The Darkness in My Heart

Memories, Dreams, and Heartless-oh my!

Author'sWeird Talk:
Hey, y'all, and sorry that this chapter is a little short. The evil writer's block kept cpaturing me in it's grasp! I've been writing poetry, so please read it! I'd like to dedicate this chapter to Inumaru 12, Infrared Rayz, Aeshma-Daeva, MagicianCyborg, R.A. Pointless, Duelwielder, and last but not least, Sai-ryo Aura Feana! Your reviews made me feel all special, and kept me forcing myself to write this story, even though the evil writer's block kept trying to get me! So for all of you reviewers and non-reviewers, here is the next chapter! Read and review! And yes, I do accept annonymous reviews!

Starting from where I left off:

Sora stood up and recalled a memory of him and Riku together when they were young. He finally chose one a little bit before Kairi came. They were about five and six.

Flashback:

Sora and Riku were exploring a new cave on top of the island. All of the other kids on the island had been too afraid to come. They had finally finished exploring it, when they decided to leave and go back down. They had just started their ascent down the little mountain with Sora in the lead, and Riku behind. It was a very narrow part of the pathway, and they had to be extra careful. The wall was kinda crumbly, so you always had to watch your step. Sora took one step, then another. The ground looked solid enough, so he took another step, but the wall crumbled away as soon as he put his weight on it! Sora went tumbling through, falling down the mountain at an alarming speed.

"Soraaaaaa!" Riku cried, still up on the mountain, scared for his friend's life as Sora slowly went out of view. Sora fell, screaming all the way down, worried that when he hit the bottom he would die. He was inches from the ground and he collided with a loud thump, and his vision went black.

When Sora finally came to, he was lying on his bed with his leg in a cast and his arm in a sling. He had bandages all over his head and body. He could see Riku asleep in the chair that he had moved by the bed.

"R –Riku? Is that you? What happened?" Sora asked, trying to move to a sitting position.

Riku, who had woken up when he heard Sora call his name, immediately sprung up to stop Sora from trying to move. "Sora, don't move. You're to hurt! You fell from the mountain and fell on the beach. It's a wonder that you didn't die!"

"I-I fell? Oh, yeah, I guess I did. How long was I out?" Sora asked, wondering how he had a survived a fall that huge.

"Two days. I'm so sorry Sora. I shouldn't have made you go on that mountain. I'm so, so sorry," Riku said, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Oh, don't be sorry Riku! It was my own choice to go up on the mountain! You didn't make me do anything that I didn't want to. Don't be sorry," Sora said, putting his hand on Riku's arm.

"Oh, Sora!" Riku said, giving him a tight hug, careful of his injuries. "I'll never let you get hurt again! I promise you! Not ever again! You are my best friend, and I'll never ever let you hurt like this again."

"Thanks, Riku," Sora said, giving him a hug back.

End Flashback

Sora saw the mirror glow green and he looked into the mirror and saw Riku asleep in his room, in a restless slumber. He seemed to have fallen asleep looking at a book, but Sora couldn't tell right away. A closer look revealed that it was a photo album full of pictures of Sora and Riku doing things together, like swimming and hiking and stuff. The sheets to Riku's bed seemed to be soaked, like Riku was crying as he looked at the pictures.

'Of course Riku would be crying now,' Sora thought to himself. 'He never did like to show any signs of weakness to other people. Eventually the screen glowed blue, and it showed Riku's dream. Riku seemed to be in a very large castle, similar to the one from his dream the night before. He was wearing strange clothes, and he looked somewhat, lost … Sora opened the portal and entered, leaving the barn behind.

Sora looked around at the place he was in, and it seemed to be a giant library. He walked around for awhile, and eventually found a door. He opened the door, and found himself in a large room, with a fountain and lots of statues. He saw some elevators going up and down, so he jumped onto one and started going up. Jumping onto another platform, he realized that he was on a different level. Sora went to the side and looked down. Shock took over him as he saw Riku with a duck and dog.

"Goofy, do you think Sora is okay?" the duck asked in a hard to understand voice.

'Sora? But I'm Sora! Why wouldn't I be okay? And who are they?' Sora asked himself.

