Kingdom Hearts -- Season of Light

by SoraLego278

VOL. 2-MS: The Holiday Season is underway when Sora and friends are called for another quest. Maleficent's Council is trying to destroy Christmas and rule all worlds, and only Sora himself can stop them! As his team travels the worlds, secrets are revealed and more questions are found. Can Sora's team achieve victory? Or will Maleficent & the others win? Rated T for Safety.

39. Ch39 - 'Candle On The Water'

DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING EXCEPT THE PLOT AND MY ORIGINAL CHARACTERS!

A/N: HEY THERE! HI THERE! HO THERE! YOU'RE AS WELCOME AS CAN BE! K-I-N-G-D-O-M H-E-A-R-T-S! KINGDOM HEARTS!

So, Chapter 39 has officially arrived!
Yet, before I let you go loose today/tonight, I wanted to go over a few things.

It is official - "'Once Upon A Time ~The Darkest Age~'" has been cancelled. This is due to the lack of popularity, shown through its lack of views and reviews alike. As it is, I actually started that story since my Mom is a huge fan of the show. I have nicknamed it "Her Kingdom Hearts" since it has similarities to the KH Series.

Plus, I wanted to inform you that the Theme Song for "'Kingdom Hearts - Season OF Light'" is the classic, "'SIMPLE AND CLEAN'" by Utada Hikaru! This would be true, given This Story was one of the games in the official "'Kingdom Hearts'" Series!

Anyways, I also wanted to go over this stuff. Why? Well, This Chapter starts off ACT IV of "'Kingdom Hearts - Season OF Light'"! There are going to be a total of FIVE ACT(S) by the time This Story is completed. I Hope that shall be by Late 2018!

So, like with some of the earlier chapters, I want to go over a few things about Sora's team to help you focus on their characters in This Story.
Of course, most of this might seem like duplicate(s) from before. Still, there are some notable differences. I might even do this one last time - at another Later Chapter, too.

SORA SKY HIKARI - Age 17. The Keyblade wielder credited with saving the worlds on more than one occasion. He is a little naïve, but still possesses a strong sense of justice. He is very protective of his sister, Amemi. Once again, Sora is determined to keep the worlds from permanently falling to Darkness, even if it means taking down Maleficent and her entire Council along the way. He seems to be struggling to keep his cool lately, which seems to creating a slight rift in his team.

AMEMI HIKARI - Age 14. Sora's younger sister. She wields a slingshot. She is typically happy-go-lucky and enjoys spending time with her brother, although this is not always the case. She tries to encourage others to do the right thing, but doesn't always succeed. She wishes to see other worlds and is excited about exploring the unknown. Sora calls her "Amy" for short, even though she would rather be referred to by her real name. She also is a huge fan of "WordGirl", whom she wishes to meet someday. Despite knowing her brother all too well, she questions Sora's actions from time to time.

DONALD DUCK - Age Unknown. The Royal Court Magician of Disney Castle. He means well, but can be greedy and a little self-centered. He is easily irritated by random stuff, which can cause conflict with Goofy and Launchpad. He fights with a magical wand. He has a VERY bad temper, and he has taken his anger out on others - besides the Heartless. His impatience with just about anything has been adding to the drama the group is going through to date. All he really wants to do is lay back in his hammock and sleep.

GOOFY - Age Unknown. The Captain of The Royal Knights of Disney Castle. He dislikes weapons and wields a shield. He is very clumsy and easily mispronounces words. Yet, he also notices things others miss. He can be smart and tends to reassure others. His intelligence is not always plain to see, yet it is known he has graduated from college. He deeply cares about Sora and is concerned about his friend's occasional display of Darkness.

LAUNCHPAD MCQUACK - Age Unknown. The Leader of The Disney Royal Air Force of Disney Castle. He is absent-minded and clumsy. He LOVES to crash things. Despite such setbacks, he cares about others and does his best to help. He is friendly and sometimes carefree. He LOVES to give the same introduction over and over and over again. Every once in a while, he mentions something no one else knows about, causing them to wonder if his mind is in their world or another one.

INDIGO - Age Unknown. The Angel OF Hope. She is Violet's sister, even though their personalities are nearly opposites. She can be shy and anxious. Deep down, she is friendly and cares about others. She gets excited and easily gets her hopes up. She is determined to put a stop to the threat of Darkness in the worlds. She is questioning about the fate of her other sister, Teal, whose fate still remains unknown.

With all THAT aside, perhaps I have one more thing to state.

Last weekend, an actress from the Classic Show, "'Happy Days'" passed away. You know who it was?
Erin Moran (October 18TH, 1960 TO April 22ND, 2017; AGE 56) - She is best known for her role as Joanie Cunningham on "'HAPPY DAYS'" and its spin-off, "'Joanie Loves Chachi'".
REST. IN. PEACE. ERIN MARIE MORAN-FLEISCHMANN -(GIVES SEVERAL MINUTES OF SILENCE)-

So, would you Still like to read ahead? After all, This Chapter introduces the next Disney-based world in This Story!
So Then, PLEASE READ ON TO YOUR HEART'S CONTENT! PLEASE REVIEW, TOO! PRETTY, PRETTY PLEASE!

---

CHAPTER 39
"Candle On The Water"

Herbie proceeded through space at a steady pace. Even with Launchpad at the controls, the ride was much smoother than it had ever been beforehand.

In the backseats, Amemi was showing Goofy an episode of "WordGirl", although it was at a much softer volume. Ever since the enormous outburst of sound that had flooded the Gummi Ship previously, Sora and Amemi had made a deal. She could continue to watch the show, only she had to make it much, much, much softer. He reminded her how listening to loud sounds for long periods of time was bad and could cause hearing loss.

The two were softly cheering on the characters in the show, much to Donald's chagrin. The duck had ended up sitting the back on the far right side, next to the window. While Amemi and Goofy sat in the middle and left seats respectively, the duck magician was shaking his head slowly and drumming his fingers against the door's handle. He had a scowl on his face and was muttering lots of extensive lists containing illegible garbled words.

Indigo was seated in the front, middle seat. She was busy looking at a book she had found in a small compartment. The cover was read and had been decorated like the inside of a fairytale world. The title of the book was written in large print,

THE STORYBOOK OF LEGENDS

Despite all this happening around him, Sora barely noticed. His mind was on other things. He had taken out the four torn parchments of paper they had collected. For some reason, he had the sensation there was something important all these scattered pieces were telling him.

"What does it mean?" he asked at last.

In less than the amount of time it takes someone to blink their eyes, Indigo closed the book in her hand, Amemi and Goofy paused the show, Donald jolted upright, and Launchpad turned his head. All eyes were now trained onto the spikey, brown-headed youth.

Sora only had to turn his head a few degrees to see this was so. "What is it?"

"What does what mean?" Donald inquired.

"You was readin' somethin'," Goofy indicated, pointing to the pieces of torn paper.

Donald slapped the knight's hand. "It's not polite to point! Remember?!"

"But I ain't pointin' at nobody."

Amemi nudged the mage. "He's right. He wasn't."

Donald plopped down in his seat and crossed his arms. He scowled all the more. "Aw phooey!"

With a roll of his eyes, Sora held up the latter scraps. "It's these things," he informed the others. "Remember? Master Yen Sid asked us to find them."

Indigo snatched one of the scraps and held in closely in her hands. Her eyes moved speedily across the handwritten text. She looked puzzled. "I see what you mean. What does this stuff mean?"

"I know what WordGirl would say," Amemi spoke up, raising her hand into the air as in announcing something. "She would suggest reading everything we have and see where it leads to."

Sora gave a nod. He had the feeling his sister was correct. He took back the paper from Indigo and organized the scraps into the order in which they had found them. He cleared his throat and started to read,

"I am not where I used to stay.

Yet, I am not where I need to be.

My current location is secret, by the way,

In a place where no one can find me.

"I can sense trouble is on the way,

Even in this world's spooky streets.

I should be safe, that much I can certainly say,

For here, the Light and Darkness peacefully meets.

"This land is one I'd only heard about,

One that probably shouldn't exist today.

Their memories are gone and no one stays out,

Even time itself seems to have stopped, no delay."

"Gawrsh," Goofy murmured aloud. "That there place sure sounds spooky. I bet the people livin' there are spooky, too."

Donald put his finger to the knight's face. "Shh!"

Sora ignored the two and continued to the next piece,

"Her son is a boy, one about age ten,

He seems really nice.

He claims everyone is from another land quite often,

And that all magic comes with a price."

Amemi seemed puzzled. "Is that statement true? Does all magic really come with a price?"

"Yeah," Donald grumbled, his hand leaned against the side of his face. His body was slouched in his seat. He was scowling, his eyes trained to the ceiling. "Stupid MP…. "

Sora decided not to ponder too deep here and proceeded to the next paper scrap,

"Almost like he's very lonely.

"The town has a sheriff, of course it would have to,

But this one is a bit strange.

