Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon or Kingdom Hearts.

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DIGITAL HEARTS

The Awakening

Takuya looked around at his surroundings. Aside from the circular design on the floor, he saw nothing else. Just a large emptiness.

So much to do, so little time... Take your time. Don't be afraid. The door is still shut. Now, step forward. Can you do it?

Takuya cautiously took a few steps forward. His big yellow shoes clopped loudly on the floor as if it were hollow underneath it. As he approached the center, he began to hear the mysterious voice once again.

If you give it form... It will give you strength.

The floor rumbled and Takuya turned to see a grey trapezoid-shaped stone rise out. A light shone down on it and a black shield with a red border appeared floating over it. In the center of the shield was what appeared to be a sun. A second stone appeared. This time, a green staff floated over it. At the tip was a sun similar to the one on the shield. A third stone rose up and on it appeared a sword. Like the previous two items, it, too, had a sun, which was emblazoned on the hilt.

Choose well.

Takuya slowly approached the staff and leapt onto the stone. he picked up the staff and looked at it before looking up at the source of the light, which was now shining down upon him.

The power of the mystic. Inner strength. A staff of wonder and ruin. Is this the power you seek?

Takuya tightened his grip around the staff and slowly nodded.

"Yes," he said. The staff instantly disappeared from his hand and the mysterious voice spoke once again.

Your path is set. Now, what will you give up in exchange?

Takuya looked at the two remaining objects: the sword and the shield. He hopped off the stone that once held the staff and approached the stone with the sword. After climbing onto the stone, he picked up the weapon by the hilt and examined it closely while holding the blade with his left hand.

The power of the warrior. Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction. You give up this power?

A single word escaped from Takuya's lips, "Yes." As soon as the air left his mouth, the sword, like the rod, disappeared from his hands.

You've chosen the power of the mystic. You've given up the power of the warrior. Is this the form you choose?

"Yes," Takuya repeated.

The stone suddenly began to collapse. Takuya quickly jumped off the one he was standing on to safety. Or at least that was what he thought until the floor began to shatter, causing him to fall into the seemingly endless abyss. After what seemed like forever, Takuya slowly landed. He looked down and saw that he was in a different area. This time, the floor had a portrait of a beautiful young woman in a sparkling crystal-bluish-white dress. Around her, he could see pictures of what looked like castles. Suddenly, a light shone in Takuya's hand and in his grasp appeared the staff he had chosen earlier.

You gained the power to fight.

Takuya swung the staff around before actually lunging forward and swinging it as if it were a sword. It seemed fairly easy.

All right! You've got it.

Takuya couldn't help but smile at his own success. But his grin disappeared from his face when a feeling came over him.

Use this power to protect yourself and others.

He turned and looked carefully at the floor. A few black shapes appeared on it and slowly took on physical forms.

There will be times you have to fight. Keep your light burning strong.

Takuya lashed out at one of the creatures with his rod. He hit it three times and managed to knock it back. Leaping over the others, he whacked it a few more times before the creature was finally destroyed, dropping a few green orbs. The rest of the Shadows then disappeared. Takuya relaxed a bit now that all the creatures had left. Unknown to him, however, another Shadow had appeared and was making its way behind him.

Behind you!

Takuya quickly whipped around and smashed the Shadow into submission. He around and whacked another one with the staff. Eventually, he was able to finish them off. Suddenly, the room began to go black. Darkness covered everything and even consumed Takuya.

Takuya suddenly found himself lying down on the floor of another chamber. The pattern on the floor was several pink circles, each with a white dove inside, in a circular pattern inside a larger pink circle. Looking around, he saw what appeared to be a door. He walked over it and closely examined it.

I can't open it, he thought. Just then, a chest appeared behind him. Takuya walked over to it and tapped the lid with his rod. Almost immediately, the chest opened and a large crate appeared between him and the door. Takuya placed his hands against the side and pushed it forward a bit before deciding to destroy it. When all that remained of the crate were splinters, Takuya noticed a light appear on the door's frame, which suddenly turned physical. A barrel suddenly appeared nearby, which ended up sharing the same fate as the crate. Looking back at the door, Takuya watched as the double-doors themselves became physical. Slowly, he approached them and they opened, streaming in bright white light. Takuya stepped through the door and found himself standing on a wooden platform. Looking around, he saw that he was surrounded by three people.

