Disclaimer: not mine
Thanks to everyone who gave opinions on when Sora should be reunited with the others.
Chapter 4
Kairi woke up, sitting up to look around, seeing nothing suspicious, but she got up and walked a short distance down the path, needing a moments solitude. She hugged herself, fighting more tears, she'd lost them both and it was all her fault. Sora had killed himself because of her and Riku… she shook her head and kept walking, coming comes to a crossroad of four paths, staring up into the sky.
"Along the road ahead lies something you need," a man said and she spun to see a figure in a black-hooded coat, hiding everything.
She tensed as he vanished, looking around for him, and the man reappeared behind her. Kairi turned around and faced him.
"However…in order to claim it you must lose something that is dear to you." He turned and vanished again
Kairi glared at where he'd been, hadn't she lost enough already? She turned and headed back to the others, finding they were still asleep, laying down to join them. Who had that been, and why hide from her?
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Sora panted and Axel clapped his shoulder.
"Good work kiddo," he moved closer to examine the Corridor. "Stable," he flicked the magic with his own and while it wavered briefly it stayed. "Really good."
Sora nodded, one step closer to being ready to leave.
"Right, well, I've worked out a way to stay in contact when I' gone and call it training for you," Axel grinned, and Sora waited attentively. "We use your Samurai's to pass messages."
Sora grinned back at him, he was sure that was the right expression. "And if they are found elsewhere in the Castle it can be put down to my control needing work."
"Exactly."
,,,,,,,,,,,,,
"Are you alright Riku?" King Mickey asked him as they walked through the never ending Darkness.
"He…he's dead," he whispered. "Kairi confirmed it, Sora's…" he closed his eyes, taking a shaky breath, and then a hand pressed to his arm.
"I'm so sorry Riku."
"It's my fault, it's all my fault."
"Would Sora want you to blame yourself?" he asked, and Riku shuddered but then shook his head.
"No…he'd get mad at me for blaming myself."
"Come on, let's find the way out and get you back to Kairi."
,,,,,,,,,,,,,
"Axel," Saïx called, so he turned to face his oldest friend. "I have a message from Lord Xemnas. We have reason to believe that one or more of the members assigned to Castle Oblivion intend to betray us. Find them, and dispose of them."
"And I take it that's straight from Lord Xemnas' lips, huh?" he smirked, he had no doubt Saïx had played a role in the assignment. "Guess I'm off then." He'd been right to assume he'd be the one sent, Sora would know where he was once he noticed he was gone.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Kairi looked up at the castle and gasped slightly, wondering what could be inside. She continued toward it, all of them in awe of the place. They reached the door and she hesitated but then pulled the door open, looking inside, before they walked inside.
"Hey, ya think it's OK to barge in?" Goofy asked nervously, not that she blamed him, the place was so white and…empty feeling.
"But we gotta do it, if we're gonna find the king..."
"The king?!" Goofy was surprised and looked around the room. "King Mickey's here?"
"Something just told me he'd be here, OK?" Donald crossed his arms.
"Really? 'Cause now that ya mention it, I was kinda thinkin' the samething."
"Really?" she asked them, and they both nodded. "Oh….it feels…empty to me."
"Wait, hey, hold on! It can't be just a coincidence!" Jiminy cried as he leapt from Goofy's vest. It had been a shock meeting him, he'd bene with Sora but had been dropped when he…well.
"Oh, no, Jiminy. Ya don't mean that…." Donald trailed off and the cricket nodded.
"Yep, I had it too, mm-hmm! I had the exact same feeling."
"Gawrsh, maybe it's contagious."
"No, no. Something's screwy. We gotta go take a look," Donald argued.
"All right," she agreed reluctantly, heading for the door at the other end of the hall.
"Wak! Where are you going?!"
"That way, to the only other door out of this hall," where else would she be going
"Right! Come on, let's go, Goofy!"
"Hey, fellahs, shouldn't we shut the door behind us before we go?" he turned around. "Kairi!"
The hooded man appeared in front of the entrance and the doors closed.