When I talk with him, he seems to lack something — unlike me and you,

Sometimes I wonder what's out on his range."

"Heh," Launchpad chuckled from the front. "That makes more sense than DW's daughter's behavior."

"Ya mean Gosalyn?" Goofy inquired. Launchpad nodded.

Sora and Amemi were equally puzzled. "What does that have to do with this?" Sora asked.

The knight shrugged. "I dunno."

Sora sighed. Although he knew it was typically of Goofy and Launchpad to get off track so easily, it was now starting to become more of an annoyance. So far, he had somehow managed to keep the peace between the two and Donald. He had good reason to. After the group had departed from the Radiant Garden for the first time, Donald had chosen not to fight alongside the knight or pilot anymore. After their journey to Atlantis, Donald had seemed to be a little nicer to Goofy. This had continued to show up following the crash-landing into Pocahontas's world. The duck magician had even allowed Goofy to help repair the Gummi Ship while Sora himself and Launchpad had left to get help.

Of course, none of them could have imagined they would end up swept into a major conflict between a native tribe and some foreign settlers. It was just one of those things that came with the job of trying to protect the worlds from the Heartless. Three times now had worlds nearly been lost to the Darkness under their watch. First was Jamestowne, where a war had almost torn the land apart. Next had been La Ville de Sonner Les Cloches, in which the now-late Judge Claude Frollo had tried to use the Heartless to eradicate an entire group of people and conquer the world for Maleficent. After that, Middleton had just about ended up in the hands of Drakken, Pete, and Don Karnage when the three evildoers had used a combination of the Heartless and gigantic robots to attack the world's cities.

Deep, deep down, he doubted this was the end of the worlds-almost-being-lost-to-the-Darkness scenario. In fact, it seemed there was still a long way to go before this quest was over. He sighed, sure this meant he would be home by the Winter Solstice.

He turned to the next torn paper scrap and read it aloud,

"I nearly ran into a nun last night,

She seemed very nervous and rather clumsy and she slammed into me.

When I helped her pick up the bag of supplies she'd dropped, I saw a bright Light,

I wonder… is she trying to be someone she wasn't meant to be?

I encountered two kids earlier, one girl and one boy,

I could sense they were brother and sister, even as they continued to roam.

They looked lost, worried, and with no hope to deploy,

Should I have helped them find their way home?

"Two others stick out,

They both have important roles, I should state."

Sora put the papers away. "That's all we have. Four pieces and no clues as to what it means."

Indigo paused in thought. "Maybe we are supposed to find the rest of them," she suggested. "Let's keep our eyes out for more."

Sora stared at the angel. Had she just read his mind? Was that another special power angels had that she hadn't told him about? Probably… not. He just nodded. "Yeah!"

"Speaking of places to go," Launchpad pointed directly through the windshield. Well, not literally through the front window of the cockpit. "There's another world up ahead."

Sora, Donald, Goofy, Amemi, and Indigo all swerved their focus to the front of the vehicle. A bright star lay directly in their path. Sora felt a strange sensation. He wondered if this world was trying to communicate with him. Was that even possible? The sign at the high school in Middleton had seemed to do so.

"Let's teleport down," he decided.

---

The forest seemed to be much less dense than in the world of native tribes and foreign settlers. Sora looked around, noting the clear, blue sky. A nearby creek flowed past so smoothly, the six could make out their reflections in it. Nothing looked like it did in most other worlds. The shadows looked more realistic than in any of the other places they had visited on this quest. The only other time Sora knew he, Donald, and Goofy had been to such a place was when they had arrived at the fortress in Port Royal.

Indigo knelt down and reached her hand into the brook. She held up a handful of fresh water. She smiled, turning to face Amemi. The sandy-haired teenager was smiling back, her shiny blue eyes glittering a little. The angel turned her attention back to the creek. The sounds of some soft bird chirping from the nearby trees filled the air.

"It is so peaceful here," Indigo reflected. Her antennae remained fixed onto the surrounding foliage. Her wings started to swing back and forth with excitement, creating a miniature breeze. "There is Light all around us."

"Yes, there is," Amemi nodded. She continued to look at her reflection in the water. Her sandy hair seemed a little off to her, so she reached into her jacket's pocket and took out a small, yellow hairbrush. She started to brush her hair, using the water as a natural mirror.

"Hmm," Sora thought aloud, crossing his arms. "This place sure is different."

Donald gave a nod of approval. "Yeah."

Goofy looked all around. "Say, where's Launchpad?"

The group looked around. To their surprise, there was no indication of the duck-pilot in the current vicinity. Sora sighed, knowing what this meant. A search party or two or three.

"C'mon," the brown-haired Keyblade wielder signaled the others. "He couldn't have gotten far."

Donald pounded his fist. "This is the last straw — again!"

Sora started into the nearby woods with Donald and Goofy directly behind him. Amemi saw the others leaving and quickly rose to her feet. "Wait up!" she called.

The nearly-fourteen-year-old girl started to run after them. She halted and turned back. Indigo was still focused on the creek's ecosystem. The angel was lying on her stomach, watching a few butterflies flying by. A bird or two flew overhead. She was smiling so much, it seemed she was mesmerized by the riverside.

Knowing she could not join the others without Indigo, Amemi raced back over and tapped the angel on the shoulder. The angel turned her head to her. "Let's go," the sandy-headed teen declared. "We need to find Launchpad."

Indigo swiftly clambered to her feet. "So sorry," she apologized, placing her left hand to her head. "I do not know what took place. It felt like there was a hypnotist swinging a yo-yo in front of my eyes."

Amemi had to smile. Although she had not known the angel for very long, she could already detect numerous differences between Indigo and the only other angel she had met, Violet. True, she did know Violet and Indigo were sisters. Still, that did not stop her from wondering why the pair were so different. Other than having similar appearances and being angels, Violet and Indigo were more like counterparts.

Violet was a serious, sometimes strict lady with an extensive vocabulary. Amemi sometimes thought she talked like WordGirl. On October 31ST, she had asked Violet if she knew about the superheroine. When Violet had shook her head and inquired what she meant, the sandy-haired girl and gestured to her costume, which happened to have the same design as her favorite animated character. Since Violet had never heard of such a character, Amemi had then proceeded to show her an episode of the show.

She still wondered if the angel had enjoyed it.

Indigo, on the other hand, was clearly a shyer, easily-excited girl with a strong sense of innocence. In fact, she seemed a lot more fun than Violet was. She remembered how enthusiastic the angel had gotten when Sora had allowed her to join their team. Indigo had flipped through the air and cheered. That two-part story Indigo had told had left Amemi wondering what was going to happen next.

Since Indigo had clearly been to a lot more places than Violet, perhaps she had met WordGirl instead. Of course, she would have to wait until the group returned to Herbie before she could show the angel any of the show's episodes.

The two proceeded along the stream's bank. They caught up with Sora, Donald, and Goofy just on the outside of a small cluster of disorganized apple trees. Amemi stared at the trees. Somehow, this foliage felt familiar. Yet, how was that possible. She had never left her island home, at least not since that fateful night when the Heartless had invaded it.

She hastily shook it aside. "Did you find him?" she asked her brother.

Sora shook his head. "We don't know where he is."

"It's like lookin' for a needle in a haystack," Goofy muttered, leaning against a pile of fallen leaves. He stumbled over and crashed into the stack. Leaves flew everywhere, making quite the greenish mess.

Donald crossed his arms and started to tap his foot. "That's what you get for being clumsy, ya big palooka!"

Indigo's antennae started to twitch. She gasped, seemingly sensed something. "I know where Launchpad is," she declared.

Everyone looked at her. "How do you know?" Sora inquired.

"I sense his Light," Indigo turned and pointed to a long, paved road on the other side of the tree line. "He is standing by a sign along this road."

Sora had the feeling the angel was pointing them into the correct direction. Since she was apparently one of the so-called "Angels of Light", perhaps she could detect Light much easier than he could. And if what Goofy had told him before about Xehanort possibly implanting Darkness into him, he might not be able to trace Light back to its source as easily as he used to. Unless his Keyblade was the reason why he could before.

He started into the direction the angel was pointing. The others quickly followed him through the clump of apple trees and to the road. They turned right and looked down the road. Up ahead was a point where the road split off into a fork. Two roads continued from there. The one on the right led down a sloping cliffside. The other veered off into the distance through some gentle hills and past a few groves of trees.

In the middle of the fork was the unmistakable form of Launchpad. The pilot was staring at a wooden signpost beside a wooden fence that had been constructed along the northern side of the roads. He had a puzzled look on his face and was rubbing his head with his right hand.

"Launchpad!" Donald scolded as the group hurried over. "You shouldn't take off like that!"

Launchpad turned his attention to them. He shrugged and grinned. "Heh, heh! I thought I smelled something delicious."

He sniffed the air. "And I still do."