"Uhh … I don't know. I'm sure he is, he would never be the kind to take things lying down," the dog called Goofy said. "Hey Donald, remember that time in Wonderland when Sora stood up for Alice, even though he could have gotten beheaded by that Queen?"

"I remember that! He almost got us killed looking all over for clues, and then that fight with the cards," Donald said back.

"Enough! He approaches," Riku said in a cruel voice.

'That can't be Riku! He sounds almost … well … evil …,' Sora thought woefully. Soon he heard a commotion outside. It sounded like some roars and a wooden sword smacking something. Then he heard a loud noise and the sound stopped. Sora looked at Riku, who suddenly disguised himself. He sent a shadow out and then disappeared. Suddenly the door burst open, and in came a boy with brown hair and blue eyes. 'Is that … me?' Sora asked himself as he looked at the boy. Along with him was a giant animal wearing a cape.

The creature said, "Be on your guard. They're close, I can feel it. Are you ready for them?" The shadow sent earlier assumed the shape of a girl wearing a large yellow ball gown. "Belle?" the creature yelled, and he took after it. But it turned back into a shadow and went out the door, the creature yelling it's furry along the way. When the creature got outside, the door slammed shut, leaving Sora alone in the giant room. Only then, did Riku remove the magical cloak that shielded him and his two companions.

"Quit while you can," Riku said, looking at the boy.

"No. Not without Kairi," the other Sora replied.

'Wait! What's wrong with Kairi?' Sora asked himself.

"The darkness will destroy you," Riku said as he changed his outfit. It was really creepy.

"You're wrong, Riku," the other boy said. "The darkness may destroy my body, but it can't touch my heart. My heart will stay with my friends. It will never die!"

"Really … Well, we'll just see about that!" Riku yelled as he fired a Dark Firaga at Sora. He closed his eyes, waiting for the ball of doom to end his life. But at the last second, Goofy stepped in front of the way, blocking it with his shield.

"Sora ain't gonna go anywhere!" he said, defending Sora.

"You'd betray your king?" Riku asked with a sneer.

'King … does he mean King Mickey?' the above Sora thought.

"Not on your life! But I'm not gonna betray Sora, either, 'cause he's become one of my best buddies after all we've been through together!" Goofy said. Then, looking at the duck, he said, "See ya later, Donald. Could ya tell the king I'm really sorry?"

Then the duck looked guilty and said, "Hold on, Goofy! We'll tell him together." He ran over to Sora, and said, "Well, you know … All for one and one for all."

"I guess you're stuck with us, Sora," the dog said, looking at Sora.

"Thanks a lot … Donald, Goofy," the other Sora said, his eyes focused on the floor.

"How will you fight without a weapon?" Riku smirked to the younger boy.

'What's wrong with Riku?' Sora thought to himself as he looked at the scene unfolding before him.

"I know now that I don't need the Keyblade. I've got a better weapon. My heart," the boy said.

"Heh. Your heart? What good will that weak little thing do for you?" Riku mocked at the other Sora.

"Although my heart may be weak, it's not alone. It's grown with each new experience, and it's found a home with all of the friends I've made. I've become a part of their hearts just as they've become a part of mine. And if they think of me now and then … if they don't forget me … then our hearts will be one. I don't need a weapon," the other Sora said as a wooden sword appeared in his hand. "My friends are my power!"

"Wh –wha," Riku said as the Keyblade pulled from his hand and went to the other boy. Riku pulled out his other sword and charged, trying to hurt the other boy.

'Why is Riku acting this way?' Sora thought as he watched the battle below him. The other Sora yelled 'Sonic' and the battle finally ended. Riku looked at Sora in surprise until his clothes changed again, and he ran off before anybody could say a word.

Suddenly, the world started to change, the old one fading into another. Sora found himself on a large beach. Looking around, he saw that it was very similar to the one back home. He started walking along the beach. Soon he came upon a boy standing on the beach, eyes to the water.

Curiously, Sora walked towards the boy. He was wearing a blindfold, and he had silver hair. It looked suspiciously like Riku, but he had to be sure. He went over, and was about to tap on the boy's shoulder, when the boy suddenly sprung up and drew his sword.

