DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING EXCEPT THE PLOT AND MY ORIGINAL CHARACTERS!
A/N: CHAPTER 40 HAS ARRIVED! HIP-HIP-HOORAY! HIP-HIP-HOORAY!
SORALEGO278: Welcome Back, Everyone! You are just in time for Chapter 40!
AMEMI HIKARI: (Clears Throat)
SORALEGO278: And we have a special guest today! Sora's sister, Amemi, is here to help present This Chapter!
AMEMI HIKARI: Hi! Welcome to Chapter 40 of "'Kingdom Hearts - Season OF Light'"!
SORALEGO278 (Whispers): I had to let her on here. Sora pestered me about letting him and his team join in with these introductions from Chapter 30 through 39.
AMEMI HIKARI: What?
SORALEGO278: It's nothing important. So, Amemi, anything you wish to tell everyone?
AMEMI HIKARI: Oh! Yes, I do! If any of you were wondering how to picture my voice in your mind, picture Mae Whitman.
SORALEGO278: I always thought you sounded like Tinker Bell from the "'Disney Fairies'" Series!
AMEMI HIKARI (Shrugs): And Yuffie Kisaragi from "'Final Fantasy VII'" and "'Kingdom Hearts 2'", Shanti from Disney's "'The Jungle Book 2 (2003)'", Patricia Whitmore in "'Independence Day (1996)'", and...
SORALEGO278: Alright! Okay! I think we all are at least familiar with her acting career in at least one thing or another. There is no need to go over everything she's been in.
AMEMI HIKARI: Oops! I didn't mean to do that.
SORALEGO278: It's alright. So, Amemi, would you like to share today's TRIVIA segment?
AMEMI HIKARI: Sure! DID YOU KNOW?
Disney's "'Pete's Dragon (1977)'" was one of the Disney movies the "'Legendary'" Don Bluth worked on as an animator. Yes! THE Don Bluth - the one who worked on "'The Land Before Time (1988)'", "'An American Tail (1986)'", "'All Dogs Go To Heaven (1989)'", and "'Anastasia (1997)'"!
Some of the other Disney movies he worked on were "'Robin Hood (1973)'", "'The Rescuers (1977)'", "'The Fox And The Hound (1981)'", "'The Sword In The Stone (1963)'", and "'Sleeping Beauty (1959)'".
SORALEGO278: ALL that?! Sheesh! I never imagined he had ever been THAT involved with Disney Animation!
AMEMI HIKARI: Actually, he was uncredited with his work on the last three movies I named; "'The Fox And The Hound (1981)'", "'The Sword In The Stone (1963)'", and "'Sleeping Beauty (1959)'".
SORALEGO278: Okay. That does not surprise me, seeing as there have been LOTS of well-known actors, actresses, animators, and other related professions who never got credited with working on movies over the years.
AMEMI HIKARI: At least, /I/ received credit for doing this, right?
SORALEGO278: Yes, you shall! So, everyone, I believe it is time! PLEASE READ ON TO YOUR HEART'S CONTENT!
AMEMI HIKARI: AND DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW, TOO! (Hi, WordGirl! Please Read If You Are There! I Know You Are!)
CHAPTER 40
The Shiny, Gold, Crown Necklace
The roar of chatter and laughter filled the otherwise empty space of the tavern. If the smell of old alcohol and wine was not enough to drive somebody away, the lack of available tables was. This was a popular destination for all the dockworkers on their way back from the boathouses and fishing piers. It was also well overcrowded, even for this hour of the night.
Sometimes, the business was going so well, the owner and bartenders kept the lights on so late, it could very likely be two-thirty in the morning before they closed shop.
Despite all the others drinking around them, Doctor Terminus, Hoagy, Mortimer, and Cinnamon Teal were seated at a small, diamond-shaped table in a corner of the room. Just moments ago, they had sold a bottle of potion to a young man with a sore arm from working on the nets all day.
With the money in hand, Mortimer counted each bill extra carefully. He refused to take any chances. Once, he had tricked Chief O'Hara into believing Mickey had broken into his house to steal a baseball. In the end, the police captain had discovered the truth and Mortimer found himself locked in the filthiest cell of Toontown Prison for the next few months.
He had hatedthat experience! Not just because of his frame-up of that rival mouse flopping on him. He had been forced to overhear Goofy asking the prison's warden to demonstrate for him how someone was supposed to burst out of there multiple times.
Being a master of swindles, Mortimer always checked to ensure nobody was doing the same to him. The bottle had cost two dollars, and he had counted… two dollars.
"We've had nothing," Terminus grunted. He frowned at the sight of the small stack of one dollar bills. "Nothing but bad luck in this burg."