Sora took a deep breath of air. The not-too-distant scent of seawater filled his nostrils. He knew it anywhere. It was no different than what he smelled back home from anyplace on the islands. Sora knew what this meant. They were near the shore. If only he could hear the sound of the waves from here….

"All I smell is the ocean," Amemi said. Her eyes widened and she nearly jumped back. "The ocean?!"

Goofy strode up to the sign. He used his finger as a pointer, trying to make sense of the somewhat-worn text on it. "'Passy-muh-quack-hoody'," he read in his usual, Goofy-style. He chuckled. "A-Hyuck! Passamaquoddy!"

Everyone (except Launchpad) stared at the knight. Goofy turned around to see their reactions. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"Did you just read that sign right?" Amemi inquired.

Donald shook his head rapidly. "No way! He couldn't have read it right! He can't read!"

"Yes I can," Goofy argued. "I attended college for three years, got my dee-ploma, and went back later ta get me that there college degree."

He looked up into the sky. He put his hands together and leaned his head against them, an enormous grin forming on his face. "And I met muh sweetheart, Sylvia, too."

Indigo had to smile. "I never pictured you with a girlfriend," she admitted. "You always sound like someone who would drive all your friends up a wall through the roof into outer space."

"And he has," Donald grumbled.

Sora had to roll his eyes at the duck's statement. He shifted his head to the right. Down the road to the right was a rather large town. From the looks of it, it was built along the coast. No wonder he could pick up the scent of the sea from up here! It was not too far away.

He turned to the others. "Hey, wanna check out that town?" he asked, gesturing to the not-too-far town.

"Yeah," Goofy nodded.

"Me, too!" Launchpad declared. "And I'm not two years old!"

Donald smacked himself in the face. "Fine!"

Indigo strolled up to Sora. "Is that what your heart is telling us to do?" she asked. She crossed her arms over her chest. "Or is there another reason why you want to explore this world?"

"The first one," Sora hastily pointed out. He gestured for everyone to follow. "C'mon!"

He took off down the road. Goofy and Launchpad were moments behind. Next was Donald. As Indigo started to follow suit, her antennae sensed something off. She looked back. Amemi was staring at the sign. She was glued in place, almost like she was in complete shock about something or other.

Indigo walked over. "Amemi? Are you coming?"

Amemi immediately jerked back to attention. "Huh?"

Indigo pointed down the road. Sora, Goofy, Launchpad, and Donald were already several meters ahead of them and approaching the top of the sloping cliffside.

Amemi nodded. "Yes. Let's go."

The sandy-haired girl took off running after her brother. Indigo stared at her, still wondering what had happened. Had something strange hit the nearly fourteen-year-old teenager? Was there something "special" about this place to her?

She shrugged it all aside. There was no point in letting her mind dwell on such things — especially if it might only cause problems later. She had learned that the hard way a long time ago.

She would not repeat the same mistake twice.

She hurried after the others. Sora, Donald, Goofy, Launchpad, Amemi, and Indigo had arrived in Coastal Town.

---

The paved road led a long way down the cliffside. It winded a little here and there, making for a bit twisty of a road. In fact, it seemed to zigzag its way along. Sora knew why. The cliffs were still steep enough to make it too dangerous to travel straight down the slope. He almost lost his footing at one point, nearly tumbling down the hill.

It was steeper than the infamous Madison Hill. Even so, he had heard there was a steam engine that had successfully pushed full railway cars up that hill. If a train had pulled cars up the hill, some of them could have broken free and rolled the tracks. They could have run off the rails and crashed into the river below.

Fortunately, there was no indication of a river down there. Just a rather large town on the somewhat rocky coastline. A number of long, wooden docks lined the seaside, revealing the town was probably home primarily to fishermen and their families. He saw the steeple of a church rising above much of the community, with an older-style schoolhouse situated near it.

When he looked up to the north, Sora saw a tall, white lighthouse towering on a cliff overlooking the ocean. He wondered what kind of world this was. It almost looked as though they had landed in the state of Maine, USA.

At last, the road smoothed and straightened out. An apple orchard lay to their left as they proceeded down lower and lower.

MUNCH! MUNCH! Sora nearly stopped to look back. Instead, he looked over his shoulder. Goofy had plucked a red, juicy apple from a tree's overhanging branch and was eating away at it. He rolled his eyes and continued down the road.

Something small bonked him on the head. He rubbed it before looking down at the road. To his surprise, a little trinket had seemingly fallen from an apple tree. It was in the shape of a law enforcement's badge with a blue-and-black color scheme. The letters "ZPD" were marked across it. On the other side was a thick, orange carrot. The item glistened in the sunlight above.

Sora's eyes widened. Had he just received another "Summon" (as Merlin tended to call them)? He shrugged and put the item away in his pocket.

The group strolled into the town. One look at the architecture, and Sora thought it looked like something straight out of a town from the early 20TH Century. The building's shape and style reminded him of some older houses back home — the ones where some of the island's oldest residents lived. Many of them had white trim and matching walls. The roofs for most of them were either black, grey, or gray. His mind stopped. Had he just thought the same thing twice?

Shoving the unnecessary contemplation aside, the brown-haired youth continued to lead his companions down the road. Only now, the pavement had stopped short. Below them was a dirt roadway with some sand and gravel in places.

As they strolled down the street, Goofy grabbed a stick and started running down the length of a fence. "A-Hyuck!" he chuckled to himself.

The team was several steps away before the fence suddenly collapsed onto the ground. The owner of the house saw their fence crumble and stared into the street. Sora's team then continued past a section of sidewalk where some workmen were adding additional concrete squares. Launchpad was not watching where he was going and casually stepped into the wet cement. Three workmen stared at him in complete surprise.

Before long, Sora, Donald, Goofy, Launchpad, Amemi, and Indigo arrived in the town's square. People were milling about calmly. It seemed everybody was busy doing their own thing. Dockworkers were loading and unloading fishing boats. Fishermen were gathering their supplies and preparing to sail set. A carpenter passed the six as he carried a few large boards down the street, turning just slightly to notice their presence.

"What a weird town," Sora muttered. The local citizens' distant attitude reminded him of how everyone had been when he had first arrived in Traverse Town. Until the Heartless had appeared in the middle of the First District, Sora had been ignored by almost everyone.

Only a young woman about ten years older than him had taken notice. He remembered her quite vividly. She had possessed long, blonde hair, a flaming-red evening dress, and long, scarlet fingernails. Her hair had been so long, it had shrouded out her eyes. He also recalled her holding some kind of long, cigarette-like thingy. When she had offered to show him around, Sora had refused. That was when the Heartless had attacked her and stolen her heart. He was still unsure as to what had become of her. All he did know was that had been when he had dashed into the Accessory Shop to hide and first met the pilot, Cid Highwind. Everything after that had just gone from there.

This place was no different.

The group strolled by a large, red building. Sora knew it was not a fire station. There was no brass bell on the roof, not to mention no type of fire engine present. Rather, it resembled the town hall back on the islands. A small flight of white steps led up to the front of the building.

As Sora led his teammates past, Goofy turned his head to a few people coming out of the town hall. One of them was a tall, older man with graying hair and wearing a nice, brownish suit with a red tie and tannish hat. He had a cigar in his mouth and was talking to some other older men who, as it just so happened, were also decked out in nice business suits.

"Gentlemen, I propose to say," the man with the cigar declared. "Passamaquoddy's a beautiful community… where the Sun always rises and the Sun always sets."

"A-Hyuck!" Goofy chuckled, pointing at the first man. "Snazzy!"

Sora turned his head to see what the knight was referring to. He stopped short, now having a feeling the man looked familiar. He had stopped so suddenly, Donald and Launchpad banged into him. Amemi was next, followed by Indigo. Goofy whirled his head around in time to see the group lying on the ground in a pile. "Gawrsh," was all he could say.

A passing man stumbled over the anthropomorphic dog's big, armor-plated shoes. He lost his balance, causing the stack of egg crates in his hands to lean each and every way.

"It's a place of serenity and security, where the unexpected never happens," the man in the tannish hat added as he reached the bottom of the white steps.

The man with the egg crates struggled to regain control of his wares, only to have them tip farther and farther. He was so focused on keeping them upright, he failed to see where he was heading. He crashed straight into the man on the steps, splattering eggs all over the place.

"You, you absolute oaf," the man with the cigar scolded, tossing the toppled egg crates aside. "You, you idiot!"

"Look," the egg-man stated. He pointed at Goofy. "It was him who tripped me."

By the time Sora, Donald, Launchpad, Amemi, and Indigo had risen back to their feet, a group of people were gathering around them and Goofy alike. Another man came running over and pointed straight at Launchpad. "He walked through my cement with his big feet," the man accused.

That was when Sora noticed the pilot's brownish feet were covered in hardening cement. It was not long before Donald grabbed Launchpad's scarf and started to scold him, again.