He swung at Sora, and would have sliced right through him, if Sora hadn't blocked with the Keyblade. Sora jumped back, poised to attack. The masked boy leapt at Sora, who was dodging the assault. "Riku! Is that you? It's me! Sora!" he yelled, rolling out of the way.

"Impossible," the boy said. "Sora's been missing for years! The time he closed the door on me and the king was the last time I saw him. He never came back, so I don't appreciate you trying to be him. I loved Sora. He was like a brother to me, and I lost him! So for tarnishing his memory, I will kill you!" he screamed tears leaking from underneath the blindfold. He swung at Sora, almost hitting him as Sora blocked.

"No, really! It's me, it's Sora!" he yelled getting closer and closer to a cliff wall. "I don't want to hurt you, Riku! Just listen to me!" Sora was dangerously close to the cliff wall and he was going to get pinned.

"Enough lies!" the older boy yelled. The younger boy in front of him tripped and fell onto the ground. He started to crawl backwards on the ground whimpering until he ran into the cliff. He was pinned between the enraged boy and the wall, and he could see no way out.

"Rikuuuu!" he cried as he shut his eyes, waiting for the boy with an upraised sword to bring it down and kill him. Tears were streaming down his face, as he waited. And waited. Sora slowly cracked an eye open, and saw that the other boy was shaking. He seemed to be having a duel within his self, like one side was trying to stop him, while the other wanted to bring the sword down on top of Sora. He eventually dropped his sword, and collapsed on the ground. Apparently the side that was trying to stop him, won.

Sora cautiously crawled over to the boy, making sure that he kept an eye on the boy's sword hand. He finally reached the blindfolded boy, who was quietly sobbing. He put a hand on his shoulder to comfort him, and the boy's sobbing started to quieted.

"Your touch feels … so familiar …," the boy said. "And you smell so much like him. I never thought I'd smell that scent again … Could you really be him?" the boy said.

"Why do you wear that blindfold," Sora asked, trying to comfort the older boy.

"For repenting," was all he said.

"Repenting? For what?" Sora asked curiously.

"For all of the terrible things I did to you and to all of the princesses. I hurt you all. Especially you, Sora," Riku said melancholy. Sora reached up to remove the blindfold, and the silver haired boy let him. He took it off, revealing two saddened eyes, the color of the sea after a storm. "Sora … is it really you?"

"Yes it's me, Riku," Sora said, giving his old friend a hug. "Riku, I think you should know that you're dreaming. I just wanted to come to tell you that even though I'm sleeping, I won't die anytime soon. Are you okay? Riku?"

"I'm so relieved that you aren't going to die, Sora," Riku said, hugging Sora back. "So, if you're asleep, then how are you here? I mean not that I don't want you here, but …"

"It's okay. I have to do some training right now, so I can become a Keyblade Master. I guess I'm supposed to learn how to battle these things called the Heartless. They can be really vicious. I just didn't want you to worry about me. I promise that I'll come back to you. "

"Thank you, Sora. Now I won't worry, because we have our promise, so you can come back."

Sora reached into his pocket, and pulled out the blue package. "Here, I got this for you, Riku," Sora said as he handed him the package, shooting off one of his trademark grins.

"What is it?" Riku asked as he accepted the package.

"Well open it and find out, silly," Sora said. Riku opened it and took out the leather gloves.

"S-Sora, you got these for me? I love them!" Riku exclaimed.

"Glad you do Riku," Sora said as he started to glow a blue color. "Riku, I have to go, but don't worry, I'll visit you again."

"Don't you dare forget about me, Sora!" Riku yelled after the boy.

Sora arrived in the barn just as the bell started ringing. It was 9:00.

"Hey, wasn't that ball supposed to start at nine?" Sora asked to no one in particular.

"Yes, it is," a kind voice from behind him said. Sora turned around and saw Cinderella entering the barn. "My stepsisters and stepmother have left, so do you want to come in for a little while?"

