start, he realized that he might have made a big mistake facing this Salem person so thoughtlessly.

Sora spun midair, casting a Cure to heal his wounds and get back in the fight. He glanced over his shoulder at his friends, who were pounding whatever they could against the wall. He turned back to Salem and slowly raised his weapon to a defensive position, trying to stay ready for whatever it was that the woman would throw his way next. Nothing she had done so far could compare to what he'd faced before, so he'd just have to play this smarter than he thought. That was no problem. "You're better than Xehanort's usually cannon fodder," Sora said with a mocking smile. He aimed the blade towards her. "But I've beaten the man himself more than once."

"'Xehanort's..?'" Salem asked, the glow around her hand disappearing. She clasped them behind her back and took a few steps toward Sora. "You believe I am... what, an unruly pawn of his?"

"Well, I did," Sora explained. He let the Keyblade dip a little and he shrugged nervously while scratching his chin. "But what you just said is giving me some doubts."

"Sora, she is not -"

"Oh, don't ruin the surprise, Oz," Salem commanded. Without looking, she fired off a stream of ice that froze the man's mouth shut, then grinned at the grunts that replaced his words. "Not when the questions this child is asking are all about yours truly. Revealing a woman's secrets, Oz? Is chivalry dead?"

Salem took a few more steps towards Sora, only stopping once he raised his weapon again. She raised her hands in front of her. "Oh, please. Don't hurt me," she said mockingly, waving her hands from side to side. Salem laughed and let her arms fell, lacing her fingers together. She smiled calmly and cocked her head to the side. "Sora, you have entered a tier of skill and power far beyond someone as simple and weak as Xehanort. Cast aside hope, Boy. To fight me would be stupidity, not bravery."

Sora narrowed his eyes and cast a look over his shoulder. His friends were trying in vain to get through the barrier between them, pained looks present especially on the faces of the Branwen twins. Seeing their friend like this was... difficult. "I'm fighting because it's right," Sora said simply. He took a few steps forward and steeled himself for another bout with Salem. The young man lowered his hand to his pocket and pulled out a pellet of white Dust.

Sora clenched his fist and reached into the place in his Heart where his power was held, the resulting shock of energy channeling through his body and eliciting a huge flash of light and the creation of a temporary Reflega wall. Sora appeared moments later in his Final Form, Keyblades floating across his back surrounded by blindingly white auras. The ground beneath his hovering feet shuddered and he altered his gravity, firing off like a bullet towards Salem. "Disappointing, but understandable," Salem muttered boredly. She held her arms out to her sides, black sleeves draping like shadows from Summer's thin arms. "Show me what amounts to a Keyblade Master now."

Sora roared and slashed upward with his hands, crossing them over his chest. The Keyblades followed suit, both of them swirling in front of him to slash across the chest of the woman. She did not even bother to move that time, allowing the two weapons to crash into her and slice through the abdomen of her clothes. Her white skin appeared in an 'X' and the black of her dress frayed where it was torn, but Sora had already moved on to his next attack. The twin Keyblades spun around his back and he grabbed one with his right hand, locking its teeth with those of the other and landing a heavy attack on Salem's face. Her head snapped to the side and Sora brought his hand back quickly to land the locked together blades on her nose. Again, no actual damage was dealt to the woman's form.

Sora growled to himself and floated upward to charge his next attack away from the woman. She turned her head slowly towards him, smiling as his hands and Keyblades each began to glow with an orb of light each. Salem did nothing besides that, however, merely standing in place and clasping her hands behind her again. Sora wordlessly shoved his hands forward, the four orbs firing off thin streams that merged together and shot towards Salem as one, incredibly powerful beam.

When it got close enough, however, the woman slowly raised one of her hands to where the attack would meet her. The stream collided with her hand and... nothing happened. The Light energy began to disappear, as if it had never existed, and her dark smile grew wider. "Certainly not the best I have ever seen," she muttered, closing her hand and causing the last vestiges of Sora's assault to disappear, "but neither is it laughable. This 'Mickey' character taught you well.

"But, as I said, you are now amongst a group of warriors with whom you cannot compare." The Light that had disappeared a moment before suddenly reappeared behind Sora, crashing into the small of his back and slamming him into the ground with enough force to suddenly ignite the Dust covering the ground. The explosion sent him reeling yet again, this time landing him squarely at the feet of Salem. She crouched down and grabbed his hood, which was no longer the bright white that his Final Form generated. Pulling the semi conscious boy up to eye level, she sighed, "Sad, because you do show potential, if only slightly." She raised her other hand and the wall surrounding them disappeared; Sora's allies stumbled forward, eyes wide with fear. Their big gun had just been taken down with next to no damage at all dealt to the woman. Salem glanced down at them and tossed the young man she was holding, his Keyblade flying out of his hand as he soared and burying itself in the ground. He rolled to a stop at Ruby's feet, barely half conscious.

"That was intriguing, at the very least," Salem muttered, once again bored by everything going on. She looked over at Ozpin, whose gaze had fallen to the ground with closed eyes. His shoulders were still and low. "What do you think, Oz? I know we've been watching the boy, but seeing two Keyblades in person is much more interesting than seeing it in a portal of Darkness." She walked towards the group of would be heroes and reached down to pull Sora's Keyblade from the ground.

She was cut off when a sniper bullet riddled with Sparks slammed into her chest and exploded violently. Salem sighed in boredom and looked over at the young woman and her smoking sniper-scythe. "Don't touch that!" Ruby Rose snapped, eyes glowing with bright silver wings. Salem scoffed and ignored the Keyblade, instead walking towards Ruby Rose. The witch's hand glowed with a black aura and the Black Dust on the ground began to swirl, eventually forming a hatchet in her right hand and another in her left. Ruby and the others, despite the courage in their hearts, began to stumble backwards from the shark like glint in Salem's eyes. "Stay away!"

"I think I'm going to enjoy this," Salem said, eyes locking on Qrow and Raven especially. She slowly slammed the backs of both weapons together, moving by muscle memory, to create much larger two handed ax. The weapon was swiftly raised above her right shoulder, and then she brought it down to sweep away the children arrayed against her and show them the futility of their resistance.