"That's it! Who are you?" She demanded as her Keyblade appeared, even as the man walked towards them. She was shocked when Donald's magic failed but then she glanced at her Keyblade, it wasn't the one Belle had given her…but the one that had first appeared, Destiny's Embrace.
"Why isn't it working?" Donald slumped.
"I should think it's obvious. The moment you set foot in this castle, you forgot every spell and every ability you ever knew. In this place, to find is to lose, and to lose is to find. That is the way in Castle Oblivion," the man explained.
"Castle Oblivion?" she asked warily only for the man to vanish, reappearing behind her.
"Here you will meet people that you have known in the past. And you will meet people you miss."
"I miss?" She frowned before feeling a spark of hope. "Riku! You mean Riku's here?!" had he escaped the Darkness already?
"If what you want...is to find him..."
The man held out his hand and gusts of wind and flower petals appeared, blasting at her. Kairi tried to block them with her Keyblade. The man then became transparent and flew through her, making her gasp in shock. She ran at the man, jumping, and slashed him, but the man disappeared again, leaving flower petals behind.
"What?" she looked around in confusion and fear.
The man reappeared at the doorway at the end of the hall and they rushed towards him.
"What'd you do?!" She demanded.
"I merely sampled your memories. And from them, I made this." The man held out a card in his hand. It depicted… Traverse Town, but how and why? "To reunite with those you hold dear," he tossed her the card.
"A card?"
"It is a promise for the reunion you seek. Hold the card to open the door. And beyond it, a new world. Proceed, Princess. To lose and claim anew, or to claim anew only to lose..." He vanished again and this time, she knew he was really gone.
She stared down at the card, doing what he wanted seemed risky, but if it was the only way to get through the Castle, what else could she do? "Come on, let's go." She walked up to the door and held up the card to open it.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Axel wandered the castle, the place was a maze! Saïx wanted a certain room found but how he expected him to do so was a mystery. He looked up as Larxene appeared.
"She's here, just entered the first room."
"Well, looks like the fun's starting."
"Ugh, what is that doing here?" she waved her hand and he turned to see a Samurai forming.
"Roxas is practising using me as a target," he shrugged. "Sending it somewhere he's never been and right to me is very good."
"I suppose, just send it back will you." She vanished.
He walked over to where it was waiting. "Good work Roxas," he gave it the message, before shifting so that he was in a blind spot. "The girl is here."
The Samurai vanished.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Sora dismissed the lesser Nobody, thoughts spinning with half formed plans. Kairi was at Castle Oblivion, which meant she would run into those stationed there. He knew he should feel happy to have confirmation she was awake and alright, but what was she doing there? How had she gotten there? And so he sent another Samurai with orders to find her and follow, but to remain hidden from everyone, unless she was going to be harmed and then it could make it look like an accident that it saved her. He was still learning to control them after all.
He had no reason to go there, how would he let her know he still existed? He needed a reason to go, or a way to sneak there without being caught. He was getting better at opening corridors but he knew there was more he needed to learn. Every mission he took with another member was a new lesson and he didn't dare practice on the solo ones, never knowing if he was being watched. He was careful to use the training area Axel had set up for them to practice in secret.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Xemnas watched as Roxas accepted his new mission. He'd had confirmation, the Princess was at Castle Oblivion. He was tempted to send Roxas as a test, would seeing her stir forgotten memories? Or would his mind remain blank? Testing him against another Keyblade wielder could be useful…but perhaps later, after Naminé had worked on her a bit.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
"What is it Aerith?" Kairi asked, she felt so confused. None of them seemed to remember her, and yet they'd known her name and remembered things they'd said to her.
"I don't have all the answers, but I had to tell you something. Your memories created this town, right?" Aerith asked.
"That's what I was told," she agreed.
"If that's true, then this town is just a figment of your mind...and so are we."
"But then why don't you know me?" she asked. "If you're made from my memories then this…this is wrong. You act like Aerith though."
"But I'm not really me. I don't remember the things I should. And I sense things I shouldn't. Kairi, beware your memories. In the journey to come, you'll be faced with more illusions. Sometimes the shadows of your memory will deceive you, try to lead you astray."
