Dandelion Seeds

by Cori Shadowfang

Just under two-hundred Keyblade Wielders were under their care. The new Union Leaders were still too young, too inexperienced, too uncertain-but they had each other, and maybe that was enough. A collection of interconnected one-shots exploring the Union Leaders' lives and relationships after the Keyblade War (cross-posted to Ao3).

55. Divine Rose

'Lauriam would give anything to get his sister back.'

---

Fifty-Five: Divine Rose

(If there was one thing that had become a constant in Lauriam's life, it was regret. He'd stopped to wonder countless times what would have happened if he had done things differently—if he'd taken the time to look for Strelitzia more before the war, if he'd pressed a little harder about her joining the Dandelions, if he'd kept a closer eye on her instead of letting her go off on her own.

Not that it mattered in the end, of course; he could never really change the fact that she was gone.)

"Strelitzia? Strelitzia, where are you?"

(But sometimes—sometimes he found himself searching through his memories. He couldn't actually bring her back—but maybe his memories could provide him a clue about what had happened to her. It was…about the only thing he could do for her, now.)

"Up here!"

Lauriam started, then breathed a shaky laugh and glanced up at the rooftops. "What are you doing up there?"

His sister poked her head over the side. "Um. People watching?"

He raised an eyebrow and glanced, pointedly, at the trees that blocked half the view from the roof.

"…And thinking."

Now his eyebrows furrowed in worry. "Strelitzia—"

"You should come up!" she called, then scrambled away from the edge.

Lauriam…was more than a little skeptical about climbing up on top of the roof. He wasn't about to leave his sister up there alone, however, so he steeled himself and worked his way up the side.

Strelitzia had a pensive expression on her face when he reached the top, but before Lauriam could ask what was wrong, she asked, "What have you been doing today?"

There were a lot of things Lauriam wanted to say instead—'you're trying to distract me,' or 'are you sure the roof is the safest place to be?' or 'what's got you so worried?' But he took a moment to breathe and reminded himself, You need to give her space. You're safe here. You wanted to give her the chance to grow into her own person—so give it to her. So he sat beside her, tried to force his worry aside, and smiled. "You have to promise not to laugh first."

"I won't!"

Lauriam rummaged through his pockets. "So, I've been trying out a few different hobbies between missions. Sculpting is…the newest one." He pulled out a tiny clay sculpture and offered it to her ruefully.

Strelitzia tilted her head and squinted at it. "It's a nice…squirrel?"

"It's supposed to be a cat."

"That's what I meant!"

Lauriam laughed. "I know, I'm not the best at it."

"No, no, it's really good! It's…unique!"

Lauriam laughed harder.

"In a good way!"

"It's okay. You can tell me it's horrible."

"It's not!"

"I'll just have to be aware of the fact that my beloved little sister has no faith in me—"

"No! Lauriam!" Strelitzia did her best to glare at him, then pulled her knees up and hid her face behind them. "It's not bad," she muttered. "You're just new to it."

It was a familiar saying, and Lauriam found himself softening. "I know," he murmured. "I'm just teasing you." He elbowed her gently. "So you know what I've been doing. How did your day go?"

Strelitzia went quiet, hugging her knees a little tighter.

"Did something go wrong on a mission?"

She shook her head.

"Did you get along with your party members?"

"They're nice," Strelitzia said, but she still sounded distracted.

Lauriam watched her patiently.

Strelitzia fiddled with the edge of a sleeve.

"Strelitzia." He caught her hand gently. "You can tell me anything. You know that, right?"

"…I'm not supposed to tell you this."

Lauriam's eyebrows furrowed.

Strelitzia fidgeted, looking like she wanted to go and hide somewhere. "My party members made me promise."

"Strelitzia—"

"It's just a rumor, but it's—I don't like it, because we finally found a home and it's nice here and I've made friends and you seem happier and—"

"Strelitzia. Breathe, please." When she'd steadied herself, Lauriam continued gently, "What's the rumor?"

Strelitzia bit her lip. She was silent for several long, long moments before admitting quietly, "People were talking about other Keyblade wielders disappearing."

Lauriam stiffened.

"I don't remember how it started, but there were a couple of new people in our party today and they said that they joined because Bryce went missing, and when I asked about it they said that it's happened to a couple of people, and they don't know where they go and—"

Lauriam wasn't sure what to do with the onslaught, but Strelitzia sounded half a second away from hyperventilating, so he gently wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer.

It worked as well as it did when she was little; she quieted, leaning into him. "Elrena said not to worry about it," she murmured, playing with her fingers. "But some of the others said that maybe the Foretellers had something to do with it."

Lauriam frowned. "That…doesn't seem right."

"They said maybe that people weren't doing well enough, so they were getting rid of them. A-and I was worried that—"

She broke off, but Lauriam could figure out the rest of that sentence, and he tried to ignore how his chest tightened at the thought. "You won't be next," he promised.

"But—"

"I wouldn't let anything happen to you." He tried to soften his voice a little as he added, "And they're just rumors. I don't think the Foretellers would actually get rid of people—even if someone wasn't doing well, there are a lot of other Keyblade wielders to make up for it. But I'll look into things if it makes you feel better. Okay?"

Strelitzia nodded, some of the tension bleeding out of her shoulders.

"And hey? Even if I wasn't around, there's no way they'd get rid of you. You're a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for."

"You have to say that because you're my brother."

"Well, that's why it has to be true, too." He grinned, and it seemed to work; she smiled back at him, then let herself rest against his side.

Lauriam turned away, trying to tamp down on his anxiety. They are just rumors—nothing bad is going to happen.

I hope.

---

-"Strelitzia!" Lauriam half-stumbled into the building, head darting back and forth frantically as he desperately, desperately searched for some sign of his sister. "Strelitzia!" There has to be something. There has to be—if Elrena saw her here, then—

But the building looked just as abandoned as it had been when he'd first entered. The disappointment was a bitter, if familiar, feeling. "Strelitzia…" Where did you go?

"We came back a few times," Elrena said (Elrena—Elrena, right, she'd still been here, she probably hadn't expected him to run off like that—), "but we never saw her again."

Lauriam released a shuddering breath and tried to ignore the way his chest ached and eyes stung. Why? he thought. Why did you tell me if there's nothing here? (It's like it was with Skuld's family, a distant part of him thought. Just a vision of the past, here and then gone again.

But it was so close. If I had come here sooner—if I had searched a little harder—maybe I could've at least found out what happened to her.)

Elrena spoke up again, sounding almost hesitant: "Also—"

"Also!" her Chirithy interrupted, more insistent. "I remembered something. Something Strelitzia's Chirithy mentioned the last time we talked."

Remembered? Lauriam wasn't sure if he was willing to get his hopes up again after this hadn't amounted to much, but he turned around anyways, giving Chirithy a curious look.

"I thought it was weird," they said, tilting their head to look up at him, "that she wanted to get this person to join the Dandelions so badly, even if she didn't really know them. And when I asked her Chirithy about it, they said that she wanted to save them from the war that was coming."

What…? Lauriam blinked, not entirely sure that he'd heard that right. "Her Chirithy talked about a war?" he repeated, incredulous. "Are you sure?"

Chirithy nodded rapidly. "Yes."

Elrena gave him a look that said that she was just as skeptical—though Lauriam had the distinct feeling it was for very different reasons. "Master Ava spoke about a war in her speech." She lifted a hand to her mouth, eyebrows furrowed. "But it never happened. That was strange."

Except it had happened—and there were only a handful of them that would've known that for sure. Strelitzia was certain the Keyblade War was going to become a reality. But how could she have known?

(There was—no. No, that wasn't possible. There were only five Union Leaders, and all of them were here. Maybe Strelitzia had heard something from one of the others, or he'd let something slip by accident, or she had assumed based on what people were saying. There had to be some other sort of explanation.)

Lauriam sighed, shoulders slumping in defeat. It wasn't much, but he supposed it was at least something, and that was better than what he'd started with. Perhaps Brain might know something. It certainly wouldn't hurt to ask what his friend could make of the information.

(It wasn't like it was the first time he'd talked to his friends about this. They'd all had things to say about it before—Brain included. "Your sister was hesitant to become a Dandelion, and yet…not only did she join them, she wanted desperately for this 'someone' to join too. Puzzling, isn't it?"

He knew they were skeptical about him still looking. He just…couldn't bring himself to stop.)

Elrena was still standing in the doorway, looking more and more uncertain, and Lauriam felt a twinge of guilt. "Thank you," he said. "Really. It's helpful."

She gave him a smile that said she didn't really think it was but didn't want to say anything.

"I'm going to—to look around a bit, I think. Just to see if there's anything else." He wasn't really sure there was—he'd been through every area he could think of searching for clues—but it was better than nothing.

Elrena looked conflicted a moment, then dipped her head and backed out of the door.

The building wasn't anything particularly noteworthy. It was just like many of the other abandoned buildings in Daybreak Town—something that had signs of life that had slowly been coated in dust and debris, old books and furniture left strewn around the room. He trailed his hand along a table and rubbed at the dust on his fingers. This was the last place she was seen, he thought. After that she just vanished. You'd think there would be some sign of what had caused that.

But no matter how hard he looked, he didn't find anything—just shadows and dust and cobwebs.

Lauriam tried to swallow his bitterness. Maybe that's all I'm going to get, he thought. Fractured clues and dead ends. It's not like we can get the people lost in the Keyblade War back. Everyone else is gone.

It was a familiar ache—one he'd learned to live with, gradually, even if on some days it felt like it was eating him from the inside out. He shoved the feeling down, intent to go back to the Clock Tower and maybe just…spend some time with his friends. He didn't think he had the energy for more disappointment today.

Something flickered in the corner of his eye. Now I'm seeing things, he thought, laughing mirthlessly. He scrubbed at his eyes, turned—

And found himself staring at his sister.

His first thought was, I'm looking at a ghost. His second was, Elrena was right after all. "Strelitzia…?"

She wasn't looking at him; she cast her attention back and forth, squinting in the darkness. Lauriam came closer and cautiously reached out a hand. It passed right through her, his hand tingling where it touched the specter. He flexed his fingers, then took a shuddering breath and curled them to his chest. Like with Skuld. It's the same thing. But why is—

Abruptly his sister snapped around, staring into the shadows. "Who…?"

'Who?'

He'd barely had a moment to think it when the whole building flickered and distorted. It made the world feel like it was rocking sideways, everything blurring into a disorienting haze of color and noise. A harsh buzzing sound pierced his ears and something made his hair lift, his skin prickling like electricity was snapping along it. He shouted his sister's name, but it came out like static.

It faded just as quickly as it had happened, and Lauriam stumbled, disoriented. The room was empty again. What was—where did—

"Heartless!"

That came from outside. He hesitated for just a moment, staring at the empty space, then headed out the door.

He nearly stumbled into a Heartless upon his exit. He leaned backwards, Divine Rose snapping into his hands. The Keyblade cut through the Heartless, but he had enough time to get a decent look at it. It was flickering, too. Like the building. Why is…?

"Hey! Union Leader Lauriam!"

The call dragged his attention to a group of Dandelions that had been cornered by more of the Heartless. His Keyblade pointed skyward, magic twisting in his chest and curling like vines around his arms. A Thundaga spell split the air, lightning bolts crashing into the Heartless. They disappeared into smoke and static.

"What's going on?" Lauriam asked.

"I was going to ask you that."

The whole world flickered, the buildings turning into a haze of static and color. The Dandelions shouted with alarm, racing towards Lauriam and clustering around him. He cast a Barrier spell almost on instinct, but he didn't know what this was and if it would do anything. For the moment, he just braced himself, reaching a hand half towards the Dandelions like he could somehow shield them with it.

Everything settled after a moment—but in the distance, Lauriam could still catch the sounds of fighting.

The Dandelions were—they were still there. They stared at him, wide-eyed, and Lauriam realized that they were waiting for him to help. You're a Union Leader. Whatever your other worries, the Dandelions are still your responsibility. "See who you can find," Lauriam ordered. "Head towards the Clock Tower. The other Union Leaders should be there, hopefully. Stick together."

The Dandelions nodded and raced off.

"I want to help."

Lauriam whipped around; he'd almost forgotten about Elrena, but he supposed she might not have gone far, with everything that had happened. Her Keyblade was in her hands, and she looked shaky but determined.

Lauriam almost argued—but, after a moment's thought, he realized he'd probably appreciate the help. He nodded, ready to dart off, when—

There.

Another flicker—orange and white and heart-achingly familiar, there and gone in a moment.

"Lauriam…?"

"I—" He blinked several times but the figure didn't come back. He tore his gaze away. "Stick close to me. If you see anyone, send them to the Clock Tower." And then he moved, pointedly not looking back. He crested the stairs, stepping into the streets, and almost wished he had.

Strelitzia wasn't the only specter that had appeared, apparently; countless others walked the streets, appearing and disappearing, chattering in static and making their words almost incomprehensible. The Dandelions had taken notice; many were in the streets, some chasing after figures and trying to talk to them, others staring blankly, and others still trying to snap their companions out of whatever trance they'd fallen into.

Lauriam knew he should be doing something, but all he could do was stare.

"What is—are they ghosts?"

Elrena. She'd come up behind him, face pale.

The words snapped Lauriam back to the present. "I don't know. But—"

Heartless flickered and disappeared, just behind the rooftops.

Lauriam tried to ignore the specters and moved, magic sending him flying towards the hidden Heartless. Divine Rose flew from his hand and spun, over and over and over, cutting through the Heartless and returning to his hand with a snap. His landing was a little awkward, feet skidding on the rooftop as he tried to brace himself. "Head to the Clock Tower!" he shouted, lifting his voice over the chaos.

A couple of Dandelions noticed him, heads snapping around. Others didn't, still too distracted by the specters.

"Clock Tower!" he repeated, waving his arms frantically to try and catch their attention. "Get moving! They aren't actually there!"

"That's my friend!" someone shouted back, and something in his chest twisted. "They disappeared just a little bit before you guys took over."

"I used to be in a party with them!"

"He used to help out in the library."

"What is this?"

Lauriam swallowed, not quite sure what to do with the onslaught of questions. "I don't know," he admitted. He glanced at Elrena, who looked lost, and it made something in Lauriam steel, just a little. "But we're going to figure it out. Just get to safety for now—we can regroup later."

Not all of the Dandelions looked convinced, but he wasn't sure what else to say. There were still Heartless out there, and he needed to find the other Dandelions, and he wanted to know what was going on—

He caught Elrena's eye, tilted his head towards the streets, and started moving again.

His feet pounded against the rooftops, keeping him above the specters for a moment. It was enough that he could almost ignore them; he swept his Keyblade upwards to strike a Heartless, then down again in a sharp arc, landing and shooting forward again. Slash, block, slash again—repeated over and over right up until he miss-stepped, sliding sideways. With a lurch he found himself staring at the specters again, watching as they raced back and forth and talked to each other like nothing had ever happened. Heartless mixed with them, occasionally cutting through them like they weren't even there.

A Thunder spell took out a selection of the Heartless. Lauriam breathed in deeply and jumped, finally landing in the street again. Staring too long at the specters made him feel ill, so he didn't; he kept running, dodging around them almost instinctively.

Daybreak Town was chaotic in a way he didn't remember it being since right before the Keyblade War. There were people everywhere, and it made the town feel strangely crowded in ways that it hadn't been in a long made something shiver down his spine, because—

("Strelitzia!" He was running through Daybreak Town, trying to ignore how other Keyblade wielders jostled against him. "Strelitzia, we need to go!")

"Look out!"

Lauriam skidded to an abrupt halt, nearly bending over backwards to try and avoid the Heartless. A burst of lightning shot past him, making his hair stand on end. The Heartless jolted, exploding into smoke and static. Lauriam gave Elrena a grateful nod and kept moving. Focus. You can't get distracted. Not now.

Everything became a blur of motion; the two of them raced through Daybreak Town, skidding through the streets, casting spell after spell. Lauriam's Keyblade spun and twisted and slashed, cutting into Heartless after Heartless until he wasn't quite sure what he was doing anymore. Occasionally he ran into Dandelions, and he'd shout at them to get to safety, to find refuge in the Clock Tower—and wasn't always listened to, he found, because he'd see the same Dandelions later, helping find some of the others or chasing specters or still fighting Heartless. A couple had even stopped to give him responses:

"This is my home. I'm not running."

"I just feel like I can't."

"I want to make sure no one else goes missing."

And well—it was hard for Lauriam to really argue with that, as much as he wanted to.

His Keyblade cut through another Heartless. "Do you think that's everyone?" he asked, breathless. He hadn't counted—hadn't had the time—but it felt like they'd raced through the entire town at this point.

