The Ocean Between Worlds
It was the kind of ship you would see in children's books when they had to depict a pirate ship. Full-rigged, three masts, covered in sails despite the fact that it was floating in the middle of space. 11 cannons were pointed right at the Gummi Ship, making them feel somewhat small in comparison.
"But how did this thing even get out here?" Penny asked. "It doesn't have jets or anything."
"I wonder if it was trying to chase Monstro." Katie said.
The ship lunged forward.
"I think it's trying to chase us!" Goofy said.
"Oh, are we the great white whale?"
"INCOMING!" Donald cried.
The Gummi Ship crashed on to the deck. It was far from the first time that the Gummi Ship had crashed, but it certainly didn't set Dani's mind at ease. She stepped out, only to immediately be swarmed by Heartless carrying swords. She didn't even have enough space to summon her Keyblade. But it did not really seem like the Heartless were here to fight her. They shepherded each of them off the Gummi Ship and onto the ship proper, making sure there was not enough time or space to launch a counterattack.
"I didn't think you'd make it this far, Sora." Riku greeted.
The white haired pretty boy was leaning up against the wheel of the ship, acting like he had done nothing wrong. Dani pushed herself against the horde of Heartless with little success.
"Where's my brother, you creep!"
"Is he really that important to you?" Riku sneered.
"Yes!" Hanna cried. She was not pushing up against the Heartless as much as she saw, but Dani could tell her sister was just waiting for an opportunity.
"Fine. Then I won't tell you I found Kairi."
Riku took a step to the side. Just out of the corner of her eye, Dani could see a human figure, slumped onto the deck.
"Kairi!" Sora exclaimed.
So that was Kairi? She matched Sora's description, at least. Short red hair, eyes like the sea…but something was wrong with those eyes. It reminded her of something, but Dani wasn't going to take the time now to figure it out.
"While you were off with your new friends, I decided to go and find her." Riku explained.
"Bet you got the Heartless to help you with that, didn't you!" Dani snapped.
"Riku, why are you siding with the Heartless? You're better than that!" Sora asked.
"My heart's too strong for them. I have nothing to fear." Riku turned his attention back to Hanna and Dani. "Now, you can go visit your brother."
A trap door on the deck opened.
Nobody was anywhere near it.
Dani stared at the trap door for a minute. Then back to the Heartless, whose swords were now getting a lot closer.
One by one, in a single file line, they jumped to their doom.
Neverland—Captain Hook's Ship
"Ya don't say?"
"Yeah! That was definitely her! I've finally found her!"
"All right! A-hyuck! Now let's go up there and talk to her!"
"Yeah!"
"Sounds great! Okay, but first, how about getting off!"
The six piled off of Donald, who grumbled a thanks.
Hanna glanced around the room. The brig of the ship, though bigger than it ought to be, was virtually empty. The only things in the room were a few barrels and crates, that probably held food and water at one point. Not even rope that could have restrained them. There was only one door that could lead out, but she had no idea where it would lead.
"Lookin' for a way out?"
Hanna turned to the source, only to see nothing.
"Yes, Mr. Barrel. If you have something to contribute, please do." Penny said.
A blur of green shot towards her. It took Hanna a minute to process it was a boy. Far younger than her, dressed entirely in clothes that looked woven from twigs and leaves, and...floating.
"What are you supposed to be?" Donald asked.
"Me? I'm the answer to your prayers!" The boy said.
"You don't look like a pony." Katie said.
"Fine, then. I won't help you break out." The boy pouted. Maybe Hanna would have been more sympathetic to his bruised ego if they weren't just kidnapped, but she had more pressing things to worry about.
"Are you trapped down here, too?" Sora asked.
"Me? Nah, nothing can stop me!" The boy said. "I'm just waiting for someone."
The sound of jingling bells filled the chamber. A yellow blur shot past Hanna, landing right at Peter's shoulder.
"What took you so long, Tinker Bell?" The boy asked.
More jingles. Hanna had to squint, but she could just make out a humanoid figure in the yellow light.
"Another girl?...I'm just not going to leave Wendy behind, Tink!...Wait, Tink-"
The yellow blur shot past Hanna and out of the room.
The boy pouted.
"So are we working together?" Hanna asked.
"Fine. But only until we find Wendy." The boy said. "Peter Pan, at your service!"
"Fantastic." Penny said, not sounding all that impressed. "How are we getting out of here?"
"We can't go anywhere if that door's locked." Sora said.
"Can't you use the magical weapon that can unlock any door?" Hanna asked.
"Oh. Right."
"After all that trouble of capturing her, you just want me to let her go?"
"She's not a Princess of Heart. She's useless to us." Riku said. "Dispose of them however you want. Make them walk the plank, if you want."
He did want to make the walk the plank, but he wanted to prove his point more.
"And what of the other girls we captured. Are they the chosen ones?"
Captain Hook had seen many a great thing in his day. Not only was he a pirate, but he was a pirate in a magical world. He had kidnapped Indians, fought with mermaids, and flown above the seven seas. His arch-nemesis was a boy who never grew older and never grew wiser. On any day, he would put up with things that would make another pirate look like a landlubber.
And yet the glare that Riku sent him made the hairs on the back of his neck stand at attention.
"Them, I expect you to throw off the plank."
"Captain, we're having a bit of a problem!"
Smee rushed in, nearly knocking into Captain Hook in the process.
"Th—the prisoners have escaped. A—and Peter Pan is with them!" His first mate cried.
Captain Hook's blood boiled over. He opened his mouth, ready to shout to his crew, the Heartless, anyone to get those prisoners back. Riku, however, simply snapped his fingers to conjure a Heartless. The Heartless faded into the ground, moving past Captain Hook's feet and almost tripping him, and vanished through the gap in the door.