The man with the tannish hat and now-egg-messy brownish suit came marching up to the six. He removed the cigar from his mouth, yoke dripping from the end of it. "We-Well, which one is this person?"

Sora stared at the man in surprise. No wonder he thought this guy seemed familiar. He looked just like an older version of the millionaire from that classic show he used to watch all the time. The one about those seven people who got shipwrecked on the deserted island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. He wondered how this was possible.

The two men from before pointed at Goofy and Launchpad respectfully. "There they are!"

The man in the tannish hat placed the cigar back in his mouth. "Well, detain them. Detain them."

Sora sighed. "Look, we don't want any trouble," he said, trying to smile at the unforeseen accidents. "We're just passing through, and…. "

"And we're friends of the lighthouse keeper," Amemi blurted.

Several the people started to laugh. The man in the tannish hat held out his hands. He approached the group and extended his hand. Sora took it. The two shook hands. "I apologize for the rash assumptions," he said. "I'm the mayor of Passamaquoddy, Mayor Thurston Howell, II."

"Gawrsh," Goofy said. "Do ya know Thurston Howell, III? He's a mill-lee-on-air!"

"My son?" the Mayor asked. "I haven't heard from him in years. He and his wife went out on a little sight-seeing cruise and they never came back. Everyone believes the small boat went down in the storm."

Goofy stared in astonishment. "A-Hyuck!"

"Oh, please!" someone in the crowd scoffed. "Those guys probably never saw the dragon anyway."

Sora's ears perked up. "Huh?" he said in surprise.

Mayor Howell chuckled. "It's another one of those practical jokes," he assured them. "Lampy's been talking about a dragon for the second time since I was re-elected."

Donald scowled. "That isn't funny."

The crowd of people dispersed. The egg-man started to gather up what was left of his prize-winning eggs. He continued to scowl towards Goofy while he left with the now-empty crates of dozens of eggshells.

Judging by the looks on everyone's faces, Sora wondered what this whole "dragon" thing was all about. Whoever this "Lampy" was, they probably had not seen such a mythological creature as a dragon. Maybe it had been a wandering Heartless.

His mind stopped short. A Heartless? Maybe a Heartless dragon? Recollecting all the times the Heartless had caused trouble on this quest, he had the feeling this was no dissimilar. In fact, he had already encountered one major Heartless on this quest so far — the Wargoyle Heartless Frollo, Pete, and the Beagle Boys had been controlling. Perhaps another member of Maleficent's Council was manipulating a Heartless dragon somewhere in this world. Hopefully, that was not the case.

Still, he wanted to check to be certain.

He glanced at his companions. Donald's eyes were rolling around. Launchpad and Goofy were exchanging looks of puzzlement and shrugging. Indigo had a nervous look on her face; her arms were tucked in, her wings were moving slowly, and her antennae were moving around at a steady pace like a security camera trying to search for possible intruders.

That was when Sora saw Amemi. Her eyes were wide and alert and her mouth was open. Her reaction reminded him of Riku when he, Riku, and Violet had first arrived in the then-Sleeping World of Camelot. It had turned out, Riku had recognized the world because he had been there during his time with Maleficent, and he had witnessed the world being attacked by the Heartless and lost to the Darkness. He wondered if his sister thought there was something déjà vu about this place.

He turned his attention back to the Mayor. "Where has this 'dragon' been seen?" he questioned.

"You will have to see Lampy about that," Mayor Howell replied. "He's the local lighthouse keeper. Now, I have a council board meeting to attend."

The Mayor headed back into the town hall. Sora and his friends stood outside, a tiny bit of shock still rushing through them. Sora shook it off, knowing that if there was a Heartless dragon running loose here, he needed to eradicate it with his Keyblade before Maleficent and the others aligned with her could use it for their own dark purposes.

The brown, spikey-haired youth turned to the others and signaled for them to follow. "C'mon," he instructed. "Let's go see this guy, Lampy."

Donald, Goofy, Launchpad, and Indigo were directly behind him. It took a few moments before Amemi joined them. As she hurried to catch up, the sandy-haired girl closed the small, golden locket in her hand and put it back in her green purse. Since Goofy had recovered the item from inside Herbie's trunk, she had made certain no one could take it from here again. From now on, she would keep her purse strapped around her shoulders. And she did.

---

The Sun was starting to set by the time Sora, Donald, Goofy, Launchpad, Amemi, and Indigo all arrived at a lonely lighthouse on the outskirts of town. The older building was located on a high, rocky point overlooking the ocean. Its white paint was peeling away, leaving small areas of wood colorless. The top of the lighthouse contained the signature beacon with a blood-red landing extending around it. The peaked roof was also a blood-red color. Beside the towering structure was a small house with a faded blue color. A few lights were shining from the inside of the house.

Sora instantly recognized the spot. He had seen it from a distance while observing the town from the wild apple orchards. Only now that he was looking at it up close, he also took note of the number above the front doorway for the lighthouse. He wondered if there was any significance about that number.

Goofy and Launchpad casually walked over to an enormous contraption that was shaped like a giant megaphone. Sora knew what it was, mainly since he had seen it at the old lighthouses back home on the islands. It was an old-fashioned foghorn.

He strode over to the front door and raised his fist to knock on the wooden entrance. He paused, catching a glimpse of Amemi hiding behind Indigo. He turned towards his sister. "Hey, what is it?" he asked.

Amemi poked her head out over the angel's shoulder. She looked a little nervous. Sora felt his eyes narrowing in suspicion. It was not like the sandy-haired girl to behave so uncomfortably in a place by the sea. She had always loved exploring lighthouses, even if they were empty now. Once, she had spent twenty long minutes asking their Mom many questions about how such a place would have worked.

Yet, here she was, acting almost terrified of the building. He started to wonder what had gotten into her. His mind jumped back to when Amemi had said something about a dream involving a lighthouse. Since there were no functioning lighthouses anymore on the Destiny Islands, he started to question if this particular lighthouse before them had been the one from her dream.

Had she had some type of vision? That would not surprise him, considering he might have had some of his own here and there. One such case had been when Kairi's heart had seemingly contacted him while he was waiting in Traverse Town with Donald and Goofy; Cid had been working on the Gummi Ship, adding the newest Navigation-Gummi to it.

Now he was curious as to why his own sister would be having visions.

He shrugged it aside and rapped on the door loud enough for anyone inside to hear. After a few minutes, the door opened. A young woman answered. She was a slender individual with curly, long, brown hair that was kept in a ponytail. She was wearing the style of clothing Sora expected from someone living in the 1920s. Or was it the 1900s? He was still unsure.

"What are you doing here?" the woman asked.

"We're looking for the lighthouse keeper," Sora explained. "The mayor told us he knows something about this 'dragon' everyone's talking about."

"And I still say it's a Heartless," Donald stated.

Goofy and Launchpad strolled back over to the others. They stopped when they saw the woman

The woman gazed at the six a little more closely. Sora had the feeling she was (possibly) considering Launchpad and Donald's duck-like appearances, Goofy's dog-ish likeness, and Indigo's similarity to a butterfly's design. "You're not from Passamaquoddy, are you?" she said at last.

Sora shook his head. "No. We're… from someplace far, far away."

"You mean you're traveling?"

"Yeah! That's it!"

"Where are you parents?" the woman looked over the group. Sora had the feeling she had noticed he was not eighteen years old, yet. "Where are you saying?"

Silence followed. The woman looked a little more concerned. "What are you names?"

"Sora," Sora introduced.

"Donald," Donald waved.

"Name's Goofy," Goofy grinned.

Launchpad strode forward. "The name's Launchpad McQuack! If it's got wings, I can crash it!"

Donald grumbled under his breath at hearing the pilot's introduction, again.

"My name is Indigo," Indigo said, a shy smile showing on her face. Her antennae slouched a little and her hands hovered above her chest. Her wings moved very steadily as though on a steady beat.

Sora gestured to the sandy-haired teenager behind the angel. "And that's my sister, Amy."

"Amemi," Amemi spoke up, stepping away from Indigo. "'Amy' is my nickname."

The woman seemed to nod into the direction of Amemi. "I'm Nora," she said. "And I have to get back on watch, up in the lighthouse. There's chowder on the stove, if you'd like some."

"Yum!" Goofy licked his lips.

Nora smiled. "You can finish that chowder… if you'd like."

"Yes, ma'am!" Launchpad declared with delight.

Sora shrugged and gave a nod of his own. Nora stood to one side, allowing the group to stroll into the lighthouse. Sora and the others were a bit surprised at how small the inside of the building was. To Goofy and Launchpad's disappointment, there was no chowder in sight. There was no stove. Not even a kitchen.

Just a cylindrical space with a spiral staircase leading up to the top of the lighthouse.

Nora pointed to a nearby doorway. "The kitchen's through there. If I had known we'd be getting lots of visitors tonight, I would have made more chowder."