Elrena was breathing as hard as he was, her expression conflicted. "We could—we could always go to the Clock Tower and check."

He supposed she was right—and besides, if nothing else, he could hopefully regroup with the rest of his friends there.

He was about to run off when he caught someone moving out of the corner of his eye. He bit back a groan and turned. "You need to get too—Strelitzia?"

It wasn't a person—just another specter of the past. But he found himself frozen in place anyways, staring at someone who shouldn't still be there.

"Lauriam?"

His sister was talking to someone he couldn't see. She was laughing, and his chest twisted at the sight. He stumbled forward almost without acknowledging it.

"Lauriam. Lauriam, wait, she's not really—"

Strelitzia turned and headed down an alleyway.

Lauriam bolted after her.

His legs and lungs ached, but it felt distant now, his attention honing in on the flickering specter of his sister. His ears rang, one hand lifted, fingers stretching as if he could grab her arm. "Strelitzia! Strelitzia, wait!"

He passed through her. The image broke apart into static, and Lauriam could only stare at his arms and try to control his shaking.

"You…?"

Lauriam's head snapped around. "Strelitzia?"

The specter of his sister didn't reappear—but something else did. The humanoid Heartless landed on the roof above him with a solid thunk, claws curling slowly around the edges, small wings twitching like it wanted to take flight.

Lauriam startled backwards, Keyblade lifted defensively.

The Heartless, surprisingly, didn't attack right away. It tilted its head back and forth, eyes narrowed. It growled abruptly, back arched. "Not…you…"

Lauriam stared at it. He thought he had a vague memory of what this type of Heartless should be—something he and the others had talked about, once.

The Heartless snarled, looking like it was about ready to pounce, and Lauriam snapped into a ready position. It's not like the others, he realized. It's not flickering. Why is this one different?

The change came slowly—a low rumble that built in intensity, everything tremoring just slightly, building and building until it crashed over him like a tidal wave. Lauriam shouted in alarm, and the Heartless screeched with him, but the sound was lost in static, the buildings glitching, specters of people distorted into unrecognizable shapes.

The world settled so abruptly that Lauriam's head spun; he stumbled, jabbing his Keyblade into the ground to steady himself.

The Heartless made a low whining sound and fled.

"Lauriam! Hey!"

The voice sounded almost like it was coming from a distance. Lauriam blinked slowly, staring at a suddenly empty Daybreak Town. The specters are gone. And I don't see any Heartless anymore.

"Lauriam!"

Elrena.

She was panting, staring at him with wide eyes.

"I saw my sister." There was a logical part of him that knew that was a ridiculous statement; she hadn't actually been here, after all, and Elrena had seen the same thing he had. But it felt like his mind was running in slow motion, trying to put together a puzzle without all the pieces.

Elrena's expression fell. "She wasn't really—"

"I know. I know, but—it's all I've really seen of her. It's—I saw her back at the abandoned building, too."

They both went quiet for a few moments, standing there in the silent streets. "What was that?" Elrena finally whispered. "Why did we see—?"

Lauriam couldn't think up an answer—at least, not one that would be satisfactory. "It's not the first time."

"I know. I saw Strelitzia before—"

"Not just you. Skuld saw her family as well. Outside of Daybreak Town, months ago."

"And you don't know what it is?"

"Skuld didn't realize it was anything. She thought she was just seeing things." Lauriam's shoulders slumped with his sigh. "Brain was looking into it." Brain. He wondered what he would make of all this—if maybe he had some sort of solution to the problem already. A part of Lauriam was tempted to go back to ask. The other—

(It's the only time I've seen Strelitzia what if I don't get another chance—)

"What do we do?" asked Elrena, and it forced Lauriam to snap towards her. She still looked spooked, and Lauriam found he couldn't blame her; she didn't remember the Keyblade War, after all, so this was likely the most frightening thing she'd experienced.

"We…look into things." He turned, heading pointedly off into Daybreak Town.

Elrena's footsteps hurried after him. "Look into…?"

"The specters. The Heartless. We'll see what we can find. Maybe there are—maybe there are answers out here."

"But didn't you say—"

"I can't go back yet."

Elrena's footsteps faltered.

"I can't," Lauriam repeated, his heart twisting tightly. "Not after—I left her behind once."

"Left her behind…?"

Don't. You can't say anymore. She doesn't know about the Keyblade War. "It'll be more helpful if we can bring back clues, anyways."

Elrena looked skeptical, but she didn't argue any further.

---

-"Missing people?"

Lauriam nodded and had to fight the urge to tell the other wielder to keep his voice down. (It was just a rumor. It's not like it was a big deal.)

The other wielder made a thoughtful humming noise, rubbing his chin. "Well," he said finally, "I haven't heard too much about people mysteriously going missing or anything, but I know a couple of people aren't here anymore because of—some darkness-related issue, I guess? Chirithy called it 'falling to darkness' or whatever, but I'm not really sure what that means."

"So—so it's true." Lauriam swallowed. "Are they—"

"Dead?" The wielder shrugged. "I don't know. Like I said, Chirithy just gave me the basics. They 'gave into darkness' and then disappeared. Their Chirithy, too. Maybe that means they're dead, or maybe it just means they're somewhere else."

Lauriam hadn't really expected to get much in the way of answers—but now that he was getting them, he found himself feeling a little less confident about what he'd told Strelitzia. "Did the Foretellers—are they the ones who—"

"What? No, no, sheesh. This is specifically related to whatever 'darkness' is. That's what makes them disappear."

"Oh. That's—okay." He supposed he couldn't be one-hundred percent sure about that—but this particular wielder seemed pretty confident about things. It would be something that would help put Strelitzia's mind at ease, at least.

(Back then, Lauriam had put the matter out of his mind once he'd realized what the truth was. Now—he wondered. Darkness had been responsible for other Keyblade wielders disappearing, and he didn't think something like that would happen to his sister, but—well. It was hard to get the idea out of his head.)

---

-Lauriam had gotten used to Daybreak Town being quiet. With so few people left after the Keyblade War, it was bound to be a bit calmer and a little bit lonelier. But it had never felt quite as silent as it did now. His footsteps almost sounded like they were echoing. It was eerie, in a way, and he found himself resisting the urge to summon Divine Rose. The Dandelions are just at the Clock Tower, he reminded himself, but it didn't do much to make him feel like he was walking through a ghost town.

Elrena didn't look like she was fairing much better; she'd drawn in on herself, eyes darting back and forth across the street, as if looking out for any potential problems.

I should go back. The thought was distant, but there was a part of him that acknowledged that it made sense—he had no idea what had happened, after all, or if his friends really were in the Clock Tower, or if all of the Dandelions were alright. But every time he thought of heading back, he thought of the specter of his sister, and he'd argue, It's just for a little bit. I'm just going to check quickly to see what I can find. Then I'll head back.

The building was the same as when he'd left it—silent, empty, everything in the same places. It almost felt like it shouldn't be, after whatever had happened earlier.

"Why are we back here?" Elrena asked.

"This is where we were when everything first started. There may be other clues here. Something that we missed."

He could feel Elrena's skepticism, but she didn't argue with him.

He trailed into the room, eyes darting back and forth. Strelitzia seemed like she was looking for someone—but whoever she saw seemed to surprise her. He stepped into the place where he'd last seen her specter and stared at the wall across from him. The shadows were dark—dark enough that it'd be hard to see anyone in them, especially if she'd just come in. Someone could've easily been hiding there. But—why?

"Lauriam," Elrena asked, quiet, "what are we really doing here?"

He hadn't expected to be seen through quite so quickly—but then again, he guessed he had asked Elrena for help looking for his sister.

"She isn't still here," Elrena continued, sounding like she was trying to be gentle, but mostly it made Lauriam want to grind his teeth. "That was just—"

"This was the last place she was seen before—before. And some—some vision of her appeared here twice. If there's any chance—maybe something will appear again. Maybe I can finally find out what—" He broke off, taking the time to try and steady his breathing, but it still shuddered erratically.

"…What did you see?"

Lauriam flashed her a grateful look. "She was here," he murmured, tapping his foot on the floor for emphasis. "She was looking around the room, mostly. I think she saw someone in the back. She seemed…surprised."

"…And this was the last place anyone saw her."

Lauriam stiffened at her tone.

Elrena apparently noticed, lifting her hands peaceably. "If—I'm sorry, it's just—if she didn't come back out, and if she was surprised by whoever was in here—"

"You think someone killed her."

His words were surprisingly calm, for all that he wanted to yell. Elrena looked hesitant, but nodded, anyways. "I don't want to believe it, either. But—"

"No. No, that doesn't make sense. She hadn't done anything to anyone. There's no reason—"

But there was. She had disappeared just a little bit before the Keyblade War had actually started, when tensions between Unions were highest. It was entirely possible that someone had been in here, waiting for someone from another Union. But why her?

(There was a terrible possibility in the back of his mind—that maybe someone had found out he was a Union Leader. That maybe someone had done it to get to him. Or maybe—

No. There's no other reason.)

"It could have been a Heartless," Elrena offered.

Lauriam latched onto that immediately. "I found one earlier that talked. Perhaps—something like that."

"It talked?"

Lauriam gave her a rueful smile. "I suppose I should've mentioned that. It surprised me, too."

Elrena's eyes had gone wide. "Lauriam—there's—this is bigger than your sister."

He knew that. He did. But— "It's not going to hurt to look for answers about her while looking for answers about what's going on."

"But it's—whatever happened to her is in the past. How do you know—" How do you know that you're going to find anything?

(And that was the thing—he didn't. The idea that she might've been killed—not in some war, but by someone else—rang through his skull, and there was a helpless sort of fury in his chest as he realized that if that were true, he'd probably never be able to confront the one responsible for it.)

"I just—I need to try."

Elrena looked conflicted, opening her mouth as if she were going to argue, but paused, head tilted curiously.

Lauriam heard it a moment later. Voices. More specters? He lurched out the door, skidding into the streets, but—

Those aren't specters.

"Weren't you all supposed to be in the Clock Tower?" he blurted, staring at the Dandelions.

There weren't many here, but he wouldn't be surprised if others were further off. Their voices had dropped to whispers, all of them exchanging nervous glances.

Eventually, one piped up, "It's been quiet for a while, so we came out to help." They lifted their head defiantly and met his eyes. "Skuld said it was alright. She came out and checked."

Skuld. He hadn't even known she'd been out here. "Was she okay?"

"Yeah. She said everyone was. I guess they're working on figuring things out."

Tension he didn't know he'd been carrying drained out of Lauriam's shoulders. "That's—okay. That's good." It meant there was one less thing for him to worry about, at least. "I'm doing the same out here."

He could feel Elrena giving him a skeptical look.

The other Dandelions seemed to believe him, though, all of them relaxing marginally. "We'll tell you if we see anything strange."

Lauriam dipped his head. For a moment, that seemed like it would be it—but as they passed, Lauriam found himself calling, "Wait."

The Dandelions paused.

"You saw the specters."

"Is that what those were? They're ghosts?"

"Not—not exactly, I don't think. Just visions of people from the past." Lauriam glanced at the building. "I—think they might give me a clue about what happened to some of the missing wielders. The first one I saw came from this building. I don't suppose you've heard of anything strange happening here?"

He could tell from their expressions that this was likely a dead end, but one of the Dandelions answered anyways: "No, sorry. But maybe if you ask around?"

(He'd been asking. He'd been asking for months, and no one had ever heard anything.)

Lauriam smiled tightly. "Right."

---

-"There were lots of people who went missing before. I don't know if I heard anything about people going missing in an abandoned building specifically."

"I think there might have been rumors? I don't know, a friend was talking about it a little, but I think they were just ghost stories."

"I saw one of my friends. They went missing before the others left, too. It was freaky, so…I get why you're looking."

Question after question yielded about the same results: no one had heard anything about someone going after other Keyblade wielders. When we erased the Dandelions' memories—did we erase that, too? He curled his fingers so tightly into fists that his knuckles turned white. What else should I be looking for?

He wondered, almost, if he could make the specters reappear—if he could perform some sort of magic and force them to come back. But I don't know why they were here in the first place.

The Dandelions—despite returning to Daybreak Town—didn't exactly seem comfortable with the prospect, either. Several had retreated to their houses, hiding away where they felt it was safer. Those who were out were hushed and tense, often coming up to him to ask if he'd heard anything or found out any other information, and he'd have to give them a tight-lipped smile and respond that no, he didn't know.

And that was part of the problem, he supposed—he was really no closer to figuring out why the specters had appeared than he had been before. The only clue we have was from Skuld. Maybe I should see if I can find her again—but I doubt she'll have any further answers.

…Wait. Didn't her and Ephemer's friend say that there was something here?

Something that had spooked a Nightmare Chirithy, here in Daybreak Town. Something strange. The idea made Lauriam tense. Maybe that's what's caused everything. And if so, then—

Is everyone else in danger, too?

"Hey,Lauriam? Can I ask a question?"

It was almost easy to forget Elrena was there. She'd been incredibly quiet, trailing behind him as he searched. The streets of Daybreak Town had started to grow dark and hazy in the twilight. They hadn't seen any Heartless after the initial batch, but they'd catch occasional flickers of something happening to a building or a lamppost or a bush, and it had left both of them slightly on edge. "About what?" Lauriam asked, carefully climbing over a half-fallen fence.

Elrena scrambled after him. "About why you're still looking."

Lauriam froze. "Oh."

"Not just for your sister. For—everyone." Elrena met his eyes, and something in her expression and voice hardened. "We all know they're not coming back."

"You don't know that," he snapped, then winced.

Elrena studied him, then seemed to come to a decision on something. "You know," she said, "when you first started looking, I thought maybe you were just doing it to make the other Dandelions feel better. Or to make you guys look good."

"Elrena—"

"But then when you started asking about your sister, you seemed sincere."

Lauriam swallowed tightly. He didn't know Elrena, really. She was just another Dandelion that had been roped into helping with this fruitless search. "You're helping," he pointed out. "You must have lost someone, to want to keep looking."

"This isn't about me," she snapped, and Lauriam flashed her a surprised look. She took a steadying breath and continued more evenly, "I've helped you look for clues all day. You could at least answer a few questions."

Lauriam…supposed that was fair. "I'm—" He broke off, hesitant. "Have you ever—"

Elrena waited this time, letting him collect his thoughts.

"I don't want to let her go," he said finally.

There was a weight there that he knew Elrena caught, based on her expression. They'd never explicitly said that the missing Keyblade wielders were dead—just that they weren't coming back. But—he guessed she'd figured out the gist of it. "So you're just going to keep chasing ghosts forever?"

"No. I just—" He didn't have an answer to that, he realized. (Because the truth was that he didn't know. He didn't know how to stop looking, didn't know what would happen when he actually found answers, didn't know what he'd do if he just kept searching and searching forever and found nothing.)

"I at least want closure," he decided finally. "I want to have something left of her."

Elrena looked skeptical but didn't press.

Lauriam turned, and they kept going for a little while in silence. And then, quietly, Elrena murmured, "I should've noticed something."

Lauriam stalled.

Elrena rubbed her arm and didn't quite look at him. "Why I'm helping," she explained. "I didn't know Strelitzia very well, but—I still knew her. I should've noticed something."

There was a bitter part of Lauriam that wished that she had—but it wasn't her fault, really, and he squashed that part down. "I should've searched harder for her, before—before all of this."

The quiet comment did its job; Elrena gave him a hesitant sort of smile, and Lauriam managed to smile back.

Lauriam sighed, tilting his head backwards. Everything was growing darker, the streetlamps flickering on. The events of the afternoon felt more like a bad dream than anything. "You should head back," he said. "Get some rest. I don't think we're going to find anything else tonight."

Elrena looked for a moment like she might protest, then sighed and turned away. "Good luck, Union Leader."

He hummed an acknowledgement, watching her go. His shoulders slumped once she was out of sight. What happened to you, Strelitzia? You knew about the War—but then you just disappeared. Did you really just get caught up in it chasing a friend? Or is Elrena right, and you happened upon the wrong person at the wrong time?

He was so caught up in his own thoughts that he almost missed the sound of someone talking. But that sounds like— "Ven?"

"Lauriam!"

"What are you—oof!"

He stumbled backwards as Ven tackled him in a hug. He sighed, resting a hand on the younger Union Leader's head. I guess I haven't been the only one worrying about things today. With everything that happened…

He should've checked in with the others, he realized. He tried not to wince, looking down at Ven's worried expression. It's not like I'm going to find out much by staying out here, he thought, and with a sigh let Ven tug him back to the Clock Tower.

(It didn't do much to help him settle. He found his eyes still drawn to the streets of Daybreak Town, and tried not to think about the specters or the Heartless or what could've happened to his sister.)