He turned to Hoagy. "I'm telling you, this is the worst town on our route. I don't intend to heal any of these people. Whatever they've got, they deserve it."
Cinnamon Teal set down the glass of something or other in her hands. Her eyes seemed as displeased as ever. "Nobody is coming over," she observed. "Should I 'bring' them to us?"
"That won't do us any good," Mortimer groaned. He gestured to the money pile. "We've been here almost half the night, and all we've made's fifteen bucks."
He folded his arms and shook his head with his eyes closed. "That's not gonna please Maleficent. Nuh-uh-uh-uh!"
Hoagy put down the cup of light liquor in his hands. The glass tipped when it reached the table. Half of the drink had been left, and now it was spilling quickly across the surface. It landed onto the money, soaking the bills on the bottom of the stack.
Mortimer and Cinnamon Teal quickly grabbed as much of the cash as they could. "Hey!" Mortimer scowled.
"Ooh," Teal scowled in turn. She clenched her fists, almost ready to punch Terminus's assistant in the face.
"I'm sorry," Hoagy whimpered. He was shaking quite violently.
Terminus sighed deeply. "You see what I mean, hmm?"
"Doc, I'm sorry."
"I didn't mean it, Hoagy," The group whirled around. An older man was wobbling his way over to the table. One look at the man and Terminus had to shake his head. It was only Lampie, the local lighthouse keeper.
"Can I buy everybody a round?" Lampie asked, a bit disoriented.
Cinnamon Teal waved her hand in front of her face. "You smell awful," she complained.
"Huh?" Lampie appeared confused and in a total daze. "Well…. Hey," he turned to Terminus. "'cause, Doc, I gotta talk to you. Okay?"
Terminus glanced at Hoagy. They both shrugged. "Sit down," the doctor gestured at a small stool between himself and Mortimer.
"May I? Thank you."
Lampie plopped down on the stool. He was directly across the table from Cinnamon Teal. The duck-woman held her nose, similar to someone using a clothespin to do the same task.
"Hey," Lampie continued. "You're a ma… You're a man of science, ain't you?"
Terminus gave a slight nod. "A man of science, yes. Yes, I am. With degrees from the Royal Medical College, London."
"Huh?"
"The Gleinen Einen Peitzen in Vienna."
"Oh!"
"And the Moulin Rouge in Paris."
"Oh. You know anything about dragons?"
Terminus seemed to grin. "Of course I do. I see them in all the big cities going down the streets, with that funny little walk, wearing bright colors, fluttering around…. "
Cinnamon Teal rolled her eyes. "Of course he would think of Chinese dragons."
Lampie shook his head. "No, no, no. I'm talkin' about a real dragon. Real dragon. With fire… fire coming out of his mouth. And he's got real wings."
"Uh," Terminus paused in thought for a moment or three. "You need a veterinarian. Hmm?"
Hoagy seemed curious to know what was going on here. "Why do you ask?"
"I saw one," Lampie said a little louder than expected.
"Where is it?" Mortimer asked. He grinned, determined to play along with this whole thing. "Sitting at the next table?"
He burst out laughing. "Ha cha cha!"
Lampie was shaking a little more than before. "I tell ya, I saw a real dragon the other afternoon," he stated. "He's owned… owned by a young boy… by the name of Pete."
Terminus eyed the lighthouse keeper closely. "You are trying to tell me that there is a dragon here… in Passamacracka?"
"'Quoddy'," Hoagy swiftly corrected.
"Yeah," Terminus acknowledged his assistant's rectification.
Lampie gave a nod. "Yes."
Terminus sniffed the air a little, almost as though snorting. "I told you this was a rotten town," he told Mortimer, Cinnamon Teal, and Hoagy.
He turned back to Lampie. "Well, in my educated opinion, sir, I think you've been up in your lighthouse too long."
"Huh?" Lampie shook his head more hastily than before. "Wait. Wait, listen. What if what I just told you was true?"
"In my scientific opinion," Terminus started to say. "The existence of a dragon… would have an impact of gigantic proportions. Mythology and legend would become history and science. One could really make a quick buck with it."
Lampie gave a nod of understanding, even though Mortimer wondered how much of it the older man did comprehend. "Well, I can prove it. I can prove it! H-His name is Elliott. H-He's downstairs. You could go and see him right now."
Terminus shook his head. "Unfortunately, I cannot make it right now. I… I have an appointment with a young lady who's interested in a nursing career."
Lampie stared at him. He gave another slight nod. "Oh. Oh."
Hoagy smiled. "I wanna see it."
Lampie turned to him. "You wanna see it? Well, see it you shall!"