Just as the weapon came close to colliding with the first of the warriors, there was a bright flash. The huge ax was stopped in its tracks by a slightly bloodied young man with a gold and white Keyblade. "Ruby, heal Xehanort."

"What! You want to fight both of th-" Jaune began to shout incredulously. Sora shot a look over his shoulder as he struggled against the overwhelming weight of Salem's attack.

Ruby looked between the unconscious old man and Sora, who was only using his left arm; his right dangled at an odd angle by his side. "Go!" he shouted. "Wind!" The blast of the Aeroga sent the others sliding away, if only marginally. Ruby used the added momentum to launch into her Semblance, despite her misgivings, and was soon landing beside Xehanort with green light flashing in her wake.

R W B Y

The first thing that Xehanort noticed was the dull pain in his left arm. The entire limb was buzzing, and he knew that he couldn't feel anything else in the arm even if it were being stabbed. His Replica body was finally reaching the end of its life. But, oddly enough, it wasn't giving out yet. He wasn't giving out yet. There was too much left to do. "Wake up, Old Guy!" a young woman shouted. There was a dull thud – his left hand hitting the ground, if he was correct – and then a sharp slap across his face.

Xehanort's yellow eyes flew open, and he was greeted by the visage of a worried young woman with glowing Silver eyes. "Princess?" Xehanort muttered in confusion, forgetting where he was for a moment. He looked around and realized what must have happened. The Fallen Keyblade Master struggled to his feet and looked over the young woman's head. Tan skin became as pale as the young woman's – Sora was dangling from Salem's outstretched hand with Keyblade buried in the ground beside him. "This is..."

"Help him..." Xehanort looked down at the source of the voice and sighed. "Please."

There was a brief, tense pause. Xehanort cast his eyes to the ground and growled angrily. "I have no choice but to do so. The fool accelerated my plans," Xehanort explained coolly. He raised his hand out to his side and the air turned a deeper shade of black specked with white, giving way to the twisted metal of his ancient Keyblade. With the weapon, he gestured at his traveling companions. "Get your friends and these children away. I still have uses for all of you."

"I'm helping," Ruby responded, twirling her weapon over her shoulders.

"And allow you to die? It was Fate we met, young woman," Xehanort explained, stepping in front of the Silver Eyed warrior, "and I will not consign myself to another decades long search for the Heart of a Princess."

"Wh-"

But Xehanort was already at Salem's side, confident that the young woman would listen – at least for now. He began by swinging his Keyblade as hard as he could at Salem's head. Even in his weakened state, the strength behind the blow was considerable. It met a fleshy mark, but it was not that of an ancient witch but of a young Keyblade Master. Sora screamed out in pain as Xehanort's Keyblade slammed into his midsection and he crashed into the ground. From behind his prone body, Salem – smirking the entire time – lanced out with her Dust ax into Xehanort's throat. He ducked beneath the attack, barely, and was rewarded with a Dark Firaga to the head.

Xehanort tumbled across the ground and slowed to a stop on his chest. "GAH!" he shouted as a Sora sized item slammed into his back and bounced off of him.. There was a quiet crack inside his spine. Thankfully only a fracture, not a complete break. "Dammit!"

"Xehanort, have you been filling this poor boy's head with lies all this time?" Salem asked as she slowly approached, dragging the ax along the ground behind her. It made a sharp, grinding noise when the rocks beneath the Dust scratched against the weapon's edge. "You are the most powerful Keyblade Wielder in the World? That you taught me? That I belong to you?" She sighed and placed her foot atop Xehanort's back, eliciting another scream of pain. She slid her foot to the side and slowly picked up the weapon strapped to his back. "At least you did one thing I asked you." She examined the χ -blade with a disdainful look. "Barely."

"What?" Sora asked, struggling to his feet. "You're -"

"Yes, that would be correct. I am the one who gave Xehanort all of the information that led to who his Fall, if you will. I suppose that makes me his teacher, in a way," Salem said, kicking Xehanort to the side. She dropped the ax and it faded away into Dust before it even hit the ground, much like a Grimm would have. With her now free hand she telekinetically lifted the old man to his knees.

"You betrayed me, Xehanort. I do not look kindly on that," she muttered, a livid snarl stretching across her face as she stared down at the man. She growled to let out her anger, and then smiled over at Ozpin. "Children, am I right? They always act so stupid." Salem sighed and looked down at the swaying man. "I suppose I better punish you for your bad behavior, Boy."

Xehanort laughed, a low, guttural noise. His voice came out as a wheeze when he spoke: "You can kill me... But I will die knowing... you're too insane to succeed."

"Hmph..." Salem said, nodding imperceptibly at his words. "I suppose, but it would take one to know one, wouldn't it?" Then she buried the broken blade in the chest of the kneeling warrior. His breath escaped in a pained gurgle, followed quickly by blood that oozed down his chin. Salem 'Hmph'ed again and sighed. "Sadly I cannot have you die just yet. You still have a use in my plans." She raised her hand toward the dying man and a brilliant, white light flashed in her palm. A moment later, Xehanort was frozen solid. She shrugged and cast another spell, a Stop spell as backup to keep him alive.

"Now for the dashing young man over here," the witch said with a grin before turning towards Sora. The young Keyblade Wielder was already on his feet, eyes hard.

"Sora, run!" Ruby shouted, appearing beside him in a cloud of rose petals and wind. Her scythe was pointed away from Salem and over her shoulders, the blade on fire. Her eyes were set with cool anger.

"Let me... deal with this," Sora panted as he leaned against his weapon. There was a flash of green light and he raised his newly healed left arm in front of Ruby. Salem recognized the pain in the young man's eyes, and realized he knew.

Delicious, Salem thought with a smile.

"Sora..." Ruby muttered. Her weapon sagged from her shoulders. "She's too strong."

"Just one more chance," Sora said pleadingly. His eyes said it was more for her sake than his. "I can... win."

"No," Ruby said, shouldering her weapon again. "I'm not letting you do this alone."

