Chapter Two
The three stirred as they awoke, covered in dew and laying on the ground.
As they opened their eyes slowly, they all heard the same, fading voice
say, "Your path is set. Keep a steady pace. Work together and learn to work
with others. You'll find your way. Listen to your heart."
"Listen to your heart?" whispered Elizabeth, unsure of what to think,
sitting up.
"This is so cool!" exclaimed Kathleen in excitement as she too sat up.
"We need to think this through, Kitty," replied Elizabeth as she sat up a
little straighter and checked on her brother. Ben shook his head as he sat
up as well. "Where are we exactly?"
"Libby, you're a spoilsport."
Elizabeth caught the secret meaning behind the reply and answered, "But
where in Kingdom Hearts are we?"
"We could enter those doors over there," Ben told them as he pointed
towards two large brown doors.
"State the obvious why don't ya," Kathleen told him.
Ben smiled proudly.
"Oh boy. This is going to be fun," Elizabeth said sarcastically to herself.
The three got up and walked over to the doors. Kathleen pushed them open
saying
"Traverse Town," she told them as a marketplace came into view.
"Kupo, who are you?" asked the strange, little bear-creature with the red
puff on his head.
"Cool! A moogle!"
"I'm Mimiru," Elizabeth quickly told the moogle.
"Mimiru?" Ben asked his sister.
"I get it! I'm Sakura."
"And I'm Matt."
Elizabeth and Kathleen looked strangely at Benjamin as they asked in union,
"Matt?"
"Um? Yeah. Matt."
"Kupo. Nice to meet you Mimiru, Sakura, and Matt."
Both Kathleen and Ben were by the moogle's sides in less than ten seconds.
They began poking at the moogle's red puff. Elizabeth, in embarrassment,
placed her hand over her face as the moogle's eyes narrowed in anger.
"Kupo! Stop poking my puff! You annoying kids!" yelled the angry moogle as
he stormed away.
"I'm so sorry about them, Mr. Moogle!" Elizabeth called after the moogle.
"Bye, Moogle! Come by later and play, 'kay?"
"I don't think so, kupo! Ahh!"
"Why, hello, Moogle. How are you?" asked a girl in a pink dress with a
basket of flowers in her hands.
"Leave me alone, kupo!"
"Whoa! What's eating him?" a young girl in a yellow tank -top and green
scarf asked the other.
"I don't know."
Mimiru, Sakura, and Matt wandered down the streets, exploring the stalls
and laughing at things they had not noticed when Kingdom Hearts had only
been a game and not a reality -- and they were pretty sure they were
dreaming.
Sakura, hoping around and not watching where she was going, ran into a
young woman in pink, causing her to drop her basket and the floral contents
to spill out.
"Sorry. Really I am."
"No. That's okay. I've never seen any of you around here before."
Mimiru bent down and began picking up some of the flowers.
"Yes. We're travelers of a sort. I'm Mimiru."
"Pleased to meet you, Mimiru. I am Aeris."
"I'm Matt."
"And I'm Sakura. The one who ran into you."
"I'm truly pleased to meet you all."
The young companion of Aeris turned the corner, her scarf flying back in
the breeze.
"Hey, Aeris, who ya talkin' to?"
"Oh. Hey, Yuffie. These are my new friends Mimiru, Sakura, and Matt."
"Hello, Yuffie. I'm very sorry that Sakura ran into your friend. Aeris has
been very kind to us though."
It seemed that Aeris and Yuffie rather liked the company of Mimiru, Sakura,
and Matt.
"I feel so special that I am considered a friend!"
"Ha. I think you and Yuffie will get along quite well, Sakura."
"Err, ladies, are there any males in this town?"
"Nope. None," joked Aeris.
That was stale, Aeris."
" Nice, Sakura."
"Why thank you, Yuffie."
"Are there males?" repeated Matt.
"Yes, we have some male friends," Aeris told him brightly. "Quite a lot,
actually."
"Are any of them cute and single?"
"Oh yeah," Yuffie replied to Sakura's question. "But Leon's mine!"
"How many guys to choose from?"
"Four."
"Any worthwhile?"
"A few."
"Girl! You have to take me, take me, take me!"
"Sakura!" Mimiru cried out in desperation. She knew why her friend was so
anxious to go there. "That's no way to behave!"
Matt was covering his mouth immaturely as he laughed at Sakura and Yuffie.
"Do you have a problem, Matt? 'Cause if you do, I can fix it in one easy
blow!" both Yuffie and Sakura asked the younger boy.
"No. None at all."
"Good 'cause if you did you would be out that door."
Mimiru stepped in front of her brother, hand out.
"No one threatens my brother, else they have to deal with me."