"So, uh...what exactly does that mean?" She asked, even more confused.
"I'm sorry. I'm just another illusion. The truth is out of my reach," Aerith shrugged slightly.
Kairi sighed. "Don't say stuff like that. It's depressing..."
"Stay strong, Kairi," Aerith smiled at her. "Don't let the illusions distract you from what's truly important."
"Okay."
"Kairi!" Donald yelled from the nearby alley.
"Are you ready to go?" Goofy asked.
"Yeah, be right there," she called back before turning to Aerith. "Well, I'd better be going." She frowned, where had Aerith gone? "Aerith? Aerith!"
"What about Aerith?" Donald asked.
"Where did she go? I was just talking to her," Kairi told him.
"Aerith left with Leon and the others, remember?" Goofy frowned at her.
"What?"
"You worried us. Just standing there by yourself," Donald shook his head.
Kairi watched them walk away, glancing back again, "Is this what she meant...?" she shook it off and walked after them. She never noticed the Samurai Nobody watching from the shadows.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Naminé looked down at her drawings, she had her orders, no matter how much she didn't want to do it. She looked up as Axel joined her, nervous, but when he grinned at her…it didn't feel threatening like Marluxia or Larxene.
"If someone wanted to talk to the Princess without being observed, when would be the best time and place?" he asked, and she stared at him with wide eyes.
What? She frowned slightly as she stared at him, trying to work out what he…Sora, he was connected to Sora, but how? How? Sora was dead…or was he? She felt like an idiot, she was Kairi's Nobody, but partially formed of Sora. Which meant…he had a Nobody as well. If Axel knew them, then they had to be in the Organisation too.
As if he knew what she'd worked out, he pressed a finger to his lips and she nodded. She turned to a fresh page and closed her eyes before beginning to draw. She ripped the page out and gave it to him. He nodded.
"Thanks Naminé, be careful." And with that he was gone.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
"This place is, like, a hundred times better minus all the bossy co-workers, am I right?" Demyx said as Sora joined them in the Grey area, slowly taking a seat on an empty couch, listening as Demyx fiddled with his sitar.
"Bossy co-workers?" he asked.
"Yeah, the "dream team" that got shipped off to Castle Oblivion. Dreamy for me, because they're gone!" Demyx grinned at him.
"Oh..."
"Too bad you didn't get to spend more quality time with them, kiddo," Xigbar added.
"My name's not kiddo," he frowned.
"Roxas, get to work," Saïx ordered as he entered.
Sora nodded and stood, leaving the room only to stop outside, listening in.
"We sent a total of six members over to Castle Oblivion. That's about half our number," Xigbar said.
"No use fretting the absence of others. They simply lose this round by no-show," Luxord always spoke like everything was a card game which was just confusing.
"I love days when Larxene is out. I can sit around playing sitar...instead of gopher!"
They weren't saying anything useful and so he left.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
The trio entered the Second Floor Exit Hall and went to keep walking but Goofy stopped to think for a minute. "Hmm..."
"Huh? What's the matter?" Donald asked him.
"It's that creepy castle that I was talking about earlier... I know I didn't imagine it."
Donald and Kairi exchanged a look.
"'Cause that was the castle where Sora had to use the Keyblade to free Kairi's heart. Then he just disappeared! And I was so worried. How could I ever forget that?" Goofy asked.
"That's when I woke up, when Sora," she pressed a hand to her mouth as grief threatened to overwhelm her again. "Wait. That happened...in a castle?" she asked.
"Aww... You forgot that? 'Cause I remember perfectly," Donald shook his head.
"Then what's it called?" She asked.
"That's easy! It was..." he thought and thought but then frowned. "Jiminy, help me... Is it in your journal?"
Jiminy popped out. "Every word! I finished the first volume right before we got to this castle." He pulled it out and opened it. "Let's have a look... Oh! How could it be?!"
"What's the matter?" Goof asked in concern.
"All my entries…They're gone! Every page is blank!"