"He'll take care of the prisoners. You worry about getting rid of the dead weight."
Captain Hook stood there, mustache twitching. He deserved more respect than to be pushed around by a mere child like that. On the other hand...someone was wrong with that boy. And not in the usual way Captain Hook had to put up with misbehaving children.
"Peter? Peter Pan!"
The voice came from above, barely making itself heard through the thick boards above. It was not a voice she recognized.
"Wendy!" Peter flew up towards the source. "Where are you? Are you alright? Are the Lost Boys with you?"
"We're all alright, but please hurry! The pirates are going to come soon!"
"Alright, I'll be right up there!"
"Wendy?" Sora asked. "Is there anyone else up there with you?"
"Well, there is another girl, but she appears to be asleep. She hasn't moved an inch." Wendy said.
"C'mon help me get up here!" Peter exclaimed, still tugging at the loose floorboards.
"We can't fly!" Penny snapped.
"Oh, that? Tink, can you take care of it?"
Hanna wasn't sure how bells could sound angry, but Tinkerbell in her strange language made it work.
"Oh come on!"
Peter snatched Tinkerbell by the wings and shook her. Golden dust fell from her and onto the seven. Katie sneezed, scattering it.
"There! Now you can fly!" He said.
"No, now we're covered in glitter." Hanna said. "And I've been needing a proper shower since three worlds back."
"If you believe in yourself, you can do anything!" Peter said. "Now fly!"
From above, Wendy screamed. Peter jumped out of the way as a Shadow crawled through the floorboards and onto the floor below.
No, not a Shadow. Her brother.
Hanna summoned her Keyblades almost on reflex, but she did not dare move. She did not want to strike her brother.
Dani did not have those same reservations.
"GIVE ME BACK MY BROTHER!"
The fight was on. Dani charged. But her movements were wild and erratic, blinded by rage. She wouldn't keep up like this. In seconds, the Charlie Heartless had thrown her against the wall and set his sights on Hanna.
Hanna did not think. She only jumped up.
It was quite surprising to all of them that she did not come back down.
She had seen Peter fly, of course. And she had seen many impossible things before then. It should not surprise her so much that much. But here she was, surprised, floating in the air like an idiot. What had Peter said to do? Just believe in yourself? That did not sound like very good advice for a flight lesson…
But then she looked back down to her sister, staring at her with shining eyes full of Light. And she looked back at what her brother was. He would have liked to fly, too.
She could believe in herself, alright. She could believe that she and her sister could save her brother and send him flying one day.
Hanna summoned the Darkside Kingdom Key. The Ace of Hearts hovered at her side, imbued with magic. She charged.
It was easier to fight with two Keyblades than she thought, even easier than learning how to use one the first time. The Ace of Hearts seemed to have a mind of its own, hovering by her side and covering her back. But both Keyblades moved in tandem, flying around her and striking the her enemy.
The Heartless wasn't strong enough to take her. And it knew it. It fell to the ground and crawled back towards the ceiling.
"This is the silliest battle against good and evil ever." Penny said.
Still, it wasn't every day you got to see a band of pirates get their beards punched off by a group of kids. The charge was led by Peter Pan, who was surprisingly the oldest in the group. He had challenged Captain Hook in what was probably the only real battle in the group; Peter soared over him and fought hook to dagger, Hook crawled through the masts and crow's nest to keep up. The others…well, the three year old with the teddy bear seemed to be doing the most damage so far, followed by the seven year old in a top hat, who managed to find a way to duel with his umbrella. Occasionally a Heartless would show up, but it was usually defeated by either Donald's or Penny's magic.
"Hey, do you think we can steal this ship when this is over and use it instead?" Katie asked.
"And abandon the Gummi Ship?" Goofy asked.
"I've been sharing the same mattress with six other people for the last few weeks. I think it's worth it."
"You've also been using me as a pillow." Donald grumbled.
"You're fluffy and warm. I have no regrets."
Katie's eyes drifted. Out from where they had escaped came the Heartless that looked like Charlie, followed quickly by his sisters.
"Do you think we should go help them?" Sora asked.
"No," Katie said, her voice gravely serious. "This is their fight."
Just faintly, over the roar of the other fights, Katie could hear Dani cry "No it's not!"
"Oh. Then yeah, we might want to deal with that."
Penny, Katie, and Sora rushed towards the stern, readying their Keyblades. But the Heartless that was not Charlie stepped back as well, hovering around Riku.
"You're stronger than I gave you credit for." Riku scowled. "But I wonder how strong you would be if you did not have friends to rely on."
"Riku, stop it." Sora said, his voice shaking as he tried his best scowl. "You're better than this. I know you are."
A Dark portal opened behind Riku, just over the edge of the ship. The Heartless skittered inside.
"You don't get it, do you? You're not strong enough to get Kairi's heart back."
Riku took a step backwards. Sora dashed for him, but it was too late. Riku was gone. So were Charlie and Kairi.
SORA obtained FAIRY HARP
DANI obtained FAIRY WINGS
Increases the user's magic, and has a chance to land powerful critical hits.
Author's Note: Congrats to my boy for finally getting into Smash! Based on that presents, it looks like Mr. Sakurai designed him specifically for me. I love me my floaty characters that are just slightly busted. Although...Kairi is the only novice spirit and doesn't have a Dive into the Heart? When will the disrespect end?
By the way, there was a small edit made to chapter 7. Nothing that requires you read it over again, but just know that Donald and Goofy are now confirmed to be cartoons a la Roger Rabbit.