---

-"Dandelions?"

Meeting with a Foreteller was rare—if people saw them at all, then it was usually because they were giving announcements or because they were on business out in Daybreak Town. But Master Ava had always been a little different, and so it hadn't been as much of a surprise as it should have been when she stopped to talk to him. It was a little bit more of a surprise when she asked her to walk with him—and he'd almost said no, because he was supposed to be meeting up with his sister, but—

(But she hadn't needed him for a long time, now.)

So he'd followed, and he'd waited for Master Ava to start talking, and eventually she'd started spinning a story about a war that had been predicted by the Book of Prophecies and of the select group of Keyblade wielders that had been selected to escape it.

Lauriam scrambled to think up a response. "That's—quite a lot to take in."

"I know. And I'm sorry, but I'm going to ask you for one more thing." She slipped a small green book from her robes and passed it to him.

Lauriam took the book and, with a quick glance at her, hesitantly began paging through it. "I don't understand."

"They're rules. Guidelines to help your with what comes after. There are five of these rulebooks—meant for the people who are going to take the Foretellers' places."

Lauriam stiffened. "Me?"

Ava laughed, but Lauriam wasn't really sure what was so funny about the question. "Yes, you. You're a talented wielder, Lauriam. You're able to get your missions done in record time, I hear." Gentler, she continued, "But talent isn't enough to be a leader. I still remember why you came here, you know—because you wanted a safe place for your sister."

Lauriam…wasn't entirely sure he appreciated being reminded of the past, and said quickly, "It doesn't matter. We have different lives, now, and I haven't had to—"

"To raise her," Ava finished, stopping him cold. "But you have still kept an eye out for her, haven't you?"

"When I can. But I don't want to smother her." There was something proud blooming in his chest as he added, "She's come into her own over the last couple of years."

Ava smiled gently. "That kindness and understanding will serve you well as a leader." She must've seen his skepticism, because she added, "Don't worry; there will be others to balance you out."

Lauriam stared at her, and then at the rulebook, and tried to process what exactly he was hearing. "There's really going to be a war…?"

"That's what the Book of Prophecies says. I'm going to try and stop it—we all are—but—" Ava broke off, wringing her hands. "If we can't—if we can't, then we need to know that some people will survive. And I need to know that they'll be in good hands."

Lauriam studied the defeated hunch of her shoulders and said quietly, "You don't think you'll be able to."

Ava laughed, but it was a bitter, broken sound. "Is it that obvious?" Her words turned somber as she continued, "I'm still going to try. If something changes—if I'm sure that nothing will stop the war—then you Union Leaders will be the first to know."

Lauriam's hands tightened around the book. "Strelitzia."

Ava tilted her head.

"If—I'll agree to this, if you promise that Strelitzia will be invited to join the Dandelions, too."

Surprisingly, Ava smiled. "I was already planning on inviting her," Ava said, "don't worry. You can tell her yourself, if you want."

The tension bled out of Lauriam's shoulders.

"But you can't tell her about being a Union Leader."

"Why not?"

"Because we don't want the Union Leaders meeting up too early. It could change things in ways we can't predict—or potentially make you targets for—others."

Lauriam didn't miss the 'we', and while he found himself skeptical, he decided it didn't matter all that much, so long as his sister was safe. "Okay."

Ava gave him a tight smile. "I'll contact you again. Don't worry."

(Lauriam had only heard from Ava a couple of times after that—but he hadn't even been entirely sure the Keyblade War would happen until she'd found him a couple days before and told him there was no way around it and so he should be prepared. None of the Dandelions, as far as he knew, had been told for sure—just the normal, that they'd need to be prepared to move at a moment's notice. The only ones who had known were—

But that's impossible. There's no way that Strelitzia could've been a Union Leader. There are already five of us.

…Right?)

---

-Sleep didn't come easy. It wasn't much of a surprise, he guessed—it felt like his mind was going to overflow with everything that had happened that day, thoughts buzzing and heart thumping.

Ven hadn't seemed to have that same problem; he'd begged Lauriam to stay, and he hadn't really been able to say no, curling up in bed like he had with Strelitzia so many times before. Ven had tucked his chin to his chest, knees pulled up, sound asleep. Lauriam smiled crookedly, running a soothing hand down his back. "At least one of us is getting some rest."

He wondered where the others were. He hadn't had time to check—Ven had taken most of his focus, worriedly checking him over, asking him over and over again if he was really okay, and Lauriam had done his best to assure and distract him.

("We were supposed to do something, weren't we? I know we don't have much time for it now, but—"

"Oh, we could—we could tell stories!")

Lauriam glanced at the abandoned book on the nightstand, given up when Ven had drifted off to sleep, pressed against Lauriam's side. He half considered picking it up and trying to read again, but restless energy buzzed through his limbs, and he found himself sitting up slowly.

"Lauriam?"

He sighed. "Sorry, Ven. I didn't mean to wake you."

Ven blinked blearily at him. "Is everything okay?"
"Yes. Just thinking."

"About your sister?"

"Mm. And everything else."

Ven's expression grew somber, and Lauriam winced; he'd been trying to distract Ven from their problems, not remind him of them. He'd been out of sorts ever since he'd come to find Lauriam, and he really wasn't anxious to make that worse. "It'll be fine," Lauriam promised. "I'm going to find the others and talk to them about it. We'll figure things out. Okay?"

It reminded him so much of comforting Strelitzia that it made his heart ache, and maybe that's why he found himself murmuring, "Strelitzia and I would do this, sometimes. When she had nightmares, she'd come to my room. It happened a lot more when she was little, but our first weeks in Daybreak Town were a little stressful, too." Lauriam sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm just—feeling nostalgic, I guess."

"Because you might be able to find her. Your sister, I mean."

"I hope so."

"What—" Ven broke off, sounding hesitant.

"What…?"

Ven curled into himself a little tighter. "What happens if you don't?"

They idea made something twist in Lauriam's chest, and he swallowed tightly and tried not to think about it. "Then," he said, and even if he tried to keep his voice light he knew he didn't entirely succeed, "I guess I'm no worse off than I was before."

"And—and if you do? Will you—will you stay here with us?"

"I'm still a Union Leader," Lauriam pointed out, but it was an interesting point. He hadn't really considered what would happen when (if) he found Strelitzia; he'd been so hyper-focused on tracking her down that he just didn't have time to consider anything else. But… "I don't want to leave the four of you," he said. "You're my friends. So I think maybe I'd bring her here."

"Do you think she'd like it?"

"I don't know. I hope so." Lauriam smiled and nudged Ven gently. "She'd probably like you."

Ven looked almost embarrassed at that, ducking his head and burying it in the pillows, and Lauriam laughed. She'd like having a younger sibling, I think. It would be…nice, Lauriam thought, if all of them were together.

Lauriam tucked the blanket a little closer over Ven's shoulders. "I'm going to find the others, okay? Just to see how they're doing."

Ven gave him a long, tired look, but it seemed like he was slowly slipping towards sleep.

"I won't be gone long," he promised. "Get some rest in the meantime, alright?"

"…Alright." Ven pulled the covers closer around him, and Lauriam couldn't help smiling as he slipped out of the room.

The Clock Tower was always quiet, but right now, in the darkness, everything felt strangely uncomfortable. Despite not seeing any Heartless since earlier in the day, Lauriam kept half expecting something to spring from the shadows. He tried to shake away his unease.

He wasn't entirely surprised that no one answered when he checked their rooms, but he was a little bit exasperated. Maybe they're in the Foretellers' Chambers. Resting, hopefully. He kind of doubted it—if they had been, Ven probably would've taken him there. And with everything that's going on, Brain at least is probably still up, he thought with a groan. He wasn't looking forward to that argument. But at least if he's up, maybe I can ask him about what I've learned.

It didn't surprise him that he didn't find his friends sleeping in the Foretellers' Chambers, but it did surprise him a little that no one was there working. The control room, maybe? It was the other most likely place for Brain to be, after all. Still, it didn't stop him from feeling nervous, picking up his pace until he was running.

(He didn't know what he'd do if someone else he loved went missing.)

He threw the door, ready to shout his friends' names—then paused at the sight that greeted him.

Skuld was sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall, cheek pressed against it. Brain was sprawled across the keyboard, looking almost like he'd fallen asleep trying to type something. Lauriam chuckled quietly and shook his head, the tension draining out of his shoulders. "You two…"

Neither of them had blankets, of course, and Lauriam rolled his eyes and went to fetch some. He had half a mind to wake them up when he got back—but looking at them, it wasn't hard to see the heavy bags under their eyes, and something in his chest sank. Today was stressful for all of us, I guess, he thought, carefully wrapping one blanket around Skuld's shoulders. She stirred a little and tugged it closer, and Lauriam smiled, despite himself. He draped the other over Brain, who didn't even react.

If Brain wasn't awake—well. His questions could wait. He didn't want to cause his friends any further stress.

He should really get back to Ven. He didn't want him to wake up and find Lauriam missing—and, if he were being honest, he wanted to make sure that his friend hadn't disappeared again. "It'd be a really bad time for you to start sleepwalking again," he murmured with a quiet laugh.

He still couldn't help giving the others a quick glance. Ephemer wasn't here—and Lauriam had to worry about that a little, but if these two had both fallen asleep, he hoped that meant that Ephemer was alright. He could feel his expression softening as he watched them. We'll figure it out. All of it. "Get some rest," he whispered, and then headed back towards Ven's room.

---

-This was…a dream, Lauriam thought. It had to be, because Strelitzia was in the Clock Tower kitchen, making something with Ven. He blinked, for a moment just trying to process what he was seeing.

Neither had noticed him yet, it looked like; they were talking quietly to each other, Strelitzia mixing something in a large bowl and Ven looking at it curiously. "Do you think it needs more flour?" he asked, bouncing on his toes.

"Um." Strelitzia paused her mixing to look at the batter. "I don't think so. The recipe said it didn't."

"But it looks really gooey—"

"What are you two doing?" Lauriam asked, baffled.

Both of them whipped around with a shout of, "Lauriam!" Strelitzia hid the bowl behind her, looking sheepish. Ven plastered on a smile that looked very, very nervous.

"…Were you trying to cook breakfast?"

They exchanged glances, then both nodded and looked back towards him. "We can't tell you," Ven said.

"Yep. Sibling pact."

"Sibling…?" For half a beat, he marveled that the two of them had latched onto each other so quickly. Then— "Hang on. I'm your older brother."

"Younger sibling pact," Strelitzia clarified.

"Yeah, because we wanted to surprise you with—" Ven clapped his hands over his mouth.

Oh. "This was…for me?"

They both looked sheepish. "It was supposed to be a surprise," Strelitzia told him quietly.

Lauriam sighed but smiled ruefully. "It was very sweet of you," he said, "but maybe you could ask someone for help next time?" He swiped a finger through some batter that had splattered against the counter.

Footsteps sounded behind him, followed by a groan. "Do I want to know?"

"Hi, Brain," Strelitzia said, leaning around Lauriam to wave at him sheepishly.

"You know Brain?" Lauriam asked, looking at her in surprise.

She gave him a funny look. "You introduced me to him when you brought me back. Remember?"

Right. Dream. And he knew it wasn't real, he knew it, but he couldn't help but feel something warm and hopeful at the thought. "Right."

"Well," Brain said dryly, "clearly you forgot that you can't leave these two unsupervised in the kitchen, too."

"It's not as bad as leaving Ephemer alone here."

Skuld. She'd slipped in behind Brain, apparently; Ephemer was close behind her, and he looked indignant for a moment before his expression shifted towards something more reluctantly understanding.

Skuld stepped up to Strelitzia and Ven. "What were you guys making?"

"Pancakes," Ven piped up.

Skuld made a face, but quickly smoothed it out. "It's not a bad start," she tried, "but maybe I can help a little."

"I'll help with clean up," Ephemer promised, giving the room a once-over.

Brain snorted. "Really, now."

"Brain'll also help with cleanup," Skuld added over her shoulder.

"Hey."

Lauriam found his expression softening as he watched the others bicker and laugh, Skuld helping Strelitzia and Ven restart their batch of pancakes, Ephemer ruffling Ven's hair as he passed, Brain giving Strelitzia some quiet encouragement when it looked like she was fumbling. The two of them…really hadn't had any family besides each other before all this. But here— If I can just find Strelitzia—this is what I'd want. It feels like my family's complete.

"Lauriam!"

He started at the sound of his name, and found Strelitzia, Ven, and Skuld all looking at him expectantly. "Come help!" Ven said.

Lauriam smiled and went to cross the distance.

(There was a part of him whispering, This can't happen. Strelitzia's gone—this isn't a future you can have.

He pushed the thought aside. Just let me dream for a little bit. Please.)

---

-Lauriam had known that something had been bothering Ven. He'd known when he'd woken up from a nightmare and had protested going back to the abandoned house. He'd known when Ven had been jittery the whole walk there. He'd known when Ven had charged after the Heartless (Darkling, that's what they were called, but why had it talked to him, why had it seemed so interested in Ven—)

He'd known, and he still found himself surprised—and he couldn't even really bring himself to ask what the problem was.

He's…still troubled from his nightmare. And he's young. It could be difficult.

But everything Ven had said—

("But she's not here."

"Don't go back.")

Lauriam stared down at Ven's face. His expression was—worried. Guilty. It wasn't anything different than what Lauriam would typically expect. He's just…scared. And—

(And I don't have time to be worried over him, too.)

"Do you want to go back to the Clock Tower and let Brain know what's going on? And then I'll come find you later. We can keep looking after I've gone through the building. Okay?"

Ven's expression shifted, and thankfully it turned to something relieved and not stressed. It made the guilt feeling in Lauriam's chest ease a little bit.

But watching Ven head back towards the Clock Tower didn't make Lauriam feel any better. It could just be the stress of everything that's happening. He's right—he's a Union Leader. He's perfectly capable of taking care of himself. And I need to focus on finding my sister. He swallowed tightly and turned away. Or, at least, finding more specters of her.

Daybreak Town had gone very, very quiet in the wake of everything that had happened the day before. It was almost strange to walk through it now. Everyone is…alright, hopefully. I haven't heard anything about people being injured, at least.

He hadn't heard much of anything at all, actually, and it was a bit frustrating. You'd think after something like that, there would be a bit more activity. Or at least that there would be something to point me in the right direction.

"There's not a soul..."

Lauriam paused. I don't recognize that voice.

"Yes. Head for…ahead."

Or that one. That was…unnerving. He'd interacted with all of the Dandelions plenty of times at this point—these voices sounded older than any of them, and it made Lauriam distinctly nervous. What the Nightmare said—is this it?

He found himself running, hurrying through the streets in the hopes of finding something. He crested a set of stairs, and—

Nothing. Just a flash of something dark, wisps spiraling into the sky. He wasn't sure whether to be disappointed or not. It could've been another specter. I could've just been hearing things.

"Lauriam!"

That he didn't think he was imagining, though, and he turned around with a baffled look. "Skuld?"

She was racing towards him, face openly relieved, and it dawned on Lauriam that even though he'd checked on them, they hadn't actually seen him since the previous day. Skuld skidded to a stop in front of him, scanning his face. "You look—" Skuld broke off, hesitant.

"Rough?" Lauriam finished with a wry smile.

She smiled tentatively back. "Did Ven ever…?"

"He found me last night, yes. He's heading back to the Clock Tower now."

Skuld's shoulders sank in relief. "You two weren't out here all night, were you?"

"No. We went back and got some sleep, I promise."

Skuld's expression softened a little, and she gave a jittery sort of laugh. "You guys could've come and talked to us."

"I came to check on you later." He gave her an accusing look and poked her arm lightly. "I expect Brain to fall asleep at his desk, but not you."

"You were the one who brought the blankets." Skuld frowned. "Why didn't you wake us up?"

"You looked like you needed the rest."

"We were waiting for you two!"

Ah. He gave her a sheepish smile. "I hope Ephemer wasn't out looking for us? I didn't see him."

Skuld's expression crumpled.

"Skuld?" Lauriam rested a hand on her shoulder. "Is everything alright?"

"I—I'll tell you on the way back. I don't want to—" She took a steadying breath, then turned and started heading back towards the Clock Tower.

Lauriam hurried to keep pace with her.

Skuld didn't say anything right away, and the silence made Daybreak Town's quiet more apparent.

"I talked to the Dandelions," Skuld said, startling him. "They—they know what's going on. Or at least, as much as we do."

"I heard as much. They said that you were looking into things…?"

She nodded. "Brain—you know that portal? The one he and Ephemer were looking into?"

"The one Ephemer made."