"That's your mom."

The young woman went silent, her irises shifting back and forth quickly as she processed that information. Her weapon fell to the ground beside her. Her Heart knew he was correct when she looked over at Salem again, but her mind would not accept this possibility. "You... No. No, you're wrong. My mother is dead. We buried her."

"Not quite," Salem cut in, one finger up. She scoffed and smiled contentedly. "This is her body, but Summer Rose is not home right now. And I don't believe that I can leave a message. She's a little... tied up at the moment."

"You can't fight your mom, Ruby," Sora said, hollowly getting ready to fight the body stealing witch. "And I'm sorry. I should have told you. But it sounds like she's in there, which means I can get her out."

"If you jump into my Heart? Believe me, it's not a place for human eyes; I doubt that Summer is even sane by this point. They never are," Salem warned. She glanced over at the young woman and waved mockingly. "Run along. We'll have time to play tea later, sweetie."

"Shut up!" Sora shouted, dashing toward the woman and slashing down diagonally with a glowing blade. He meant to break the chains holding Summer Rose hostage and binding her to Salem. He would not even get a chance.

Salem raised her hand. It was a simple movement, with no magic or power behind it. No flashy ability that would save her trouble or defend her from the attack. But this was a movement that had deep meaning to it, deep and irrevocable meaning, as it signified that Sora had never had a chance against Salem. Even if Sora had been a thousand times stronger than she, he would have lost merely by bringing the weapon that he did into their battle.

When the Keyblade met her hand, the Light surrounding it vanished and it shivered in Sora's two handed grip. The Keyblade Wielder glanced down at the weapon then brought it back and slashed from the other direction at Salem's head. Before it even touched her hair, the Kingdom Key stopped itself as if it had a mind of its own. Sora glanced between the woman and his weapon. "Wh-wha-?" He shook his head and brought it back one more time. He shifted his grip, Salem letting him take his time. Then he jumped forward to stab directly into the woman's chest.

Salem raised her right hand out to her side and blinked once. When the Keyblade began to come into contact with her chest, it slowly began to disappear in a flash of light that traveled down the length of the weapon as it came closer and closer to her chest. At the same time, the tip of the weapon began to appear in a bright flash just beyond the woman's right hand. Slowly, the entire weapon disappeared from Sora's hand and came to rest in the outstretched fist of Salem. "What..?" Sora asked, staring blankly at his empty, outstretched hands. He gritted his teeth and clenched his hands, willing the Keyblade return to his grasp. It did not. "That's not -"

"Possible? Hm... it's quite possible actually," the woman responded, letting the weapon fall to her side. "I did create it, after all." With her free hand, she backhanded Sora to the ground. He did not resist, did not fight back. He was far too surprised by what had just happened to do anything, at that moment. He lay spread eagled on the ground, dazed eyes glaring up at the sky, and Salem placed the tip of his own weapon on his chest. He shook himself from his stupor and began to vainly fight against the pressure she was exerting.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Salem glanced up lazily at the source of the voice and saw a swirling vortex of flowers and flames streaking toward her. Salem laughed to herself and brought the Kingdom Key up as fast as she could, at a speed that even Ruby could not match. There was a resounding crack, and Ruby shouted out in pain.

"RUBY!" Qrow screamed, running forward after her. Salem looked over and raised her left hand to raise a wall around the other fighters to keep them trapped. The man ran headfirst into it at full speed and immediately found himself unconscious.

Salem turned around to where the red bullet had landed, surrounded by the shattered fragments of her scythe weapon. The blade was buried in the Dust to her left and the handle was cut in two buried either near her head or feet. She glanced between Sora and the slowly recovering Ruby then decided that neither would be a problem. She looked over at the group that she had captured, shrugged, then walked towards them.

"Wh- I..." Qrow muttered as he woke up. He glanced around groggily and his eyes widened when he locked gazes with the terrified Raven. "No. Rae, no. Rae, don't -" But she had already turned around and carved through space, jumping through alone and leaving her allies to their fate. "DAMMIT, RAVEN!"

"Abandoned by Ozpin's spy. I wish I could say I didn't see that one coming, but I remember most of the things Summer does. All of her thoughts, Dusty Old Crow," Salem taunted as she neared. She stopped and raised her reclaimed Keyblade before leveling it at Jaune. "You. You're full of Darkness, aren't you? Oh, I don't mean to insult you. I personally want to see what only Darkness would look like. It would be so interesting, wouldn't it? Unlike the rest of these... children and fools, you have promise."

Jaune glanced around, eyes hardening as they passed over Qrow and Sora. "Go to hell!" he snapped, holding his sword in front of him. "I won't betray my friends!"

"Even if they betrayed you..?" Salem smiled and swept the Keyblade to the side. The wall of Light flashed around the group and, suddenly, Jaune was pushed out to stand alone with the ancient warrior. She smiled calmly and looked around before she finally pointed at Xehanort's frozen form. "Do you know what that weapon buried in Xehanort's gut can do?"

Jaune kept his weapons raised in front of him and didn't respond. He was rather good at keeping that same steely and angry glare that would be heroes had before they were corrupted forever.

"At the moment? Nothing. Sad, but true," she explained. She began pacing and smiled. "But if I complete it, it can do anything. For instance, create worlds or destroy them. Alter reality. Even, well, revive the dead."

Jaune's weapons dipped for a moment. "I've been watching you. All of you, but especially you. You have promise, like I said," Salem explained. She stopped pacing and dismissed the Keyblade from her hand. "Which is why I want to make a deal. You said that you would do anything to get that young woman back? Remember, at the dance with Sora. 'I would do anything to get her back.' Would you work with those you hate, the ones who killed her, if it meant saving her?"

"No..."

"So you didn't love her!" Salem pointed out disapprovingly. She shook her head as if deeply disappointed in the young man. "You never cared for her at all if you believe that people like Ruby and Ren and Nora and Sora – people who betrayed you – are more important that Pyrrha Nikos. Shameful, really."