"Sure," Sora said as he walked over to the older girl. They walked inside the large house, and Sora was instantly greeted by comfortable warmth. Sora walked over to the table and sat down, meanwhile looking around at the insides of the house. It was very clean, and everything was in order. But there seemed to be something missing, but he couldn't tell what. It was something that every house he had ever seen had but what? Then it hit him like a pile of bricks. There weren't any books in sight, and the only pictures he could see were those of these two girls, who he assumed was Cinderella's stepsisters.

"Umm, where are all the books?" Sora asked confused. "I don't see any around here."

"Oh, my stepsisters and stepmother don't read much ever since my father passed away. He loved books, and I did too. So when he passed away, I gathered as many of the books I could before they got rid of them all," Cinderella concluded sadly.

"That's horrible!" Sora exclaimed indignantly.

"No, it's okay, really," she said, putting on a smile. "I only wish I could go to the ball." They sat in silence for a couple more minutes, when suddenly, they heard a crash outside, and they both ran outside to investigate. They arrived outside, and they saw an old lady sitting on a bench, in a blue robe.

"Hello. I am your fairy godmother, Cinderella. I have come to help you fulfill your wish," the lady said, while standing up.

"My-my wish?" Cinderella asked.

"Yes, your wish to go to the ball," she told her while taking out a wand. "You have been very kind to all, and you have always done what you are told without argument, even though you know that it's unfair. I think you more than deserve a night out, Cinderella."

"So how do you plan on helping her," Sora asked suspiciously.

"Magically, of course," she said. "Now stand over there, and we'll get you a dress. Good. Now, turn around slowly." Cinderella did as bid, and the lady called out, "Bibbity-Bobbity-Boo!" The dress that Cinderella was wearing turned into a beautiful ball gown. It was white, and it seemed to sparkle every time she moved.

"That's cool!" Sora yelled as he saw the transformation.

"That's done. Now all we need is a way to get you to the ball," she said, thinking. "I know! Cinderella, go out to the garden and get the loveliest pumpkin you can find."

"I'll do that!" Sora said as he started walking out to the garden. He searched for a little, and found a large, good looking pumpkin. He picked it up, and underneath, he saw two big yellow eyes. Not believing his eyes, Sora blinked, and the eyes were gone. "That was weird," Sora said quietly to himself.

"Sora is everything okay?" a voice called to him.

"Fine," Sora called back, picking up the pumpkin and heading towards the gate. He looked back one more time, and then left the garden.

They were on there way, in a carriage that the fairy godmother had created using the pumpkin. It was being pulled by a four white horses, all of which had been currently been mice that Cinderella had helped. The Fairy Godmother had warned Cinderella to be out of the ballroom by midnight, because that was when the magic ran out. By now, it was 10:00. Sora had come along in case of danger, because he had this feeling in the pit of his stomach.

They were about halfway to the castle by now, and everything seemed to be moving along smoothly until … the carriage suddenly came to a stop, and they could here whinnies of fright coming from the horses. Sora jumped out of the carriage, Keyblade in hand. He looked at what had scared the horses so badly, and he was stunned for a full minute before the giant Heartless in front of him attacked.

The Heartless seemed to be a giant snake, with two big yellow eyes, exactly like the kind he had seen in the garden. It had razor sharp scales, and it opened its mouth, revealing two very big, sharp teeth. The snake slammed its tail in front of Sora, barely missing him as he jumped back. Coming back to his senses, he told the carriage driver, a former dog, to hurry and get her out of here while he held the snake at bay. Being an obedient dog, the carriage took off, heading towards the castle.

Sora turned his attention back to the snake who was trying to wrench his tail free from the ground. Sora used the Keyblade to whack the snake, and it only seemed to make it angrier. He ran back as the snake snapped at him with its large mouth, nicking Sora on the leg. He cried out in pain, but otherwise kept running, trying to find a safe place to hide so he could think. Ducking into a part of the thicket, he thought of a way to try and beat the snake. Hitting it obviously wouldn't work; all that did was make it angrier. He needed a miracle.

Sora was at a loss. He didn't know what to do. Suddenly, he felt a slight rumbling in his pocket. He reached into his pocket, and pulled out one of the King's cards. He remembered what he had read in one of the books …

To use a King card, simply hold it above your head, and wait for it to activate. It will only activate if you are in a life or death situation. Use wisely.

