Akira clapped her hands over her mouth, but no words escaped it.
The monstrosity that was Oogie Boogie's manor almost seemed to reach the sky. Rickety bridges and pathways snaked around the building, though any visitor would fall to their deaths with even a single misstep. Small rooms with crumbling roofs protruded from every which way, guarded by fake teeth and bones. From a distance, the manor looked like a demon, with an eerie glow emanating from the cracks in the walls alongside the finger-like tendrils that suspended massive lanterns in the air. Akira felt a shiver run down her spine as she took in the sight. Things in Halloween Town may have looked spooky, but the festive nature of the town and cheerful residents begat an endless party. This manor was nothing but terrifying.
He has quite the unusual aesthetic.
"'Frightening' is more like it," Akira responded with a shaky voice as she took her first step forward.
The bridge leading to the manor was suspended hundreds of feet in the air, missing planks of wood at every few steps and held together by worn-down rope. Akira clutched the rope harder than she should have, expecting the bridge to break at any moment. She crossed with delicate steps, her heart beating a mile a minute as she kept her gaze focused on her destination. She let out a sigh of relief when she made it to safety, but it did not soothe her anxiety; she was certain this manor hid plenty of tricks and traps she had yet to see.
"That must be the green door those kids were talking about…" she whispered as she took in her surroundings. Thankfully, the door was only a few steps away, and hidden among massive tree-like roots. Unless they had a mind of their own, Akira felt a small sense of relief, though one could not be too careful in this town.
She approached the door with careful steps, the fluorescent green stinging her eyes as it clashed with its gloomy surroundings. An outline of the famous villain was shoddily painted on the door, but its lack of finesse did nothing but add to the terror. She rubbed her eyes as she gazed at the door once more, noticing a streak of light emanating from the side.
The door is ajar… how fortunate.
Akira nodded, holding her breath as she tried to make as little noise as possible. She peered into the room, keeping herself cloaked in the shadows as she took in the scene.
The room sunk into a massive roulette wheel. Crude drawings of skulls, bones and eerie faces lined the tiles of the roulette, each one equipped with a skull-shaped button. A spiked column protruded from the centre of the roulette, separating each tile with a rickety cage. Akira gasped quietly at the sight, muting her cry in the nick of time. Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Jack sat tied to the column as their captor cackled at them from above. She watched Sora struggle to free himself in vain, and it took all her strength to stop herself from shouting his name.
"How nice of you to drop in!" Oogie Boogie roared as he slapped his belly, "Though, I have to admit, Jack, I didn't think you'd be stupid enough to fall for anything those kids said…"
"Release us this instant, Oogie Boogie! And return our heart to us!" Jack growled as he furrowed his brows.
Oogie Boogie let out a throaty laugh. "Now why would I do anything like that? After all, the heart's mine now! If you want it back, you'll have to earn it!" He summoned two large, pink dice in his hands. "How about we play a little game and see who really deserves it?"
He hooted as he tossed the dice into the roulette wheel, letting them bounce every which way. They eventually rolled to a stop at Goofy's feet, both clearly marked with a single dot.
Oogie Boogie's laugh abruptly stopped when he lay eyes on the result. "What? Snake eyes?" he cried furiously. He stomped his feet on the ground with a terrible force, causing the dice to roll over from the tremor. His glare broke into a mischievous grin when he saw his new result, clapping his hands with glee. "A seven? Lady luck must be on my side tonight!"
Sora gritted his teeth. "You cheated!" he exclaimed.
"Don't hate the player, hate the game," Oogie Boogie responded as he waddled over to a switch in the wall amidst Donald's quacks of protest. He pulled the lever, awakening the inner mechanisms of the torture chamber as the contraption on the wall whirred to life. Four scythes dropped from the ceiling, unsheathing themselves and pointing their blades towards their prey. Oogie cackled as his victims shook in fear, the threatening blades drawing ever closer to their throats.
Akira's breath caught. "He's going to kill them!" she whispered as her hands trembled. She had to do something. Something. Anything.
Akira, the contraption!
Her eyes darted towards the machine in the wall her staff had pointed out. It was further away from its switch and seemed to be the heart of torture chamber's mechanisms. The cogs whirred and turned as the scythes on the roulette moved in unison. If she could just get the contraption to stop working…
Running towards the lever and turning it off was out of the question; Oogie Boogie was too close and would surely intercept her. She had no choice but to dismantle the machine itself, though she lacked the time to do it properly. If only there was something she could just easily break in an instant… She quickly examined its every facet before settling on a gaping hole at the top of the machine that connected various cranks and cogs.
