Deleted Scene: Doorknobs and Dilemmas
Act 1, before chapter 6;
x.x.x
With a hiss and a crackle, the green flames parted and sank away. In place of cold bricks and flickering torches, a flash of color assaulted Sora's eyes. No matter where he looked throughout the circular room, he felt as if he'd been hurled head-first into an abstract painting done by a colorblind artist. Uneven tiles coated the floor with occasional floral patterns thrown in the mix. Paintings dangled from the brick walls, some tilted at odd angles. More flowers filled the frames, with the occasional images of rabbits. Craning his neck, Sora searched for a ceiling, but the walls kept going up and up and up again, never ending. If he stared long enough, he could make out what looked like floating rocking chairs and tables, but… nah. It couldn't be. How would they get up there in the first place? As the gears in his head started turning, his thoughts came to a screeching halt at the sound of pattering footsteps.
Sora's eyes shot down to the floor, and they nearly flew outta their sockets at what he saw. Zipping to and fro, a gigantic, white rabbit scurried across the room, his big eyes locked on the gold pocket watch that ticked at a rapid pace. Tiny spectacles sat on his snout, while a red waistcoat covered his upper body. Sora's eyes zigzagged after his movements, and he took a step closer, clearing his throat. He would've said hello, too, if the rabbit hadn't screeched to a stop at the sound of a loud DING!
For one, maybe two seconds, he stood like a statue, ears straight up, eyes wide open, and arms hanging stiffly at this side. Then, with a yelp, he rocketed down the hall. And, for better or worse, Sora leaped after him.
"Hey, wait!"
Before he could get too far, he felt something grip at his hood, reeling him back. Shooting a look over his shoulder, he spotted Maleficent, who shook her head slowly and placed a finger to her lips. Up ahead, he heard the little rabbit sing.
"I'm late, I'm late for a very important date! No time to say hello, goodbye, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!" He stopped just long enough to wave before vanishing altogether.
With the rabbit gone, Sora slumped over, breathing out a mouthful of air. After rubbing the back of his neck, he looked back to Maleficent. "Hey, who was that guy? I've never seen a talking rabbit before!"
Despite the fact that the rabbit had already left, Sora felt his lips stretching wider and wider into a grin the size of a crescent moon. He'd only spent a few minutes in this world, and already it'd shattered all expectations. Talking rabbits, floating furniture, what else could it have to offer? If Riku or Kairi heard about this, they'd probably call him crazy!
A small trace of a smile slid up Maleficent's face, and she took two steps forward. "The rabbit," she explained, "is a subject of the queen. Should you follow him, you will doubtlessly locate her as well as the poor, helpless girl she has taken captive." Her smile stiffened into a straight line, and she locked eyes with Sora. "I suggest you hurry, child, lest the poor girl be beheaded in your absence. I will meet you here as soon as you retrieve her and, should you see him, do give my regards to the Cheshire Cat…"
Right. This wasn't time for sightseeing! After puffing out his chest and performing a quick salute, Sora marched down the halls. He stopped about midway, however, just so he could flash a grin at his new friend.
"Don't worry, Maleficent! There's no way she'll lose her head with me on the job!"
Her lips curled upward, but she didn't say a word. After coiling her fingers around her long, wooden staff, Maleficent tapped the tip against the floor. A flash of green sprouted up around her, swallowing the tail of her shadowy robs and stretching all the way up to the tips of her horns. With her whole body consumed, the flames shivered, swayed, and fizzled away, leaving nothing but more garish tiles in their place.
Oh well. He knew she'd be back. Right now, he needed to stay focused. This wasn't about him, it was about that girl. What kinda hero hesitated? Shoving a hand into one of his pockets, Sora whipped out his cool, new sword and zipped along the winding hallway. More paintings flashed past him, along with the swinging pendulum of a clock. After passing a cupboard stuffed to the brim with dishes, he slid to a stop in front of a large door.
One turn of the knob, and he expected to pass into the next room, but instead, another door appeared! Was this some kinda joke? Puffing up his cheeks, Sora flung the door open, only to find a third door, slightly smaller than the last. Grumbling, Sora fought back the urge to pound his fist against the door. After taking a few deep breaths, he cranked the knob, expecting further disappointment. Instead? A whole new room opened up. Finally!
If the first room was eye-searing, then this new room cranked it up to blinding levels of color. Tacky, pink wallpaper coated every last wall. A sky blue table sat at the very center of the room, surrounded by pink chairs with backs that resembled rabbit heads. Two objects sat smack dab in the middle, one of them a pink bottle with a tag that said 'drink me' and the other a shimmering, golden box. 'Course, none of those objects even began to compare to what he saw way down below, at the far end of the room.
Rubbing his eyes, Sora scurried over to the wall, just to make sure he hadn't seen things, but nope, there it was! About the size of a mouse hole, Sora spotted a little, wooden door with an equally tiny doorknob. Getting down on his knees, Sora leaned close to this door, hand hovering above the knob. How could anyone have fit inside? Even the rabbit would've towered over it. Still, maybe there was a trick to it. After licking his lips, Sora wrapped his fingers around the doorknob and gave it a crank to the right.
"Ow!"
Sora flew back, arms flailing. Did that door just moan? When he looked to the door, he noticed the knob shifting, while two beady eyes blinked open. The keyhole became a pair of lips that bent into a frown. Its eyes crossed for a second, looking at its knob of a nose before it shifted its gaze to Sora. Shaky laughter fluttered out of Sora's mouth, and he leaned back with a crooked smile.
"Uh… sorry about that?"
Just as soon as Sora spoke, the Doorknob burst into a laughing fit. "No, that's quite all right, but I was in the middle of a nap, you know. You gave me quite a turn!" Its knob whirled about, and it blurted out another laugh. "Perhaps you ought to knock next time!"