"The one Ephemer altered." Skuld flexed her fingers; it looked like she wanted something to do, but she didn't know what. "It turns out, it led to a new world. We don't know exactly what one or why, but Ephemer and—and one of our friends went to look." She glanced out at Daybreak Town. "That's what's been causing problems over the last day."

"Oh."

"I know it's not a lot, but—"

"Are you doing okay?"

Skuld faltered.

"I know it's hard when people you care about are missing." He gave her a tiny smile, but it turned into something sad as he continued, "Have they been gone all night?"

"Yeah. They left yesterday. Brain doesn't want anyone going to search for them just yet, so…"

"So you came to find me and Ven instead."

Skuld nodded.

Lauriam swallowed tightly. "For what it's worth, I am sorry for worrying you. I didn't even think about it, really."

"Ven said you were out here looking for the missing wielders."

He gave her a rueful smile. "For my sister," he corrected quietly. "Someone—someone saw a specter of her."

Skuld's eyes lit up with recognition. "Like with my family."

"Mm-hm. It—it appeared again, when everything started going awry."

"Are you okay?" Skuld asked, rounding on him with wide eyes. "Seeing her like that—"

"I'm fine," Lauriam hurried to assure her, lifting his hands peaceably. "If anything, it's made me feel—hopeful, almost?"

"Because you might finally be able to find out what happened to her."

His chest ached, but he nodded, anyways.

"I guess that's one good thing that's come out of this, then." Skuld nudged him gently. "I hope you get closure."

He gave her a small smile, because he wasn't really sure what else to do.

Skuld took a shuddering breath and glanced back out at Daybreak Town. "It reminds me a little of what it was like before the Keyblade War."

"I think I remember things being more chaotic."

"They were," Skuld agreed, "but it still feels—"

She was silent for several long, long moments, and when Lauriam started to realize she probably wasn't going to answer, he prompted, "Feels what?"

"It's—nothing. Never mind." Her shoulders straightened. "Come on. Hopefully Ven's gotten back to the Clock Tower and let Brain know the both of you are alright."

Lauriam thought about pressing, but he didn't know if Skuld would answer, so he just nodded and followed.

---

-Lauriam had expected a lot of things when he finally caught up to Brain—answers chiefly among them. That didn't mean he liked what he got.

---

-A data world. The glitches—the specters—made sense, Lauriam guessed, if that was the case. It didn't necessarily make him feel any better, and he slotted it in with the rest of the information he'd picked up over the last two days. It felt a little like he was overflowing, his restless energy leading him to chase after Brain.

He found him, unsurprisingly, in the Foretellers' Chambers. Brain was facing away from him, rocking back in his chair, and Lauriam got the impression that he was thinking heavily. "Any ideas?" he called quietly.

Brain started, then pushed his chair back and gave Lauriam an exasperated look. "Are you kidding? It's only been a few minutes."

Lauriam smiled sheepishly. "True." Quieter, he continued, "The others decided to stay in the control room a bit longer."

"Alright."

He could practically sense Brain's unasked question, and Lauriam hesitated only a moment before he caved and said, "I know it's not the best time for this, but I spoke with a friend of Strelitzia's." He crossed his arms, fingers tightening around his biceps. "Apparently, before she disappeared, she talked about the Keyblade War…as if she was sure it was coming." Lauriam lifted his head and gave Brain a pointed look. "You mentioned before that you couldn't figure out why Strelitzia wanted someone to join the Dandelions…when she'd been so hesitant to join herself. I think it's because she knew the Keyblade War was about to become a reality."

Brain was quiet a moment. He turned away, glancing at something on his desk that Lauriam couldn't quite see. "But all of the Dandelions knew about the war. They'd known for a while, even a latecomer like her."

"Right. She knew about it the whole time, so why would she suddenly try and get someone else to join?"

Brain tilted his head back. "I see what you're getting at," he said, but there was something almost strained in his voice. "Something made her absolutely sure that the war was gonna happen."

"I think so."

Brain was quiet for what felt like an eternity, and Lauriam wasn't sure what he wanted him to say.

"…I might have an idea."

Lauriam snapped towards him, heart beating loudly. "What is it?" he asked, and for as much as he tried to avoid sounding desperate he knew he didn't quite succeed.

"Can you give me some time alone to think?"

He sounded…strangely upset, his voice tight. It made Lauriam uneasy, and he tried to force it aside. "Sure," he said, quiet. "Let me know if you need any help."

He thought he caught a hint of a smile when Brain glanced at him. "Will do."

There wasn't anything else Lauriam could do there, and after some awkward hovering he turned and headed towards the door. He paused, turning back to call, "Brain."

Brain didn't turn to look, but he inclined his head to show he was listening.

Lauriam hesitated, running over the different things he could say, then sighed and finally murmured, "Just don't overwork yourself, okay?"

Brain huffed a laugh. "You say that like you're worried."

"You do have a history of it."

"You'll hunt me down later, I'm sure."

The 'later' settled something in Lauriam's restless heart, and he gave a tiny smile and a wave as he left the Foretellers' Chambers.

Of course, that meant he didn't have much else he could do at the moment. I could go back to looking for clues about Strelitzia. If no one else needs me, then—that makes the most sense.

He might've been able to do that—kept going right on out to Daybreak Town—of he hadn't heard something strange echoing through the hallways. He slowed, tilting his head and pausing to try and listen.

There were voices, coming from somewhere. Voices Lauriam didn't entirely recognize. Were some of the Dandelions still here? Did they decide to go investigating on their own? With a frown, Lauriam headed towards them.

Whoever was speaking was very, very quiet, almost like they didn't want to be heard. It made Lauriam tense. What the Nightmare said. About something hiding here. Is this it? Is this what could be putting us in danger?

Lauriam moved a little faster.

The voices led him down—down, down, down further into the depths of the Clock Tower than they'd usually gone. Where is this? Why would they be going down here?

…Maybe it's just someone who got a little too curious.

It didn't feel like that, though, and maybe Lauriam was still too anxious from searching for his sister, but all he could think of was who might've snuck in here and whether or not they could hurt his friends and that he didn't want to lose anyone else. So he kept following, picking up speed and hoping that he could catch whoever it was—

And then the voices disappeared, and he found himself skidding to a halt in front of a large wall with a keyhole.

He stared at it for a moment. He must be far below the normal parts of the Clock Tower, now—deeper than any of them had dared to go. He stared at the door, fingers flexing. He—thought he might've been down here once, maybe. When Skuld had been working on her map, and they'd tried to figure out what this room was supposed to be.

("What are all of these for?"

Lauriam glanced at Skuld, eyebrows furrowed.

She ran her hands along some strange, cylindrical contraption, frowning thoughtfully.

Lauriam came closer, eyebrows furrowed. "I'm not sure. Maybe the Foretellers made things in them?"

Skuld snorted. "Like giant Spirits?"

Lauriam laughed. "Maybe. If we got Brain down here, I'm sure he could find some use for it.")

They never really had gotten Brain down this way—they'd mentioned an abandoned laboratory to him, and he'd gone searching, eventually swiping the map from Skuld and later grumbling that he couldn't find it, and that had seemed to be it. So what would someone want down here?

The only way to find out would be to go in, and so Lauriam unlocked the door—

And found himself staring at the back of someone he didn't know, but whose voice he could finally place. The stranger in Daybreak Town. "What are you doing here?" Lauriam asked, tension thrumming through his chest and shoulders. The vines in his chest curled, sharp pinpricks against the back of his chest.

The stranger turned towards him, and Lauriam realized he knew who this was—she'd shown up in the data worlds. Maleficent. The evil fairy. She's supposed to be from the future. How did she—?

But this is a data world. Maybe data projections can travel between the two.

It didn't matter. Maleficent was definitely a threat, and Lauriam wasn't particularly anxious to let her anywhere near his friends.

(It felt like things were clicking into place. Strange things were happening here. The Nightmare had warned them about someone who could be dangerous. Of course it would be someone like this.

If she's here in this version of Daybreak Town—could she have been in the other one, too? Could she have been the one who…?)

He stepped into the room, giving Maleficent a decidedly unfriendly smile. "You may want to think carefully before you answer." Divine Rose snapped into his hand, pricking against his palm like it was ready to drag him into battle, whether he was ready for it or not. He forced his Keyblade to stay at his side, moving closer and carefully blocking Maleficent's path to the exit.

Maleficent, for her part, didn't seem particularly worried. She almost seemed amused, giving him a wry smile and sweeping her arms wide like she was inviting him to a friendly conversation. "What a surprise," she said, voice smooth. "So you're all trapped here, as well."

The words stung, hitting painfully at the reminder of what exactly had happened to them and what it meant, and Lauriam's smile turned a little sharper as he brandished his Keyblade. "I don't recall you being invited."

"Then I'd best be on my way."

What? "This isn't the way out."

Maleficent looked surprisingly smug at that, lifting a hand to her chin and grinning as she stared him down. "Hah! You have no idea what this room is, do you?"

"Nope, and I can't say that I'm interested."

Maleficent spread her arms wide, gesturing, and Lauriam found himself tensing instinctively. "Every cage has a door," she said, "even this cage of 'data.' This is that door, and I'll be taking my leave through it." She turned half towards one of the strange, cylindrical contraptions, giving Lauriam a vaguely-amused look from the corner of her eye. "Seeing as I'm not welcome here."

There's a way out. Something hopeful burned in Lauriam's chest. There's a way for us to get out of here. There's a way I can keep my friends safe. His eyes darted past her. Those things—those are the way out? He needed to tell his friends—but Maleficent was still here, and he couldn't let his guard down now, so he forced himself to stay calm and said, "Huh, I didn't know this place was so important. I figured it was just a lab or a storeroom."

"You were correct," Maleficent answered, and that surprised him. "It seems a great deal of research was once conducted here, and what remains of it was left to gather dust."

Maleficent wasn't watching him anymore, he realized. This is my chance. If she left, then she could be a potential problem in the real world—and there would be one less way out for everyone else. Lauriam cautiously slid into a fighting stance, lifting Divine Rose.

Maleficent, for her part, didn't seem to notice. "Now if you don't mind," she said, resting a hand on the strange device, "I'll be on my way."

Now. Lauriam moved, a quick one-two strike that he hoped would catch his opponent off guard—and his Keyblade clanged sharply against a staff.

Maleficent gave him a knowing sort of smirk and twisted her staff, forcing Lauriam's Keyblade away. He recovered quickly, kicking forward and swinging again, and again, and again, trying to find a way past Maleficent's carefully spinning weapon.

"My, my. So eager for a fight. Surely it'd be better for both of us if you let me go?"

He didn't dignify that with an answer, finally catching her staff with the teeth of his Keyblade. He tugged, spinning the it free and snapping his weapon around into a lunge.

Green fire erupted around Maleficent; he winced at the heat, squinting against it, and nearly skidded into the pod she'd been standing in front of. When he opened his eyes, she was gone.

"Meteors of heaven, unleash thy fury!"

Shit. Lauriam threw up a barrier and ducked, one hand braced against the pod. It was barely enough; meteors crashed down around him and made the basement shake. Lauriam gritted his teeth, arm shuddering, hairline cracks running through the glass-like barrier. "I didn't think you'd want to damage these," he shouted over the noise.

"I only need one. You, on the other hand, have a vested interest in keeping as many around as possible, don't you?"

She was right; the fewer there were, the fewer people they could get out. Lauriam glanced at the pod behind him—still intact, thanks to his hasty spell, but certainly still at risk. It put him at a disadvantage he didn't like. But maybe there's a way around it.

Strelitzia had always been better at magic than him—but it wasn't like he hadn't practiced at all. Some of the magic he'd learned was oriented towards battle, but there was a decent amount that he'd taught himself to try and help out with everyday tasks—in particular, taking care of his plants.

He didn't think he could really hope to match Maleficent in magic—she was much more specialized, after all. But then, he didn't really need to, if he got just a little bit creative.

He dropped his barrier and swept Divine Rose outwards, a wave of lightning arcing off the edge to connect with Maleficent's own attack. In the smokescreen that followed Lauriam jammed the tip of his Keyblade into the ground; vines uncurled in his chest, magic twisting down his arms and pricking his fingertips. Divine Rose glowed green; the ground rumbled. Brambles sprouted from the ground, smoke spiraling away from wildly-waving vines. He got a good look at Maleficent again, finally, the witch near one of the pods in the back; she gave the brambles a disdainful look, fire already glowing in the palm of one hand.

Lauriam dragged Divine Rose free. With a flick of his Keyblade, the brambles tangled together; with another, they had snapped down as a sort of covering across the battlefield, caging them in—and, more importantly, completely covering the pods.

Maleficent didn't look impressed. "Clever," she said, "in a manner of speaking. But did you really think that would be enough?"

He didn't—it was mostly just to buy time. Thankfully, he had a couple of other tricks up his sleeve.

Maleficent wasn't the only one who could teleport, after all.

With a burst of magic he flickered out of one position and into the next, Keyblade swung back to strike at Maleficent's head. His opponent's eyes went wide, staff swinging around to block, and Lauriam teleported behind her, around to the side, back to the front, raining blow after blow that she couldn't hope to keep up with.

"Enough!"

Fire roared around her, and Lauriam hissed through gritted teeth as it burned his arms. He cast a quick Cure spell and teleported backwards, hopefully out of the range of the flames.

He'd been expecting another attack—but he certainly hadn't been expecting it to come from behind him. Only intuition saved him from one of his own thorns spearing him through the stomach; it still scratched his side, leaving a shallow, sluggishly bleeding wound. No, he realized after a moment, not mine. These were darker and thinner, designed specifically to inflict damage. More sprung around him, green fire still licking at their edges, curling overhead and tangling together like they were going to form some sort of cage. With another burst of magic Lauriam teleported free, escaping just as the thorns crashed down on the place where he'd been. He swept his Keyblade outwards, a Watera spell exploding half in an attempt to put out the flames, half in an attempt to hit Maleficent.

She was missing again, and he cursed quietly to himself, then was forced to move again as more thorns writhed underneath him.

"Thunder, light and lighting strike!"

The room grew darker; the smell of ozone hit his nose. Lauriam gritted his teeth and kept moving; the attack struck behind him again, and again, and again, lightning snapping at his heels and forcing him to keeping running, running, running, eyes peeled for some sign of—

There. Across the room, near the doorway.

Something in Lauriam's chest seized. I can't let her get away. I can't let her get to them.

In a blink he'd disappeared, re-emerging in front of Maleficent. She seemed ready this time, tipping her staff upwards to twist his Keyblade away and disappearing in a bout of green fire. Lauriam didn't stop, spinning around and launching himself across the room. The moment he saw more green fire forming he teleported to it, already swinging his Keyblade and finally getting a solid hit. Not that he could keep up his combo; Maleficent caught his Keyblade with her staff and twisted it, sending out a bolt of lightning that he was forced to dodge; he recovered quickly and stepped in for another barrage of strikes, but Maleficent didn't seem keen on staying in one place, fire consuming her in a moment.

And then everything was a blur of motion, Lauriam half-running, half-teleporting after the witch, snapping from one location to the next, exchanging a rapid barrage of strikes and magic in short spurts, skidding haphazardly across a writhing battlefield, twisting away from thorns that seemed to spring out of nowhere. A quick stab, a burst of lightning, the crackle of fire—sounds and sights and smells all blurred together, but the longer they went, the more it became apparent that Lauriam would wear himself out before Maleficent did. The only thing that's letting me keep up is my magic—and that can only last for so long. So I need to do something to catch her off guard.

Thankfully, he'd had a trick he'd learned—almost accidentally—from Ven. The younger Union Leader had a tendency to use wind spells for all sorts of mundane things—sometimes with unintended consequences. He knew how startled he was when a spell got set off—and he hoped it would be the same with Maleficent.

When Maleficent reappeared, she was already lifting her staff to block the attack she anticipated was coming. Instead, Lauriam smirked and lifted his Keyblade. Wind whipped wildly around the witch, and she had a moment to shout a startled, "What?" before she was thrown into the air.

Lauriam's Keyblade flashed; ungrounded and unprepared, Maleficent couldn't defend herself, and Lauriam took advantage of it, raining down strike after strike and hoping desperately that he could knock her out in that time. She obviously knows more about this place. If I can knock her out—maybe we could get more information later. And the others can help me figure out what to do with her.

Maleficent couldn't stay helpless forever, of course, and eventually she was able to start fighting back—but it was hard for her to regain her footing with Lauriam sending flurry after flurry of attacks at her.

The only warning he got was the tip of her staff glowing.