There was a fire in Mimiru's eyes as she told the other two girls that.
"Fine. Anyway, so, Yuffie, which way to the men? I need to get my girlie
side out."
"Aeris, can we get away from them?" asked Mimiru.
"Of course," she smiled. "I'll lead you to where we live."
Aeris, Matt, and Mimiru walked ahead of Yuffie and Sakura. The two groups
carried on their own conversations, each entirely different from the other.
Finally, the five appeared in front of a large home with three floors,
seven balconies, and twenty bedrooms alone. A gate and wall surrounded the
mansion and premise. The place was very elegant.
Sakura and Ben stopped in their tracks and stared up at the building.
"Whoa," they said.
Aeris smiled at the amazement on Sakura and Matt's faces. Yuffie laughed
with great delight at them. Mimiru shook her head and looked at the
building.
"You have a beautiful home, Aeris, Yuffie."
"Thank you, Mimiru."
Aeris opened the gate to reveal a gorgeous green lawn with various flowers
growing everywhere.
Mimiru looked at Aeris and asked, "Your doing?"
Blushing slightly, Aeris answered, "Yes."
"Any purple flowers?" asked Sakura.
"Yes. We have many kinds of flowers."
"Are we going in or what?" asked Matt.
"Oh yeah. Come on, Sakura, and meet the guys."
"Great! Lead the way, Yuffie."
"Those two are pathetic."
"Yes, Matt, but we have always known that."
Aeris led the way to the door and opened it to show a grand staircase with
large wooden doors on either side of the stairs.
Loud voices could be heard coming from the door on the left. Yuffie and
Sakura immediately began walking towards them.
"Wait, Yuffie. Let me show them to their rooms first."
"Aeris!"
"Aeris, I wouldn't want to impose on your hospitality," objected Mimiru.
"I'm sure we could find an inn in the town."
"And how do you expect to pay for it, traveler? You have no bags with you
and i am sure you don't have any of our currency. Mimiru, it would be
perfectly fine if you were to stay."
Mimiru struggled within herself for a few minutes. Matt and Sakura looked
hopefully at the elder girl. Finally, Mimiru nodded her consent and Aeris
smiled brightly.
The four others followed Aeris up the stairs to the second landing. There,
Aeris turned left and they all walked down the blood red and glittering
gold carpet. Aeris opened a dark mahogany door.
"This will be your room," Aeris told them as she let the door easily slide
open, "Sakura."
Inside, the walls were painted a light blue. There was a light purple
comforter a full size bed. A dark mahogany wood dresser was against the
wall and a vanity with a large mirror attached was against the opposite
one. White wicker chairs and a matching table stood in the center of the
room.
Sakura entered the room. Her feet sunk into the lush cream carpet.
"Nice, blue. "
Walking over to the closet, Sakura opened it and saw a few purple dresses
and other articles of clothing hanging up.
"What? No black? Black is very cool. I like Harry Potter."
"You should be grateful, Sakura."
"Those clothes are so girlie."
"Don't worry, Sakura. You can borrow some of my clothes if you want. Or we
can go out shopping for some."
"Yuffie, you are so cool!"
Aeris and Mimiru smiled at one another. Matt shook his head at the two
girls.
"How about B-Matt's room next?"
Aeris looked a little confused at Mimiru's close mistake. The three held
their breath, but Aeris and Yuffie had no reason to question them.
"All right," agreed Aeris.
The group left the room and walked a little further on. Again, they stopped
in front of a mahogany door.
"Tell me what you think, Matt," she said as she opened the door.
The walls were painted black a third of the way up the wall. A boarder of
orange with dark blue diamonds ended the paint on the walls. The comforter
had triangles of various colors against a black background. The bed itself
was made of oak wood, which seemed almost too light for the room. Once
more, there was a dresser, made of oak though. Also, a long desk with a
corkboard attached to the back was there. A dry erase board was against the
wall above the twin bed.
"Cloud got a little wild with the paint in this room."
"It's awesome!"
"You mean you know a puffy, little cloud?"
"No. Cloud's a person," Yuffie told Sakura, not knowing that Sakura already
knew that.
"Take me, take me, take me!"
"Not yet," Yuffie told her, loving to torment the girl.
"Oh."
"Let's move on," Aeris told them.
"Just like what I wanted at home, sis," Matt whispered to Mimiru.
"The comforter looks just like the quilt Mother made you. Do you think this
world knows our secret desires and makes them a reality?"
"I don't know."
Suddenly, a thought hit Mimiru hard in the stomach and she asked her
brother, "Will we ever see Mom and Dad again?"
"I hope so."
"So do I. so do I, Ben."
"Shush! Not my real name! Not yet."
"Right."