"What'll we do?!" Donald squawked and Kairi frowned, something very wrong was happening, but what?
"How could this have happened? I'm so careful with the journals!" he was weeping at the loss of all his work, and Kairi wanted to cry too, those journal entries were he last link to Sora. "All that hard work is gone..."
"The journal's blank... What's going on?" she whispered.
"Something's screwy. Journal pages don't just vanish!" Donald grumbled as they started on their way again, but then Kairi froze.
"What if...it's more things?"
"Huh?" Donald looked at her.
"Goofy was telling us about another castle we'd been to... But none of us really remembers it. Do you think... Could it be that we don't remember because we're losing our memories?" No…please no….what if she forgot Sora and Riku?
"Losing? Our memories?"
"Hold on! Remember what that mystery fella said? "In this place to find is to lose, and to lose is to find." It musta been our memories he was talking about losing!"
"So if we keep going, we'll lose more... Guess it really is Castle Oblivion." She felt sick.
"So the higher we go, the more we'll forget? Does that mean everything and everybody will be forgotten?" Goofy asked.
"Do you want to go back?" Donald asked her.
"Don't worry, guys! We might forget about where we've been or what things we've seen, but we won't forget who are friends are."
"I don't know..." Donald disagreed with his friend.
"No matter what happens, you won't forget your friends," Goofy told him firmly.
"Huh..." she looked between them before smiling. "You're right. Thank you, Goofy."
"So, if there's nothing here that can make you forget about your friends...then we have nothing to be scared of! Let's go!" he walked towards the next door.
She held the card up and they entered, not noticing another figure slip in with them.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Axel waited for the perfect moment as Kairi was separated from her companions. He moved in and covered her mouth with his hand, pulling her further away. "I'm not going to hurt you," he hissed in her ear as she struggled. He grimaced as her elbow dug painfully into his lower stomach. "Oh for…Sora," he told her, and she froze. He got them to a secluded area while she was in shock. "I'm going to let you go now, we're going to talk, got it memorised?" he asked, feeling her nod slowly. "Right." He let go and she moved away, turning to face him.
"How do you know his name?" she demanded angrily.
"It's complicated," he told her, and then sighed as the Samurai showed itself.
She gasped and backed away, looking between them warily.
"You have lousy timing," he told it. "Tell him if he can sneak in right now then come," he told it and it vanished. It soon returned and shook its head, almost seeming sad.
"What is that?" she asked.
"A lesser Nobody, Samurai class."
"A Nobody?" she asked, and he sighed, great, she didn't know.
He explained about Nobodies and how they were created and watched her pale.
"Sora…"
Smart girl. He nodded at her, "yeah, he woke as a Nobody. He's okay physically, and he remembers everything," he explained.
"Where is he? How do you…he's one of whatever your group is?"
"Not by choice, our boss found him and Sora was completely defenceless, he went with him because he knew he was outclassed. He was planning to run and find you from the start. Even without a Heart, completely emotionless, the ties between you are strong enough that he has to find you," Axel shrugged.
,,,,,,,,
Kairi slumped against the wall, hugging herself. Sora…Sora was…well part of him still lived. It terrified her, to think of a Sora with no Heart, and yet he still wanted to find her? Why? Were his memories really so strong that they could keep some kind of bond between them? Only Sora… "He's okay?" she asked.
"The Organisation think he's amnesiac, so long as they continue to believe that, then yes."
"Isn't there any way to see him?"
He studied her before sighing and running a hand through wild red hair. He'd scared her at first but now…she didn't feel at all threatened. "That's the message I sent but the answer for now is no, he can't just show up without orders. I'll try to find a way but you should know…he doesn't look exactly how you remember, becoming a Nobody can affect the appearance even in those of us strong enough to maintain a human appearance. It's just that though, appearance. We aren't human."
The warning was clear, but she didn't care. She wouldn't care if he didn't look human so long as he was Sora. "It doesn't matter," she told him firmly, and he chuckled.
"Spirited one, aren't ya? Don't discuss any of this once you leave the room, the halls are monitored. And be careful Princess, your memory is being played with. Hold tight to your friends." He nodded and then vanished.