Lauriam was too close to leap away; the staff rounded towards him, pointed squarely at his chest. Fire exploded from the tip; it felt like he'd been punched, the breath driven out of him, and his chest burned. Something cracked sharply against his back, caving in from the force of the impact, and he only had a brief moment to register the pain before he heard the hiss of another spell. He ducked almost on instinct; it saved him from the lightning spell, but it didn't save the pod, the spell crashing into it and caving it in further. The vines caught fire; sparks flickered from underneath them. Smoke curled slowly from them, a burning smell hitting Lauriam's nose.

He stood warily, breathing hard and staring at Maleficent. She stared back, both of them tense, ready for the other to strike. In the silence, Lauriam asked sharply, "Are you the one that attacked my sister?"

Maleficent arched an eyebrow.

He knew this probably wasn't the time for it—not when things were falling apart, not when the fairy was trying to escape, not when his friends could be in danger—but there wasn't going to be another time, and he desperately needed to know. "My sister. Strelitzia. She had orange hair she always wore in pigtails. The last day she was seen she was wearing a white dress. She was last spotted in an abandoned building, and no one would have any reason to attack her because she didn't do anything."

"Then why, pray tell, do you think I would?"

"Because I've fought versions of you before."

"Ah, yes. In the 'date escape.'" Maleficent looked amused, but not particularly impressed. "Well, I hate to dissuade you, but I don't believe we've ever met."

"You're the only stranger here. Who else would—"

"Oh, not the only. But I suppose you wouldn't know that, would you?"

"Not the—" He broke off. Wasn't she the one the Nightmare was warning us about?

Maleficent tilted her head, and for a moment, it looked like she was listening to something. Then she laughed, long and loud, and Lauriam whipped his Keyblade around and glared. "Well," she said, "that is quite a shock."

Lauriam's grip tightened around his Keyblade's hilt. "What is?"

"Not all of your allies may be as trustworthy as they seem."

"You're suggesting one of my friends had something to do with it?"

"I can only repeat what I've been told."

"You're lying. You just want to cause more problems."

"Please. Your petty infighting means little to me. I'm really only interested in returning to my own time."

Own…time?

"You really don't know anything about this chamber, do you?" She sounded smug, and Lauriam hated it. "These devices can transfer people across both time and space. Convenient, isn't it?" She gave him a malicious sort of grin. "It would probably be quite convenient for you, if you're still alive to use it." She spread her arms wide, fire spreading along her arms, and Lauriam lunged, expecting her to teleport again.

She didn't. The fire spread, trailing along the vines, and Lauriam realized what was happening a moment too late. That didn't mean he planned to stop his attack; his Keyblade swung, but Maleficent was ready, banging her staff sharply against the ground and sending out a wave of fire. Lauriam shifted to a block, a barrier forming around him at the last minute; the flames hit his barrier and sent him flying backwards. He landed awkwardly, pain shooting up his feet, fire hissing underneath him.

It was, apparently, not the end of Maleficent's assault; the thorns twisted and uncurled, and before Lauriam had time to react they'd moved, stabbing at one side, then another, then from overhead. One cut through his leg; another nicked his hip. Lauriam shot into motion, but it was hard to keep moving when the attacks were so unpredictable, thorny, fiery vines emerging from the walls, the ground, the ceiling. Maleficent, for her part, seemed unconcerned, watching from a single place as he moved.

Fine. You'll get your way. With gritted teeth he swung Divine Rose outwards. Vines withered underneath him; the green fire sputtered and died, useless against the cold floor.

Maleficent gave him a smug look.

Lauriam matched it with a smirk of his own, Divine Rose twisting upwards. A black, swirling pool bubbled underneath Maleficent, surrounded with thorns, trapping her just long enough for Lauriam to move. In a blink he was in front of her, Keyblade caught around her waist; in another, he'd sent her flying into the air, appearing overhead and sending her towards the ground with a sharp, decisive strike. The hit the ground with a crack, and Lauriam let gravity carry him, Keyblade swinging.

The staff glowed with a spell. Lauriam couldn't quite get his Keyblade up in time to block during his freefall; the spell connected, sending him flying backwards. He tumbled unceremoniously over and over, the world spinning into a blank blur of colors, until he hit something with a loud crack! He groaned quietly, stumbling but remaining standing.

Heat and pain flared along his cheek; he screamed, flinching away from it. It took a moment to realize what was happening: Maleficent was firing spell after spell at him, trying to take advantage of the fact that he was defenseless. Lauriam gritted his teeth and lifted his Keyblade, hand braced against the back. Fire hit the shaft of the weapon and spilled over the sides, curling around the edges and licking at his face and shoulders. He dug into his magic, twisting his Keyblade sharply outwards, and wind whipped up around him, catching the spells and twisting them into a fiery sort of tornado. He took the reprieve to brace himself, carefully shifting back into a fighting position.

The moment the wind started to clear he moved.

Maleficent, he wasn't surprised to find, had taken the opportunity to move as well, heading pointedly towards one of the lifeboats. Lauriam flung his Keyblade, watching it spin over and over again as it sailed towards her.

She turned around to block, but she looked like she was beginning to grow frustrated. "You are annoyingly persistent."

Divine Rose came back at his call, and he feinted to the left, then swept an attack to the right, Keyblade flinging his own bursts of lightning. Maleficent's staff swept outwards, her own attack coming to meet his.

That'll work. The smokescreen wasn't much, but it was enough for him to teleport behind Maleficent. His Keyblade twisted, and he stabbed, the weapon hitting her back—

And not quite managing to finish her.

Maleficent pulled away before he could finish his attack, spinning around and pointing her staff towards him defensively.

I can't let up. I can't give her the chance to get away. He moved after her, trying to keep up, sending strike after strike after strike. The fight sent them back and forth across the room, Maleficent trying to keep some distance, Lauriam trying to close it, chasing her back and forth. Spells shot back and forth, lightning and fire and vines, over and over until Lauriam felt a twinge in his chest and everything seemed to slow. His legs burned; his Keyblade felt like it was made of lead. But it at least looked like Maleficent was struggling to keep up, too; the spells were coming slower, and even if he hadn't done as much damage as he would've liked, he'd kept her at bay.

She was nearing one of the back walls, he realized. Alright. I can do something with that. Subtly he twisted his Keyblade, making it look like he was going for a normal strike, and dug into his magic.

Maleficent looked like she was preparing herself to block.

With a flick, a tiny Aero spell burst from his Keyblade; it wasn't particularly strong, but it was enough to knock Maleficent back a little—

Right into his waiting vines.

The plants snapped around Maleficent like a vice, curling tightly over her arms and chest and pulling her back to the wall. She struggled against them, then turned towards Lauriam with a glower.

Lauriam watched warily for a few moments, then warily pushed himself out of his ready position. "I have some questions," he said, breathless, "about how you knew about this place, and what it can really do. And I want to know more about what you said before. What did you mean about your 'own time'? And about my friends being involved with my sister's disappearance?"

"Ingrate."

Lauriam gave an annoyed huff. "That's not going to get you anywhere. Unless you want to stay trapped there."

"I don't believe I'll be trapped anywhere."

He noticed a moment too late that her staff was glowing. He lifted to block, but his movements were too sluggish.

The spell hit home—a lightning spell, he realized after a moment, powerful enough to send him flying backwards into the broken pod.

His body seized. The first thing he registered was the smell—something sharp, something burning. It took a moment later for him to register the pain, sharp jolts that went through his arms and legs and made them twitch. Everything faded after a moment, and when he came to, he found himself on the ground, wrapped tightly in vines. A distant, delirious part of himself almost laughed at the reversal.

"You're certainly a troublesome one, aren't you?" Green fire flickered in the corner of his eye, and a moment later footsteps made their way slowly towards him. Something jabbed into one of Lauriam's legs, and his breath hissed between his teeth. The staff, he realized; it twisted, and pain shot up his leg. "I think I'd prefer it if you didn't try and follow me." The staff pressed down; another twist, and something snapped. Pain blotted out sensation momentarily, but Lauriam got the impression that he was screaming.

When he could focus again, he just barely caught the witch's muttering. "Looks like this lifeboat is of little use anymore. Pity. But at least there are others."

I can't let her get out. He squirmed against the thorns; some snapped, and he managed to wriggle one arm free. Divine Rose snapped into his hand, and he channeled as much magic as he could into it.

"Hmm?" Fabric rustled. "What are you—"

With a cry Lauriam drove his Keyblade into the ground, supercharged magic flowing freely. He didn't have any particular spell in mind; he just needed something to keep Maleficent from getting away.

The room shook. Dust cascaded from overhead. Cracks spider-webbed along the ground, growing wider and practically glowing. Something twinged in Lauriam's chest, and he ignored it and focused harder, managing to wriggle another arm free. He gripped Divine Rose, using it almost like a crutch and ignoring his bad leg. "I'm not going to let you hurt them."

"You fool. You'll—"

Lauriam tugged his Keyblade out of the ground and whipped it around with a roar. A wave of energy—wind magic, maybe, a wild and unfocused thing—swept from it and hit Maleficent squarely. She crashed into the wall, looking stunned, and Lauriam tried his best to straighten as she slumped, Keyblade braced against the ground as he limped towards her.

"I think that's quite enough."

The voice was unfamiliar and made him freeze.

Something flickered in the shadows. It broke Lauriam's concentration for a moment, and he turned towards it, eyebrows furrowed. What…?

Crack! Pain split his skull; his ears rang, everything turning fuzzy. He stumbled for a moment, Divine Rose clattering against the ground and disappearing. He distantly registered hitting the ground.

"My apologies. We can't have you getting in the way."

What…? The world was going dark at the edges. Lauriam's breath hissed between his teeth, and he tried to push himself back to his feet. No. There's—the others need to—

Another crack, and everything went dark.

---

-"Lauriam."

Lauriam stirred. Warmth filtered across his face. He thought he could smell—flowers, maybe? He felt almost groggy, like he was just waking up from a nap.

The voice came again, a little bit clearer: "Lauriam."

Strelitzia. For a couple of moments, he lay there, still feeling slightly befuddled. Wasn't I—

Grass rustled. Strelitzia's voice came again—closer, this time: "I knew you'd be here."

Things slowly slotted into place. That's right, this was—he'd come out to the field to rest. To think, too, about what Master Ava had said and what it had meant, but he guessed that hadn't worked out quite so well.

Still, he guessed he didn't mind, and he pushed himself up, glancing back and giving Strelitzia a tiny smile.

Strelitzia smiled back. "Taking a break?"

Lauriam couldn't help feeling just a little smug as he said, "Actually, I'm done collecting my lux for the day."

"But it's only noon."

"I know, but I finished a while ago. Taking down monsters is easy."

Strelitzia didn't say anything right away, and Lauriam wondered, worried, if maybe he shouldn't have said that. He glanced back, and— "What's that look for?"

Strelitzia looked shocked and just a little bit dismayed; at his comment she looked even more dismay, lifting her hands to her head and scrubbing them through her hair. "Oh, I didn't realize I was—It's just—" She lowered her hands to her mouth, looking embarrassed. "I-I don't know how you do it! You're so amazing!"

Lauriam smiled and laughed, but he couldn't help feeling a little bit lost. "Thanks."

He kept a careful eye on Strelitzia as she came closer; his sister slumped beside him, expression almost defeated, and Lauriam was starting to seriously wonder if he'd made a mistake. "Me, on the other hand, I spent the whole day getting chased around by them…"

His expression softened. "You know your magic is stronger than mine," he reminded her gently. "Stay calm and focused, and you'll be done in no time."

"I know, but it's hard." She turned towards him, expression almost hopeful. "Can't we pair up? You take the front, I'll take the back?"

"We could," Lauriam agreed reluctantly, "but that won't help you in the long run. Maybe when you get strong enough to protect me." He glanced back out across the field of flowers, closing his eyes and enjoy the brush of the wind against his face. "Then we'll pair up, and you can carry me through battle."

Strelitzia groaned. "That sounds impossible…"

Lauriam couldn't help his snort of laughter. It's not as impossible as you think.

Isn't it? something hissed in the back of his mind. If she doesn't join the Dandelions—what do you think might happen?

It was a terrifying thought—one that had been plaguing him ever since his conversation with Ava. There's no guarantee the war will happen, he reminded himself. Master Ava was trying to stop it.

It didn't get rid of his nerves, however, and he found himself asking faux-casually, "Oh, I've been meaning to ask: Have you decided to join the Dandelions?"

He caught Strelitzia's surprised look out of the corner of his eye. After a moment her expression turned pensive, and she admitted, "I'm not sure yet."

Something twisted in Lauriam's chest. "What's holding you back?"

She shrugged, playing with her fingers and pointedly not looking at him. "Well, I like the people I'm with now. Besides—"

She broke off, and when she didn't speak for a couple of moments Lauriam prompted, "Yeah?"

Strelitzia smoothed a hand across the bottom of her dress. "There's someone I wanna get to know. And if they're not a Dandelion, I might never get the chance."

That was an interesting bit of information. Lauriam glanced at her, studying her expression, and felt a smile slowly forming as he caught on. "Does someone have a crush?"

Strelitzia snapped towards him, face going red, and he had to bite back a laugh as she waved her arms frantically in protest. "No, no, no, no! It's nothing like that!"

His smile broadened. "Stay calm, focus, be brave."

She hit his shoulder lightly, looking if anything more distressed. "Stop it, Lauriam! It's not like that, I swear!"

He finally broke into laughter, relenting, "Okay, okay!" The laughter faded after a moment, and he gave her a long, somber look. He understood why she might not want to join the Dandelions if someone she cared about was staying behind, but…

"You make everyone's lives so much brighter. People need that; they need your power."

Strelitzia gave him a surprised look.

He flashed her a gentle smile. "Believe in yourself." (He had no idea if he was handling this correctly. He didn't want to press her—didn't want to make this decision for her—but he wanted her to think about it. He wanted her to join. He wanted her to be safe.)

Strelitiza glanced aside, fidgeting and looking somewhere between happy and embarrassed. "Well, I-I don't know about that…" Abruptly her expression turned suspicious, and she shot Lauriam an accusing look. "Wait, you're not just saying that, are you?"

Lauriam's expression softened. He stood, resting a hand gently on her head, and she peered up at him curiously. "Not at all," he murmured, and then his voice turned a little brighter. "In fact, you just worked that power of yours on me. Things were feeling dull, but now I'm looking forward to what's in store for tomorrow."

Strelitzia beamed, hopping to her feet. "Then let's pair—"

"Nope."

Strelitzia gave him a look that was distinctly unimpressed.

He tried not to laugh at it. Softer, he added, "But I will come running if you're ever in trouble."

Strelitzia's eyes widened a little, and then something in her expression steeled. She shook her head, turning away pointedly. "No."

"Huh?"

"You told me what I need to do, so that's what I'll do. I will get stronger. I will carry you one day."

She turned to look at him finally, expression serious and determined, and Lauriam couldn't help the pride welling in his chest. You've come a long way, haven't you?

Strelitzia's expression broke first, face screwing up like she couldn't hold onto such a serious look for long, and Lauriam found his breaking with it. Before long they were both laughing, and Lauriam shook his head and said, "I like the sound of that."

The wind kicked up. Lauriam winced, lifting a hand to try and shield his eyes. Flower petals scattered across the field; he turned to watch as they flitted towards Daybreak Town, carried away with the breeze. He turned, wondering what his sister thought of it.

And she wasn't there anymore.

What?

She'd been—she'd been right there beside him just a moment ago. She couldn't have left without him noticing.

Could she?

"Strelitzia!" He found himself racing across the field, searching half-frantically. (And it felt like it always did; like a piece of him had been torn out of his chest and crushed, leaving him hopelessly looking for answers he wasn't going to get.) "Strelitzia!"

"Lauriam."

That's her voice. He whipped around, desperate with relief, but—

But his sister looked strange. A white cloak covered her body, a hood obscuring most of her face. Her hair peeked out, and he could see a hint of her expression—somber, almost, twisted into something he couldn't quite understand—but that was it. "Strelitzia…?"

She twitched just a little at the sound of her name. "Lauriam, I…"

The wind picked up again. Lauriam winced, bracing himself against it.

Strelitzia twitched again. Her body lifted slowly, dragged upward almost like it was attached to strings, jerking in ways that didn't make it seem entirely alive anymore. A part of Lauriam wanted to scream; another wanted to run after her. But his legs felt like they were stuck to the ground, his tongue tied, and he could only watch as Strelitzia went higher and higher, the wind picking up until it tore against his clothes, and the whole world faded to white.

---

-For one brief, disorienting moment, Lauriam didn't recognize where he was. The ground was hard and cold; something sparked overhead, making a loud zapping sound that made his head throb. His vision was blurred, but he thought he was looking at the world from the ground, catching fragments of color and machinery.