Goofy, Launchpad, Donald, and Amemi went through the doorway rather quickly. Indigo stopped and turned to Nora. "Who else has stopped by here?" she inquired.

Nora led her and Sora into the next room. To Sora's astonishment, a young boy sporting light-brown hair was seated at a small, circular table. He was slowly eating a bowl of calm chowder. "This is Pete," Nora informed the others. "I found him down in a cave an hour ago."

Sora smiled. "It's nice to meet you, Pete!"

Pete gazed at the brown-haired young man. He did not return the greeting. Goofy and Launchpad were gathered around a small, black, cast-iron stove. "A-Hyuck!" Goofy remarked. "Clam-y!"

Donald plopped down on a wooden stool, a bowl of chowder before him. "Oh boy! Oh boy! Oh boy!"

Amemi took a seat next to Pete. Indigo took the chair on the other side of the boy. Sora found himself sitting on a wooden stool to Indigo's left. He watched as the angel ate her food. She slurped it up from the spoon, a few drops landing on the table and her right sleeve. A piece of broth splattered onto the table, just missing the seventeen-year-old Keyblade wielder. He also saw she did not have a napkin to wipe her face. Instead, she was using her right sleeve, most-likely because the spoon was in her left hand.

This sight completely surprised Sora. Indigo's eating habits were not as clean as Violet's so-called "etiquette" rules. He tried to imagine what it would be like if the two sisters were to have lunch together. The idea of Violet scolding Indigo for not having much manners made him smile brighter and brighter.

Over the next few minutes, Nora introduced Pete to Sora, Donald, Goofy, Launchpad, Amemi, and Indigo. For some reason, the light-brown-haired boy seemed to take a liking to Donald, Goofy, and Launchpad. He was smiling at them.

"How did you get here?" Amemi asked. Sora and the others nodded.

"I was adopted by the Gogans," Pete explained. "The Gogans own me, I guess. They said it was against the law for me to ever leave them."

Indigo stopped eating long enough to point at the boy's forehead. "You have a terrible bruise," she indicated. "How did you get it?"

"Mr. Gogan. I was milking the cow, and I missed the bucket."

Nora's eyes lit up. "Had he done that before?"

"All the time," Pete admitted. "The first time I ran away, the orphan home sent me back. This time, I'll just keep running."

Amemi gasped. "Then, you keep doing it."

Indigo looked angry. Her antennae started to twist up and her wings started to flap faster. She banged her left fist on the table, causing everything on it to shake for a moment or four. "They had absolutely no right to treat you so terribly!" the angel snapped.

Sora was a little startled when he heard this. Since when had Indigo gotten so outraged? Oh, yeah! She had practically turned on him while the two had been searching for a route around a closed doorway in that underground passage. That mining tunnel. He still was not sure what had gotten into the angel, although he had not ruled out Xehanort's meddling as a possibility for Indigo suddenly becoming hostile.

That aside, his mind went over to what Amemi and Pete had said. He could not believe the sandy-haired girl was encouraging Pete to remain on the run. Had she not learned her lesson ten years ago? He recalled the time his sister had ran away from home herself. She had later claimed she was going to leave for other worlds. If their parents had not intervened and found her, she might have drowned when the small sailboat she had taken from the dock had sank half a mile away from the main island.

Ever since, he had always wondered if running away from a situation truly was a good idea. As for Pete's case, he was trying to escape a foster family who abused him. From the sounds of things, they treated him no different than if he was a slave. No wonder Indigo had been so angered by such a backstory! Living a life in fear of being clobbered for making a tiny mistake would make anybody consider fleeing an alternative.

He remembered learning how many people who had been born slaves had run away from their masters long before the American Civil War. Some had made it all the way to freedom. Others did not. In the end, the war ended the concept of slavery in the United States of America forever.

True, Sora was still unsure why Mr. Valiance had been teaching such historical topics about a nation they did not live in. Perhaps, some questions about such would never receive answers. Whatever the reason behind it, he knew such unrelated topics had been the reason why he had gotten a zero percent final grade at the end of the class.

"Well, you'll be safe here," Nora assured the boy.

"Yeah," Sora affirmed. He rose to his feet and reached out his arm, allowing his Keyblade to appear in his hand. He twirled the weapon around a few times before positioning it on his shoulder. "If these 'Gogans' try to take you away from here, they'll have to deal with us!"

Pete seemed to smile at the spikey-headed young man. "No one's ever been this nice to me. I'll always remember it."

"Why don't you all sleep here tonight?" Nora offered. "We'll figure out what to do tomorrow. Okay?"

Pete nodded. Amemi smiled. "That's good to know," she said in turn.

"Wonderful," Nora approved. "I've got work to do."

She started for the doorway. Sora looked around, exchanging puzzled looks with his teammates — except for Amemi. The sandy-haired teenager seemed a little nervous.

"Are you anybody's mother?" Pete asked.

Nora stopped in her tracks and smiled. "I'm not even anybody's wife."

"But you're gonna get married now, aren't you?"

Nora scoffed. "I'm already married to this lighthouse."

Launchpad chuckled. "I wonder what this place's vows were?" he murmured aloud.

Donald smacked himself in the face. "Oh, brother…. !"

Goofy looked around. A portrait of a handsome young man with a mustache and a sailor's uniform caught his eye. "Say, who's this?" he asked. "Is he related to thuh lighthouse?"

Amemi crossed her arms. "That doesn't make sense," she pointed out.

Donald gave a nod. "Yeah… !"

Nora grinned. "Paul."

Goofy blinked twice, eyeing the portrait closely. "A-Hyuck!"

"Is he your boyfriend?" Amemi asked.

She winked at Sora. Sora had to sigh, knowing his sister was referring to his friendship with Kairi. Even if something serious had been developing between him and the auburn-haired girl, he refused to let it cloud up his mind. After all, all she had ever done to show it was a small peck on the cheek. Like a bird kissing him.

Nothing serious about that!

"Is he a part of your family?" Pete asked, rephrasing Amemi's query.

Nora sighed. "He almost was."

"How is that possible?" Launchpad asked. "You can't almost be part of a family. Either you are a part, or not, but I hope your part isn't twisty and covered in axle grease."

"We were going to be married," Nora told them.

Sora's eyes grew wide. "What happened?" he asked, suddenly feeling a little curious. This tended to happen whenever he met someone new in another world. If they had problems of their own, he wanted to help them out — anyway he could.

Nora looked up at the low ceiling. "Well, as far as we know, his ship was headed for a storm. They were never heard from again. That was a year ago."

Through his peripheral vision, Sora saw Amemi give a nod. She looked down at the floor and closed her eyes. For a brief moment, he thought he saw a tear sliding down her face.

Indigo rose from her seat and approached the young woman. She put her left hand onto the latter's shoulder. "He shall return," she said, a friendly smile showing on her face. "I know he shall."

Nora seemed to smile, for a couple seconds anyway. "I tell myself the same thing every day, standing up there watching for ships on the horizon," she sighed deeply. "Time I should be thinking of other things, so they tell me."

"I'll have to ask Elliott about Paul," Pete said. "He has a way of knowing things."

Everyone spun their attention to the young boy. "Who's 'Elliott'?

"My dragon."

Sora's eyes lit up. "Did you say, 'dragon'?!"

"The Heartless dragon!" Donald screeched. He drew his wand. "I'll show him!"

Everyone ignored the duck's outburst. "So you're the boy with the dragon," Nora realized.

Pete nodded. "Yup."

Jiminy poked his head out of Sora's hoodie, his journal open. A pair of small glasses were on his face. "Where is Elliott?" the cricket inquired.

"Yeah," Sora nodded in agreement. "Where is he?"

Pete pointed down below. "Down in the cave."

Launchpad now had a somewhat-wild look in his eyes. "I've always wanted to ride a dragon!" he proclaimed. "It's one of the few things I still have to crash to be the first to break the 'All-Crashes' record!"

Donald fainted. His chair fell backwards onto the floor, banging hard against the floor.

Pete sighed. "It's not easy. Nobody believes me, except for you."

Sora had to smile. "I've heard lots of stories, but this one seemed more real to me every second."

"But it's still interesting," Nora nodded. "I've never known anyone with a dragon."

"What does he look like?" Indigo asked, crossing her arms.

Pete shrugged. "Just a plain, ordinary dragon."

"How plain?" Goofy asked.

"How ordinary?" Donald added.

As Pete started to give a description, Sora thought he heard a faint musical melody playing in the background. "He has the head of a camel, the neck of a crocodile."

"It sounds rather strange," Nora remarked.

"Yeah," Donald rolled his eyes. "Because it's a Heartless dragon."

"He's both a fish and a mammal," Pete went on. "And I hope he'll never change, 'cause it's not easy to find someone who cares."

"It's not easy to find magic in pairs," Nora agreed.

"I'm glad that I found him. I love him. I won't let him get away, 'cause it's not easy."

Nora paused for a moment. "You say the head of a camel, the neck of a crocodile…. "

"And the ears of a cow!" Pete quickly added.