"No, I -"

"You don't love her enough to do anything for her," Salem continued. She shook her head in mock sadness. "And here I thought I could help you bring her back, help you save her from her Destiny. And all for something as small as your loyalty. But I was wrong – you want her dead, don't you?"

"Shut up!" Jaune snapped, stepping forward and jabbing his sword towards Salem.

"Understand that I don't need you. And I could kill you quite easily," Salem stated so seriously that Jaune froze. "But I want to make a deal. And that is good news for you. Great news, in fact, because I will bring her back." The Keyblade reappeared again, though the blade was in her hand and the handle was pointed at Jaune Arc. "And on top of that I can make you the strongest warrior in the universe, bar me. I bet your 'friend' Sora never told you, but you can wield a Keyblade. I saw inside your Heart. It was that of a Keyblade Wielder." She held the weapon's hilt out towards Jaune. "Help me and I will release that ability within you. Right. Now." She tapped the weapon's hilt against Jaune's chest and he began to pant heavily as he was suddenly confronted with the possibility of fulfilling his two greatest dreams.

"Jaune, no..." Sora gasped, finally struggling to his hands and knees. "You can't. She's lying. She's dead, and bringing her back cannot happen!"

"Maybe, says the man who has already lied to the woman he loves about her own mother! Can you believe him ever? At all? Trust him with anything!?" Salem asked. She dismissed the Keyblade once more and snaked around to stand behind Jaune, placing one hand on the small of his back and the other on his left shoulder. She leaned in to his ear and whispered with a cruel smile. "If you decide to help me, I would bring her back. I would fix everything that is broken, and you could finally save and get the girl. Just. Like. A. Hero."

That was enough, the only promises that could break Jaune's resistance to her manipulations. Jaune's weapon fell to the ground, as did his shield. Salem smiled. "Very wise decision," Salem said, standing up straight. She removed her hand from between his shoulder blades and walked towards Sora, who was staring at the ground filled with familiar pain. "Are you okay, Sora?"

"I'll stop you," he said, returning a steely gaze to Salem's own.

"Really? I have your only weapon, the only thing that made you special? With what Keyblade could you possibly fight me?" she asked, looking around as if she had received surprising news. "Did you suddenly make one? No, you don't seem the type to fracture a pure Heart and sew the pieces back together in a new shape. Or, didn't you wonder why they could make decisions and become linked to others? Why they were alive? They are copies of the χ -blade after all, and it was forged from twenty Hearts."

"That's not..." Sora shook his head. "Then... Then my friends will stop you!" he shouted, pushing himself up to his feet and clutching at his side. Blood was oozing out from between his fingers.

Salem rolled her eyes. "Them?" she asked, gesturing with her thumb at the trapped warriors. "One ran away, another joined the winning team, one is unconscious, and the rest can't really move. That's not going to be much of a threat to me."

"No. My other friends. R-"

"Riku and Kairi and Mickey? I heard all your sickeningly saccharine stories. Unfortunately for you, they are all dead. Long dead."

"Xehanort told me the same lie," Sora said adamantly, though his bravery was slipping. Or maybe that was just his consciousness giving way to blood loss.

"Lie..?" Salem shook her head and raised her hand. From Sora's pocket flew a small, black rectangle. A book, with a Key adorning the front. She flipped through the pages for a moment, then nodded in approval and walked over to Sora. She threw one arm around his shoulders and used her free hand to hold the page open in front of his face, thumb over a specific location. "What does this say?"

Sora growled, but read the line anyways:

"The Heart of a world is reflected in its sky. At least, that's one explanation: since all Worlds originally were one, their Hearts echo the same things in their skies. It's why they all share one sky-"

"Now do you understand that your friends are dead?" Salem interjected as she shoved off from Sora's shoulders. She cocked her head to the side upon catching sight of his determined glare. "You're smart, so you've seen it. This means you're lying to yourself. Look up, what do you see? A fractured moon. Tell me, did this... 'Halloween Town' have a fractured moon? What of any of the worlds you visited?"

"..." Sora didn't respond. He was trying to fight off the thoughts beginning to plague his mind.

"No?" Salem supplied. She nodded. "So what do we know? All worlds share one sky. The Remnant's moon has been shattered for... a dozen centuries, at least. Ergo... your friends have been dead for... a dozen centuries, at least! You see, that moon is Kingdom Hearts, shattered when its guardian – instead of returning to it after being destroyed by a stupid young man – was instead sent millennia into the future. I don't care much for what happened next, personally, but you're probably wondering. The Remnant is all that remains now, fragments of worlds that nearly faded away completely into the Nothingness – not even Darkness, you stupid fool – when Kingdom Hearts died instead of disappearing. The Realm of Darkness – this is all that's left. Everything else... the Realm of Light was bigger, if what Xehanort told me is to be believed."

Sora fell to his knees. "That's... that's not possible."

"No. Not possible would be that your friends survive until today. 'Extremely probable' is the term that you were looking for," Salem said cruelly. She looked over her shoulder. "Tell him, Ozpin! Tell him that I'm not lying! Tell him your book is truth!" The ice around the man's bearded jaw disappeared and he stared with unabated hatred for the woman. But he did not deny what she said.

Sora fell to his back, the repeated tragedies bearing down on his Heart. He was, for the moment, completely broken. "And like that he has lost himself, his love, his friends, and his Hope. I think your 'Smaller, More Honest Souls' are not very good at creating and fostering Hope, Oz.

"Now, usually I would fracture the Heart of my host to get a new body," Salem said, digressing and walking towards Ruby. "But there are problems with my usual approach. I have my Keyblade now that it is no longer traveling through time, so a half-stable Keyblade formed from the shattered remains of an insane woman would be a poor substitute for my greatest creation. On the other hand, your Heart is pure. No Darkness whatsoever. This means, I can't use the Kingdom Key to take it. It, unlike its inspiration, has limitations. On you." She turned to Sora and was above him in a flash. "But not on him."