"Okay."
The two left the table together. As they strolled out of the tavern, Mortimer rolled his eyes. "Dragons," he groaned. "Fairy tale stuff!"
Several minutes later, Lampie and Hoagy reached a secluded cave in the cliffside below the lighthouse. The sound of the waves crashing against the shore roared in the backdrop.
Lampie held onto the brass lantern in his hand as tightly as he could. He pointed into the darkness of the cavern. "I tell you that he's in there."
Hoagy gazed into the dark. He could hear some deep breathing echoing from somewhere inside. What seemed to be lips smacking accompanied it.
"Are you convinced?" Lampie inquired.
"Absolutely," Hoagy affirmed.
"Well, let's get outta here," Lampie turned to leave.
Hoagy grabbed the lighthouse keeper's arm. "Wait a minute. I-I want to pet him."
Lampie had to take a double-take, just to ensure his eyes and ears were working properly. "Huh? You wa… you want to pet him?! Are you crazy? I know you ain't drunk."
Hoagy gave a nod. "I want to pet him," he repeated.
Lampie gave a deep sigh. "No matter what you see in here, don't get scared."
The older man held the lantern steady as he led the way into the cave. Hoagy held onto his shoulder as they stepped through. Their footsteps seemed to echo all around. The cavern was even gloomier on the inside than it had seemed on the outside.
"Hey," Lampie said. "I might as well tell you straight off, you're gonna see a hideous monster."
Hoagy started to shake a little. "Oh, no."
"Oh, yes," Lampie gestured around with his free hand as he continued to speak. "And it's big. Fifty feet of terror! Claws! Claws so sharp they could tear a man to shreds."
A soft, yet still audible, gulp filled the cavern. Although he had not felt his throat give way, he presumed it had.
"Eyes," Lampie went on. "Evil eyes… that can see right through ya. And a tail that's so powerful, it could destroy the hull of a frigate! It can wipe out an entire crew… with one swish of his tail."
Hoagy started to feel more tense. All these vivid descriptions were plenty to make him wish he had stayed back at the tavern.
"Face… Face so terrible, it could turn a man to stone, a hero into a coward. A flame so hot, it could roast a turkey! And a mouth so terrible, it could devour a man and," Lampie made a spitting sound. "Spit him leagues."
Hoagy felt someone put their hand on his shoulder. He glanced at it for a brief second. "Stay close," he told the stranger.
His mind stopped. Who had he just spoken to? As far as he knew, he and Lampie were the only ones here. Them, and the….
He swung his eyesight back to the hand. The greenish scales made it seem more like a claw than a hand. It could mean only one thing. "It's g-g-g-got m-me," he sputtered out the words.
Lampie and Hoagy spun around. The instant they saw the shape of something giant, green, and with arms, feet, and claws, they screamed at the top of their lungs. The shape whirled around. The instant it saw its own shadow, the creature yelled in alarm.
"Look at it!" Lampie declared, amazed by the sight.
Directly before the two men was a dragon. A green dragon. Its face was similar to that of a camel with messy, purplish hair. Its stomach bugled out slightly. Its tail was lined with purplish horns leading all the way down from its upper back.
The dragon saw the two were looking its way. Realizing everything Lampie had said referred to itself, the creature's frightened expression vanished.
"Them eyes are lookin' right through us," Hoagy whimpered.
"Look," Lampie stated. "Don't ever let a dragon know you're… you're afraid of him."
Hoagy gave a hint of a nod. It was difficult to tell, however, due to his intense shaking.
Lampie threw his free hand onto the red-haired man's shoulder. "Stop-Stop shaking, and-and smile."
"Can't stop shaking," Hoagy replied, trying to smile as much as he could. "And I am smiling."
The dragon eyed the pair closely.
"Hello, Elliott," Lampie said.
Elliott seemed to give a hint of a smile. He waved at the older man. Lampie grinned a tad. "Aah! Hey, see how smart he is?" he told Hoagy. "He said hello to me. Yeah! He likes me!"
He pushed Hoagy forwards. "Y-You do somethin' so he'll like you."
"L-Like me?" Hoagy gulped.
"Yeah. Do somethin' to make him like you."
"Huh?" Elliott cocked his head in perplexity.
Hoagy held out his container of alcohol. It was not filled up all the way, yet he hoped this would make-up for a form of peace offering to the dragon. "Elliott, would you… world you like a little b-belt, huh?"
Elliott bent down and sniffed the container. He paused for moment, taking a stronger whiff of the contents. He opened his mouth. Hoagy calmly poured what was left into the dragon's open mouth. The liquid flowed onto Elliott's tongue like a waterfall. Once it was all gone, Hoagy stepped back. Elliott rose to his full height. At once, a gurgling noise came from the dragon's stomach.