If we could find something to wedge in there, it should stall the machine.
Her staff failed to mention the most important thing: the something to wedge in there. Akira quickly whirled around and examined her surroundings, searching for a root or branch or anything that she can use, but to no avail. "There's nothing," she hissed to herself. Not even a twig. Nothing. She heard Sora shriek in fear. She heard Donald quack and Goofy howl. The fear rose to a boiling point in her heart, until dread and terror were all she knew.
Well… There was one thing she could use.
Akira, what are you doing?!
She bolted through the door and towards the machine. The adrenaline from the fear carried her legs forward and allowed her to summon enough strength to raise her arm as she approached the machine.
You can't be serious!
Gritting her teeth, she summoned her staff. The weapon materialized in her hand in a flash of light, its metallic core tearing through the hole in the contraption and blocking every crank and cog from moving. The machine sputtered and popped as its inner mechanisms began to fail, the scythes falling to the ground no more than an inch away from their prey. Akira breathed a sigh of relief at the sight, though she felt nothing but guilt for her weapon.
"I'm… really sorry," she whispered softly with a nervous smile.
It's fine… but release me as soon as possible, please.
"Akira!"
The sound of Sora's voice almost instantly soothed her nerves. He was okay. They were all okay. All of her friends… She whirled around and faced them, letting the exuberant joy settle itself in her heart.
"You came back!" Sora exclaimed.
"Couldn't come sooner, huh?" Donald quacked furiously. Akira wanted to shoot him a death glare, but the wave of relief she felt lingered long enough to let it drop.
Jack gave her a grave stare. "Akira, quickly. You must activate the blue button on the contraption. It'll release our binds. Hurry!"
She nodded quickly and scampered back to the contraption, her eyes darting every which way. She sighed with relief when she finally lay eyes on the tiny button at the bottom of the machine, reaching out her finger to press it.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Her fingers turned to ice as she released the button. Her heart raced and the hair on the nape of her neck stood on end. She didn't need to look him in the eye to feel the dread and terror the villain evoked.
Oogie Boogie smacked his fist on the contraption with such ferocity, it almost made the ground shake; the force of the impact caused her to recoil as she tripped over her feet, landing on her behind. She held her breath as she raised her widened eyes to the villain, his grotesque features scowling at her in a fiery rage. "You think you can just drop right into my domain and ruin my things?" he bellowed as she withdrew further away from him; yet, with each move she made, he merely stomped closer and closer. "Do you have any idea what happens to people who –"
His raging glare fell ever so slightly, enough for Akira to take a quick breath. She didn't dare move, lest she be met with her own imminent death. Yet, as the villain relaxed his glower, she entertained the idea of attempting to escape his clutches.
"…you," he hissed.
She pulled her face away as he drew his closer, fearing the worst.
And then… he burst into a fit of laughter.
"You're joking. You're joking!" he hollered as she slowly inched herself away, "Do my eyes deceive me? Is it really you? What did they call you again, doll face?"
Her mind raced with ideas of escape, but the dread stopped her limbs from moving.
"Never mind that," he growled, giving her a stink eye, "I remember everything about you. When you skittered off and disappeared, did you know they blamed me for it? Nearly excommunicated me. Not that I'm very popular with the locals to begin with… But to throw the blame over to me? Now that got me mad. As far as I'm concerned, you owe me." His hollow eyes shifted to an angry glare as he raised his fist once more. "I'm a gambling man, you see; and I always get paid my dues."
Her heart beat frantically, but there was no more space behind her to move. She watched him clench his fist as the dread took over body and mind.
He bent over, sickeningly close to her face, and whispered in a tone so vile, it chilled the air. "Time to pay up… Akira."
"Stop right there, Oogie Boogie!"
He whirled around in a panic. Jack stood a few steps away, shoulders broad and brows furrowed. Sora stood at his side, Keyblade in hand, as Donald and Goofy raised their respective weapons with resolve. Relief washed over Akira as Oogie Boogie began to tremble. Jack held a peculiar thread in his hands; one that traced all the way back to the loose seam in the villain's arm.