She crouched down and picked up a handful of black Dust. "You've been using different Dust types to transform and strengthen parts of yourself. The White purified you completely. It's intriguing, and I haven't seen its like before. Unfortunate, seeing as you won't be able to soon. I need a Heartless to collect her Heart and generate a Darkness powerful enough to fill in the gaps of the χ -blade. Now that you're completely broken, I believe that you will make a perfectly excellent tool for this." She dropped the Dust just above Sora's Heart, but he didn't respond except for a tear falling from his eye. Salem frowned. "This is disappointing. Oh! I know. I'll release them too. Watching them fail to defeat an incredibly powerful being while trying to keep you from murdering the one you love! It may be good for a laugh." Then she slowly lowered the weapon to Sora's chest. "Did you know a Keyblade Master – a true Keyblade Master, unlike you – is capable of altering other's Hearts. At least partially. For instance -" she buried the blade in Sora's chest and he began gasping for air. The Black Dust on his chest began to vibrate violently. "- I can make you use this Dust. If White Dust strengthened your Light... Well, let's just see what this does, why don't we?" She twisted the Kingdom Key and Sora screamed in pain before a wave of Darkness enveloped him.

"Sora..?" Ruby muttered as her mind cleared from the impact. She pushed herself to her feet and saw a black mass of shadow on the ground at Salem's feet. The wall of Light holding Ruby's allies vanished, replaced by two – one surrounding Jaune and the other protecting Cinder and her apprentices. Ruby warily reached to the small of her back and found nothing – she cursed when she remembered that Crescent Rose had been shattered. "Sora, wake up! Stop her!"

"He can't hear you, sweetie," Salem said, cocking her head and sneering at Ruby. There was a deep growl and she returned her gaze to Sora with a wide smile. Salem took her foot off of the solidifying shadows and took a few steps back. "Get up, boy. Yes, good boy." The shadow twitched and floated upward.

It was Sora, in a way. It was shaped like him at least, with the same spiky hair and wearing the same clothes, save for the fact that everything he wore was deep black. In fact, everything was deep black. His skin and hair were practically oozing Darkness. His fingers had become sharp and cruel looking claws that matched the wide, sharp toothed grin present on his face. Most disturbing of all, however, was the bright yellow eyes on the middle of his face. They were filled with hatred and hunger, and nothing else.

"...Sora..." Ruby breathed, having forgotten that the young man knew Salem was her mother. That he had hidden something so important for her. Despite it all, she knew he had just been stupid. Her sister had always said that boys were just stupid. She loved him despite it. She forgave him. She was worried right now that he was going to die.

"Get her, boy," Salem whispered at her new pet.

Ruby knew Sora would never hurt her. But Sora was not in control at that moment.

The creature shrieked, a noise that could have curdled blood, and shot towards Ruby filled with murderous intent.

R W B Y

"Firecracker, I'm happy you're going to Atlas. Really, I am. But this is far too drastic," Taiyang said, watching his daughter pack her considerable mountain of bags into the back of their car. His hands were firmly in his pockets and he was frowning sadly: he was going to miss his little girl when she moved into the place she had found in Vale's capital city. "You don't have to leave."

"I'm an adult, I should have my own place already anyways," Yang responded calmly as she stuffed another bag on the others. "And besides, Vale will have more missions to help out with. And it'll be closer to school when they finally reopen it."

"Firecracker, just stop. None of those are good enough reasons now that the CCT is back up," Taiyang pointed out. Zwei barked in agreement. "You're leaving to spite me."

Maybe that's just what women do to you, Yang thought, happy she resisted the urge to say that aloud. They'd hurt each other enough over the past hours, which had only accelerated Yang's timetable. She'd apologized, but was done being tempted to scream at him ever few minutes. It just wasn't worth the trouble anymore.

"Dad, I'll call you after I get to my place in Vale and set everything up. Then I'll call again when I finally leave for Atlas in a couple months," Yang said, turning around and staring sadly at her father. "Maybe I'll see why Weiss ignored all our calls." She looked at the car again. "Thanks for letting me take the car, by the way."

"Fire-"

"Tai, I need your help." A black portal appeared next to the man and Raven burst out of it. Her hands gripped wildly at his shirt and he was tackled into the wall of his cabin, pinned there by the wide eyed warrior woman.

"Mom!?" Yang shouted in confusion.

"Get off of me!" Tai shouted, shoving her off. He looked her up and down. "What's wrong Rae? Why are you here?"

"It's Ruby. She – She's in danger, Tai. And... I need your help to save her," the woman said, terrified.

"What happened? What did you get my daughter into!?" Taiyang roared. He grabbed Raven by her own shirt and raised his fist, eyes full of rage.

"Dad! Later!" Yang snapped, running up and grabbing his arm. "Ruby!"

Taiyang looked over and nodded. "Take me there. Now."

"Plan first. Otherwise we're dead and she won't be far behind," Raven insisted. Tears began to well up in her eyes, tears of fear and shame. Taiyang growled at her suggestion to wait, especially when every bone in his body said rush as fast as possible. A Huntsman had to overcome impulses of stupidity though, so he nodded. "Good." Raven sighed and calmed down a half increment. "Good..." She looked around, then down at Zwei. A small grin broke out on her face as she remembered a story that Ruby had told her at Haven. "I think I have an idea."

R W B Y

The Sora shaped monster was flying right at Ruby with claws outstretched, ready to tear her apart. She didn't believe he would do it, however, so she remained where she was. "Dammit, Ruby!" Qrow shouted as he slid to a stop in front of her, allowing Sora's claws to crash into the flat of his blade. The Huntsman shoved with all his might to keep the two of them stuck in place, until a blast of water slammed into the Shade's side and it was sent flying away. Qrow allowed himself to heave a sigh of relief before nodding in thanks at the equally relieved Neptune and tossing a sword to Ruby. "I don't care if he is your boyfriend, Ruby, right now he's a monster. Defend yourself at least and kill him if you need to."

"Ruby, come to me and do as your uncle says!" Ozpin shouted from above. The Huntress looked between the two elder fighters, then nodded begrudgingly and ran off towards Ozpin.

"Nora, Sun, keep him busy in close range. Ren, Neptune, you two distract him from far away," Qrow commanded as he understood what Ozpin wanted and realized it may have been their only chance at survival. "Follow my lead and keep him busy!"