Hoagy and Lampie exchanged the same look between each other. What could be happening?
Elliott started hissing. Then roaring. A burst of flames shot out of his mouth. The two men screamed in alarm. They raced for the cave's entrance. The flames continued to lurch out of the dragon's mouth and bounced across the cavern floor. In the midst of the confusion, Lampie threw his lantern aside, shattering glass all over the place.
Once they were in the clear, Lampie headed for his lighthouse up the cliff. Hoagy hurried along the beach to the town. Neither one of them looked back. Not even to see the dragon gasping for air. Not even to see the shadowy creatures rising up from the sand.
"Is it… Is it two part fish oil and three parts seawater… and six parts potato squeezings, or is it only two parts seawater?"
Doctor Terminus turned to Mortimer. "Hmm?"
Mortimer shrugged. He leaned back against the wooden crate behind him, a newspaper in his hands. He was glad to be out that tavern. After Hoagy had left, Terminus had decided to return to his wagon. He was now hard at work, mixing potions to sell to the townspeople he had made deals with already. Cinnamon Teal was outside, keeping watch in case somebody tried to disturb them.
All of a sudden, Hoagy came barging into the space. He was quivering like someone who had seen a demon in the real world. He held up both his hands, desperately trying to seize the doctor's attention.
It seemed to work. Terminus gazed at him. "Ten parts seawater, hmm? That much?" he chuckled as he continued the procedure. "No wonder they love it."
Cinnamon Teal came marching in. Her hands on her hips and she was scowling. "This fool came storming in here, saying he 'saw it'."
Mortimer lowered the newspaper. "Saw what?"
"S-s-s-s-s-s… Saw it," Hoagy murmured. "El-El-El… Dra-Dra-Dra…. "
Terminus paused, a little puzzled about why his assistant did not make any sense. "What is an 'el-el-el dra-dra-dra', hmm?"
"Dr-Dr-Dragon. I-I saw the dragon. L-Lampie wasn't lying. It's real. It belched flame at me."
"'Belched'?" Cinnamon Teal quizzed.
"You saw a belching dragon?" Terminus added along. "You sure you weren't belching yourself in front of the mirror?"
Hoagy was still shaking something terrible. "N-Never saw anything so horrible in my life. Th-Thought I was a goner. There was no need for him to do that. I only offered him a sociable drink."
Dr. Terminus slammed down the glass beaker in his hand. "Hoagy, I can't stand you when you're drunk."
Hoagy held out his arms. "Doc, look at me. I'm not drunk. What I saw tonight sobered me in a second. I swear… I swear to you, all of you, there's a big, horrible dragon… up in that cave, I swear."
Terminus turned to face his assistant. "I just realized, I can't stand you when you're sober!" he pointed to the door, which was not much of a "door"; just an opening in the canvas. "Now, get out of here. Get yourself a good, stiff drink. Out!"
"I swear. A vicious dragon."
Terminus raised his voice. "Out!"
Hoagy hurried out of the wagon in a flash. Terminus shook his head as he returned to his work.
"'Dragon'," Cinnamon Teal muttered. She leaned back against the canvas-covered boxes behind her. She placed her hands behind her neck and closed her eyes. All the while, she was shaking her head at a snail's pace.
"I wonder what this world's coming to," Dr. Terminus murmured out loud. "Dragons are supposed to be mythical creatures here. There can't be any real ones."
Mortimer rolled his eyes and returned to his newspaper. Deep, deep down, he was not as easily unconvinced. After all, Maleficent had the power to turn into a dragon. He remembered once hearing about a world where, according to legend, the landscape had been created by dragons.
Even if dragons did not actually exist in this world, they certainly did elsewhere.
The scent of sea salt was in the air. The not-too-distant crashing of the waves against the shoreline made Sora feel right at home. Such sounds were quite comforting. After all, he was from a tropical island! He enjoyed swimming in the shallows, snorkeling on the reefs, and taking long naps in the sand while leaning against palm trees.
He recalled the time his uncle and aunt (on his Dad's side) had taken him and Amemi to the great reef near a smaller, volcanic seamount. The island that had once been surrounded by that reef was said to have collapsed in a massive eruption centuries ago.
He smiled as he remembered snorkeling along the coral and millions of tropical fish. A turtle or two had passed the two siblings by. At one point, he heard a song starting to play, mostly clam-like sounds. That was when everything had gotten bizarre. The congo-line he had seen his sister joining. The fish playing sea-made instruments. It all had… now that he thought about it, it had all resembled that undersea musical from Atlantica.