The pain was a delayed sensation, but it slowly dawned on him that everything hurt. His head throbbed, his arms ached, and trying to breathe made his chest feel like it was on fire. One of his legs had a sharp, splitting pain going down through it, and he hissed quietly as he rolled over, his head resting against the ground for a brief moment as the world swam.

"Strelitzia…"

He'd been—he thought he'd been in a field with his sister, and it took maybe too long for him to pull himself back to the present. He gritted his teeth and slowly pushed himself into a sitting position, one hand pressed against his chest as he tried to ignore how much it hurt to move. His mind scrambled to reorient itself, picking up fractured pieces of what had happened and slowly fitting them into a shape that made sense. "I was—I was fighting, and…"

He glanced very carefully behind him—to that sparking thing, just a little too close for comfort. His thoughts and vision were still blurry, but he thought he could make out a destroyed…lifeboat, he thought it was? Or something like that.

Standing was a struggle, and Lauriam nearly fell again, wobbling as he tried to put weight on his bad leg. He was—he needed to get out of here. He needed to find the others. He needed to—to get help, probably, but it was more than a little hard to think straight right now. Just get to the door. Get to the door, and you can move forward from there. With gritted teeth he dragged himself a little further away, and then a little further, one careful step at a time. When he got closer, he finally paused to turn and take stock of the room.

It was—well. It wasn't exactly in good condition. There were cracks along the floor, bits and pieces of the strange machine caved in, electricity sparking wildly from broken wires. But there was no sign of anyone else in the room. "She's gone…"

(And there was a part of him that didn't know if he was talking about the fairy or Strelitzia, anymore.)

Get to the others. The thought pounded in his head like a heartbeat, and he dragged himself closer to the door, but it hurt. It hurt, and everything was still not quite right, and he kept thinking about Strelitzia and whether that was a dream or a vision or—

He tilted forward, bracing his arm against the wall and trying to keep himself upright. "Strelitizia…I…"

He didn't know how he wanted to finish that sentence, exactly. 'I'm sorry'? 'I'll find you'? 'I can't keep doing this'? His thoughts were still too fuzzy, and he had to take a moment to breathe, closing his eyes against the swimming room.

He needed to talk to the others about what had happened. He couldn't do much about Strelitzia, but he could help them. Which meant he needed to get out of the door.

The idea of walking up several sets of stairs like this made him want to give up right there. A very delayed, sluggish part of him suggested, You know healing spells, and he wanted to kick himself.

His magic was…pretty depleted, at this point, but he could still feel it—vines curling in his chest, brambles that wrapped carefully around something green and warm and alive, and he dug his hands in and squeezed, wringing out whatever energy he could.

His vision cleared; some of the fuzziness in his mind faded. His chest and leg didn't hurt quite so much, though the pain certainly wasn't gone; he guessed he'd need more magic, probably, if he wanted to heal everything. But it was enough to at least get him to the others, hopefully. I probably should've started with that, he thought ruefully and pushed himself away from the wall. I wonder what the others will say? This usually feels like the other way around. At least it meant he probably wouldn't have to deal with this too much longer, but he imagined the others would probably be worried.

As if they didn't have enough to deal with already.

Lauriam slipped, and he threw out a hand to brace himself. With a sigh he kept going, one hand now firmly planted on the wall. They're never going to let me out of their sight again, he thought, and it drew a laugh out of him. He winced, hand against his ribs. Ow.

…I hope Ven's not there.

It was a ridiculous thought, really; Ven was a Union Leader, too, and Lauriam knew he could probably handle this sort of thing just fine. But—well. He knew Ven would worry, and he'd already been worried enough. He didn't want to make things worse.

The trek back towards the Foretellers' Chambers was long—longer than it usually felt, anyways. (He supposed it might actually be longer—none of them had known about the lifeboat chamber, after all, and it was buried deep beneath the other rooms of the Clock Tower.) He was tempted to stop at the kitchen, maybe, or just go to his room, or just stop in the hallway and rest, but he at least knew that someone would probably be in the Foretellers' Chambers, and his worry was buzzing sharply in the back of his head. He dragged himself onwards, using the wall for support and trying to keep his breathing steady.

He was ready to collapse with relief when the Foretellers' Chambers finally came into view. His leg was shaking, and his chest was burning, and he thought he would probably sleep for a week, once they were all out of here. That sounds like—Ephemer? And that's—Brain. At least a couple of them are there, then.

The voices drifted from the half-open door, words gradually becoming clearer.

"So it might come for us?"

It? Lauriam frowned; he guessed he wasn't the only one who had something to tell the others.

"Yeah," Brain agreed, and that was ominous; he wondered what else was— "Like it did for Lauriam's sister."

What?

For a moment, Lauriam didn't think he'd heard right; he had to have been mistaken, his mind still cloudy and his ears still ringing because of the fight, or the dream, or something. There was no way that the others had actually found something before he had.

"Is that what happened to her?" Skuld. Lauriam felt like he was still trying to catch up to the conversation, mind processing things too slowly, stuck scratching against the 'her' until everything else felt like it had been blotted out. "But why?"

"I don't know why it targeted Strelitzia," Brain said, and something in Lauriam's chest constricted, because they were, they were talking about his sister, they knew something—

"What…did you say?"

He didn't remember getting to the doors of the Foretellers' Chambers—but there he was, standing in the doorway, legs shaking, and watching as his friends turned to him with confusion and then alarm. He'd—he'd wanted to say something to them, about the fairy and the lifeboats and the fact that they might have a way out, but the words died in his throat, and all he could do was stare at Brain's unreadable expression and think they know, they know, they know—

He stumbled into the room; his legs still weren't entirely steady, and he wasn't entirely sure if that was because of the fight or because of what he'd heard. Skuld was at his side in an instant, arms wrapped around his chest as she tried to support him—but he could barely support himself, and he ended up dragging them both to the floor.

Ephemer shouted in alarm and ran to help; distantly, Lauriam thought he registered that they were asking him what had happened, but his ears were ringing. He needed to get up, he needed to find out what had happened, he couldn't afford this right now—

Brain came towards him with careful, measured steps. His expression was still carefully controlled, and it made Lauriam want to scream, because he'd just been talking about his sister like something bad had happened to her, how could he be so calm—

(his fault his fault he should have been there—)

"'Targeted' for what?" Lauraim asked, terrified and angry, because he needed to know, but the answer scared him, and he didn't know what he was supposed to do with the way his heart was pounding and the way his hands were shaking. He pushed himself up; Skuld tried to help him, but her arms felt like they were too restraining and made him itch, so he pulled himself roughly away and asked, "What did you mean by that?"

He'd been trying to keep his voice level, he'd been trying, but it was hard when Brain still looked so closed off. For just a brief moment, the other Union Leader met his eyes. Something flickered there—guilt or regret, he wasn't sure—and then Brain looked down, hiding his expression behind his hat.

It stoked that angry thing in Lauriam's chest, and before he'd even entirely realized what he was doing, he'd crossed the room, grabbing Brain by the lapels of his jacket and dragging him closer. "What happened to her?" His voice was still shaking, and he couldn't quite steady it, his hands quivering just slightly as he stared at Brain. When his friend still didn't respond he hissed, "Answer me!"

"Stop!" Someone was—someone was pulling him back, he realized, and it made him angrier, because he needed to know, this was his sister, they couldn't—

"Get off of me!"

Tossing his friend across the room might have been unthinkable at one point, but Lauriam couldn't focus, everything still too shaky and unsteady. His arms jittered with nervous energy, his stomach twisting, and he couldn't calm down because he needed to get answers.

"So this is the plan." Lauriam snapped back towards Brain; he was still looking at him with that blank, thoughtful expression, and Lauriam wanted to shake him. "Clever."

"What plan?"

"Darkness's plan. Fear, doubt, anger…" Brain's expression finally broke, turning to something sad, and it banked the anger just a little bit. "It's purposefully messing with our hearts and making us turn on each other."

There was a part of Lauriam that still wanted to yell at him—that that wasn't an answer, he'd wanted to know what had happened to Strelitzia and Brain hadn't said anything. But the words still hit home, and Lauriam found himself relaxing his grip, just a little.

Hands rested against his back and arm—not restraining, this time, but steadying, and he turned to look at Skuld's worried expression. "Lauriam, please!"

It felt like the fight had drained out of him. His shaking legs gave out; he let go of Brain, and both of them slid to the floor. Exhaustion swept over him; so much had happened so quickly that Lauriam suddenly felt incredibly worn, and all he wanted to do was go back in time and redo this whole day over. "I don't understand…"

Skuld relaxed just a little bit, but her expression was still worried. "Please," she said, keeping a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Just listen."

Another hand landed on his opposite older—Ephemer, he realized, and a distant part of him thought he should apologize to him, and to Brain, but he couldn't quite muster up the energy past—everything. He took a steadying breath and closed his eyes. "Tell me what happened to my sister…"

"I…it's my fault."

The quiet words didn't register at first. They rang clearly in the near-silence, but their meaning seeped in slowly. Ven…? But that was—that didn't make sense. Ven wasn't—he wouldn't do anything. Not like that.

But—

("She's not going to be there, and you're just going to be sad, and you have us now so it should be—it should be okay, and if you keep looking you're going to—")

"Ven?" Skuld asked, and she sounded surprised but also vaguely worried. "What are you—"

"Explain yourself, Ventus." Lauriam tried to keep his voice careful and measured—maybe this was a mistake, after all. Ven could be blaming himself for something—something that he hadn't done, maybe. He needed—he needed to give him the chance to explain. That's all.

("I think they made me do something bad. I don't remember.")

"I'm sorry, Lauriam," Ven said, and it sounded like his voice was breaking. "I'm responsible for what happened to her."

Ephemer and Skuld's voices rose in protest, and maybe Lauriam would've taken a moment to breathe and reconsider if they hadn't. (Because that meant they knew. That meant that they weren't surprised by this at all—and if they weren't, then that meant that what they'd been talking about before had been related to Ven, and—)

("What if I don't deserve it?"

"Is this about the 'bad thing' your friend made you do?")

There was a dull, cold, angry thing building in his chest, and for as much as he tried to force it down, he couldn't quite stop the shaking. He turned, holding himself stiffly as he made his way closer.

(His sister had known about the Keyblade War. How else was she supposed to know, if she hadn't been meant to be a Union Leader? And Ven was so young and inexperienced; why would Master Ava have chosen him?)

Ven wasn't looking at him, and Lauriam just barely restrained himself from snapping, because this was still Ven, this was still the kid that had come to him when he had nightmares and that had begged him to go to the beach and that got so excited about telling stories.

(But there were echoes of previous conversations—ones that hadn't made sense, before, but were starting to paint a horrible sort of picture.

"They're called strelitzias, I think?"

"Don't go back."

"There's an abandoned building in my nightmares."

…Had everything been a lie?)

"Ven."

Ven finally, finally lifted his head, and there was something worried and guilty but almost hopeful in his expression, and Lauriam—Lauriam didn't know what he was supposed to do. Did you hurt my sister? he thought, and he couldn't quite ignore the way it made his chest burn.

("I don't want the same thing to happen to you.")

He gripped Ven's coat, dragging him closer, and it felt a little like he was breaking. "What did you do to Strelitzia?"

(I trusted you. I trusted you, you were like my brother, I didn't think—)

Ven's expression shifted to something panicked, and then pained, and he lifted a hand to his head with a quiet groan. For a brief moment, something in Lauriam faltered—because before, he would've wanted to see what was wrong, wouldn't he? He would've wanted to help.

But if he was the one who—how much of that was real?

Distantly, he could hear the others shouting. "Ven," he said, voice breaking. "Answer me."

(He didn't know what he wanted the answer to be.)

Someone grabbed his arm, and he wanted to turn around and shout, because they didn't get it, they hadn't been looking for their loved ones for months, slowly losing hope that they'd ever find anything when apparently the person responsible was right there—

"Stop it!" Brain snapped, trying to tug him backwards. "This isn't you."

"Stay out of this!" Lauriam roared, and with a jerk he threw Brain free. Those brambles felt like they were curling in his chest, writhing furiously and pricking the back of his ribcage, and he dug into them and dragged out his Keyblade. He let go of Ven and swung down, trying to ignore the way his eyes burned. "Answer me!"

Metal clanged against metal. For a second, he thought Ven had summoned his Keyblade to fight back, and it brought about a strange mix of emotions that he couldn't help to parse apart. But when he focused a little more, he realized that the figure holding him back was Ephemer, his leader's expression steely.

Ephemer swept his Keyblade to the side, forcing Lauriam back. His legs wobbled, and he tried to brace himself as best he could. He was still so shaky, and he wasn't sure if that was because of his injuries or his anger or what.

Ephemer stepped pointedly in front of Ven, steadying his stance and lifting his Keyblade. He met Lauriam's eyes, and he realized that the other Union Leader was fully prepared to fight him over this.

Lauriam glared at him; he wasn't in the best shape, but he would fight, because he didn't know what else he was supposed to do.

"It…it wasn't me…"

Lauriam faltered for just a second. That was…Ven.

…What did he mean, it wasn't him?

Something swirled over the younger Union Leader, dark and smoky. Ven's back arched; his eyes had gone wide, his chest rattling like he was struggling to breathe. He lifted his head for one panicked moment, and it didn't look like he could see them at all. "It wasn't me!" The shout faded into something indiscernible, and Lauriam found himself stumbling backwards as something dragged itself from Ven's back.

"What is that?" Ephemer asked; his stance didn't relax, but he did turn away from Lauriam, looking towards the swirling shadows with wide eyes.

"A monster?!" Skuld stepped a little closer, Keyblade flashing into her hand.

Ven's eyes rolled. He collapsed, and behind him the shadows coalesced into a vaguely-humanoid shape. They didn't look any scarier than any of the Heartless that they'd faced before, but there was something distinctly off about them, and it raised gooseflesh on Lauriam's arm. He turned his Keyblade towards the figure. "What's going on?"

Brain, as always, seemed to be one step ahead. "I see. You're Darkness."

The shadows flickered just a little, and Lauriam got the impression of a sharp smile. "Finally. It's about time."

What…?

Brain made an unimpressed noise. "I have to say, I didn't expect you to look like such a cliché."

"So you say." The figure in the shadows shifted, and Lauriam thought that maybe they were lifting a shoulder in half a shrug. It made something shiver down his spine. "But I have no form to speak of." The figure disappeared, but their voice still echoed around the room: "We mostly go unnoticed, after all." Then their voice came again from a place behind them, and Lauriam whipped around to face the shadows near the table. "What you see and hear now is for your benefit."

This thing was…inside of Ven…?

Ephemer took a couple of steps closer, putting himself between Ven and—and Darkness, Brain had said. "What do you want?"

"Want?" The shadowy head tilted. "I want nothing. I simply am." After a beat of confused silence they continued, "It must be hard for you to understand. We're very different." They sounded—almost sympathetic, Lauriam realized, and his grip tightened on his Keyblade. Ven said…he had a friend. He had a friend that made him do something horrible. Is this—is that what—

"Unlike you," Darkness continued, and Lauriam snapped towards them, "our actions don't serve a greater purpose or goal."

No…purpose? "Then why," Lauriam growled, hands shaking, "did you take my sister? Why Strelitzia?" He slashed his Keyblade through the air for emphasis.

"It was his will."

Ven's.

Something sick and ugly twisted in his gut, and he found himself glancing back towards Ven uncertainly. Skuld had moved to protect him, it looked like, once he'd fallen—but his expression was pinched and troubled, and Lauriam—

He wasn't sure what he was supposed to believe. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do.

Skuld glared at Darkness and stood, snapping, "I don't believe you. Ven didn't even know her! Besides, he would never wish that on anyone."

He…wouldn't, would he.

("You didn't want to do it, right?"

"N-no."

"Then it's not your fault."

"But—"

"It's not your fault. And even if it was, it wouldn't matter. The rest of us love you, Ven, and that doesn't hinge on what you do or don't do. We care about you. Okay?")

Lauriam's Keyblade lowered just a little.

"You're right," Darkness said, and it felt damning. "They were strangers. But what he wished for was power."

("And I had to! I had to because—because I did something bad, and I don't remember what it was, but didn't mean to, I promise, and I have to fix it because you guys are really nice and I don't want you to leave me like everyone else and I wasn't strong enough and I'm sorry—")

"I simply helped him fulfill that wish by making him a Union Leader."

"Ven would never want that!" Skuld snapped, and the words felt like they were echoing in Lauriam's head.

"Wouldn't he?" Darkness was behind him now, he realized, and he swept around, Keyblade swiping through the air, Ephemer and Skuld only half a moment behind him. Darkness flickered and disappeared, leaving the three of them scrambling to figure out where they'd gone.