Sora looked at the now glowing card, and jumped out of the place he was hiding in. He saw the very P.O.'d snake, and raised the card above his head. There was a blinding flash, and Sora had to close his eyes from the brightness. When he opened them again, the King was there, and everything seemed to be … frozen.

"Hello, Sora," the King said. "You called?"

"Heh, heh, hi Your Highness," Sora said with a nervous chuckle. "Yeah, the snake is being a little … tough to say the least," he said, feeling the cut on his leg.

"Hmmm, I know this kind of Heartless. They have sword resistant scales. You need magic to defeat them."
"Magic? Well, I don't know if you noticed this, but I can't do magic!" Sora said, a little sarcastically.

"I can help with that," Mickey said as he pulled out a little wand and a hat. (A/N: You know, like the one in Fantasia!) He put on the hat, and then pointed the wand at Sora. He said a few words, and then Sora started having a funny feeling.

"I … I feel kinda weird," Sora said as he tried to shrug off the disorientation he was feeling. It felt like a part of him he never knew he had been suddenly being unlocked.

"You know, Sora, everybody has the ability to do magic. Kairi just learned how to do healing spells, thanks to you. Even Riku could if he felt like it," Mickey said as he took off the hat and put away the wand.

"What? Riku?" Sora asked, surprised.

"Didn't you know? Riku was supposed to be the Keyblade Master, but something went … wrong," Mickey said, looking slightly sheepish.

"Huh? When!"

"Sora, do you remember when Riku hit his head trying to save you from being drowned during that storm?" Mickey asked, recalling a time when they were younger, and a storm had arrived unexpectedly while Sora and Riku had been out sailing. Riku had hit his head, and as soon as they had reached the shore, he had passed out. He was out for two days.

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?" Sora asked.

"Well, while he was out, he went through something similar to you. The Keyblade choose him, but then, it chose another. That other, was you. We investigated, and we realized that there was too much darkness in his heart. Remember how this was shortly after Kairi came, and you started spending a lot of time with her? Well, he might not have shown it, but he was jealous. There was even a point where he tried to get rid of you, for awhile, at least. This is why the Keyblade left him, and chose you."

"But wait a second, why doesn't he remember?" Sora asked, truly interested.

"I'm not allowed to tell you," Mickey said as he started to turn around. "I have to go, but remember, you can use magic now. Use it wisely, for you can only do so much at one time. Bye, Sora!" There was a blinding flash, and when he opened his eyes, the snake had raised its tail, and Sora rolled out of the way just as it hit the ground.

'Okay, how do you use it?' Sora asked himself as he ran. 'Alright, let's try fire!' he told himself. "Fire!" he screamed while aiming the Keyblade at the snake. A small fireball emitted from the tip, hitting the snake. It hissed it's furry, and but it seemed to work. "Fire!" Sora yelled again. Another fireball came out, and the snake disappeared as a large pink heart rose into the sky.

Munny came raining out of the place where the snake had been, and Sora quickly gathered it up. He got 500 from the snake, making him grin in happiness. Sora collapsed on the ground, exhausted. He lay there awhile, before he heard a bell ring. Eleven times to be exact. Another thought hit Sora as he realized this. He sprung up, running in the direction the carriage had gone. 'What if there was more than one Heartless!' he thought. He soon arrived at the castle, and saw the carriage parked safely in the circle of carriages.

Sora breathed a sigh of relief, and carefully entered the room. He saw her dancing with the prince, as everyone else gawked. Three in particular were glaring. Sora assumed that they were her stepsisters and stepmother, and Sora smirked, happy that they were unhappy. "Well all's well that ends well," Sora said as he left. He walked outside to wait for midnight.

Authors Weird Talk:
So, what did you all think? Was it good? It took forever to write, because every time I started to write it, I'd get writer's block every few paragraphs! I took some time off, and started playing Kingdom Hearts … again. It helped me get over the evil writer's block, as well as writing some poetry and stuff. If you want, you can read it, because it should be out with this. Please read it and review, because I'm not sure if my poetry is good or not. It won't take long to read, so please read it! And, as always, REVIEW! Gotto go, Ja Ne!