No one had believed him about that! Well, except for Amemi. Apparently, it was one of those things where you had to actually be there to know it was truthful.
His focus returned to him. Amemi was not with him now. Just Donald and Goofy were by his sides. His sister had gone for a stroll on the beach with Launchpad and Indigo. Since there was no sign of Heartless in this world, he had decided now would most-likely be the best time for such a walk.
At the moment, Goofy, Donald, and he were accompanying Nora and Pete through the town. Pete was all dressed up nicely, with a tannish suit and shiny, black shoes. He also had a checked dress cap plopped on his head. A case of schoolbooks was nestled under his arm.
"Do I have to go to school?" he asked Nora for what could have been the hundredth time.
"Well, unless you want to grow up stupid like the Gogans," Nora said for what might have been the hundredth time.
This led to another few seconds of silence. Sora yawned, glad he was not the one going to school this time! That incident back in Middleton was still fresh on his mind. To him, there was nothing worse than being trapped in a classroom when there was trouble afoot not too far away.
At least, this time, he would not be the one in the town's schoolhouse.
As the group strolled down the street, the docks came into view. Several old fishing boats were tied to the piers. Men milled about. Some were mending large nets. Others were preparing their sails. A few were scrubbing the algae off the sides of their boats' hulls. Sora noticed a pair of middle-aged fishermen working beside their boats. Somehow, he could overhear every word they said.
"I ain't got hardly nothin' to sell," one of them complained.
The other shrugged. "So?"
"I pulled my nets in," the first one explained. "And there weren't a fish in 'em."
A third fisherman stepped over. "I just docked," he told them. "There ain't nothin' out in that ocean but water. It's real strange, I'm tellin' ya. It's like every fish sorta disappeared. Just suddenly up and disappeared."
He pointed into the direction of Sora, Donald, Goofy, Nora, and Pete. "There's the cause of it. That kid, Pete."
"From the day he come to town," the second fisherman groaned. "The fishing turned sour."
The third fisherman frowned at the second. "Don't be ridiculous. It's the crazy dragon talk of his. That kid's been nothin' but bad luck wherever he goes."
The first fisherman gave a nod. He pointed to Sora and his companions. "And that young man's friends are not from around here. They all seem to bring bad luck wherever they go."
Sora had heard more than enough. It was one thing to blame others for one's problems. Yet, when he and his friends became the blamed, that was going well across the line.
He slid to a stop in his tracks and turned to the three fishermen. He scowled. "We didn't do anything!" he argued. "Fish swim around. So what?! We've got nothing to do with it!"
Donald, Goofy, Nora, and Pete all stopped when they heard the young man's words. They spun around to see Sora standing at the entrance to the pier. He had clenched fists and a heated scowl evident on his face. To top it off, he seemed ready to summon his Keyblade and drive the weapon's blade clear through one or more of the fishermen.
Fearing the worst, Donald and Goofy sped over to their friend. Goofy held out his shield and landed in front of the seventeen-year-old Keyblade wielder. The sight of the knight standing before him startled Sora.
Donald grabbed his right hand and tugged on it. "C'mon! Let's hurry away from here!"
Sora leaned against the duck's pulling. "What's wrong with you guys?! They just said we were to blame for their bad luck!"
Donald stopped pulling. His astonished expression rapidly became one of anger. He turned to the three fishermen and waved his fist at them. "What's the big idea?!" he yelled.
Goofy shook his head and looked down sadly. "Aw shucks…. Not you, too, Donald."
Nora scowled at the fishermen. "You're a bunch of superstitious ding-dongs," she stated, sounding tougher than Sora had expected. "You know that fishing grounds shift from time to time."
Pete's eyes lit up and he grinned. "Elliott'll make the fish come back."
The third fisherman rolled his eyes and groaned from irritation. "There he goes, talkin' dragons again."
"Hey, kids!" the second fisherman stated. He pointed at Pete. "There ain't no room in this town for a dragon," he then pointed directly at Sora, Donald, and Goofy. "And there ain't no room in this town for jinxes like you, neither!"
"WHAT?!" Donald glared with such intensity, his head became a fiery red color. "I'LL SHOW YOU!"
It took everything Goofy had to hold the magician back before he did something he would regret for some time to come.
"Well," Nora scoffed. "If there's enough room for a chowderhead like you, then there's more than enough room for a dragon."
Sora crossed his arms and nodded. "Yeah!" He knew the lighthouse keeper's daughter had a valid point. Of course, there was plenty of room in this world for a dragon!
Nora strode forward and grabbed a rope tied from the pier to the mast of a nearby fishing boat. "There's room for everyone in this world, if everyone makes some room," she declared. "Won't you move over and share this world? Everyone make some room."