Kairi stayed against the wall, Heart soaring with hope. There had to be some way to help Sora recover his Heart, there had to be! Even if it was impossible, she would never give up on him. She wished she had some way to tell Riku, to give him hope.
"Kairi!"
She heard Donald and Goofy yelling for her in worry and made herself move. She hesitated and then made the decision not to tell them, they could be very suspicious, well Donald could, and she couldn't risk them saying anything where they could be overheard. She couldn't let Sora be endangered by a stray word.
,,,,,,,,,,,,
Sora nodded and the Samurai vanished. Axel had told Kairi and she had wanted to see him. He just couldn't leave, not when he was on a mission with Xigbar. He'd been lucky enough to be able to receive the message now.
"Watch it kiddo!" Xigbar yelled as he came around the corner, and Sora dropped, rolling out of the way of the Heartless that had managed to sneak up on him.
He summoned his Keyblade and went to work. Xigbar shot at it to keep it contained to the area but left the fight to him, till he took a hit that sent him flying.
"Roxas? Still alive?" he called, and Sora groaned, pushing himself up to his feet.
He used a cure spell, feeling the pain fade a bit, and then launched himself back into the fight, feeling his magic surge and to his shock, the Kingdom Key shifted, a new Keychain hanging from it even as he removed one hand, another Keyblade appearing in it. he'd never seen either Keyblade before, but the one that had been the Kingdom Key seemed like it should be familiar…the Keychain…it looked like the charm Kairi had been working on back on the Island. The other one was actually black, a crown like his necklace hanging from it, though also black. His crown…he barely kept from reaching for his neck, what had happened to it? The necklace Riku had given to him so long ago and now he had a Keychain that looked like it. Did the new blades represent Kairi and Riku somehow? Why? And would that give away that he remembered them?
"Well…very nice Roxas," Xigbar smirked, and Sora nodded before attacking again, easily taking the Heartless down with both blades, watching the Heart float up from it.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Riku stumbled through the Darkness, terrified. They'd gotten separated what felt like years ago, though it couldn't be more than a day, could it? Without the comforting presence at his side he found his thoughts spirally down even though he tried to stop it, to keep some kind of hope alive. He fumbled in his pocket, pulling out the charm Kairi had passed him, holding it to his Heart. Kairi still cared for him, she didn't hate him for everything.
He blinked as something seemed to surround him. He was tired…so tired.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
"Aw... I hope the King is gonna be okay..." Donald said as they left the latest room.
"Why bring that up?" Kairi asked him.
"I had to be sure that I hadn't forgotten him."
"How'd that go for ya?" Goofy asked with a chuckle.
"Good! I remembered…we're on a quest to find the king."
Goofy nodded. "I remember that too. The King helped save everything by staying on the
other side of the door to darkness. I think..."
"You got it, Goofy!" Donald nodded.
Good, he remembered too. He didn't want to let on to Kairi that he was worried, poor girl had been through enough already.
"And me," Kairi spoke up, "I'm looking for Riku. He was with the King when the door closed. Hm. I guess there's no way we'll forget the most important memories," she smiled shakily, and Donald nodded.
"That's good. 'Cause I don't want to forget..."
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
"You seem pretty intrigued by this Kairi girl," Larxene commented as they watched the group.
"Are you telling me you're not, Larxene?" he asked, glancing at her.
She giggled in response. "Haven't decided yet... I think what intrigues me more is what you see in her."
"A Princess of Heart who created a Keyblade, you telling me that isn't at all curious? Not to mention how she transferred her Heart to the previous Keyblade Master in the first place."
"It's the strength of her heart... That's what interests you. Why the Keyblade chose Kairi's Heart," she nodded in understanding.
"To unlock the mysteries of the Heart. Isn't that the Organisation's mission?" he smirked.
Larxene snickered in response.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
"Hey, I wonder if there's anything we've forgotten..." Donald asked.