Hold on. The door won't open just yet. First, tell me more about yourself.

Takuya walked forward and stepped up to a girl in a yellow dress. He recognized her as Juri from his home.

"What's most important to you?" asked Juri.

Takuya thought for a moment before giving his reply, "Being number one."

"Is being number one such a big deal?" asked Juri.

Takuya then turned around and approached the person standing on what looked like the exit from the platform. He was wearing a white tank top, a blue headband, and yellow pants. In his arms, he was holding a blue and white ball. The brown-haired boy recognized him as Kazu, also from his home.

"What do you want outta life?" asked Kazu.

"To see rare sites," answered Takuya after taking another moment to think.

"To see rare sites, huh?" Kazu said as he acknowledged Takuya's answer.

Looking to his right, Takuya could see a younger boy with sandy-blond hair. He was wearing blue shorts, green sandals, and a yellow and white short-sleeved jacket. Takuya recognized him immediately as Takato. He walked over to greet him, but Takato turned and faced him.

"What are you afraid of?" asked the younger boy.

Takuya replied almost immediately. "Getting old," he said.

You want to be number one. You want to see rare sights. You're afraid of getting old. Your adventure begins at dawn. As long as the sun is shining, your journey should be a pleasant one.

"Sounds good," said Takuya.

The day you will open the door is both far off and very near.

· · ·

Takuya found himself back in the dark. As his shoes clopped on the floor, he noticed that the design this time was of a beautiful blond woman wearing a long purple dress surrounded by thorns. In her hand was a red rose. It looked almost as though she was asleep. As Takuya approached her face, however, about eight Shadows emerged from the floor. Takuya whipped out the staff and looked around. He was completely surrounded!

Thinking fast, he leapt over the Shadows in front of him and ran to the edge of the floor design, where he turned around and faced the mysterious creatures. One Shadow leapt at him. Takuya swung the staff and knocked the Shadow down. A few more whacks knocked it away. Takuya ran towards the Shadow and swung his weapon again. Unfortunately, the Shadow melded into the floor and scurried out of the way, appearing behind the boy. Takuya immediately turned around and hit the Shadow, destroying it.

One down, seven more to go, thought Takuya. Two Shadows were coming at him thought the floor. Takuya stood his ground and waited. As soon as they emerged, he swung his staff and destroyed them both with a few hits. He suddenly felt something swipe his back. He whipped around and pummeled another Shadow into oblivion. Takuya quickly ran over to the side and examined his back. There were three scratches in the fabric of his jacket.

I liked this jacket! he thought. Takuya gripped the staff in both hands and slammed it against the head of another Shadow. He hit it a few more times and sent it flying halfway across the floor. Another Shadow attempted to make a pre-emptive strike from behind, but Takuya leapt up just in time and brought the staff down, destroying the Shadow. He ran over to the Shadow he had just knocked away and finished it off, leaving only two Shadows left. Takuya ran in and smashed his staff into them relentlessly until not one Shadow remained.

Takuya took in a deep breath and looked around. There were no more Shadows. A light shone down from above and landed in the center of the floor, where a glowing green circle appeared. Looking forward, Takuya could see a series of stairs forming, leading to some other area. He decided to check out the circle first. He slowly approached it, unsure of what it was. He carefully placed a foot onto it and immediately a green aura shot up and Takuya was filled with a warm feeling. He looked down at himself and gasped. His wounds had been completely healed!

Now feeling rejuvenated and sure of himself, Takuya put away the staff and ran up the stairs up to God-knows-where. He took a quick glance behind him and gasped. The stairs were disappearing right behind him! He ran faster and didn't stop until he finally reached the round platform just as the last step disappeared. He looked down as he walked to the center of the circular design. The floor was yellow and displayed a beautiful young brown-haired woman wearing a flowing yellow dress. Takuya noticed something else and on closer inspection, he realized it was some kind of creature behind the woman.

The closer you get to light, the greater your shadow becomes.