Nora smiled. "It's clear that friends can be different. Yes, I understand you now."

The two started off together. "It's not easy to find someone who cares. It's not easy to find magic in pairs."

"Now that you have him," Nora said. "Hold him. Treasure him from day to day. It's so easy."

Indigo smiled and unfolded her arms. She stepped close to the two. "I know what you mean," she said. Within seconds, she was engulfed in whatever the two had been singing (if you could call it "singing" — like Sora did). "Life is lollipops and rainbows with the one you love. Someone you can always be with, argue ad agree with."

"Climb the highest tree with," Pete pinpointed.

The three of them were now chanting — or singing — or whatever it was called — together. "It is not easy to share somebody's dream. It gets easy when you work as a team."

"You've got to tend it, fan it," Nora said in a "solo act".

"That's what I plan to do," Pete said. He started for the door where Nora was standing. He turned to face everyone else. "Oh, I had one friend by my side. Now I have more than two. Him and all of you."

Nora placed her hand close to her heart. "Him and me."

Indigo gave a brilliant smile. It seemed she was about to leap into the air and flip several times before shouting, "Yippee!" It was a good thing she did not. If she had, she would have bumped her head on the ceiling. "And it is so easy," she said.

Nora led Pete out the door and up some stairs to the next floor. Sora looked out the nearest window. The moon could be seen hovering high above the rather calm ocean.

"What're we going to do now?" he asked, turning to face his team members. Everyone was gathered in the room, standing or sitting around/at the table.

Amemi smiled. "Tomorrow, could Indigo and I do a little shopping around the town?" she inquired.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy immediately stared at her in complete shock. Indigo was startled. The sandy-haired young woman swung her head around at them. "What did I say?" she questioned.

"You want to… 'go shopping' with me?" Indigo asked. Her antennae were trained onto the nearly-fourteen-year-old girl. She placed her right hand against her cheek and smiled. "What does that mean?"

Amemi was bit astonished. "Huh? You've never been shopping?"

Indigo shrugged. "I have never heard of this 'shopping' activity you are talking about. All I have ever done is try to protect the worlds from the Darkness. I have fought stronger enemies than the Heartless around now. Yet, I had never seen such determined creatures until nearly ten years ago."

She turned to Sora. "That is in your 'human years' — not angelic years."

Sora crossed his arms. "I'm not sure what the difference is," he admitted. "But I am sure not it's a good idea to go outside until we know what we're up against."

"What do ya mean?" Goofy inquired, perplexity evident on his face.

"I want to know more about this dragon, Elliott."

"We heard what Pete told us," Amemi indicated. "What more do you want to know?"

"How do we know he hasn't been turned into a Heartless?" Sora stated. "Like the dragon from Mulan's world?"

He turned to Donald and Goofy. "Remember?"

"Yeah," Donald scowled.

"That was one, ugly Heartless," Goofy commented. "I fell off it after two minutes of fightin'."

Amemi smiled. "I remember you said you fought a dragon Heartless," she pointed out. "But I doubt Elliott is anything like the Heartless."

"How do you know?" Sora questioned. "It's not like you've seen him before."

His sister slouched in her chair, a scowl showing on her face. "I'm going to bed," she decided, rising from the chair and heading for the stairs.

"Gawrsh," Goofy muttered. He turned his attention to Sora. "Are ya sure there's trouble goin' on? We ain't seen no Heartless in this here world."

"I hate to agree with Goofy," Donald said. "But he's right. There aren't any Heartless here."

Sora paused in thought. Why would his Keyblade have led him to his world if there were no Heartless roaming about? Up until now, every world had been practically overflowing with the violent creatures of Darkness. This was the first one without them. Why? It just did not make sense to him.

"Something fishy's going on," he softly told himself.

Launchpad yawned and stretched. "Unless someone wants to deal a few hands on this old poker table, I'm gonna crash myself to sleep."

The duck-pilot headed out the door and up the stairs. At one point, a loud CRASH filled their ears. "I meant to stumble on these steps," came the pilot's voice from the corridor leading up.

Sora sighed. "This doesn't make any sense," he said out loud.

Indigo stepped over to where the brown, spikey-headed youth was rocking his brain. "I can tell you do not know where to start this investigating," she said. "Yet, you need to understand, there are some things not even the human mind — let alone an angel's mind — can comprehend."

"Why not?" Donald asked.

"Yer thinkin' too much," Goofy grinned before Indigo could open her mouth.

Sora had to smile at his friend's words. "Yeah, you're right."

He yawned and stretched himself. "Man, I'm tired. Let's worry about this tomorrow."

He rose from his chair and headed for the stairs. Donald and Goofy were directly behind him. Indigo stayed in the room. When the knight was about to head up the stairs, he looked back. "Are ya comin'?" he asked.

Indigo shook her head. "I think I shall stay here for a little while," she told him. "Angels do not really need sleep."

She paused. "Unless we lose our memory. Then, and only then, can we become like anyone else."

Goofy stared at her for a moment, seemingly absorbing all this information. He grinned and waved. "A-Hyuck! G'night!"

He flipped the switch on his way upstairs. Indigo was alone in the room. Her glow illuminated enough of the space that she did not have to worry about tripping or stumbling over anything the dark. She took a deep breath and strolled over to the nearby window. She looked out into the night sky.

The stars were shining quite brightly for being so early in the nighttime hours. The nearby clock hanging on the wall indicated the time was, "9:12". Indigo opened the window and looked outside. She could see the light of the crescent moon reflecting off the sea's ripples. The view was a pleasant sight to see.

She placed her head onto her crossed arms and leaned against the windowsill. Her antennae seemed to fall at a gradual rate. Her eyes started to water. "Teal, if you are still out there, I want to know I am doing alright," she said in a soft voice. "And, I believe Violet is doing well, too."

There was no response. Just the distant twinkling of the stars and the sound of the waves far below the cliffsides.

---

The town was quiet. Not a single songbird was playing. It was too late for the birds anyway. Now that the Sun had finished setting, it was rather peaceful. Almost to the point of being completely serene with the not-too-distant sound of waves filling the heads of all who heard it.

Or it would have remained that way had there not been a wooden trailer rushing down the street. "Doc Terminus is comin'!" a man yelled in alarm.

People scattered out of the way as the wagon rolled down the street. A huge sail pushed it along so rapidly, if anyone had stumbled and been unlucky enough to get run over, the wheels could have crushed their arms and legs in a matter of half-a-second. The vehicle's design resembled a carnival wagon with lots of bright colors and large, painted words.

Four individuals were situated on it. One of them was a tall, slender man sporting black, curly hair, blue eyes, and a handlebar mustache complete with goatee. He was dressed entirely in black clothing with a matching cape. Thanks to the top hat on his head, he resembled a magician.

Another one of the new arrivals was a tall, anthropomorphic mouse with a long snout. He was decked out in a light-blue sweater and tan pants with flat, dark-gray shoes to boot.

The third individual looked like an anthropomorphic duck with short, black hair sporting periwinkle-colored patches along with a pink flower, light-blue eyes with purplish eyelids, and a tiny pimple on her right cheek beneath her right eye. Her outfit consisted of a dark-magenta, kimono-shaped dress with long sleeves. It was fastened by faded-orange buttons in the shape of the capital letter "Y". She also had black high-heeled shoes. What stood out the most was how her eyes were half-closed.

The last individual was clinging onto the sail. He was a short, slender man with red hair. He was using his hand to keep his bowler hat on his head; his nice, gray suit would not be complete without it.

It was Mortimer Mouse, Cinnamon Teal, and Dr. Terminus. The three had entered this world after traveling through a dark portal. They had quickly come across Terminus's assistant, Hoagy, and used the pair of conmen's vehicle to flee from some advancing policemen on horses.

"Are they still after us?" Terminus asked.

Hoagy glanced back. "We lost 'em," he announced.

"Good," Cinnamon Teal said. "We don't need any more trouble here."

"Ha cha cha," Mortimer chuckled. "Pete would never have made it past them. He's too much of a coward."

Hoagy pointed straight ahead. "Passamaquoddy ahead, ahoy!"

Terminus jerked his head to look at his assistant. "What?"

"Pass-a-ma-quoddy ahead, ahoy!" Hoagy repeated.

Terminus turned his eyes back to the road ahead. He gripped the wagon's steering wheel as tightly as he could, swerving as they raced through the town's darkened streets. "Oh, no."

"Oh, yes," Hoagy declared, still hanging onto his hat.

The wagon charged down the main street. Several dogs started barking as they rolled on by. The lights went on in several houses. People came outside to see what all the ruckus was about.

"Slow down!" Cinnamon Teal called. "We will hit someone!"

"We caught a stiff wind," Hoagy informed her. "The sail's out-of-control."

"Do it!" Mortimer snapped. "I'm not spending the rest of this mission in a jail cell!"