Qrow ran towards the recovered creature, which roared at him and slashed down with its right claw. He caught the attack on the edge of his blade and spun around it. He slammed his sword into its back with both hands, causing it to shriek and stumble. When it righted itself, streaks of Darkness rose from the ground and surrounded Sora's body in a sphere. One collided with Qrow so that he was flipped head over heels and he crashed into the ground. He opened his eyes and barely rolled out of the way of the claw that was rushing down at his skull. He got up to one knee and shot the Shade in the chest. The bullets died against Sora's chest and he advanced on Qrow menacingly, like a creature enjoying the hunt. It didn't seem like Sora was in there at all.

The creature brought its hands together, Darkness charging between its claws in a ball of pure destructive energy. That charge was cut off when Nora fell out of the sky and delivered a Thunder and grenade powered slam to its side and it was soon soaring through the air. "Sorry!" Nora shouted after him as he drifted away. The monster stopped midair, nullifying its momentum, and rocketed back at Nora. It landed atop her and began to slam its claws into the head of the hammer she was using to defend herself as best she could, the nails gouging scars into the metal surface.

"Get off of her!" Sun shouted, twirling his staff and slamming it into Sora's head. The creature stopped attacking Nora and turned its gaze slowly onto the Faunus. Sora's yellow eyes began seemed to narrow in annoyance. "Um... Oops?" A black beam of energy collided with his chest and he fell onto his back. The Sora creature made a laughing growl and kicked Nora, sliding her to Qrow's feet.

As the creature advanced on Qrow, who had jumped between it and Nora, it was quickly riddled with bullets and lasers. It raised its arms above its head, clearing its vision to see Ren and Neptune strafing across the field of battle, attacking their friend to gain his attention and distract him from attacking the others. After a short growl, it channeled Darkness into its palms and created reflective walls of Dark energy. The next volley of attacks slammed into their owners and they were taken out of the battle as well.

"Sora!"

The creature stopped its advance towards Qrow and turned to stare up at Ruby. She was standing beside the captured Ozpin, who was glaring at it defiantly. "Stop! This isn't you!"

The creature shrieked again. "Oh, sweetie, it is him. Part of him, at least. Out of everyone here, only you're perfect," Salem explained with a laugh. Sora took a step towards Ruby. "Well, at least until your Heart is gone and your body is free to use."

Sora's Shade shrieked again and tensed its legs, using its immense strength to shoot right towards Ruby. The girl readied herself, Jaune's sword in front of her, and waited until he was close enough. She turned around a moment later and jammed the sword as deep as she could into the crystals holding her headmaster, then used her Semblance to speed away. Sora's Shade watched her go, but kept on its trajectory. It collided full speed with the blade, and the gemstone shattered. It received a swift kick to its face and crashed into the ground, a broken hilt of a sword beside it. "Miss Rose, I am going to need your assistance," Ozpin said, fixing his tie and emerging from the cloud of rubble and Dust. He used one hand to correct the placement of his glasses.

"Dammit. And I was hoping he'd die during this battle," the woman muttered coldly.

"How could I help!?" Ruby shouted, nonetheless landing lightly on the ground at Ozpin's side. "He took Qrow down, and I don't really have a weapon right now!"

Ozpin glanced down at the young woman. "Believe me when I say that you not only have a weapon greater than whatever Salem could devise, but you also are the only one who could possibly save Sora from what has taken him over."

"Um... how?" Ruby inquired again, missing what the ancient wizard had deemed obvious.

"Your Heart and his are connected, Miss Rose," Ozpin explained. He leaned down and his hand glowed white. White Dust leaked out slowly from beneath the Black Dust, as if it had been hidden far below the stone of the region. Soon, a white, cane like weapon was present in his right hand and he raised it like it was a sword. "Use that connection and save him Heart from the Darkness eternal. Go, Miss Rose, before it is too late!"

"Wait! What are you going to do?" she asked lamely.

Ozpin glared down at Salem. "I am going to keep an old friend busy," he said darkly, then began to slowly walk towards the woman.

Ruby gulped and looked over at the dazed monster that was Sora. It shook its head in an oddly human motion to clear its head then stood up and locked its eyes on Ruby. "S-Sora. Wake up!" The creature hissed and walked towards her. It began to create more beams of energy in its palms, firing them towards Ruby every few moments. She dodged them easily, and it seemed like they were more just to induce fear in her than to actually hurt her. "Sora, stop!"

The creature hissed as it neared her, slashing at her. Ruby stumbled backwards and fell to her back. "No! Sora!" The creature raised its arm and readied to murder Ruby Rose. Her eyes shut tight, then she opened them more determined than before. She got to her feet, filled with a feeling she had felt before only twice – once whens he witnessed the death of Pyrrha Nikos and again when she saw Xehanort preparing to kill Sora. "Wake up!" Her eyes glowed brighter than they had either of those times, hope that she could save him running through her very veins. "Sora, wake up!" The Light spilled from her eyes, blinding everyone that was present and purifying the things closest to her with magic.

There was a bright Silvery flash, and Ruby suddenly found herself holding the unconscious form of Sora on the ground. His clothes were torn and frayed, nearly destroyed. His skin was a deep red, covered in wounds and burns. It was as if every attack he had taken while under the control of Salem had landed, but he had been able to ignore it until that moment. He was a mess.

"What a disappointment," Salem muttered. A portal opened above Ruby and Sora, and Ozpin fell out of it and crashed against the ground. His weapon was shattered and his already tattered clothes had been further destroyed. Salem followed and landed softly near them, Keyblade gleaming threateningly in her hand. Ruby wasn't used to the usually elegant weapon appearing evil. "I didn't want to take the quick way. It's not as effective. But there was something left of him in there and better a half measure than a broken full measure."

"Leave him alone!" Ruby commanded, stepping between the Keyblade Wielder and the evil woman. She readied for unarmed battle.

"You can't win," Salem noted as she raised the weapon above her head. "You have no weapon. No chance to save him."