They had stopped in front of another mahogany door.
"Your room is last, Mimiru," Aeris told her kindly.
"I don't mind."
As the door gently opened, Mimiru saw a very simple room.
Painted in green, the boarder on top of the third-of-the-way-up wall paint
was a simple pattern of leaves and flowers. A regular sized bed stood
between two large windows with long blue, heavy curtains. The four poster
bed was, like her brothers, made of oak. There was a dresser and vanity of
the same color wood with a mirror. The comforter was a light green with
thin white horizontal and vertical lines. A wooden rocking chair with blue
padding was off in one nook with a few large bookshelves filled with books.
"It's beautiful," Mimiru told them as she timidly stepped inside. "You must
have painted the flowers and leaves, Aeris."
"Yes."
Mimiru walked over to the closet, her practical side showing plainly, and
opened the door. There was one long green dress, simple in style, and a few
different jeans and shirts. Then, she checked the bookshelves for a Bible.
Finding one, she pulled it off the shelf, showing the spine to Matt so that
he knew there was one, and then placed it on her bed.
"Now can we go meet the guys and Cloud?" howled Sakura as she looked
pleadingly at Aeris, Mimiru, and Matt.
"Of course," answered Aeris, a sly smile on her face. Sakura and Yuffie
dashed out the door and down the stairs. The other three followed at a
slower pace, but arrived shortly afterward.
"Thank you, Aeris," Mimiru said gratefully as they walked down the stairs.
"Don't bother. It's nice to have company every now and then," replied
Aeris.
"So what do you do for fun?" asked Matt as they entered the room.
"Looks like they watch television and play video games," Mimiru told him.
"Like any other person."
"Yeah."
Three young men turned to look at the new comers.
One had brown hair, blue-gray eyes, and a scar on his face. He wore black
leather. Another had long silver hair, brilliant green eyes, and wore all
black. The last was the most handsome with blond hair and blue maco eyes.
He wore deep dark blue with a maroon cape.
"Hello," Mimiru politely said.
"Oh my god! How cute!"
"Sakura, mind your manners!"
"Oh, but how can I? The three of them are so cute!"
"Oh brother."
"Yes. I'm here."
"I didn't mean you, Matt!"
"Fine. Be that way!"
"So, Sakura, is that what you were looking forward to?" asked Yuffie.
Sakura ran over to the green couch the men sat on. She poked the first one
a few times in the shoulder, hugged the second one tightly, and pulled the
cheeks of the last, her fingers going inside his mouth.
Mimiru's temple throbbed in embarrassment and anger. Sakura was acting like
a total idiot to the guys she liked, though they had been fake in their
world. She walked over to Sakura and smacked her hard in the back of the
head. Sakura fell over, knocked out temporarily by the fierce blow. (face
with squiggled eyes and wobbly mouth!)o
"I am terribly sorry about Sakura," Mimiru apologized as the men all stared
at the girl lying with rolling eyes on the floor. "She should have known
better. We're all just dreaming. I'm terribly, terribly sorry about the way
Sakura has behaved."
"Right. I am terribly sorry. By the way, whatcha names?" Sakura asked,
getting up and rubbing the back of her head. She, as the others, pretended
not to know their names. "Oh! And Mimiru, for hitting me, you might want to
start running. If not..."
Sakura lunged at Mimiru. Mimiru put her hand out and placed it against the
other girls forehead. Sakura tried to reach her arms out to scratch Mimiru.
Matt laughed.
"Stop laughing. And you! Just because you're taller than me doesn't mean
that I still can't beat you up and you know that!"
"Perhaps. Now, say sorry."
"Fine. Sorry. Anyway, what are your names?"
The blond man pointed to the other two in the order, which they had been
described, "He's Leon. That's Stephiroth. And I'm Cloud."
"Pleased to meet you."
"Glad there are men. Ditto my sis."
"I am ever more pleased to meet all three of you!"
Yuffie jumped in, "That's Sakura. Mimiru and Matt are siblings. Sakura
bumped into Aeris."
"That's not a surprise," Cloud commented coolly.
"How mean. You don't even know me. Meow," cried Sakura.
"Oh, Sakura," both Yuffie and Mimiru said, going over to the girl.
"Now, Cloud, that really wasn't very nice. You do know that," said Aeris.
"Sorry, err -- Sakura."
"Yeah! I got apology from Cloud. I feel so special."
The men and Matt exchanged confused glances.
"Hey, she's your friend," Leon told Matt, hands out.
"She's Mimiru's friend."
"Oh."
"Why did she hug me, by the way?"
"I don't know. She's strange like that."
"I heard that, Matt. And you're the one who always wants to battle me in
Smash until that day comes that you finally beat me! So I guess you should
consider me as your friend."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"You play Super Smash Brother's Melee?" Cloud asked.