…Okay, apparently this guy liked cracking weird jokes. Well, at least he wasn't upset or anything.
"So, uh. How come you're so small? I don't think anyone could fit in there unless they were a mouse or something!"
Yet again the door chuckled. "Nothing's impossible, my boy, simply impassable! The bottle on the table is the key—but then without a key you simply cannot pass through. What a predicament!"
Wait, so a bottle was the key… but he needed a different key to pass through? What? With his face scrunched up, Sora scratched at the side of his head. What the heck was that even supposed to mean? Was the door locked or something? And if it was, how was he gonna get anywhere? Shaking his head, Sora climbed back to his feet and turned in a full circle, scanning the area. Ignoring the brick fireplace to the right and the table from before, the only other thing that stood out was a miniature bed no taller than his knees, and… wait. Was that some kinda… hole? Ignoring the wacky Doorknob for a second, Sora barreled over to the bed and latched onto the foot-board. He tugged and he tugged, but the darn thing didn't budge an inch. And it looked so tiny, too!
After a few more tugs, the Doorknob snickered. "Oh no, I'm afraid you'll have to be a bit pushier!"
Pushy? Wait, was that another pun? At first Sora opened his mouth, ready to tell that door to stop throwing riddles around, but… well, if Doorknobs could talk and rabbits could squeeze through tiny doors, then, why not? At this point, maybe he needed throw logic out the door… no pun intended. Thinking from a crazy person's perspective, Sora moved to the side of the bed, took a step back, and threw his whole weight into it. Next thing he knew, his head hit the wall. Moaning, he stumbled backwards and rubbed at his head. It only dawned on him then that the bed had become a pancake against the wall. At least that solved one problem.
But, just like the other door, this new opening reached no higher than Sora's legs. Despite one small victory, he'd gone back to square one… or had he? When Sora looked away from the opening, his eyes locked onto the tabletop or, to be more specific, the bottle that stood right on top of it. That Doorknob did say it was the key, and if smashing a bed into a wall worked in this world, then who knew what that drink would do? With a wild grin, Sora charged at the table and snapped the bottle up in one hand. After pulling the top away, he placed it to his lips and slurped down the blue liquid inside.
All at once, everything began to change. With each sip the table, the chair, and the room grew bigger and bigger. With one sip Sora's head sank below the table, and that was just the beginning. Sip by sip, the surrounding objects shifted, becoming misshapen mountains while he became a puny ant. By the time he'd swallowed the last drop, Sora's head barely reached the top of one of the chair legs. He tilted his head way back, gawking at the monster of a table. This was perfect! At this size, he'd squeeze through that hole with no trouble at all. Rubbing his hands together, Sora moseyed over to the opening. But, before slipping inside, he shot one last look at the Doorknob, flashing a thumbs-up.
"Thanks a lot!" he said. "The bottle was perfect!"
In response, the Doorknob closed his eyes, and shook his head—or rather, his face. "Any time. Now then, I need a bit more sleep, so… if you don't…mind—" and as he spoke, his eyes closed, and soon the sound of snores replaced his words.
Gripping his sword again, Sora barged through the hole, skimming the darkness for anything shady. Soon the tunnel gave way to green, green, and more green. Hedges sprouted up from the ground, snaking out as far as the eye could see. His shoes sank into soft grass, and the sound of a trumpet blaring led him towards a heart-shaped archway surrounded by spade-shaped bushes dotted with red roses… or rather, roses dripping with red paint.
Poking his head through the archway, Sora's jaw dropped. Huge cards with arms, legs, and even faces strutted in tight rows towards a gigantic, wooden podium. The red cards carted spears in their clutches and bore heart patterns along their corners. The black ones scowled and squeezed the axes in their grip, decorated with spades instead. Looming at the edge of another winding hedge maze, Sora eyed the monstrous mass of stone and bricks. A banner dangled over the podium's edge, marked with a half split in two—part red and part white, with a little crown floating above it. Wooden steps coiled a smaller, wooden platform to the left. A golden cage rested off to the side with a red curtain draped over the front.
But, wait! Standing at the top of that platform was none other than the rabbit, sucking in a huge breath of air before blasting his trumpet for all to hear. Leaning over the podium's edge, a fat, ugly hag snarled at the crown—specifically a young girl seated at the foot of the podium. A pint-sized crown sat on top of her black hair, kept in a small bun. A black and red dress covered her round, pudgy body, and she squeezed her fingers around a red, heart staff. Practically her opposite, a itty bitty man sat down next to her with long, brown hair, matching heart attire, and an even bigger crown. Unlike the queen, he wore a gentler expression as he peered at the girl.
In a way, that girl probably stood out the most! No heart patterns covered her simple, blue dress. Blonde hair stretched down to the middle of her back. A white apron covered the front of her dress, and a set of white tights concealed her legs. Black shoes and a black hair ribbon completed her appearance, completely normal from head to toe. And, instead of cackling like a maniac or spouting out puns and riddles, she tipped her head back, scowled, and crossed her arms.
But, defiant or not, one thing became crystal clear just by looking into the courtyard; Sora'd found his destination. Now all he had to do was barge in and rescue her.
But how?
x.x.x
END NOTE: Well, this sure is old! I wrote this little snippet way back in… sheesh, no later than 2008 or 2009. I had originally planned on placing this sequence at the start of Chapter 6, but ultimately cut it, as the chapter had gotten too long and it really didn't push the plot forward. These events are still referenced in Kingdom Hearts: The Antipode, but I thought it would be fun to show, even if it's not the most eventful sequence.
Additionally, the Doorknob's more lively attitude stems from the movie, where he's kind of eccentric instead of just sleepy.