"Then I'll die trying," Ruby said, furrowing her brow. "Do your worst."

"Fine," Salem responded, and she brought her weapon down to attack Ruby. It was at that moment, that the young woman instinctively raised her hands, her only thoughts on saving one of the people she cared about the very most. "But you will fall."

"Not today! Not by my mother's hands!" Ruby shouted angrily. There was a bright flash of red light, and the smell of roses filled the air. The Kingdom Key made a clear clang as it crashed into a red and black weapon that had appeared suddenly in Ruby's hands. The blade was silver on one side, and curved towards the teeth of the blade like the blade of a scythe. The side with which one would attack was red, as well as slightly wider and flatter than the silver side, though it appeared no less dangerous. The handle was black with a red basket shaped like entwining rose vines and was attached to a chain of four links – red, white, black, and yellow circles in that order that ended in a silver Scatter insignia. Overlaying the blade of the weapon on both sides of the flat was a red and black cylinder that came together just past the edge of the inward curve. From both of them extended the teeth of the weapon, shaped like a diagonal cross over rose thorns that she used to clasp her hood to her shirt.

Both Ruby and Salem were staring with eyes wide open at the weapon that Ruby clutched tight in both hands, as if they both expected it to disappear at any moment because there was no way that it could be real. Ruby Rose had summoned a Keyblade to her hands, marking her as a Keyblade Wielder. "Miss Rose..." Ozpin muttered before struggling to find words. He had not believed anyone on Remnant, regardless of the strength of their Heart, could summon a Keyblade. He had suspected that Sora and Xehanort's arrival could have, perhaps, changed that, but to have his beliefs confirmed... Ruby had done what she had always been able to do – ignite the spark of hope.

"That is... unexpected," Salem said, staring down at the young woman's sudden reveal of power. "I rarely underestimate anyone... How did you summon tha-"

Ruby didn't listen to what the woman had to say, instead lunging forward with her new weapon. She wasn't quite prepared for how much speed and strength she had put behind the attack, for she suddenly had more in her body than before. The blade was easily whacked aside by Salem's weapon. "It's that boy, isn't it?" the woman wondered, looking down at the unconscious former Keyblade Wielder. Salem looked up at Ruby and sidestepped the overhand slash that Ruby had aimed at her. "Please, I am trying to concentrate here."

Salem took a half step back and raised her left palm in front of her. There was a bright explosion of fire, and Ruby was knocked off of her feet. She landed hard beside Sora and groaned in pain, her new Keyblade still held in her left hand. "Nice attempt for a novice," Salem quietly complimented as she leaned down to pick up the weapon. "How... Well, it doesn't matter now." She tossed the weapon over her shoulder, expecting that the young woman couldn't figure out how to summon it back to her hand in time to stop her. The witch looked down at Sora and placed her Keyblade on his chest again. "I suppose a weaker Heartless will have to do." Darkness began to channel around the end of the blade, swirling like a black vortex foretelling doom.

She was cut off when something small, incredibly durable, and on fire slammed into the small of her back. Salem was thrown forward, the sound of incredibly excited barking following her. When she stopped moving and made her way to her feet, she looked over her shoulder. "Is that a... dog?"

Indeed it was. It was an incredibly small breed, mostly puffy black and white fur. Even Salem's frozen Heart had to admit that it had the most adorable little face and happy smile that she had ever seen. "Zwei! Chase your tail!" someone shouted. The dog yipped and began to do as told, even as a blonde, middle aged man ran up and lifted the dog with both hands. He spun around with the dog and threw it straight at Salem once again. She glanced around, confused at the sheer absurdity of what was happening. The man fired explosive, fiery rounds after the dog, igniting its fur once again and giving it a massive boost in speed. When it hit Salem, it was enough to even make her feel the pain of the impact.

"Stop throwing dogs at me!" Salem shouted at the blonde man as the pup that had bounced off of her landed by its master's feet, growling angrily at her and getting ready to attack on its own. Brave little beast.

"Wait... Summer? You're alive!?" the blonde man asked, letting his guard down. The dog, however, did not.

"I am afraid, Mister Xiao Long, that Summer Rose can not hear you," Ozpin said, staggering to his feet by the blonde man. "Because that is not her."

"Who is – Oz!? You're alive!?" the blonde man shouted, letting his guard fall further.

"Not the time, Mister Xiao Long," Ozpin muttered dismissively. "Get this boy to Raven's portal. Qrow is likely collecting the others as we speak. Miss Rose, I will need your assistance." Ozpin raised his hand above him, and green light flashed around him in a circle. Some of Sora's minor wounds healed, though the ones threatening him most remained. Ruby's wounds all healed and she stood up on uncertain feet.

"I'm not letting my daughter fight -"

"Neither am I, Taiyang!" Ozpin snapped, slapping the man across the face. He lowered his voice. "We are all escaping and this is our only chance, slim and dangerous may it be."

"Did you forget that I am right here!?" Salem shouted, throwing up her hands in exasperation. "Unbelievable. It's like I'm not even here! Ozpin... are we breaking up again?"

"We haven't forgotten about you," Ozpin growled as he appeared in front of Salem, a green blur extending behind him from sheer speed. He lanced out with a Firaga infused fist, the explosive force landing against the woman's jaw. It didn't even faze her.

"I am no longer amused," Salem growled with stilted words, bringing her weapon up and slapping Ozpin away. From behind him appeared a tornado of red, tipped with a silver edge. The being slammed into Salem's midsection and she doubled over, sliding back on her feet but keeping them firmly planted on the ground. She jolted upright and brought her elbow down on the base of Ruby's neck, tripping the young woman. Salem growled and kicked the young woman's Keyblade away before raising her weapon. "You have become more trouble than you are worth. Death will have to do for now." Then she brought the Keyblade down at the prone young woman's throat, ready to hear the delicious splash of blood...