"How dare you treat my friends so shamefully!" Jack growled as he pulled on the thread, opening a hole in the villain's arm. Oogie Boogie screeched as the realization sank in, clomping over towards Jack in a last-ditch attempt to save himself. Jack merely pulled harder at the thread as Oogie Boogie began to lose his balance; the seam had now completely opened, and a repulsive trail of critters seeped forth from the hole in his body. It almost seemed fitting that a treacherous villain such as he would be hideous both inside and out. Akira shielded herself from the stream of bugs that emerged as Jack pulled harder and harder at the thread amidst Oogie's pleas for mercy. They watched with hardened looks as Oogie Boogie's baggy flesh crumpled to the floor, the last of the bugs scampering off into the cracks in the walls. Silence fell upon the torture chamber, and Akira finally felt safe enough to breath a sigh of relief.
Sora withdrew his Keyblade and rushed to her side. "You came back!" he cried happily, pulling her into a side hug.
Goofy followed his lead and did the same from Akira's other side. "We were so worried about you!" he exclaimed.
Akira's mind raced between the grotesque scene she had just witnessed and the outpouring of love and relief from her friends at her side. She took each of their arms in her hands, smiling happily as she tried to find the words to express her joy at finally being reunited.
Donald, on the other hand, stomped over to his three friends, impatiently tapping his foot on the ground as he angrily placed his hands on his hips. "Where did you go?" he quacked in a fury.
Sora frowned at their comrade, but Akira simply sat mouth agape with no words to show for it.
Donald's scowl instantly softened as his mood shifted. "Don't ever do that again, you hear me?" he said as his voice cracked, his anger melting into relief as he bent down and wedged himself between his three friends. It had been a long while since the four of them had come together for an embrace such as this one, and Akira's heart felt full; she was nothing short of lucky to have wonderful friends such as these at her side.
Jack released the thread from his grip, tossing it aside as he rejoined his comrades. "Magnificently done, all of you!" he praised.
"Us? You were the real hero here, Jack!" Sora responded as he released Donald and Akira, standing up on his feet.
"Nonsense. I couldn't have done it without you. Especially you, Akira, for releasing our restraints," he said as he addressed the teen, "I gather you found what you were looking for?"
His mischievous smile led Akira to believe he knew exactly what she was up to. "I guess… you know too, then?" she asked sheepishly as the remaining friends got to their feet.
He crossed his arms and offered her a smile. "Just a hunch I had."
"Quit with the subtlety and tell us what happened, already!" Donald quacked impatiently.
"The floor is yours," Jack said as he gestured to the nervous teen.
Even though it was the second time this had happened to her in a short while, Akira still found it difficult to find the words she needed when others watched her intently. The pressure not to fumble her words was real, and she had only recently begun truly listening to what her heart had to say…
She took a deep breath, and let the words flow from her lips. "From the moment we set foot here, I knew something was here, waiting for me. I didn't know it at the time, but things that should have been new to me felt nostalgic and familiar. I didn't want to leave you guys, but… I had to know what it all meant. So, I followed a path that was calling to me…"
Goofy put a hand on his mouth. "Akira, do you mean…?"
She nodded. "I didn't remember anything, but my heart recognized this place. Because… I was born here. The doctor and the mayor pretty much confirmed it. And… that lady in the portrait at the laboratory? That's… my mom."
She wasn't sure which was more unnerving; them listening intently as she searched for the words to say, or their unsettling silence after she finished her speech. Had she fumbled her words? Did she make any sense at all? Did they have any idea what she was trying to say? Her heart still felt like a massive jumbled mess, and sorting through it as she expressed herself was a daunting task in and of itself.
"That's amazing!"
She blinked as she raised her eyes to meet Sora's, watching his smile grow wider by the second. "This place; it really, truly, is your home?" he asked excitedly.
His enthusiasm was infectious, and she smiled in response, causing him to erupt in a fit of excitement. "This is incredible! We really, really found it! I can hardly believe it!" he cheered, "Wait until we tell Riku and Kairi! Wow, to be from a place where they celebrate Halloween every day… imagine that."
"Well, I certainly can't!" Donald quacked, "How come you never told us you didn't originally come from your island?"
That certainly was a tough question to answer. Not because she didn't know what to say, but what she had to say wasn't so easy to express. "My island," she began, "…it is my home. Even if I wasn't born there… my happiest memories are there. My family is there…" She turned to face Jack, attempting to keep her composure. "I'm sorry, Jack. It's not that I don't love this place –"
"You don't need to explain yourself," he responded as he waved his hand, "I think all of us here knew. Still…" He put his hand on her shoulder and offered her a smile. "You will always be welcome here, no matter how long you stay away. I'm sure the rest of the town will be delighted to hear how happy you are in your home. After all, we only ever wanted what was best for you."