Takuya looked back and noticed that his shadow was considerable longer. Suddenly, it rose up off the floor. Takuya looked up and watched as his shadow transformed. A small skinny foot planted itself onto the floor, large hands appeared, and a head covered with stringy black hair with glowing yellow eyes rested on its shoulders.

But don't be afraid. And don't forget…

Takuya ran as fast as he could away from the monster but quickly stopped himself. The circular floor was just a platform. Everything around it was nothing by a gaping abyss. Takuya turned around and faced the massive creature, Darkside. He took out his staff and stood ready for battle.

Darkside bent down and gathered energy into its palm. It then drew back its fist and slammed it into the floor. Immediately, a black swirling vortex appeared under his hand and four Shadows spawned from the abyss. Takuya immediately ran over and started attacking them with his staff. The first one fell with ease. However, one of the other three leapt at him from behind and attacked, catching the boy off guard. Takuya quickly spun around and smashed it until it was destroyed.

Instead of going after the other two Shadows, though, he decided to take care of Darkside. He ran over to where the giant monster was standing and swung at his legs. Nothing. He tried again. Still nothing. The staff seemed to just pass through its legs like it was nothing. Takuya quickly turned around to see how the remaining Shadows were doing, both of which were moving towards him.

"Better leave the big guy for later," muttered Takuya. He ran away from the Shadows to gain some distance and stood ready with his staff in hand. One made a leap at him and he knocked it away. He jabbed the other in the stomach before pummeling it into oblivion and then finishing off the last one. Turning his attention back to the Darkside, the boy could see it getting onto its knees. It seemed odd, but then he saw it draw its arms back and a ball of energy glowing in the hollow heart-shaped cutout in its abdomen.

Crap! thought Takuya. He started looking for cover, but couldn't find any. By now, Darkside was shooting dark energy shots three at a time in various directions. Takuya dodged the shots as best as he could, but somehow he always managed to get hit by one.

There has to be once place where he can't reach me! thought the brown-haired boy as he looked around. His eyes soon fell upon the area behind Darkside. Not one single energy shot had landed there. Quickly shouldering his staff, he ran over to that area and stood right behind the black behemoth. He was safe for now.

Darkside slowly got back up and began to turn around towards Takuya. Its slow movements gave Takuya some extra time to rest up. The boy watched as the dark monster moved to face him and tried to think of a way to defeat it.

Okay, seeing as how this is going, he might punch the ground again, he thought, And I can't damage him by hitting his feet, maybe I should hit his hands! True to his guess, Darkside did indeed power up and smash its fist into the ground. Takuya immediately ran over and started smashing his staff into its hand. To his slight relief, it worked! Feeling the adrenaline rushing through his body once again, he began smashing his staff into Darkside's hand, even as the Shadows emerged. He didn't care. All that mattered to him was defeating Darkside.

The dark giant slowly withdrew its hand and Takuya followed it, continuously hitting it with everything he had. He jumped as high as he could to score as many hits as possible until Darkside had withdrawn its hand completely out of reach. The boy then turned his attention to the remaining Shadows that hadn't gotten in his way while he was attacking Darkside and started hitting them with everything he had like there was no tomorrow.

As soon as the last Shadow had been obliterated, Takuya turned to Darkside again. It was about to launch another barrage of energy shots. As soon as it has spread out its arms, the boy immediately dove in and started smashing its hand. One swing after another, he didn't let up. Even as dark energy shots struck him on occasion, Takuya was determined to put and end to the monster of darkness. Finally, after what seemed like ages, Darkside slowly began to sway back and forth. Takuya slowly backed away from it as his staff disappeared, but he suddenly found himself unable to move. Looking down, he noticed that he was standing in a circular pool of darkness and it was engulfing him.

But don't be afraid. You hold the mightiest weapon of all.

Takuya couldn't do anything as the darkness swallowed him up. He struggled and strained and still he couldn't break free.

So don't forget: You are the one who will open the door.

And then everything went black.

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At the moment, the cast currently stands as is:

Sora = Takuya

Tidus = Takato

Wakka = Kazu

Selphie = Juri

The characters who will be Riku and Kairi have already been predetermined, you'll have to wait and see for yourself who they are.

Please review, people.