Only for it to stop inches away from the girl. Salem's face was filled with sudden confusion, and she raised the blade for a deathblow yet again. Once more, the blade stopped before hitting the young woman. Salem snarled and took a step back. "So... you're not quite dead," Salem muttered to herself angrily, staring down at the Keyblade as she spoke to herself. She ignored the pointless attack from Ruby that slammed into her face. "That will have to be rectified." The woman caught the next attack with her open palm and growled at Ruby. "If I cannot kill you, capturing you will have to do." Ice began to creep down the blade of Ruby's new weapon, freezing solid everything it touched as it approached Ruby's flesh.

When the world fell out from beneath them, sufficed to say that Salem was rather surprised. In her haste to deal with the main threat against her, she had forgotten about the weaker but better trained enemies she had to deal with. Raven Branwen was waiting beneath her portal with blade drawn and cloaked in Gravity Dust. When Salem was close enough, the woman leaped upwards and delivered a savage slash to the witch's arm. While not enough to actually 'disarm' the woman, it was enough to cause her to drop Ruby and slam into the ground at seven times her normal weight. Not much of a problem for her, but enough to give Raven time to move.

Raven caught the young woman even as she began to sprint towards the other portal – their exit – which was guarded by Taiyang and Qrow. Team STRQ, together again... in the worst possible way. As she sprinted away from Salem in a zig zag evasive movement, the witch was firing off large explosive spells that barely missed their target each time. Raven was getting incredibly lucky.

Into her twin's arms, Raven shoved Ruby. "I can walk by myself, you know!" the young woman shouted in vain, as Qrow was already carrying her through the portal.

"Aaaand she escaped," Salem muttered, letting the spell in her hand fall. "Damn. I guess I'll have to have fun with the two of you instead." The witch rushed forward and raised the Keyblade above her right shoulder in both hands.

"Raven!" Taiyang shouted, shoving the woman out of the way and blocking the attack with his gauntlet. There was a sickening crunch, and he was thrown backwards to the lip of the portal, dazed from the intense pain.

"Tai!" Raven screamed. She got to her feet and drew her blade, immediately throwing herself between her husband and her former best friend. "Stay back, Summer. If you're in there, stay away. I don't want to hurt you!"

"She can't hear you. She could barely hear her daughter," Salem snapped. She raised her Keyblade in front of her and a small, magnetic force appeared at its tip. It was all that Raven could do to hold onto her blade at that point. Taiyang screamed in pain when his body began to drag across the ground towards Salem, led by his shattered gauntlet. "And she definitely can't hear him."

"Don't hurt him!" Raven snapped, throwing her blade forward in the hopes that the blade would be able to do something to the woman she was fighting. At the same time, Raven jumped down and hauled her husband towards the portal.

"Raven, let me go!" he hissed as she slowly struggled against the force pulling him back. "Get back there and see our daughter! Be a mother!"

"Eh, I'd just run away again without you," she joked as they reached the edge of the portal again. She lifted Tai in front of her. "See? We made -" She was cut short when a silver blade suddenly protruded from her chest. Her jaw went slack suddenly and her eyes glazed over for a moment before she steeled them again. She looked down at the weapon sticking out of her chest, then back up at Taiyang's horrified face. Tears welled up in Raven's eyes and she smiled sadly. "I'm really sorry." Then, with the last of her strength, Raven Xiao Long shoved her husband forward and saved his life.

"RAVEN!" the man screamed as he fell backwards through the hole in space and time. He watched his wife helplessly, knowing he could do nothing but trying to find anything. A white light began to shine from the edges of the wound at her chest, glowing brighter and brighter with each passing moment until a red, crystalline Heart suddenly appeared and floated away, only to be stopped by a wall of Darkness that slowly consumed it. Raven smiled sadly and the rest of her body began to glow, the light shining through her disguising the fact that she was becoming more and more transparent. The walls of the portal around Taiyang began to edge shut; the one holding them open was slowly succumbing to death. Raven, now with flecks of Light floating up from her body and almost completely transparent, mouthed something to her husband. Then there was a loud, shattering noise, and Raven disappeared.

The last thing that Taiyang Xiao Long saw before crashing onto the yard of his cabin was Salem twisting the kind and compassionate face of Summer Rose into a terrible and cruel smirk.

And Taiyangs final act before falling unconscious was to allow tears to stream down his face in time with the last words of his now truly dead wife – "I love you both so much."

AN: And that's the halfway point, give or take. I'm guessing it's not quite what most people were expecting, tone-wise. Or, Sora-wise. I think someone asked if I was planning a VOL 3 style ending for the Haven arc more than five chapters ago. I half lied. This is the VOL 3 style ending.

Like I said before, this chapter is the one I am most scared of so far. It's a big change for the characters and alothappened. I'm worried it might be too much of a change, but it was always the plan.

From the moment I started, I knew Sora's friends were dead in this story. It's been hinted at, if you go back. Xehanort never said Remnant, for instance. He knew. He called it theRemnant. It's also a good explanation for why all the RWBY characters are based off of characters from folklore and history – they're Hearts reborn.

Oh, before I forget, two chapters ago this story passed 100 reviews! That's a big deal for me, it's the first time it's happened. I geeked out about it for a few days then forgot to include the 'Hooray!' in the last chapter because it took so long to write it. So, without further ado, WOOT!

Now to responses:

To Gravenimage: I can't wait for Yang to enter the fight. She's a big part of next chapter, especially her first meeting with Sora. Expect... well, Yang-ness and probably very little fighting.

To gamelover41592: I hope Sora vs Salem did not disappoint. It flowed easily when writing, at least.

To warrior of six blades: You were right. Salem knew everything going into this battle. And that's the only way she gets into a fight. Doesn't turn out well for her if she doesn't do that, as evidenced by Sora and Ruby's connection being stronger than anticipated or – more interestingly – Ruby's summoning of the Keyblade. I'm thinking Crescent Roseas an homage? Speaking of, moment of silence...

To NormalRebel52: I don't have any plans to put music suggestions into this story. Mainly because I'm waytoo lazy. Wish I wasn't, though. Some stories really benefit from it.

So, thanks for reading up to here in Smaller, More Honest Souls – Thanks to all of you. I hope you have enjoyed it so far and will continue to do so for at least another twenty-ish chapters. Cheers.