She didn't expect such a heartfelt speech, though it made her love for this town grow more than she thought possible. To have a distant family she barely knew care so much for her… Though Destiny Islands will always be her home, she knew this world and its people will always welcome her with open arms. She nodded in thanks, her heart aflutter with joy.
Goofy suddenly scratched his head, remembering something important. "Hey fellas! Aren't we forgetting about the heart?"
"Oh, right!" Sora said as he recalled the reason why they ended up in the villain's domain in the first place, "Have any of you seen it?"
He was met with nothing but shrugs and blank stares from the others. They were so preoccupied with escaping from harm, they barely had any time to notice what the villain even did with his prize.
Jack crossed his arms in thought. "From what I recall, Lock, Shock, and Barrel tossed the heart down the tunnel connected to their room. We jumped in afterwards and –"
"Oogie Boogie was ready and waiting for us," Sora sighed in defeat, "Of course… we walked right into that trap."
"Regardless, I suppose our efforts would be better spent reporting to the doctor," Jack concluded.
"Gawrsh, sorry we lost your heart, Jack," Goofy said apologetically.
"No need to apologize, friends. I'm sure we'll be able to try again once we return."
"Yeah, that's the spirit!" Sora added with a smile.
The group strode towards the door, carefully avoiding any scuttling leftover bugs or untriggered traps that still lay strewn on the floor. Akira skittered around every safe spot she could find; it was still a torture chamber after all, regardless if its lord was present, and just being in that room was enough to send a chill down one's spine. That is, until she remembered something very important. She gasped as she scurried towards the contraption, hand outstretched. Boy, was she going to hear a lecture for this one…
"I'm sorry," she said apologetically as she freed her staff from the contraption, summoning it into her hand in a flash of light.
And here I thought you'd leave me behind…
"Akira!" Donald scolded from the door's threshold, "Are you seriously going to sit there and apologize to your staff?"
"Uh…"
"It doesn't have feelings. If you start apologizing to every inanimate object we find, we'll never get anywhere…"
How rude! What an insolent, disrespectful, feathered f –
"Ahaha!" Akira laughed in a particularly nervous and loud tone, attempting to drown out whatever profanity her staff may have uttered.
Crossing that rickety and unstable wooden bridge didn't get any easier, no matter how many times they traversed it. Jack seemed to take the challenge in stride, but the four visitors still crossed with delicate steps and constant reminders to not look down. They crossed in safety, though they fervently wished they never had to come to this part of Halloween Town ever again.
And sometimes, things don't always work in one's favour.
The earth rumbled beneath their feet, almost knocking them all to the ground. As soon as they had made it to safety, the rickety bridge crumbled behind them, tossing pieces of rotting wood to the ground below. Dust gathered around the manor as it crashed and churned; towers and walkways cracked and broke under the weight of the seism as another despicable sight grew in their place. No amount of blinking or rubbing their eyes would remove the dreadful sight from their minds.
Oogie Boogie had fused with his manor and grew its size to show it.
"Wak! How did he get so big?" Donald cried.
The now obnoxiously large villain boomed with laughter. "Your little heart was nothing but a broken trinket. But the power of darkness… it holds the power I need to squash you to pieces!"
"I see, so the heart was a failure after all…" Jack surmised, "And he turned to the power of darkness instead."
"But how are we supposed to defeat something so huge?" Sora asked.
Goofy scratched his chin. The orbs of pure darkness that lay scattered around the manor had piqued his interest. "Say, fellas, what if we destroy those blobs of darkness he's gathering power from?"
Jack punched his fist into his other hand with glee. "Of course! That's an excellent idea!" he exclaimed.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Sora cried as he summoned his Keyblade.
Following Jack's lead, they quickly slid down the wall to the ground below, where Oogie Boogie rattled the earth with stomps of his now massive feet. The orbs of darkness littered every corner of his body, but the old steps and walkways remained, allowing them to climb him as they attempted to reach the higher orbs. He now held the massive lanterns that hung from the top of the manor in his hands, swinging them every which way as he attempted to light the heroes and their pathways on fire. The orbs needed no more than a few good whacks before melting into a puff of smoke, but Oogie Boogie grew increasingly enraged as his strength was sapped with each destroyed orb, and his attacks grew progressively more violent. It was a struggle to simply stay on their feet as they slowly chipped away at the villain's might.
Unfortunately for Donald, his small stature made it difficult for him to climb some of the trickier steps. He reached his feathered hand for a piece of broken stone protruding from the villain's upper back but could not bring himself to reach it. "Wak! I can't reach it!" he fumed.