Sora gave another nod. He started to smile a little. "Even a dragon deserves a place — a wide-open space — with no reins, no chains. He wants to play games, dance with you. Give him a chance. He only wants to be belong."
Pete beamed, which made Sora want to grin a little more. "There's room for everyone in this world. Will everyone make some room?" the boy declared in turn. He gestured around as a group of schoolchildren stopped to watch. "Spread out while Elliott gets uncurled. Fly on his back and Zoom!"
Nora and Pete started to chant together. "Rock him, and ride him, and line up beside him. You'll see how quickly you blend."
Nora took a step forward. "A dragon is just one more stranger in search of a friend."
The chanting started to turn into what seemed to be singing. Donald and Goofy turned to Sora. All the brown-haired young man could do was shrug. All this reminded them of a musical. Yet, how was that possible? Was this world somehow in the middle of a musical?
It almost felt like something straight out of a fourth-wall-style joke from a movie or show. Similar to the types of jokes used on Amemi's favorite animated show. Or the lines Launchpad liked to use here and there.
"From an ant to a bird to a buffalo herd," Nora continued. "Let them walk and fly and roam. Step aside, let them live, it's simple to give. Like us, they just need a home. There's room for everyone in this world. Back up and make some room. Let's all move over and share this world. Everyone make some room."
Nora pointed out to the wide, open sea. Sora noticed some seagulls in the distance. "Just think how far out the ocean goes, the whirling wind blows shore to shore, door to door. Think of the valleys, the mountaintops, the Earth never stops. So deep so high, with miles of sky, we all have part of the pie."
Everyone started to move around, like they were choreographed. In fact, the schoolchildren sliding around in a circle in two directions and then climbing all over the wooden towers near the schoolhouse seemed to resemble a musical, too.
The whole scene made Sora want to shake his head. It seemed his previous thought process had just been confirmed.
Nora sat down on a swing-set and started to swing. "There's room for everyone in this world," she called out. "Will everyone make some room? Love given freely can spare this world. Let friendly feelings bloom!"
"Just give an inch," Pete and the other schoolchildren proclaimed. "Give a yard, never flinch, when the comes to offer a hand."
Nora hopped off the swing and approached the wooden towers. "So, let's all make sure we give everyone somewhere to stand."
The schoolchildren started to clamber down the towers. "Just the way God planned it."
Nora gave a nod. "Just the way God planned."
DING! DING! DING! DING!
The large bell outside the schoolhouse started ringing. All of the schoolchildren grabbed their books and hurried to the buildings. The schoolteacher was standing outside, a wooden pointer in her right hand. To Sora, she looked a little too mean to be an instructor. In fact, she resembled a principal instead.
Pete was the last one down the towers. He headed for the schoolhouse. Nora turned to Sora. "I have to talk to the teacher about letting Pete into her class," she informed him.
Sora gave a nod. Since there were no Heartless roaming the streets of the town, he knew they had nothing to worry about. Deep down, he found the very concept of no Heartless in a world rather strange. Typically, those creatures were creating all sorts of mayhem by the time he and his teammates arrived.
However, it seemed the Heartless had not shown up here. Perhaps his Keyblade had made a mistake for once. No Heartless meant a world was at peace. Then again, why would his weapon open a pathway to this world if there was no trouble here? It did not make any sense to him.
As Nora strolled away, Sora turned to Donald and Goofy. "We might as well look around town," he said.
"What about thuh dragon tales?" Goofy mentioned. "Ya sure it ain't one of them Heartless?"
"'Dragon Tales'," Donald muttered aloud. "Wasn't there a show with that name?"
Goofy grinned. "Oh, yeah! A-Hyuck! I knew it sounded awful familiar!"
Donald slapped his hand against his face so hard, it left a small mark on his otherwise white feathers.
Sora wanted to roll his eyes. He turned to leave and signaled for his friends to follow. It was not long before the three were heading down the road towards the town square. People were milling about all over the place. Some were coming in and out of the various stores along the street. Others were carrying lumber to the docks. A few horse-drawn carts rolled by, delivering everything from crates of eggs to fishing nets.
The whole scene made Sora long for home. This was similar to most of the daytime back on the island's docks. The only notable difference was this world had less-sophisticated technology in comparison to the islanders' hi-tech equipment.
They strode past a shop's window. A shiny item caught his eye. He halted in his tracks, resulting in Donald and Goofy ramming into him.
Without a word, the young man doubled-backed to the window. A yellow, crown-shaped necklace sparkled in the sunshine streaming through the glass window.
"What is it?" Donald asked.