Terminus swerved to avoid an older woman in the street. The wagon rammed into a nice, white fence, smashing the fenceposts into splinters. The man of the house behind it gasped when he saw the damage from his second-story window. "My fence!" he yelled in shock. "That does it! I'm moving to California!"

The wagon rushed into the town square. Terminus tried to keep control, but the wind was blowing too hard. It was moving the contraption straight for the dockyards. Fearing the worse, he turned to Hoagy. "Throw out the anchor!"

Hoagy reached behind him and grabbed the rusty, barnacle-covered anchor. He recalled when he and Terminus had swiped the item from a beached sailboat months ago. With a gentle heave-ho, he hurled the anchor off the wagon. It snagged onto some wooden, white stairs and pulled the steps away from the town hall. The stairs later got caught onto a nearby tree's wide trunk. The wagon immediately came to a halt.

The sudden stopping caused Dr. Terminus, Hoagy, Mortimer, and Cinnamon Teal to all go flying into a fishing net that had been left out to dry overnight. It also caused the various compartments in the wagon to open up, revealing numerous colorful displays and advertisements for remedies, potions, phoenix downs, and elixirs, among other cures.

Terminus turned to Hoagy. "What did you do?"

"You told me to throw out the anchor," Hoagy told him. "I threw out the anchor."

"This is humiliating," Mortimer grumbled. "I hope Maleficent is not watching us right now."

The four slid down the net to the ground below. As they rose to their feet, the group discovered the townspeople were starting to gather around them. None of them were smiling. They were either frowning or scowling.

Terminus eyed the people from a distance. "I think they remember us."

"Uh-oh," Hoagy gulped. "I think I remember them."

"Just act normal."

Hoagy was shaking in place. "I am acting normal. I'm ready to run."

Cinnamon Teal turned to the pair of conmen. "You have been here before?"

Hoagy gave a short nod. "Yes."

"Quick, what's the name of this town again?" Dr. Terminus asked.

Mortimer nudged him. "Passamaquoddy," he frowned.

"'Quassama' what?"

"Passamaquoddy!" Hoagy whimpered.

Terminus nodded. "Got it."

He strode forward, a large smile showing on his face. He held out his arms, his black cane with the gold handle wrapped on his wrist. "How wonderful to see your smiling faces again. All of you."

He led the others to the wagon and hopped onto the stage. "I-I've never known such warmth," he went on. "Such welcome, such loving hospitality."

"Get out, ya quack!" someone shouted.

"And don't bring those phony remedies here again," a fisherman shouted from the front of the crowd.

"Go on back where you belong," a woman hollered. "Jail."

It was not long before the people were booing loudly. Mortimer gulped. Perhaps it had been a mistake requesting Maleficent give him a second chance in this world. All of these people seemed ready to cause a major riot at any second. He did not like it. Not one bit.

Dr. Terminus did not show any signs of panic. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," he said aloud, remaining as calm as he could. "I sense enthusiasm. I sense loving response. And that's why I feel that this is my home… away from home."

He held out his cane and started to dance a little upon the stage. "I've been bringing cures from Pilgrim Heights to Provincetown. Treated rabid fever down on Queen Anne Road. Gout or gastritis, mumps or bronchitis, bites and burns and blue abrasions. Got a pill for all occasions."

He stopped and swept his eyes across the crowd. "Little Sipowissot was so nice to visit, and Scraggy Neck is lovely to recall."

Mortimer was a little surprised. He had never known Dr. Terminus had been to so many different places. As far as he was concerned, this had been the only town the conman had been to before.

A rather large woman stepped forward. "I took you drug for losing weight, and now I'm a blob."

"But now there's so much more of you to love," Terminus countered-argued. He returned his focus to the others in the crowd. "I wiped out impetigo on the banks of Buttermilk. Flu is under firm control in Powder Hole."

Hoagy handed the taller man a container of something or other. "Terminus potions," the doctor continued. "Tablets and lotions. Major news in modern science. Step up now and join my clients. Spent a day in Buzzard's Bay. They couldn't keep me there. Even turned away from Kingdom Hall."

"They probably threw you out," a young man shouted.

Mortimer had to laugh. "Ha cha cha!"

An older man stomped forward. "My hair was gray," he snarled. He pulled off his hat, revealing his pinkish-hair. "And thanks to you, it turned into pink!"

Terminus gave a nervous grin. "But that color. It's so becoming."

The man gnashed his teeth. The townspeople started for the stage. "We're gonna wash your phony tonics right down the sink!" they all yelled in unison.

Mortimer and Cinnamon Teal quickly found themselves stepping back into each other. They both knew a riot was about to take place.

"Wait. Listen," Terminus declared. "My specialties are audiology, mycology, serology, teratology, embryology, psychology, zoology — and any other 'ology' you can think of!"

The crowd kept coming. "My friends, you're not giving me a chance!" Terminus added. "I brought all these medicines back from Paris. France!"

The crowd kept coming. Two men were starting to clamber onto the stage. Mortimer gulped, certain his second chance had just gone down the drain — just like all of Doctor Terminus's potions and such were going to be in a matter of moments.

Cinnamon Teal clenched her fists and marched forwards. She opened her eyes all the way and stared at the crowd, making sure she had everyone's attention. "Look into my eyes!"

The townspeople stopped moving in an instant. Seizing this moment of silence as a golden opportunity, Doctor Terminus smiled. "Shamed be he who thinks evil of it," he declared. "And that's what the medical business is all about, folks. People helping people."

He pointed across the crowd, swiping his finger around them. "You should all have help."

"I believe in the Doc," a woman suddenly declared.

"I trust him," a young girl called from the doorsteps of a nearby house.

"I'd put my life in his hands!" proclaimed the man with the pink hair. In no time, people were holding up lots of green, paper money. Dollars. Lots of them.

Terminus gave a somewhat-dark smile. He knew Cinnamon Teal had used her hypnotizing powers on all the townspeople. He need to take advantage of this. "My friends, you've seen a miracle and you'll see many more. People will come pourin' in from land and sea. We'll have centers for testing. Let's start investing."

"Keep that money mounting," Mortimer grinned.

"I'll collect," Hoagy said, accepting several people's money.

"I'll do the counting," Terminus said. "Everyone who lives here will be strong and healthy. You'll be getting richer by the day."

"Hurray!" the crowd cheered.

"Hear them acclaim us," Terminus added, not missing a beat. "This town will be famous! The whole world will look at us and say,…. !"

He paused. Mortimer, Hoagy, and Cinnamon Teal all turned their eyes to the fancy-dressed conman. "It's Pardonmaquassy," Terminus hesitated. "No. Paquamassady, no, no. Passamamassy.

Quadamapoddy. Passamadaddy. Quadampassy. Quadamaddy, Deppadaddy. Depamassy, Quadapassy. Passapassapassaquassa!"

He suddenly lost control and started bawling, unable to pronounce the town's name.

"'Quoddy'," Hoagy whispered into Dr. Terminus's ear.

"Passamaquoddy!" the townspeople all shouted at once.

Dr. Terminus nodded. "I know."

Mortimer rolled his eyes and shook his head. This would go on for a while.

A little ways back, the front door of the town hall opened. Out stepped Mayor Howell and the rest of the town's board. "Since we all concur, gentlemen," the Mayor declared. "I suggest that we adjourn."

He reached out his leg, expecting to set his foot down onto the first step of the stairs leading to the street. Not knowing the mishap with the anchor earlier, he instead tumbled over and fell onto the ground. His cigar got smashed onto the dirt road below. He looked up, only to see Doctor Terminus's wagon in the square, surrounded by dozens of townspeople.

He sighed deeply in annoyance. "When did I start losing control of my town?"

---

The stars were still shining down a few hours later. Indigo was still gazing out the window. She could see the waves on the sea far below. The walls of water were splashing against the rocky cliffs. High tide. That was the reason they had managed to get to this point. Any caves down below might be partly submerged, given the tide was high enough. Judging from the moon above, it would be a few weeks before that time came around again.

With a sigh, Indigo found her vision blurring. Her eyelids slowly closed and her head fell onto her arms, which were still situated on the windowsill. Her antennae dropped down, equally exhausted. Her wings slowed and stopped. They drooped, similar to how a butterfly's might when they were resting.

"Nora," a male voice said from upstairs. "If you bring up the oil can, we'll be ready for the night."

"Sure," Nora's voice said. "But first, I'd like to know more about this 'dragon'."

Indigo opened her eyes and quickly sat up. Realizing she had fallen asleep at the window, she rose to her feet and turned her attention to the stairs. Wondering what was going on, she headed for the steps leading up.

"Pete says his name is 'Elliott'," Nora's voice said.

"No! No, no," the male voice declared. "You and Pete can't bring Elliott up here. Government regulation states that… no dragons shall be allowed… on the premises of the United States' lighthouses."