Akira hopped to his side from a higher platform, having just destroyed a smaller orb beside the villain's armpit. "What's wrong?" she asked.
He pointed to the orb near the back of Oogie's head. "That orb. I can't get to it. Of course, he'd put one of them so out of reach…"
"Is that the last one?"
"I think so. Sora and Jack have been taking care of the midsection while Goofy and I have been working on the orbs near the foot of the manor. The power of darkness seems to be growing faint, and Oogie Boogie is starting to get restless. If we can just get that one, it should do the trick."
Akira scratched her chin; it wasn't a particularly difficult climb. If she could just pull herself over that broken rock Donald couldn't reach, there was an entire wooden bridge just leading up to it. "Okay. Leave it to me," she said firmly.
"Gah, be careful!" Donald cried as the manor swayed once more.
She bent her knees and jumped towards the rock, grabbing onto the edges as she secured her foot into a small recess in the stone. While she still had the momentum, she pulled herself over the edge. The manor shook once more as she held onto it for safety. Little did she know, Oogie Boogie had caught sight of her intentions from the corner of his eye and would not surrender his last source of power so easily.
As she sprinted across the wooden bridge towards her target, the villain released the planks of wood from his body.
"AH!"
She screeched as she fell through the cracks, stretching out her arms towards the orb as her foot sank through the gaping hole in the bridge. There was nothing to grab on to, nothing to hold on to, nothing to break her fall as she dropped towards her demise. Dreary colours flashed before her eyes as her lungs gasped for air amidst the frantic beating of her heart. She flailed her arms as she desperately widened her eyes, searching for anything tangible she could grab.
Her hands collided with a lone plank of wood protruding from the villain's hide. Her body jerked as she came to a stop, gritting her teeth in pain as the splinters tore through the skin of her fingers. She was safe for now, but there was no telling how long she could stay in this state.
"Ngh. DAMNIT," she hissed through clenched teeth, squeezing her eyes shut. She was so close. So close. Donald was counting on her. Everyone was counting on her. She could barely find the mental space to worry about her current predicament over the sting of her failure. It was Agrabah all over again; so many people were counting on her, and she failed them.
"Akira!"
Her eyes snapped open when she heard his voice. He seemed so close…
She gasped when she raised her eyes to meet his. Sora had secured himself on the rickety remains of the manor's roof, his hand outstretched as he attempted to reach her. She almost wanted to cry; the look of worry and terror on his face was more painful than any agony she felt from the splinters in her hands. The manor swayed once more, and she let out a frightened yelp as she clenched onto what little security she had left. She felt her fingers slide under her weight.
"Take my hand!"
Take… his hand?
As she gazed at his alarmed expression, his eyes filled with worry as her fingers slid from safety once more... she saw so much in them, eyes wide as the ocean, everything his heart held laid bare for all to see. He put himself in such a vulnerable state yet cared not for anything other than her safety.
A beacon of light in the darkness. Just as she had told her staff… And as she locked her gaze with his, she knew; everything would be alright, as long as she took his hand.
She gritted her teeth through the pain in her hand as she raised it aloft and grabbed his. Mustering all his strength, he pulled her onto the roof beside him. "Thank goodness," he said with a sigh of relief, allowing himself a small moment of respite amidst their grueling situation.
There was so much Akira wanted to say; her eternal gratitude for saving her, her equal worry for his own safety, her anxiety about the orb of darkness she failed to reach, the pain in her hands… and the unending guilt she felt for putting her best friend through all of this. She winced at the pain in her hand, though it was the least of her worries; she wanted to convey so much to him, but she didn't have the words for it. Not yet.
"Are you okay?" he asked as he examined her hands. He grimaced when he took one look at them, the worry returning to his eyes once more. "No, that's not good. We'll need to wrap this up quickly and patch you up. What happened up there?"
"I… I was trying to get to the final orb. Donald found it but couldn't reach it. I was climbing the pathway leading up to it, but Oogie Boogie destroyed it."
"Where is it?"
Akira raised her hand and pointed towards the orb near the manor's head, taking care not to move her fingers too much.
Sora brought his hand to his chin. It was too steep to climb, and any path leading up to it had been destroyed. "What if I cast magic?" he suggested.
"At this distance, fire and blizzard would fizzle out before they reach it. And I doubt we could aim thunder that far," she explained.
"Well, only one thing left to do," he said as he crouched over the ledge and yelled to the ground below, "Hey, Donald? Donald!"