"Hmm... If we did, what would it have been?" they all stopped to think for a moment. "I can't think of anything, so maybe that means that I really am losing my memories. But whatever they were, they couldn't have been very important memories, right?"
"Right, or else I don't think you would have forgotten it," Kairi agreed. She remembered Sora and Riku, she remembered Axel telling her that Sora was now a Nobody. She reached into her pocket, almost wishing for the charm she had passed to Riku at the door, instead pulling out the few loose shells she still had. "Look."
"What are they?" Donald asked in confusion.
"The start of a good luck charm for Sora. I gave the completed one to Riku as the door was closing. I could never forget either of them."
Donald and Goofy nodded in agreement.
"Am I right, Sora?" she whispered, seeing an image of Sora in her head. They smiled at each other but then a girl wearing a white dress appeared behind him. "Huh?!" Kairi focused on the image but the girl was gone. "Oh... Do I know...that girl?"
"Hey, Kairi. Where did you go?" Donald called her back to the present.
"Sorry. Never mind," she shook her head.
"We better keep goin'."
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Naminé stared at the image sadly. She didn't want to replace Sora in Kairi's memory with herself. Axel's visit had given her hope and so she was working more slowly than she knew Marluxia would be happy with. She knew Axel had told her that Sora was a Nobody now, she wouldn't touch that memory, Sora would need the hope of seeing a Kairi who knew him in some way, even if Sora couldn't actually feel hope at the moment. She just hoped that Marluxia could be stopped.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Sora sat on the clocktower, staring down at the town below. He bit into his ice cream, lost in thought. It was strange but…it was like the ice cream didn't taste the same when he had it on his own. He had a Samurai following Kairi and the reports it had sent back were not good. How could they be forgetting things? Just what was going on in that Castle?
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Riku slowly forced his eyes open, it felt almost impossible, he was so tired. He blinked, something was different… "Where am I..." he asked.
"Stay asleep," a voice murmured, and Riku nodded, feeling his eyelids growing heavier.
"Who's…there?!"
"You should remain asleep. Here, between Light and Dark."
"Between...what?" Something was wrong, something…he forced his eyes open, focusing. He was floating in some kind of void, not the Realm of Darkness. He gasped, shaking his head, waking up more. "The King! Where's the King?! Together we closed the door to darkness. After that…"
"You came drifting here by yourself. You did not have the strength to overcome the Darkness. Or...maybe you were close to it."
"Hmph. As if I'm some kind of demon," he snapped, still fighting the urge to sleep. It wasn't true though, it wasn't. He was himself again, he was Riku, human.
"Hmm. Turn from the Light. Shut your eyes. Here blanketed by the Darkness, sleep is safety. Sleep is eternal." The voice called, and Riku felt lethargy weighing him down again. Nothing hurt in sleep…he didn't have to remember… Sora… he shook his head sleepily, no, he didn't want to forget. He lifted his head. "But..." A light shone, revealing a card.
Riku averted his eyes from the light, the card floating around him. "What's this?" he asked.
"It is a door to the truth. Take it and your sleep ends, as you take the first step toward the truth. But know this: the truth will bring you pain. Will you still go? There is no return to the security of sleep," the voice warned.
Part of him wanted to give in, to go back to sleep forever, to not feel the pain and guilt. But that would dishonour everything Sora had believed in. "This seemed like a boring place to take a nap anyway," he told it, hearing a chuckle, even as he took the card.
"That was very well said, Riku."
The card glowed, and Riku found himself in a building somewhere, a very white building and yet…he could sense Darkness scattered about within it. Before him was a door and he looked at the card in his hand.
"A door to the truth, huh..." he held the card up to the door.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Axel checked the image and then stared. That was Riku, but Sora was so sure he had killed the other boy. How was it possible? He would need to tell Sora. That was one meeting he had to arrange, to let Sora see him. He may no longer feel the guilt of striking his friend down, but mentally it should still help him.
TBC…
So the plan is to replace Sora with Naminé in Kairi's memories to get her cooperation but Naminé is being slow because Axel wanting to speak to Kairi and knowing that Sora has a Nobody has given Naminé hope.