Shadows flickered in his peripherals. Lauriam turned, trying to keep them in his line of sight.

"Even if he did," Ephemer said, "he wouldn't go so far as it to take it from someone, or steal their spot as leader."

"Power is power. How it's acquired is of no consequence."

They said it so casually, like they weren't the one responsible for Strelitzia— "Then…it could've been any of us?" Lauriam asked, and the anger burned. "It didn't have to be Strelitzia?"

He couldn't see any sign of eyes, but it still felt like Darkness was staring at him, giving him a long, long look. "Yes."

"You—!" Magic flared in his chest, and he leapt, Keyblade flashing, and—

And Darkness was ready. Everything moved too fast for him to process it entirely; one moment, he was flying towards Darkness, Keyblade lifted, and then—

And then there was just pain.

---

-"Lauriam."

Everything was dark this time; Lauriam blinked, trying to see, and came up with only shadows. But he could still hear his sister's voice somewhere in front of him. "Are you a ghost?"

Strelitzia didn't answer.

"Strelitzia, I don't—what happened to you? Where did you go? What am I supposed to do when—?"

Hands clasped gently over his. "It's okay."

"I don't want to let you go yet."

She squeezed his hands tightly. "I know."

He could feel things slipping away, Strelitzia's hands less present, her voice more a whisper than anything, and Lauriam floundered, reaching out for her. "Strelitzia. Strelitzia, wait—"

---

-"…claimed…you aren't after…"

"…transfer…requires a signal…"

---

-"Lauriam?"

A different voice, this time, but one that was still achingly familiar. "Ven."

He couldn't see Ven, either, but he could feel him pressed against his back. Lauriam tried to ignore the taste of bile in his mouth. "Why did you do it?"

"I didn't know."

"How am I—what am I supposed to—" He laughed almost helplessly, placing a hand against his head.

"I guess it was a lie, huh? What you said before—about loving me anyways."

Something in Lauriam's chest twisted.

"It's alright. I don't blame you. I wouldn't—"

"That's not true."

Ven fell quiet.

"I just—" Lauriam's eyes burned. "I don't know what to do."

Ven didn't say anything for a few moments. "We'll—we'll figure things out later, right?"

Lauriam swallowed tightly. "Right."

---

-"…because it was written…meant to be? Well, I don't care. You hijacked Ven and attacked Lauriam's sister. And now you're gonna pay for it!"

There are…people talking.

Lauriam's head throbbed. It felt like his thoughts were swimming in a haze, various aches and pains slowly making themselves known.

"That's right."

Lauriam—thought he knew who that was. But pulling himself back to consciousness was a struggle, like he was trying to drag himself back from drowning.

The others could be in danger. I need to help them.

"We are many, and we are one. But to be one requires will. Through him, we could divide into pure darkness and light…willful and distinct."

The world was a blur of color and shapes. He thought he saw someone move, switching to stand in front of him and—Ven. Ven was still unconscious, just a short distance away.

"It was a sacrifice that needed to be made."

Sacrifice. Lauriam tilted his head to stare at Ven hazily. His fingers curled tightly against the ground. "So," Lauriam hissed, pushing himself carefully into a kneeling position, "Ven didn't attack Strelitzia. You did. Is that right?" His voice scratched against his throat, and his magic was still drained, and everything still hurt, but—he was up. He was awake. He would fight.

Skuld turned towards him, giving him a relieved sort of smile. Brain shouted his name, sounding just as relieved, and Lauriam got the impression that he'd worried them. With a steadying breath he stood, forcing himself to ignore how shaky he was as he approached Darkness, Divine Rose flashing into his hand. "I figured you guys could use some help."

The energy around Darkness flared, and Lauriam forced himself not to flinch. "One more ally will make no difference."

"Then how about two?"

Lauriam only vaguely recognized the voice and winced, trying to ignore the way his head spun as light flared brightly and someone else landed in front of him, Ephemer shouting their name in relief. That's right. Ephemer's friend—guess they made it back to help us, after all.

"It's useless. Even if you do manage to defeat us, you will still lose."

"I don't think so," Lauriam snapped, swinging his Keyblade towards Darkness and baring his teeth. "We're taking you down and going back to the real world."

"And how do you plan on doing that? With the lifeboat?"

"Yeah. Just like the evil fairy, right?"

For all the bad things that had happened today, he'd thought he'd at least had one good thing that he could share with his friends—up until Darkness hissed, "You know nothing."

Lauriam's eyes narrowed.

Brain carefully shifted, casting a look between Lauriam and Darkness and asking warily, "How do you figure?"

"If you return, Daybreak Town will still succumb to darkness."

It felt like something had punched Lauriam in the stomach. What…? But that wasn't—they'd escaped the Keyblade War. They'd ended up trapped here, sure, but—once they got out, things were supposed to be alright. Daybreak Town was still supposed to be there.

But if this was the data world the whole time—we don't know what the real Daybreak Town's like at all.

"What have you done to the real world?" Ephemer snapped, and Lauriam just barely caught the tremor in his voice.

"Nothing," Darkness said, and the word rang in Lauriam's head. "It was decided long ago. When the lifeboat is activated, this world falls to darkness. It is already in motion. The beginning of the end."

Of course. Of course, their one way out would be the cause of— We don't need to use it. We can find another way.

…But Maleficent already went through.

"But why?" Brain asked, his voice sounding very carefully controlled.

"The lifeboat is the last line of defense—to be relied upon in the event we cannot be defeated. Its use initiates the process to seal this world, and us along with it." Darkness disappeared briefly, reappearing closer to the top of the bookcases and forcing Lauriam to snap towards it. "The evil fairy's departure was the trigger. It cannot be stopped."

It can travel across space and time. It's—it's a way to make sure that someone can get out—at the expense of everyone else.

…Did the Foretellers know? If Darkness chose Ven because of what they saw in the Book of Prophecies—did they plan on this? Did they want us to get stuck in the data world?

"But…that means…"

Skuld. When Lauriam glanced back towards her, there was a horrified, hopeless expression on her face, her Keyblade lowering enough that the tip clacked quietly against the ground.

It stoked that angry thing in Lauriam's chest, and he swung his Keyblade towards Darkness, hissing, "We're just a bunch of pawns?"

"No," Ephemer said, voice steely enough that it snapped Lauriam out of his rage temporarily. "I don't believe it." He lifted his Keyblade and straightened, and for a moment, he really looked like the leader they all knew he could be. "Master Ava is the one who brought us together. I don't know about the other Masters, but I know for sure Master Ava wouldn't just throw us away like that!" He swung his Keyblade for emphasis.

Brain made an approving sort of noise. "Besides," he added, shifting back into a fighting position, "it doesn't matter what the Masters may have had planned for us. We believe in our leader!"

And Lauriam—well. He was still exhausted, and it still felt a little like things were crashing down around him, but—his friends were going to fight. If nothing else, all of them were still here. Maybe the Masters had planned for them to fall to trap Darkness—but working together, they might be able to change it.

Lauriam exchanged glances with them and saw the same resolve. With a nod he turned back to Darkness. They were Union Leaders, after all—it was their job to make sure that the Dandelions stayed safe.

Adrenaline helped push away some of his pain and exhaustion, but it couldn't get rid of everything, and when he launched into the fight with Darkness, everything became a helpless sort of blur; he was aware of the fact that he was moving, pushing himself to keep going, swinging his Keyblade to deflect a strike meant for one of his friends, ducking backwards to avoid a blow, flinging his Keyblade around and digging into his meager, slowly-refilling supply of magic, trying to keep moving, moving, moving so that he didn't get knocked out again. He stumbled a little, and Skuld supported him from the other side, giving him a half-smile and casting a Cure that at least took the edge off the pain. Brain stepped in front of them to deflect a strike, and Lauriam took a breath and surged back into motion, trying to do something, anything to get rid of this thing and keep his loved ones safe.

(He was acutely aware of Ven still lying unconscious behind him, and if he found himself taking up a protective position in front of him whenever Darkness seemed to get too close—well. That was no one's business but his own.)

The battle moved at a breakneck pace that Lauriam felt like he was always half a step behind in. When Darkness disappeared, Lauriam stumbled, Keyblade still half-swinging through the air, and it took until Ephemer asked, "Did we win?" for him to realize the fight might actually be over.

Something snarled and snapped overhead, and Lauriam spun around, staring as Darkness formed over—Ven.

The first thing Lauriam registered was panic—because no matter what had happened, that was still Ven, and he couldn't watch the younger Union Leader be hurt. The second thing he registered was exhaustion, because when he tried to move, his legs nearly crumpled.

"I am formless," Darkness hissed, and Lauriam wanted to scream. "You cannot destroy me."

With another flare of shadows and a crash, Heartless materialized, the ground shaking as a collection of Darklings prowled around Ven. One cocked its head, then turned, claws half hovering over Ven. "You…"

The others crawled closer, echoing the same, over and over again in a strange, excited mantra that made something in Lauriam's chest grow cold.

"The Darklings…they're after Ven?"

"But why?"

Lauriam…had an idea, maybe. If Darkness was his 'friend,' then…maybe this is their fault. Maybe they're—

Something shifted. The Darklings pulled away, just a little.

Lauriam tensed, half expecting another sort of fight, trying to mentally prepare himself to have to fight the Darklings, too—but it wasn't them. It was Ven, slowly pushing himself to his feet. He's alright. A strange combination of relief and guilt and other emotions he couldn't quite name swirled in Lauriam's chest.

Ven wasn't quite looking at them. His expression was distant and steely—so different from what Lauriam normally expected to see. He reached a hand to his chest, placing it over his heart, and began to glow.

What is—?

Lauriam had to squeeze his eyes shut as the light flared. Something screeched, loud enough that it ached in Lauriam's ears—and when he opened his eyes again, Ven was still standing there, but the Darklings had disappeared.

Ven looked…determined. Resigned. Maybe even a little sad, if Lauriam looked hard enough. He didn't look much like the kid Lauriam had come to know.

Ven didn't pay much attention to the four of them—and Lauriam almost had to wonder if that was because of everything that had happened earlier. The boy walked past them, confident, and Lauriam turned to try and keep track of him.

Darkness snapped and snarled as they reformed, hovering at the far end of the room, away from Ven's light.

Ven stopped, staring up at the shadows; he was between the four of them and Darkness now, and Lauriam's stomach lurched as he realized he was trying to protect them from the person who had hurt him. You shouldn't—you shouldn't have to do this. Ven—

"If you're pure darkness," Ven said, voice ringing, "then that makes me pure light. If you used me to reshape yourself, then I can reshape you again." Ven lowered his head and went quiet for a moment; when he spoke again, his voice was shaking just a little, but he didn't waver. "I'll give you a new form," Ven said, Keyblade flashing into his hands, and Lauriam had the horrible, dawning realization that he knew what was going to happen, "that we can defeat!"

No.

Lauriam crossed the distance in a heartbeat. He caught Ven's arm, and his friend hesitated, glancing back at him with a surprised, sad sort of expression that made his heart twist. "Lauriam…"

"I can't lose you, too."

Ven's eyes widened a little, and then his expression softened. He smiled, but it was a sad sort of thing, and Lauriam wasn't sure that he liked what that meant. "Everything's going to be alright."

Ven's Keyblade swung upwards—but it was a gentle swing, not enough to hurt but enough to force Lauriam to let go. It felt like he was moving in slow motion, his injuries and exhaustion catching up to him as he scrambled to drag Ven back.

His fingers brushed against a sleeve.

It wasn't enough.

"Ven!"

Light flashed bright enough to burn, and for a moment, he couldn't see anything. (He still tried.) Something—magic, maybe—tore at his clothes and knocked against his unsteady legs. A loud screeching noise echoed against the walls and made Lauriam's ears ring.

Lauriam couldn't tell immediately when it faded; sunspots clouded his vision, and it took a while for them to clear. When they did, he realized Ven was falling.

He lunged, halfway towards falling, arms outstretched. He caught Ven in an undignified slide, his knees scraping the floor and his shoulder cracking painfully against the ground. He curled Ven towards him almost instinctively. He'd gone limp, Lauriam realized, and even if it looked like it did when he'd carry the boy back to his room sometimes, it didn't feel the same. "Ven." He shook him lightly and pushed himself into a sitting position, carefully propping Ven up. "Ven!"

Ven's head lolled against his chest.

"Ven." He thought he should say something else, probably—say something about waking up, about what they'd do when they got out of here but he needed to be awake to get out, about how he was sorry. But he couldn't quite form the words for any of that; all he could do was repeat his name, over and over and over again, until the word stopped having meaning.

Some half-desperate part of him reached for his magic, and he shouted a Cure spell, one hand braced against Ven's chest. The use of magic made him nauseous and dizzy, but Ven didn't stir at all.

"Lauriam."

Brain. "You were the one who taught him that spell."

Brain was more a blurry black figure than anything right now, but Lauriam still saw him stop.

"It's not his fault, Lauriam." Skuld, this time. She sounded like she wanted to be mad, but it mostly came out tired. Quieter, she asked, "Is he…?"

"He's alive," Brain answered when Lauriam had been silent too long. "The spell shouldn't kill him."

Lauriam dragged Ven closer. "How do we—what did it do to him?"
"I don't know." For the first time Brain's voice broke, but he'd steadied it again when he continued, "We'll have to wait until he wakes up to find out."

"What if he doesn't?" Lauriam found himself asking.

Brain was silent for several long, long moments. "You should probably take him back to his room."

"That's not an answer."

"Well, I don't have one." Anger, now, but it softened a little as Brain continued, "The only thing we can do for him now is let him rest. We'll have to figure out the rest later."

The fight felt like it was draining out of Lauriam slowly, and he finally slumped in defeat, Ven still cradled to his chest. "Right. I—right."

Brain eyed him a moment, then stepped past him and headed towards his desk.

Lauriam almost turned around and apologized to him, but exhaustion was settling into his bones, and he wasn't sure he had the energy to anymore. Wearily he got to his feet, stumbling a little; hands bolstered him, and he gave Ephemer a half-tired, half-grateful look.

"Do you want me to take him?" Ephemer asked quietly.

Lauriam found himself tugging Ven closer. "No. I—no."

Something flickered across Ephemer's face, and Lauriam wondered if maybe he was worried about leaving Ven alone with him.

Lauriam couldn't really blame him, but he still said, "It's fine, Ephemer. I'm not going to do anything. Not again."

Ephemer still looked a little worried, but when a Cure spell washed over him, he realized the other Union Leader might've been worried about him. "Come on. Let's just get him back to his room."

Lauriam nodded, and while his injuries ached less he was still exhausted, and he couldn't bring himself to mind too much when Ephemer helped to guide him back.

"…I certainly made a mess of things, didn't I?"

"Darkness made a mess of things."

"Still." He gave Ephemer a side-long look. "You really don't have to guide me the whole way. I know that you'll probably want to talk to the Dandelions."

"Hey, I don't mind. You're always looking after us, right? Gives me a chance to look after you."

Lauriam tried to smile, but with Ven still limp in his arms it felt bitter.

Ephemer nudged him lightly. "You made a mistake. You aren't the first person here to do that."

Lauriam didn't know what he was supposed to say to that, so he didn't say anything at all, and Ephemer let them continue in silence, guiding him carefully through the hallways until they came to Ven's door.

("Ven? Are you awake?"

"I'm up, I'm up!")

"Lauriam?" Ephemer shook him gently. "Is everything alright?"

"I don't—can you give me a moment alone?"

Ephemer looked at him uncertainly.

"I don't—I can't—" It's too much right now.

Ephemer seemed to catch the hidden words; his expression softened a little, and he nodded and took a couple of steps back.

Lauriam gave him a grateful smile, then carefully shifted Ven in his arms so that he could open the door.

The room was the same as it always was. The bookshelves were still packed with mismatched books, some scattered across the floor from where Ven had been reading them. Lauriam recognized some of his favorites—ones he'd leant to Brain and Skuld, telling them they had to read them, they were so good—and others that he remembered Ven had hated but wanted to read anyways. There were a couple of seashells lined up along some of the shelves, small rocks and trinkets brought back from missions beside them, a collection of items from the market place added to the group. He had one, singular plant—a small succulent they'd found because Ven had begged for something because he'd known that Lauriam liked plants.

The room was filled with memories and careful bits of personality from where Ven had tried to make it his own, and stepping in was like stepping into a history that had been entirely re-contextualized. Lauriam could only stare for a moment, grief twisting like brambles in his chest, even if he couldn't tell what that grief was for anymore.

