And here we are with the next installment of Awaken the Light, certainly much calmer after the last chapter where Sora had to witness his worst fears cranked to 11. Now, I will admit, the reason this chapter took a bit longer than I had planned was due to wanting to make sure I did Aizawa justice, especially since I'm having to portray him as a parental figure.

As always, thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter, Finalcool720, SuperSaiyanFever, Blazer777, Dante Watterson, and joshuamanu632. Without further ado, let's dive right in.

"NO!" Sora woke up with a scream, leaning up in bed with tears running down his face, though he wasn't actively sobbing like he had been in that nightmare. His breathing was heavy as he tried to calm himself down, doing his best to try and avoid waking up his new guardians.

Trying being the key word, after about thirty seconds of being awake, Sora could have swore he saw deep yellow eyes glaring back at him in the darkness, with the rest of the person wrapped in shadow. On instinct he tried to summon his keyblade, only for the small orb of light to pop up before extinguishing itself, the eyes still glaring at him.

The next thing he did was turn on the small lamp that was next to his bed and when the room became dimly lit, the eyes were gone. No one had actually been there, he had just thought that someone was there. Had his nightmare really gotten to him that much or was there something deeper going on?

He had never been good at dealing with feelings like this, especially on his own. The last time he had a breakdown even remotely close to what had just happened was when...when...he couldn't bring himself to finish the thought. He had saved them, all of them, so why couldn't he just forget that he had watched them all die?

Not in the nightmare, but before he had saved the Guardians and broke the nature taboo that Chirithy had told him about. He had broke when everyone was gone and if it hadn't been for Riku's final words and Kairi giving him the chance to restore himself in the Final World to try and save everyone, he would've died broken. The thought was enough to make him shudder and nearly throw up.

Sighing to himself, he checked the clock on his night stand, frowning a bit as he saw the time on the clock. It was currently four in the morning, far far earlier than what Sora was used to waking up at, even during his adventures. But after that nightmare, he didn't want to go back to sleep. He didn't think he could go back to sleep either way, he didn't want to deal with those nightmares anymore. Not tonight.

After a few minutes of sitting in bed and trying to process everything and ultimately trying to shove it into the back of his mind, Sora got out of bed and made his way to the kitchen, hoping he didn't wake either of his guardians up with his outburst.

He'd try to tell them about what happened in the morning once they woke up, but it wasn't like he was a toddler. He didn't need to run to his guardians room and tell them about a nightmare. He didn't want to be a bother during his first night there, especially with how nice they seemed.

He had been rather surprised the day before when Present Mic aka Hizashi Yamada had informed him that there was someone else living with him. When he had asked why he hadn't been there to meet him at the doctor's, Yamada had simply adopted a fake serious expression and repeating what he had been told.

'It would be illogical for both of us to meet you and pick you up when someone needs to set your room up at the apartment.' The blonde had immediately burst out laughing after he finished, with Sora having joined in as well.

Yamada and Aizawa both seemed nice though, the loud pro hero was definitely the more energetic and easy going of the two while Aizawa was more serious and focused, but it seemed like he meant well. The brunet was sure he'd get along with Yamada easily and while Aizawa would likely take a bit more time, he was sure they'd get along as well.

So it was a surprise when Sora saw Aizawa in the kitchen with two cups of coffee in his hands, holding one out. "You look like you could use this."

"Ah, thank you." Sora took the cup and sipped it, noticing that the coffee seemed rather sweet, with the older man just shrugging.

"Figured that you took your coffee with lots of cream and sugar, seems like I was right."

"Yeah, I've always had more of a sweet tooth." Sora glanced down at the cup, looking at his reflection in the coffee. "Sorry if I woke you up."

"Don't worry about it kid, normally wake up at 4:30 in the morning anyway. Besides, you shouldn't be apologizing about having nightmares." Aizawa's tone made it clear that he was sure about why his ward was up this early.

Sora bit his lip for a moment as his guardian seemed to see right through him, before nodding. "I guess, just...not used to them being so bad."