The other three had made it safely to the ground and were contemplating different plans to reach the last orb as they battled away any rogue Heartless drawn to the fray. The duck raised his staff into the air when he heard the teen's voice. "Sora? What's going on up there?" he responded.
"We can't reach the orb!" Sora called.
Goofy clapped his hands over his mouth. "If we can't reach the last one, how are we supposed to defeat Oogie Boogie?"
"Hm," Jack muttered as he scratched his head, "We can't reach it… but is there a way to make it come to us?"
A sudden idea popped into Donald's head as he heeded Jack's words. "There definitely is!" he exclaimed as he addressed Sora once more with a loud quack, "Sora! Use Gravity magic!"
Sora gave Donald a puzzled look. "How am I supposed to do that?"
"Same as always! Envision the spell you want to cast, concentrate, and let the magic flow through you!"
Sora glanced at the condescending orb, still processing Donald's words. Fire and blizzard were one thing, but gravity? He was so used to expelling magic towards his targets, he never imagined he'd ever find the need to pull them towards him. He shook his head as he rose to his feet, Keyblade secured in hand; he had no time to hesitate now, for Oogie Boogie grew increasingly agitated, and the manor's swaying grew more erratic. He secured his stance and pointed his Keyblade towards the orb. "Gravity!" he yelled.
A sphere of dark magic enveloped the orb, forcibly pulling it down as Sora struggled to keep the spell going. He clutched his Keyblade with all his might, concentrating all his mental energy on the orb as he tried to pull it towards them. But, the orb barely moved an inch and Sora released the spell, sighing deeply as he let his arms fall. "This is so hard," he said between breaths.
Akira watched as her friend barely hesitated to try once more. Amidst the danger of falling from their ledge and the relentless swaying of the manor, he still tried and tried again, not willing to give up. Even when he failed, he tried once more…
Do not allow this to be Agrabah all over again.
The pain rippled through her hands as she rose to her feet, her staff materializing in her hand with a small flash of light.
Even in failure, you must move forward.
"I know. I won't," she whispered.
The resolve in her heart made the pain in her hands more bearable as she raised her staff towards the orb above them, taking her place by Sora's side. He let his spell fizzle out when he caught sight of her. "What are you doing? You're hurt!" he exclaimed.
She smirked in response. "Remember when we were seven? When I scraped my knee in the hollow near the cove because you were convinced there was a monster there, and I had to go in and fight it? That hurt way more than this."
Sora shook his head. "There was no monster in that cave," he said.
"Well, there is one here. And I'm going to get it."
Her smile seemed so determined and resolute. It was the same smile she gave him before she went to fight that imaginary monster all those years ago… He nodded and readied his Keyblade beside her, mustering the strength for one more spell.
"Gravity!" they yelled in unison.
The orb of darkness proved to be a tough foe but could not withstand the force of two gravitational pulls. It slowly slid down the manor's side as the two teens readied their weapons for one final blow. Their blades collided with the orb once it was in range, tearing through the darkness as it dissipated into a cloud of smoke.
The manor rattled and churned once the source of all its power was destroyed. Oogie Boogie moaned as the manor crumbled around him, the lanterns he held smashing to the ground with a deafening crash. Sora and Akira quickly slid down the manor walls to safety as the oscillations grew in intensity, generating a massive dust cloud as pieces of the manor chipped off from Oogie Boogie's retracting body. Nothing but dust and smoke could be seen as the manor collapsed onto itself, and the group shielded their eyes and noses from the oncoming dust storm. Soon enough, the dust settled, leaving nothing behind but an open field, and an unmistakable shining Keyhole at the centre of it all.
Sora stepped up to the plate, fulfilling his role as he had always done before. Pointing his Keyblade to the sky, he released a burst of light into the air, which in turn broke into several smaller beams before falling into the Keyhole, locking it for good.
"Incredible…" Jack said in awe as he took in the sight, "What does all of this mean?"
Donald and Goofy scratched their heads. They couldn't possibly start explaining the concept of outside worlds to him… Sora lowered his Keyblade, but also struggled for words. "It, uh…" he began.
"It means our time here… is almost done," Akira said in a whisper as she held her hands together at her chest.
Sora, Akira, Donald, and Goofy stood near the entryway to the laboratory as they watched the scene unfold before them, though they lacked the look of apathy that was painted across the doctor's face. In his usual dramatic yet graceful manner, Jack raised his arms into the air as he apologized to Sally, feeling as if no words would ever be enough to describe his boundless regret. "Sally, why didn't I listen to you?" he asked solemnly.