But Ven was still in his arms, and he forced himself to move, gently carrying Ven to his bed. Carefully he took off his shoes and tucked him under the covers. It was a familiar action—he'd done it for Strelitzia countless times before, and he hadn't really noticed how easily Ven had filled in that spot until now.

Lauriam stared at Ven, his arms shaking a little. "I'm sorry, Ventus," he whispered, his voice cracking. "I know it wasn't your fault. I just needed someone to blame. Darkness is so…abstract. My anger needed a simple, tangible target." He laughed humorlessly, but it broke off into something raw and ashamed. "Selfish of me, I know. But some emotions are too much to bear."

Lauriam took a moment to steady himself. Ven looked so peaceful, like maybe he really was asleep, and it made something in Lauriam's chest ache. "Tell me. Is Darkness really gone? Or has it become a part of you, just like you said?" His hands shook. "If it has, then I—"

He didn't know how to finish that sentence.

Something brushed against his hand. It almost felt like fingers were gently wrapping around his, fabric brushing his arm lightly. The ghost of a familiar voice whispered, "Hatred, anger, sadness… That's exactly what they want. You have to let it go." Something tugged on his arm a little, and Lauriam felt himself freeze. "What happened to my kind of loving brother?"

"Strelitzia?" Lauriam whipped around, almost expecting to see his sister's ghost—but nothing was there at all. His shoulders slumped. Wishful thinking, then—or maybe just my own subconscious getting the better of me.

Someone knocked on the door. Ephemer peered through, looking almost apologetic. "Lauriam," he called quietly. "Someone's here to see you."

"Who?"

Ephemer didn't answer; he just gestured for Lauriam to come up and disappeared back out the door.

Lauriam glanced hesitantly at Ven. He wasn't entirely sure he wanted to leave him right now—but then, maybe it'd be better if Ven didn't see him the moment he woke up. Reluctantly he turned and headed up the stairs.

He didn't expect the person he came face to face with at the top—but then again, maybe he should have. "Elrena?" He crossed the distance quickly. "What are you doing here?"

Elrena looked hesitant. Her Chirithy appeared in a burst of smoke and fell into her arms; she hugged them tighter, almost like she was looking for comfort. "Well," she murmured, "I thought you should know…" She lifted Chirithy, almost shoving them in Lauriam's face. "It's about Strelitzia. Chirithy claims to have seen her."

"What?" But Strelitzia was—Darkness had said—but what if they'd been lying? "You saw my sister?" He leaned forward, struggling not to reach out and shake the little Dream Eater. "Where?"

Chirithy's ears twitched. "Maybe it wasn't her," they admitted, "but…a few days ago…I spotted someone who looked an awful lot like her headed toward town from the hill. And she wasn't alone. She was with someone in a black coat."

That—that didn't make any sense at all. Where would she have been, all this time? And who was she with?

He must've asked at least one of his questions aloud, because he could feel his friends on either side, steadying him. "Well," Ephemer said with a wry grin, "we know someone who might be able to figure out an answer."

---

-Brain didn't say anything immediately after they'd filled him in, his arms crossed and a pensive expression on his face. "We can't be certain of anything yet," he said carefully, giving Lauriam a warning look, "but it's definitely an interesting piece of information."

That isn't an answer, Lauriam wanted to snap, but he stopped himself, because he'd caused enough problems already and he didn't want to fight with his friends anymore.

Ephemer lifted a hand to his chin. "A black coat could only mean…one of the Keyblade Masters?"

"Most likely," Elrena's Chirithy agreed, hopping out of Elrena's arms and landing on the bookshelf. "Both the Master of Masters and Luxu fit the description."

Lauriam reeled. Maybe—maybe this was the plan all along. Maybe she was just with one of the Masters. She isn't—

But she was still supposed to be a Union Leader. They wouldn't go to all the trouble to hide her like this.

(Unless they wanted to trick Darkness.)

"But the Master shouldn't be here," Brain murmured, planting his chin in his palm, "even if this were the real world." He sounded frustrated, but his eyes widened after a beat. "Wait a minute. Maybe—"

"What is it?" Lauriam asked, and Brain flashed him an unimpressed look at his impatience.

"Do you remember why this data world was created?"

Lauriam almost accused Brain of holding out on him on purpose, but he knew his friend better than that, and usually questions like this were leading into a bigger point.

"As a backup of the real one," Skuld answered when Lauriam didn't say anything.

"Right. To save the world as it was before the Keyblade War." He gave Lauriam a pointed look. "That means Strelitzia's data must be stored here too."

"Really?" It wasn't a possibility Lauriam had ever considered, if he were being honest. "I thought this place was just a copy of the world, not its people. Besides, even if everyone's data was brought over, shouldn't there be versions of us here too?"

"Yep. Our data should be here as well." He must've seen Lauriam's surprise, because he continued, "Could be that it's still locked up and hasn't been touched yet." Brain hopped out of his chair, turning to face the others. "Think about it. Elrena saw a glitched version of Strelitzia. If what Chirithy says is true, maybe her data is here and someone managed to access it."

"I don't understand." Lauriam grabbed Brain's shoulder, shaking it roughly and giving him a desperate look. "Why Strelitzia? And if her data does exist, does that mean we can bring her back?"

Brain had a trouble, frustrated look on his face, and his attention shifted away like he couldn't quite meet Lauriam's eyes. "I don't know."

Lauriam swallowed tightly. It was a disappointing answer, but it wasn't one he could say he didn't expect.

"Who would do something like that?" Skuld asked in a hushed voice. "As far as we know, all of the Masters are gone."

"We'll probably have more luck finding answers in the real world," Lauriam answered, just as quiet. There was a strange sort of bone-weary hope filling his chest, and he wasn't quite sure what to do with any of it but encourage them to go.

"About that," Brain said, reluctant. "If what Darkness said was true, we should be able to use the lifeboat in the basement to get back. But if that's somehow linked to the end of this world…"

There was something in Brain's voice that Lauriam couldn't quite place—grief and anger and guilt, tangled together in a strange sort of combination. He gave his friend a worried look, lifting his head to catch Skuld's eye.

She didn't look as surprised as he felt; she just shook her head minutely, sad, and Lauriam wondered what else he'd missed while he'd been searching for his sister.

"We don't have time to think about that now," Ephemer cut in firmly. "Come on, let's go to the basement." His voice went gently as he looked to Lauriam. "Would you mind carrying Ven?"

Lauriam's throat tightened. "Not at all."

It was the least he could do.

---

-Leading the others to the lifeboat chamber should have felt like a triumph. With Ven heavy in his arms and the cracked floors and broken lifeboat and the world crashing down around them, it didn't really.

"I count six," Ephemer said, quiet.

"The evil fairy took the seventh." It was an almost sheepish admission, and Lauriam tried to ignore the way that guilt turned his stomach.

"But there are seven of us."

Skuld let out a slow, steadying breath. "So we're short one."

"Two," Brain corrected. "This one's broken, so we're down to five."

The guilt turned sharper, and Lauriam could only follow his friends as they approached the computer, listening as they talked amongst each other.

Brain seemed to know what was going on the best out of all of them—not much of a surprise, if Lauriam was being honest, but not much of a relief, either, when he pulled up a glitching, static-filled version of Daybreak Town. It reminded him a little of what it had looked like yesterday (yesterday, yesterday, how had so much changed in so little time?), but now Darkness's words rang loudly in the back of his head. This is—the world is ending. All of this, and—

"Even if we use the lifeboat to go back, we'll have to use it again to go wherever it is we need to go after. And who knows where that'll be?" Brain. Brain, who normally seemed so confident, just seemed so resigned now. Uncertain, almost, like he wasn't sure this was what they really needed to do. "Is escape really the right answer?"

"Whether we stay or go, it's a gamble," Lauriam admitted, and tried to ignore how defeated he felt at the thought.

"Right. But if no one goes back, then no one will know what's happened here. There'll be no rescuing anyone left behind." Brain sounded like he was trying to talk himself into it, almost, and it almost hurt to watch. It felt like the world wasn't the only thing breaking, and Lauriam couldn't help but wonder if part of that was his own doing.

Quiet conversation flitted back and forth as they tried to figure out who would go with the limited number of pods—and Lauriam couldn't help agreeing with the picks. Ven…doesn't deserve to be stuck here. Brain's the best bet to get us out. And the others—they aren't Union Leaders. We're responsible for them.

"Skuld, Lauriam," Ephemer said, the sound of Lauriam's name drawing his attention, "one of you should take the last—"

"Lauriam, it's yours," Skuld interrupted.

He turned to her with wide eyes. "What?"

She turned to him with a soft smile. "If there's a chance you'll get your sister back, then you need to be there for her. Besides, you'll have a better chance of finding answers over there. You should take it."

Lauriam's throat tightened. He couldn't quite meet his friend's eyes, so he turned away, squeezing his own shut. If you stay here—am I going to see you again? If I go, I might be able to find my sister, but…

"I don't deserve a spot…"

Elrena's words dragged Lauriam's attention back to the present. Her head was lowered, eyes closed, looking extremely out of place, and Lauriam didn't want to let it stay like that. "Yes, you do," he answered gently, resting a hand on her shoulder. "You gave me hope for the first time since Strelitzia went missing." He waited until she'd lifted her head to look at him to add, "Help me find her. Please."

She gave him a tentative smile and a nod.

In the end, three people stayed behind, not two—Ephemer, Skuld, and their friend, none of which seemed anxious to leave each other. Lauriam set Ven gently into one of the lifeboats, then slowly got into his own. It's not the end, he promised silently, staring at his friends as the pod closed. We'll get you back out. I promise.

---

-"Any progress?"

Elrena may have been the one to ask the question, but Lauriam found himself wondering the same thing. Brain had been working for a while now in tense silence, and neither Lauriam nor Elrena had much to do beside sit and wait. (And Lauriam hadn't actually looked outside, but he could hear something like a particularly bad windstorm hitting the sides of the Clock Tower. The place that had once been home suddenly felt very foreign and dangerous, and Lauriam wanted to take his friends and run.)

Brain finally stopped typing. "Well…" He sighed, and from the defeated slump of his shoulders, Lauriam knew it wasn't good news. "I tried looking for a way to get everyone back at once using the existing system, but it's not a viable option with the time we have."

Something in Lauriam's chest twisted. "So that's it?"

Brain was quiet for several moments before turning back to the keyboard. "There might be another way." He began typing, and it gave Lauriam a little bit of hope, because that was more like the Brain he knew. "Not for all of the Dandelions," Brain clarified quickly, "but I think I can help Ephemer and the others at least." Brain hit something, and Lauriam tensed and waited.

He didn't expect two of the pods to close and the two beside Ven to open.

"But before we do anything," Brain said, voice carefully controlled, "I want you to hop back in the lifeboat."

There were a lot of things Lauriam could say to that. 'You can't expect to do this on your own,' or, 'How are we supposed to leave you when the world is ending?' or, 'Do you have a plan to keep all of you safe?' But he found he couldn't voice any of them, his tongue glue to the roof of his mouth as he stared helplessly at his friend.

Brain turned towards him and seemed to see all of the unasked questions. He pushed himself out of his chair, facing Lauriam with his back straight and expression set. "I need to work quickly to have a decent shot at this. But first, I'm going to get you out of this world."

Lauriam finally, finally managed to get his tongue to work, and he found himself asking quietly, "What's your plan?" (Because Brain always had a plan, and if there was anyone who could make sure they got out of this, it was him. He had to.)

"Return two of the pods to the data world." He gestured to the two pods at the far end. "That way, the three of them will each have one."

"Will that work?"

"Only one way to find out." Brain gave him a grim smile, but it fell away quickly, and he nodded towards the lifeboats. "Get in."

There was a heavy sense of finality to the command, and Lauriam found himself hesitating. "Will you really be okay on your own?" he asked, because the world was ending, because he remembered finding Brain half-asleep at his desk and knew that he wouldn't pay close enough attention to himself, because he'd always been there to keep an eye on them and now he just—wouldn't be.

(We were supposed to stick together.)

"The only Union Leader who can escape right now is you." Brain approached him slowly. "Ephemer gave me this chance to keep hope and light alive, and now I'm passing it onto you. Let me do this."

He didn't want to. Despite everything, he wanted to stay. But—but his sister was out there, and Brain didn't look like he was going to back down, and someone would have to keep an eye out for Elrena and Ven, and so he found himself bowing his head, even if he didn't really want to. "Alright."

"I don't know when or where you'll end up," Brain continued, quiet, "But keep your goal—your waypoint—etched in your heart."

It sounded like he was doing his best to try and give Lauriam something to latch onto, in his own way. Lauriam straightened his shoulders and took a steadying breath. "I will." He clenched his fists, curling them so tightly that his nails dug into his palms. "I assumed people's data just didn't exist when I couldn't find my sister's. But I was wrong. It does."

Brain smiled, and it looked tired but genuine. "Then that will be the waypoint to guide you." His voice turned gentle as he added, "I hope you get to see her again."

Lauriam moved closer, extending a hand, and when Brain clasped it he murmured, "I hope I get to see you again too."

Brain's expression softened, but Lauriam could see that he didn't really think they would.

Lauriam swallowed tightly. There was a lot more he wanted to say—but he could hear the wind picking up outside, and Brain was right about needing as much time as possible if he wanted to make sure the others got out safely. So he turned and looked to Elrena, who looked just as uncertain as he felt. You're a Union Leader, he reminded himself, for however much longer. You still need to act like it. He straightened his shoulders and headed towards the lifeboats, and Elrena followed his lead. He paused at the entrance to one, hands braced on the side, and let out a slow breath. I'm going to get my sister back. The others will be okay. They'll be okay.

He hoisted himself inside.

Brain watched them with a somber, serious look. "May your heart be your guiding key," he told them, gentle, and then turned back to the computer.

The lid of the pod closed over him, and Lauriam breathed out slowly, his breath fogging up the glass. Strelitzia. He fixed an image of his sister in his mind, chanting her name over and over and trying to ignore what was going on outside. Strelitzia. Strelitzia. I'm going to find—

The world rumbled beneath him. Everything shook, dust and debris cascading from overhead. Brain stumbled, catching himself on the keyboard and lifting one hand to hold onto his hat.

And anything else Lauriam could've thought of scattered.

"Brain!" His hand slammed against the window. Everything was starting to grow hazy, he realized, and his stomach twisted with panic because he couldn't go, not yet, his friends were in danger, why had he agreed to this—

He pounded against the glass, screaming until his throat was raw, but the world was fading, drowned out as the lifeboat whisked him away.

(I'm not ready to let you go.)

---

So Ven's chapter was weirdly easy to write, and apparently to counteract that, this one fought me the entire time. I'm…hoping it still turned out relatively decent. It's also 70+ pages, so…you know. I don't think that last chapter's going to be less than 70. (Goal is now less than 100 pages. …It will probably not be less than 100 pages.)

Anyway, despite this one fighting me, the idea behind Lauriam's chapter was pretty basic—it's just digging into Lauriam trying to solve his sister's disappearance with some bits of angst and a little bit of Spooky Scary Daybreak Town vibes. His chapter I think ends on the most straightforwardly sad note; all of the chapters are going to be on the sadder end of things, of course, since Union X IS a tragedy, but the others all have bits of like…something heroic, I guess, while Lauriam gets pretty strongly taken over by his grief and guilt towards the end.

Also, I listened to 'Lord of the Castle' the entire time I was writing the fight scene with Maleficent, and I kept trying to write Lauriam's name as Marluxia. I…really hope I caught all of those.

Thank you Lacan Shinn for reviewing last chapter! For the review response: So I didn't read your story, but I did look at the author's notes, since I thought that was a strange request, and I'm…a little uncertain about what conversation you're talking about, since we haven't had an actual conversation through PMs in months. I also remember telling you that while I was okay with you continuing to review my stories if you felt so inclined, I didn't want to communicate through PMs anymore, since many of the conversations were leaning towards being unnecessarily stressful; while I HAVE noticed that you haven't stopped sending PMs, despite me requesting that you do so, I have not actually responded to any of them, so I'd appreciate you taking that bit out of the author's notes. I would also appreciate it if you would stop sending me PMs. EDIT: There was apparently a misunderstanding because of how I worded my request, so I apologize for that; that's hopefully been cleared up.

For the actual review: I AM glad you enjoyed this first finale chapter. I'm doing this in the order that each Union Leader 'exits' the finale—so basically, whatever they're last main 'onscreen interaction' is, disregarding the stuff after the end credits. So it'll be going Ven, Lauriam, Brain, and then Skuld and Ephemer share the final chapter (since they exit the finale at the same time). The last exchange between Ven and Darkness was mostly supposed to be…kind of the idea of the two of them merging into each other? It's essentially both of their original selves fading.