The man merely nodded before gesturing to Sora to sit on the couch in the living room, taking a seat next to him. It was uncommon for most heroes, whether they be in training or pros to not have nightmares. Depending on what type of hero you were, there would be plenty of brushes with death, especially if you weren't careful. He just never thought he'd be having to help a kid who wasn't even enrolled in a hero school yet.

"Honestly, I'd be more concerned if you weren't having nightmares after everything you've been through." Aizawa had been at the meeting, the entire U.A. Staff knew exactly what Sora had gone through. Honestly, he was amazed that the kid was still functioning normally for the most part, despite having essentially died multiple times over the last couple of years.

But there were clearly emotional cracks and he needed to find out how deep they went. The chances that Sora would need therapy were high, almost a certainty, but that wasn't something they would force.

Sora simply rubbed his eyes a bit as he took another sip of his coffee, before resting the mug on his leg. "Until last night, I hadn't been...at least nothing to that extent. I know I was having one before I woke up in the hospital, but even that one didn't compare…"

"Would you be willing to tell me about it?" Sora looked at this guardian like a deer in headlights at the question, before he started to shake a little. Just even thinking about that was making him tremble like a leaf.

"I…" Sora couldn't get the words out before Aizawa put a hand on his shoulder in comfort, the trembling ceasing soon after.

"I'm sure what you dreamed about was terrifying." Aizawa had to guess that Sora had some form of PTSD and he wouldn't be surprised if there was some form of anxiety as well. Being in so many life or death situations would do that to anyone, especially a kid. "I know we haven't known each other for that long, but Hizashi and I do care about you and we want to help."

"I...thank you Aizawa, I really appreciate it. And...I'm not sure how to put this…" Sora mumbled a bit into his cup as he took another sip of the coffee. Once he finished, he took a deep breath and tried to calm his nerves with little success.

"I guess I should start with what happened yesterday." Aizawa's eyes narrowed at that. Hizashi hadn't mentioned anything going wrong aside from Sora collapsing from quirk exhaustion and Sora had seemed fine, though it was clear that neither of them fully knew what was normal for their ward yet.

"What happened yesterday?" He was trying to keep the anger out of his voice, concerned that someone had done something to his ward.

"Well...when we were about to leave the doctor's office, I had this...horrible feeling in my heart. It's still there, but I have a feeling something happened to my friends back home." Sora's voice choked a bit as tears threatened to start spilling again.

"And I didn't think anything of it c-cause I thought they were all safe. Xehanort's gone…" If he wasn't, Sora had no idea how he would have managed it at this point. "The w-worlds are supposed to be safe...everyone's back...but I swear I felt something. I don't know if my f-friends are just mourning...or if something happened to them...and there's nothing I can do to help them if something did…"

Tears were flowing from Sora's eyes at this point as his voice was shaky. He had moved his cup of coffee to the table to avoid spilling it, he wasn't confident he could hold the thing steady right now.

"And...I watched them all die...Donald...Goofy...Riku...Kairi...everyone…" Sora dug his nails into the palm of his hands as he felt Aizawa's arm wrap around his shoulders, pulling him close. "All I could do was watch...I was completely helpless…and it wasn't the first time either..." Sora shuddered as he thought of when Terra-Xehanort had completely picked apart the Guardians and then the Heartless...

Aizawa held back a sigh, knowing that he was going to need to have Sora talk to Hound Dog at least once about this to try and figure out the full extent of the trauma that his ward had gone through. He had been through far too much for someone his age and he wasn't sure when Sora last got to be a kid and enjoy growing up. Hopefully he would do enough on the test that he'd be taking in a week to be able to enroll in public school.

'This kid deserves to have a normal life, even if it's only for a little while before he gets back home. Or gets into U.A. and starts on the hero course.' He had meant what he had said to Nezu during the meeting the other day and would advocate for Sora to take the normal entrance exam when the time came. While Sora had far more experience than any other applicant, he didn't want to hand someone a spot that people had spent years training and working for to potentially be handed over to someone who'd been here for less than a year.