Sakura, Matt, and Mimiru exchanged glances.
Mimiru said, "It's even a game in this world."
"Yeah. And I am the master," said Matt proudly.
"You? The Master? Ha! You can't even beat a girl like me!"
"Yes I can. It's just that I haven't tried. Besides, you cheat."
"Cheat? You're saying that I cheat? How dare you! I am the best out of the
group and you know it!"
"Fine. Then I challenge you."
"Again?" asked Mimiru in desperation.
"You're on then, Matt! Just don't cry when I beat you!"
Mimiru shook her head and everyone gathered around, intent on seeing this
peculiar match between Sakura and Matt. Cloud, Leon and Stephiroth seemed
particularly interested as their backs arched over the couch and the other
two grabbed controllers. Aeris, Yuffie, and Mimiru all sat down on the
floor nearby the two who dueled.
"Let's go! Two matches; one your way and one my way!"
"Your way! You mean the crazy Sudden Death mode with only bomb-oms! No
way!"
"Are you afraid, you chicken?"
"No. It's just that... Forget it."
Leon looked at Mimiru and asked her, "Are they always like that?"
"Yes. Sometimes they act like they're boyfriend and girlfriend."
"Hey! We heard that!"
"We do not, Mimi!" Matt replied harshly.
"Mimi? When did that get started?"
"Your name is now Mimi-person. 'Kay. And, Matt, you know that you won't
ever be my boyfriend. Muh, ha, ha!"
Cloud shook his head and told Sakura, "You're crazy."
"I just watch to much t.v. Does that mean that I wouldn't be able to pour
Sakae well? Why!" sniffed Sakura.
Everyone stared at Sakura.
Mimiru told her, "That was entirely random for this moment. Am I the only
one who gets that?"
The others stared at Mimiru this time.
"Can you two just fight?" Stephiroth asked them.
The two fighters turned back to the game and the battle began.
The first round was Matt's style. His style was a simple match with only a
few certain items and with five stock.
The match proceeded with Matt as Link and Sakura as Pikachu. Sakura was
able to keep the upper hand during the first half of the match until more
items began appearing. Matt then began tossing all the items that he could
get at Sakura's Pikachu, defeating her in a cheap way by throwing the end
of a hammer at the Pikachu.
"Ha! I finally beat you! In your face, Sakura!"
"Big deal. You won't beat me in the next round."
"I might. I am on a winning streak!"
"Matt, don't get too cocky," his sister warned. "Pride goes before the
fall."
"Fine, Mimi-person."
The second round began with two hundred percent life and in Super Sudden
Death mode. Matt was using Young Link and Sakura was using Samaus. Sakura
completely killed Matt in the five-minute match, leading fifty knockouts to
twenty.
"Ha! Looks like you were wrong! I completely destroyed you!"
"Not fair! Samaus has missals. You cheated!"
"Did not. You're just a sour looser."
"Why don't the two of you just have a tie breaker?" suggested Cloud as he
leaned back in the chair.
"Yeah. But how 'bout if we pick how you battle?" Leon added.
"That's fine, Leon, but who gets to choose?" asked Sakura, her arms across
her chest.
"I'll pick. All right. Hears how it will go: You will both be swordsmen and
have a duel. Winner takes all. No items, no Super Sudden Death, and no two
hundred percent. Everything will be even," explained Stephiroth as he got
up from the couch and headed towards the system, setting up the new rules.
"Okay, now let the match begin!"
Match three of Super Smash Brothers was now in commission. Matt chose Roy
while Sakura picked Marth. This match was more of a challenge for the two.
The both of them were evenly matched. In the last minute of the battle,
Sakura managed to kill Roy two more times, giving her enough points to
seize the victory.
"Yes! Who won who won? Ah, huh, ah huh, ah huh! I told you, Matt!"
"Fine. You won fair and square."
"Aww. I'll tell you what, why don't I teach you how to use more skill than
using items?"
"Thanks."
"You're quite welcome."
There was the sound of keys turning and the opening of the door. Five
figures appeared on the other side.
"Oh. That must be Sora and his friends. Come you three. Let's go meet
them."
"Um. that's okay, Aeris. I think I'll stay right here."
"Huh? But why, Sakura? I thought you were the friendly one."
"I am. It's just that... umm... I don't want to do what I did to these guys
to them. That's all. Hee, hee."
"Are you sure?" asked Mimiru slyly and winked.
Sakura's face turned bright red and she responded, "Yes. I am sure."
"Okay," shrugged Mimiru.
Aeris, Mimiru, and Matt headed towards the door. As they got there, the
figures stepped in.