Sora stared at the trinket in surprise. "That necklace," he said out loud. "It looks so… familiar."
Donald and Goofy glanced at each other in puzzlement. What was the seventeen-year-old Keyblader talking about? True, the necklace did possess a similar shape to his own. However, it was a different color and looked like something a girl would wear instead. Unless….
Was he planning to give it to Kairi for Christmas? They hoped their friend had not forgotten to do all his shopping before this quest started! He would have a lot of last-minute cramming to get through otherwise. Of course, that was so like Sora.
Sora turned to his friends. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his navy-blue wallet. He opened it and watched as the Munny inside transformed into a badly-wrinkled bill and one half of another. He sighed. "Do you guys have any Munny?" he inquired.
Donald and Goofy emptied their pockets. Goofy ended up with a handful of potions and hi-potions. All Donald had was a few pieces of torn cloth, an old naval patch, and some Ethers.
"Sorry," they both said, a bit saddened. They could have helped Sora resolve his shopping dilemma. Unfortunately, it seemed they did not have money.
Sora turned to the necklace. How would he afford that now? He wondered why it seemed so nostalgic to him.
At that moment, several screams filled the air. Sora, Donald, and Goofy whirled their attention to the street. People were backing away from the middle of the road, forming somewhat of a circle around a group of shadow-like creatures with yellowish eyes and antennae and claws.
Mayor Howell was standing before them, waving his cane at them. "I told you to get out of my town!" he declared.
One of the creatures jumped and bumped its way into the man. The Mayor fell backward. "So, that's the way you play?"
The creature raised a sharp claw at the man's chest. Sora's eyes widened. "Heartless!" he yelled in complete alarm.
In a flash of Light, his Keyblade was in hand. He charged into the horde. In no time, he was surrounded by the hostile monsters. Seeing the Heartless about to slash their claws at the Mayor, Sora gasped. "Look out!"
He reared back and lurched himself forward. His Keyblade went spinning through the air. The weapon travelled clear through the Heartless pinning the Mayor down. The older man clambered to his feet and turned to Sora.
The brown, spikey-haired youth glanced at the Mayor, then he returned his focus to the Heartless. "Take cover!" he instructed.
The Mayor hurried away. Sora glared intensely at the Heartless. He positioned his Keyblade into his fighting stance. That was when he noticed Donald and Goofy were by his side, weapons in hand. He nodded. "Try us!" he told the Heartless.
The Heartless closed in, forming an attack ring around the three. Sora took another look around. A few Large Body-type Heartless had joined the battle. With a nod, he rushed ahead and slashed his Keyblade directly into the first Shadow Heartless. The creature vaporized into Darkness before his eyes. He then proceeded to attack the next Heartless over.
Donald sent chunks of ice raining down on the Heartless trying to creep over to him. By the time the creatures surfaced from the ground, the ice crushed them flat and out of existence. A Large Body closed in. "Thundara!" Donald called, raising his wand high.
A few bolts of extra-charged lightning struck down on the Heartless. The creature exploded away into the Darkness.
Goofy charged in a zig-zagged path through the Heartless hordes. Three times a Large Body blocked his way. That was no problem for the Captain of the Royal Knights of Disney Castle! All he had to do was slide around them and slam his way in from the back. Then, he returned to his already-in-progress attack pattern.
Lots of loud screams and shouts were filling the air all around them.
From inside the wagon, Dr. Terminus was still busy preparing more of his (fake) remedies. Mortimer was reading a different newspaper. Cinnamon Teal was curled onto a makeshift bed of crates and sheets; her eyes were closed and she was breathing gently as though sleeping soundly. Hoagy was standing beside Doctor Terminus, keeping an eye on what his boss was doing.
When the shouts and screams came from outside, Terminus, Hoagy, and Mortimer all spun their attention to the doorway leading out. Cinnamon Teal opened her eyes, sat up, stretched, and rubbed her eyes. "What is all this noise?" she questioned.
"Must be a commotion," Mortimer grumbled.
Terminus turned to his assistant. "Hoagy, see what's going on."
Hoagy nodded and headed to the canvas-made entrance. He stepped outside for a couple seconds and came back inside. "There's some people fighting monsters in the street," he informed the others. "One looks like a boy with spiked hair. One is a duck, and the third one is a dog."
Mortimer's eyes grew wide. "Don't tell me," he exclaimed. In a hurry, the tall mouse was at the entrance. He stared through the canvas at the view outside. He looked back inside, a scowl on his face. "It's that stupid runt wielding the Keyblade. And Mick's pals are with him."
Cinnamon Teal's hand flew to the side of her face and landed gently on his cheek. "They are here," she realized.