But he had no doubt that Sora would ace the regular exams, if not during the written portion, then definitely during the practical. He wouldn't deny that he had plenty of potential, especially after what Hizashi had relayed to him after the quirk evaluation test. While he didn't know for sure if what Sora had displayed were abilities that he had been capable of before coming here, but to already adapt them to fit his quirk was impressive.

Which suited him just fine, it meant that they could focus on rounding out any deficiencies in his education and helping him recover mentally and emotionally. Because that was far more important to him right now if this breakdown was any indication.

"I just...I don't know what I need to do to get better...I don't know how to get home...I want that more than anything, but there's nothing I can do about it…everyone always told me to just follow my heart...but what am I supposed to do if I can't?" The words were unspoken, but Aizawa knew that his panic was from being unable to make sure his friends were at least safe. He needed to be careful about how he went about this, he didn't want to hurt Sora further.

"Sora, you're friends are strong right? As strong as you are?" The boy thought for a few seconds before nodding slowly.

"Then you need to believe in them. I'm sure they miss you just as much as you miss them and are worried sick about you."

"But what if-"

"Sora, trust me. Worrying about what ifs and maybes is only going to exhaust you both mentally and emotionally. I understand wanting to make sure your friends are safe." Aizawa sighed quietly as an image of Oboro flashed through his mind, his fallen friend at the forefront of his thoughts. "But right now, you need to make sure you're here and okay when they find you. I'm sure they're doing everything they can to find you."

"I know but-"

Aizawa sat his mug down and looked at Sora seriously, not out of anger, but out of concern. "Kid, you've been through more than what should ever be asked of someone at your age and I don't know what'll be waiting for you once you get back." He wasn't sure what peacetime meant where Sora came from, especially since it seemed like those Heartless would always be a threat in his world. Not unlike the villains pro heroes dealt with on a daily basis, but at least most heroes didn't start serious training and fighting said villains until they were in high school.

"I promise that we'll do everything we can to support you, whether it's research or training, anything you think will help you get back home. But you also deserve some time to just be a kid and have fun, without anything looming over your head."

Sora wiped his eyes a bit as he leaned into Aizawa's chest, sighing as his crying began to slow down and becoming quieter. "T-Thank you Aizawa...and Yamada too...for everything. I know you didn't h-have to take me in…"

Aizawa shook his head a bit, a slight smirk on his face. "Of course we did problem child, it's the right thing to do. Besides, you made quite the impression on both of us before we even met you."

Sora blinked a couple of times, looking up at the older man. "I did?"

"Sure, not just anyone can do the things you have, even if I'm still wrapping my head around all of it. You're a good kid Sora, even if you have a few things that need to be worked on, you have a good head on your shoulders and your heart is in the right place. Trust me, that's more than I say about a lot of people."

"Really?"

"Most people want to become heroes because they'll think it'll be fun or they'll make good money off of it, it's not common for someone to go the hero route because they want to help people exclusively. And while you were forced into it, it seems like you've always tried to do the right thing and help people even if you don't have to. Even if you didn't have that experience under your belt, you'd have enough potential to not get expelled if you got into my class."

Sora's mouth dropped at that, while being given praise for his accomplishments was a bit new to him, given most of his friends had just always expected that from him, what had shocked him was the news of expulsions being talked about so casually. "How many people have you expelled?"

Aizawa merely smirked at that. "A lot, though if you want an estimate, this year I expelled my entire class. I don't do that every year, but this year no one showed that potential. So try not to lose that between now and the entrance exam, and I would hate to expel the kid Hizashi wanted to take in so bad."

"Your entire...class...wow...I'll do my best!"

"I know you will kid." Aizawa glanced over at the clock and saw it was 4:45am now, the two had been talking for quite a while and Sora seemed to be calming down now. Though he doubted the problem child would be getting back to sleep thanks to that coffee either way.

The two sat in silence for a few minutes longer with Sora finishing off his cup of coffee. "Hey, Aizawa, can I ask you something? And promise you won't laugh?"

"Of course, on both counts." Aizawa raised an eyebrow, curious as to what his ward would want that he was being asked not to laugh. Couldn't be any crazier than some of the things that Hizashi had wanted over the years.