"Don't feel bad, Jack," she responded as she took his hands in hers, "We'll come up with another plan for Halloween. Next time… we'll do it together."
They tenderly gazed into each other's eyes as silence filled the room, the group shielding their blushing cheeks from each other as they watched the affectionate display. "Gawrsh, I get the feeling we're kind of in the way of their moment, don'tcha think?" he asked Donald, whom let out an irritated quack in response.
Jack snapped back to reality when he heard the noise and turned to face his new friends with a small chuckle. "Then, I suppose we have no choice. We'll have to cancel this idea and come up with a new one. Of course, you're all more than welcome to help!"
Sora nervously scratched his head. "We'd love to help, really, but… we have to get going. We're on a mission, and there's a lot we still need to do."
"I understand," he said with a nod before addressing Akira, "And what about you?"
No matter how many times she talked about it, the topic never became any easier. Still, she knew what she needed to do, and what she truly desired. "I have to go."
"You are always welcome to come back when you please," Sally said with a smile.
"Exactly!" Jack exclaimed, "But, if I may… Do try to come back for next year's Halloween. It'll be the scariest ever; and we'll even keep four spots open for you to join in the show!"
Akira grinned with excitement. "That would be wonderful. We'll come back for sure!"
"Hey!" Donald yelled, "We're on an important mission. That takes priority!" He stomped off towards the exit in a huff as Sora crossed his arms in annoyance at the duck's insistence on being a stick in the mud. Yet, before Donald crossed the threshold, Akira heard a faint murmur under his breath. "I'll bring you back to visit once all this is over…"
And she simply couldn't help but smile.
Clinking and clattering filled the air in Guillotine Gate as Donald and Goofy prepared the Gummi ship for departure, though Donald's furious quacks at finding himself caught in yet another of Lock, Shock, and Barrel's pranks could probably be heard three worlds over. Akira could hear the clamour from where she sat on the step overlooking Guillotine Square, and she couldn't help but snicker at the racket.
"Sounds like a party, huh?"
She turned her head to gaze at Sora, whom had casually taken a seat beside her. "It sure does," she replied with a smirk as she picked at the bandages on her hands.
"How are your hands?"
She shrugged. "All right for now, I suppose. Sally was nice enough to clean out all the splinters but, not going to lie, the rubbing alcohol hurt a lot. I hope it doesn't leave a scar…"
"You'll have the Gummi ship ride to take it easy at least," he said as he stretched his arms into the air before placing them on the ground and leaning his weight on them. "We sure went through a lot here, huh?"
"…to hell and back, it seems."
They both gazed up at the moon that towered over the horizon, where Akira had discovered her past, where Oogie Boogie made his final stand, where Sora saved her from falling to her demise… and she never even thanked him for that, did she? She didn't even know how to thank him. There were so many things her heart wanted to say, yell, scream at him, and yet, the only thing she could say was…
"I'm sorry."
"Huh?"
She lowered her eyes to the floor as she worked through the knot in her throat. She did promise she'd face her pain head on, and that started with being honest; not just to herself, but to Sora as well. "I'm sorry for always worrying you. Not just tonight, but all the time."
Sora blinked, but offered no answer.
She took a deep breath before continuing. "I never wanted to face the things that hurt me. I figured, if I just closed off my heart, the pain would simply fade away. But all I did was push it aside, and in the process, I closed you and Kairi and Riku off when… when all you wanted was what was best for me."
"Akira…"
"So, I'm sorry. Please accept my apology. I know I hurt you by pushing you away, but I'm trying very hard not to do that anymore, and –"
"That's not something you need to apologize for."
It was Akira's turn to watch him in silence, fixating her azure gaze on him as she took in his words.
"I don't call you my friend just for fun. I – we – call you that because that's exactly what you are; our friend. We care about you and nothing will ever change that. All we want is to see you smile. And if your smile begins to fade, and you need a shoulder to cry on or an ear to listen to you, then… you'll always find that with me. And Donald. And Goofy, too. And I'm sure that's all Kairi and Riku wanted for you as well."
She attempted to stop her lip from quivering as they broke into a smile. Even as he spoke it, she somehow always knew. There was no mistaking his occasional worried glances, his lame attempts at humour, or his infectious smiles when things seemed to be at their worst. He always did whatever he could to make her smile; they all did. And it was hard not to, once she finally allowed herself to see it clearly.