Indigo found herself looking through the bars of a wooden handrail. There was Nora, sitting at a small desk next to the wall. A tall, slightly large, old man with whitish hair was standing beside her; he was wearing an old-fashioned sailor suit.

"Now," the man said. "Go on down and get the oil so I can mark it up in the log that you did that."

"All right," Nora said. She rose to her feet. She stopped and turned to the man. "Pete said he brought Paul's picture down to 'Elliott'. He said his dragon's going to look for Paul."

She smiled. "Thanks, Dad."

The man seemed surprised. "For what?"

"For making believe about the dragon and going along with it."

Indigo kept her eyes focused on the two. At once a hand grabbed her from behind. She spun around. She relaxed. There was the unmistakably spikey, brown hair that could only belong to Sora. He had a finger to his mouth.

Indigo nodded, returning the same gesture. The two turned to watch the pair in the corridor before them.

"Who's that guy?" Sora asked in a hushed whisper.

"He must be the lighthouse keeper," Indigo answered. "He asked Nora to bring some oil to the lighthouse lamp. Now, they are simply talking about Pete and Elliott."

Sora gave a nod, even though he was completely lost as to what the angel was referring to.

"Making… ?" the man looked surprised.

"It means a lot to Pete," Nora went on. "Sort of a family he made up."

"I'm not making believe," the man declared. "I actually saw it, and I haven't been the same since! Go to the cave. You'd see it too, and your eyes would…. "

He made a popping gesture with his hands, along with a matching sound effect. "Pop right out!"

Nora shook her head. "I was there. I saw nothing! Dad, be realistic."

Her Dad leaned over her shoulder. "Oh, you wanna be realistic. Let's talk about how realistic you are. Here you are, waiting for someone to come back that just ain't gonna come back, Nora. And if waitin' for over a year hasn't told ya nothin', then you're not the one to talk about being realistic, are you?"

Nora looked down and closed her eyes. Her Dad sighed. He gave Nora a heartfelt hug. "Honey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

He turned to leave. "I'm going down to the hardware store."

He walked away. Sora and Indigo watched as the lighthouse keeper strolled down a flight of stairs at the other end of the corridor. They exchanged looks of confusion. When did that staircase go? It did not make sense for it to just lead to nowhere. Then again, the staircase where they were viewing all this was on the opposite end of the house from where it connected to the lighthouse's tower.

Maybe the stairs on the other side led to the inside of the lighthouse itself.

Nora sighed deeply before she rose from her chair. She headed for the other end of the hallway. When she reached the other set of stairs, she headed up.

Sora looked even more puzzled. "I thought he said the oil was downstairs."

Indigo shrugged. She opened her mouth to speak. Her antennae started to point into the direction Nora had gone. Certain this meant something was happening, the angel hopped over the railing and started down the hall.

Seeing his friend seemingly in a trance, Sora rapidly hurried along after her. He waved his hand in her face. "Uh, Indigo?"

Indigo snapped to attention. She turned to Sora, a little irritated. "What?" she questioned.

"You were in a trance," the young man pointed out.

"It was Nora's heart," Indigo stated. "I could sense her Light calling out to another."

"How?" Sora was still unsure what such stuff meant. Now Indigo was talking the way Riku often did. All this stuff about the many ways the heart communicated and… stuff. He was not sure how this universe worked. Whatever the case, he did know there was no way of knowing everything about this world, let alone any world out there.

Everything was always toocomplex. He really wished the world could be a simple place. Unfortunately, things just did not work out that way.

He would never understand anything. School, girls, homework, girls, being ticklish, girls, Kairi. He needed to stop there. All this contemplation was giving him a massive headache.

Indigo headed for the end of the corridor. Sora was hot on her heels. The two stopped when they reached a long, spiral staircase. The steps led both down and up the full length of the tower. They knew this truly was the inside of the lighthouse.

The two glanced at one another and nodded. They had silently agreed to check it out. They hurried up the spiral staircase.

---

They reached the top in no time. Sora and Indigo found themselves standing just inside the lighthouse's beacon. The bright lamp behind them illuminated the surrounding seascape as it gradually spun around. Sora had to shield his eyes from one such turn.

"Where's Nora?" he asked.

Indigo opened a nearby glass door. She looked out and pointed to a spot on the outside railing. "Look over there!"

Sora joined Indigo on the metal landing outside the small chamber. There was Nora, standing on the edge of the railing, gazing out across the ocean. The waves gently crashed against the cliffs below.

"What's she doing?" Sora inquired.

Indigo slapped her left hand across the seventeen-year-old Keyblader's mouth. They both listened in silence as Nora spoke out into the distance. It seemed she was singing,

"I'll be your candle on the water," she said, a beautiful voice echoing in the wind. "My love for you will always burn. I know you're lost and drifting, but the clouds are lifting. Don't give up. You have somewhere to turn."

Sora was awestruck. He looked into the distance. There was no sign of life anywhere in sight. He wondered who the woman was talking about.

"I'll be your candle on the water," Nora continued. "'Till ev'ry wave is warm and bright, my soul is there beside you."

She reached out her hand. "Let this candle guide you. Soon you'll see a golden stream of Light. A cold and friendless tide has found you. Don't let the stormy Darkness pull you down."

She calmly gave herself a hug. "I'll paint a ray of Hope around you, circling in the air… lighted by a prayer."

It suddenly struck Sora what was happening. Nora's heart was calling out to someone. Who that was, he was not sure. Then again, he remembered Nora talking about a guy named "Paul", who had supposedly been lost at sea.

"I'll be your candle on the water," Nora pressed on. "This flame inside of me will grow. Keep holding on. You'll make it. Here's my hand, so take it. Look for me reaching out to show, as sure as rivers flow, I'll never let you go. I'll never let you go."

She took a deep breath. "I'll never let you go…. "

Indigo nodded. "Her heart is calling out to her fiancé," she said, turning to Sora. "She still believes he is still alive."

Sora gave a nod of agreement. He had the feeling Indigo was correct, which was no surprise to him. Violet was the same way.

It was no real astonishment they were both Angels of Light.

---

A/N: THERE YOU HAVE IT! CHAPTER 39 IS COMPLETE!

Now, it is time for the announcement!
COASTAL TOWN is based on Disney's "'PETE'S DRAGON (1977)'"! That is the Original Movie - NOT the Remake from 2016!
Somewhere else in these stories, I might include the newer one. I enjoy both of those movies. They are both innocent, clean-hearted, and fun in their own ways.
However, it shall NOT be This Story!

Let's go over a few things. Shall we?
(1.) Keep your eye on that torn letter! It may very well be at the heart of This Half of This Story!
(2.) Yes, Sora got his hands on a SUMMON CHARM back there! Can you guess what Disney Character it represents? I can give you a hint: it is one of the ones all of you selected in the Poll!
(3.) True, Mayor Howell's actual name in the movie is simply "'The Mayor'". I gave him a new name for This Story. Why? The actor who played that character in the movie was Jim Backus, who also played The Millionaire/Mr. Thurston Howell, III on the classic show, "'GILLIGAN'S ISLAND'"! As far as I can tell, he was the only cast member from "'Gilligan's Island'" to appear in a Disney movie.
(4.) Please let me know if the lighthouse number is correct. I have yet to double-check that fact, so please let me know if I accidentally made a mistake.
(5.) Does Indigo's eating habits remind you of anyone? I might have done that intentionally... Or maybe it was her decision to include that in the story. After all, I am just The Narrator. The characters are doing what they wish. That is how a story works. Correct?
(6.) I know. Some of you have stated complaints about the "'FISH JOKES'" incorporated into This Story. Yet, keep in mind, Sora is from an island. Such comedy is most-likely quite common there. It would just be natural for such word choices to come to his mind. I mean, COME ON! THIS IS SORA!
(7.) I REALLY wanted to include The "'Candle On The Water'" Sequence in there. It IS #4 on my TOP FAVORITE DISNEY SONG(S), after all!

SHEESH! That was a LOT of information to squeeze into such a short amount of space! I do not really have anything else to say.

Okay, I have ONE last thing to say.
So Then, I'll See You Next Time!
In other words, PLEASE DON'T LEAVE WITHOUT REVIEWING! THE FATE OF THIS STORY DEPENDS ON IT!

REMEMBER THIS - A MINIMUM OF 214 IS REQUIRED FOR THE SEQUEL! IF 240 ARE POSTED, I WILL INCLUDE A "SNEAK PEEK" FOR THE SEQUEL ITSELF! HOWEVER, THAT/THOSE GOAL(S) MUST BE MET BY THE TIME THE-SECOND-TO-LAST-CHAPTER IS POSTED! THAT WAY, I WILL HAVE TIME TO ANNOUNCE WHETHER OR NOT EITHER GOAL WAS MET!

This Is SoraLego278 Saying, "See Ya Later, Keybladers!" Plus, "Have A ZIP-A-DEE-DOO-DAH DAY!" In Addition, "FLY WITH YOU ALL LATER!"