"Could...you maybe look into a nightlight for my room? I know it sounds childish, but…" As Sora went into a tangent, Aizawa should have figured something like that would be needed sooner or later.

"Of course, we can pick one up after I get off work today. Just because I expelled my entire class doesn't mean I don't have to work." Aizawa sighed a bit, knowing he was going to have to make sure Sora didn't get into any trouble. "Plus, there's someone I want you to meet at U.A. if you're up for it."

"Oh, who's that?" Sora tilted his head, the young man curious about who one of his guardians wanted him to meet at the school.

"He's the school's guidance counselor and therapist, and goes by Hound Dog for his hero name. I'm not sure if you've ever talked with someone about...well anything you've had to deal with, but I think seeing someone would do you some good. Plus, he knows about you so you won't have to lie to him."

Sora bit his lip, it felt so weird to be talking about any of his issues outside of his circle of friends back home. Heck, he had never even talked with his mom about most of this stuff, just that he had been away doing important business the last couple of times he saw her. His chest tightened a bit as he wondered what Riku and Kairi would have told her now that he was gone and they had no clue when he was coming back.

"I...I'll try at least. I don't know what I'll say, but I can definitely try."

"That's all I ask, kid."

So with that, seems like Sora is already off to a good start with Hizashi and Aizawa, though Sora is going to quickly develop a respectful fear of the latter because it's Aizawa, he may care, but you still know he can kick your ass five different ways. Onto the reviews with questions.

From Blazer777

So here's the thing, while myself the writer and you the readers know that what Sora felt was Kairi going into her coma, Sora does not know this. As Sora pointed out in this chapter, he doesn't know what happened back home to make him feel that. Whether it was the gang's collective grief or something bad happening, Sora is completely unsure and he hates that not only he doesn't know what's wrong, but he can't do anything to help.

As for the PTSD, this is a long term plot line that will be going well into U.A., though Sora will have it mostly under control by then. But for a small recap of what he's endured since starting his adventure, he watched his homeworld get destroyed, his two best friends vanish without a trace, had one of two said best friends betray him and nearly cost him everything, killed himself to bring back the other and then had to choose to leave his best friend in the equivalent of hell in the KH Universe while he had to leave the other alone back home so he could try to find the ones that got left behind. This was during his first adventure and it's not covering what Sora has gone through in every other game since KH1.

So yes, I am choosing to write Sora as a broken hero, because after everything he has gone through and having most people tell him to keep smiling and shrug the bad stuff off, most people would have shattered and collapsed. I honestly have Steven Universe: Future to thank for helping with this, especially the latest episode because trauma is a thing. Sora is traumatized and there are consequences to that, regardless of him being the protagonist and I'm praying to whoever's listening that Nomura will do something with that in future games.

If you read this, I hope you do manage to get back into the story, because there's a lot of fun stuff planned and it pretty much starts now.

And that was the only review that needed to be addressed, but before I end things for this chapter, here's an Omake I decided to write because Dadzawa is protective of his kids.

Omake: Aizawa Shares Parental Tips

"Excuse me, are you Mickey Mouse?" Aizawa was currently dressed in his hero costume and had a bit of a scowl on his face as he was looking for his target.

"Haha, sure am pal! How can I help ya?" Mickey had a smile on his face, oblivious as to what was about to happen.

A few seconds later, the king would find himself grabbed by Eraserhead's capture weapon before being punched square in the face and sending him flying several feet. And while the pro hero knew his quirk was pointless, he had it active now for dramatic effect.

Mickey was now lying on his back as Eraserhead stood above him, glaring down at him.

"Next time you need children to fight in your war, please ensure that you are giving them proper counseling and emotional care for the trauma they are going through. And no, constantly telling someone to just smile does not count as proper emotional care. Because if I find out you pulled that kind of crap again, I will be back, your majesty."

With that, the pro hero vanished as Mickey rubbed his face, a very noticeable bruise already forming from the punch that he had been given.

"Gosh, what was that about?"