"I know you must have gone through a lot here, what with finding out about your mom and where you come from; so Donald, Goofy, and I would completely understand if you don't want to talk about it for now. But, just know that… we're here for you. That's all," he said as he flashed her a toothy grin.
She brought her hands together at her lap as she gazed at the ground with a soft smile. "I know."
"Great," he said as he relaxed his pose again, glancing at the moon once more. "You know, during our fight on the manor when we both used that gravity spell? That was really cool. It was just like old times."
"Like all those times you sent Riku and I to fight whatever monster you thought lurked in the shadows because you were too afraid to do so yourself?" she chuckled, "Man, I remember you used to jump into things headfirst without thinking, but when it came to monsters? You were a marshmallow."
"Hey, I wasn't that much of a scaredy-cat!"
"Could've fooled me," she said, playfully narrowing her eyes.
Sora pouted. "You know, if it wasn't for me, the neighbour kid would've run off with your lunch money in the fourth grade."
"And if it wasn't for me, you'd have been monster lunch in the third grade."
"Aagh!"
Sora defeatedly flopped himself on his back as Akira burst into laughter at his side. Even when he was being mercilessly teased, he couldn't help but grin. She was finally smiling and laughing at his side, just like she used to… just like he and all his friends used to, back when the islands were all they had.
Her laughter slowly died down. "You know…" she began.
He sat himself up straight once more, glancing over to her as she spoke.
"I always wanted to be like everyone else on the islands. But, now that we're here… I miss my pink hair. And, to be honest, I think I like it more than this." She held a small strand of her brown hair in her fingers.
He smiled. "It makes you, you."
"Like your gravity-defying spiky hair?"
"Only the spikiest will do," he quipped.
To be frank, he liked her pink hair more as well; it reminded him of home, of his life, of his friends, of his carefree days spent surrounded by warm sand and endless ocean. All of that, gone; so suddenly taken away from him. Yet here she sat, the one constant that remained from his previous life… and that alone was enough to give him the drive he needed to continue onward.
Akira smiled as she gazed up at the sky. "I have always gone wherever everyone else went; I always followed the crowd. And I never thought to look in my heart and listen to what it was telling me." She slapped her hands on her knees before she stood up with resolve, shifting her gaze towards Sora. "But now I hear it loud and clear. What I want more than anything is to find Riku and Kairi and bring them home. This is the path... I've chosen to take."
Sora snickered as he also rose to his feet. "What do you know? That's exactly where I'm going as well," he said as he pointed his thumb to his chest.
"So, then, what do you say?" she said with a grin, invitingly extending her hand out to him.
He smiled in response as he placed his hand in hers. "Let's go together," he said firmly.
As they shook hands, they were filled with clarity and determination. They were going to find Riku and Kairi. They were going to save the Destiny Islands. And they were going to go home once more, together. Hand in hand.
"Hey, guys! The Gummi ship's ready to go!" they heard Goofy call from the gate.
They released their hands and began their trek towards their vessel, spending most of their short walk in silence. That is, until something interesting caught Sora's attention. He saw something glitter out of the corner of his eye but, as he glanced at the wooden gate to his right, he saw nothing but dreary browns and mossy greens snaking around the almost decrepit gate. Still, he knew he wasn't hallucinating… He approached the gate and bent down to fit into the massive hole in the wood, pushing away the branches and leaves of the countless bushes that littered the area.
Nothing could prepare him for the sight he witnessed once he pushed away the last of the bushes; but a sight such as this simply couldn't be enjoyed by him alone. He enthusiastically tore through the bushes once more, almost tripping over the branches as he hurried back towards Guillotine Gate. "Akira! Come here!" he called.
He heard her shuffle her feet as she scurried towards him, poking her head through the hole in the gate with a puzzled expression. "Sora! What are you doing there?"
"Come on, you have to see this!" he exclaimed as he grabbed her arm.
He pulled her through the thicket of bushes as she attempted to keep her footing, swatting away any branches that smacked against her face with her free hand. What in the world could he have found that necessitated getting scratched to pieces by rogue branches with sharp leaves?
Yet as she pushed the last of the branches away and lay eyes on the marvel before her, she simply understood. For it was all worth it.
A field covered in flowers, white petals and red pistils, glistening in full bloom under the pale light of the moon. She brought her hands to her mouth, searching for the words to describe such a breathtaking sight that filled her heart with bliss. The words wouldn't come, but it didn't matter; Sora had spoken them in her stead.
"Akira, the world you come from is very beautiful."