Terminus gave a slight rolling of his eyes. "Those fools could ruin our plans."
That was when Mortimer saw the sneaky look showing in Cinnamon Teal's rather hypnotic eyes. "We should set a trap for them," the duck-woman decided.
Mortimer found himself giving a sinister grin in turn. "Yes," he approved. "They won't know what hit 'em. Ha cha cha!"
"But for now," Terminus spoke up. "Let's keep a low profile. We do not want to rouse suspicion to our plans."
The others all nodded in agreement. There was silence in the wagon for some time.
The fighting went on for a while. Sora continued to slash, slice, and stab his way through the Heartless as they approached him. One Heartless tried to jump on his shoulders. He quickly spun around and swiped his blade through the attacker.
After a few minutes, all the Heartless had been vanquished. Sora wiped some sweat off his forehead. He looked up into the sky. The Sun's rays were not beating down as much as they did back home. Yet, they were still hitting the ground enough to make any form of workout exhausting after a while.
Mayor Howell approached the three. Sora, Donald, and Goofy put their weapons away and turned to face him. "Well done," the older man grinned. "I think such brave actions deserve a key to the city, but since we're not a city, we don't have one."
As the Mayor laughed, Sora found himself beaming. He felt proud, being recognized for helping protect others from the Heartless. It was rare for somebody to congratulate him. He was still not used to such praise. He would probably never be accustomed to it.
"Yeah," Donald declared with delight. "And it's because we're heroes!"
"A-Hyuck!" Goofy leaned in close to the duck's eyes. "Ya mean 'Honorary Heroes', Donald."
The Royal Court Magician frowned at the knight's correction. Sora knew this statement. Donald had repeatedly made such claims before on their last major quest to save all the worlds. The one where they had to bring down the original Organization XIII. He even recalled how Megara had questioned Donald's claim on one such occasion.
"Well, well," the Mayor said. "I believe you still deserve a reward. How's this suit you?"
He held out a wad of dollar bills. Sora stared at it in surprise. He held up his hands. "No thanks," he said. Through the corner of his eye, he saw Donald and Goofy falling forward in disappointment.
The Mayor continued to hold out the money. "I insist," he said. "This came out of our 'heroic fund'."
Sora had to shrug. "Okay," he said, accepting the money. Maybe now he could buy that necklace. And he knew just who needed such a piece of jewelry….
The sound of a bell ringing filled the air. Everyone nearly jumped at the noise. "That's the school's bell," Goofy mentioned.
Several shouts and screams echoed into their ears. Sora nodded. "Let's check it out!"
The three hurried down the street. In took less than two minutes to reach the schoolhouse. Even with so many people gathering around the building to see what was going on.
By the time they reached the schoolhouse, Sora, Donald, and Goofy had to practically push their way through the last few people to reach the building's entrance. They stared at the building in surprise. A large, gaping hole was in the wall on two sides of the structure. Plus, the bell was missing from its post beside what was left of the building.
"Jehoshaphat!" a man declared. "Would you look at that!"
"Whoa!" Sora marveled at the sight. The cut-out resembled a giant creature. He wondered if the Heartless had attacked the schoolhouse while the ones in the street had just been a diversion.
"What happened?" Sora asked.
"Pete's dragon wrecked the school!" someone shouted in reply.
Sora's eyes lit up in a hurry. So, the "dragon" Pete had been talking about was real?! Maybe it was a Heartless after all! Now, he just needed to know why the creature had attacked the schoolhouse of all places.
The teacher was seated on the front steps. She looked as spooked as the last time Donald and Goofy had seen Jack Skellington's pet ghost, Zero. "And a dragon came in through one wall," she was telling a reporter. "And went out the other wall."
Sora was beyond startled. He needed to get down to the bottom of this — now! As a wielder of the Keyblade, his duty was to protect and serve those the Darkness threatened. That also included his sister, his friends, and everyone in this town.
His sister. Yikes! What if this monster was heading for the shoreline?! From the looks of things, it seemed the creature had headed off into the direction of the lighthouse. Would Indigo, Launchpad, and Amemi be able to hold off a dragon Heartless? He could not allow them to face it alone.
The last dragon Heartless he had fought had proved quite the challenge. And it had been a dangerous battle besides.
He turned to Donald and Goofy. "C'mon! We've gotta return to the lighthouse! The dragon might be headed that way!"
"Ya think it's dangerous?" Goofy inquired.
"Who knows?" Donald shrugged. "But the Heartless might be there already."
Sora gave a nod. He hurried down the street. Donald and Goofy were directly behind him. True, they did not have any solid proof that the dragon Pete had called "Elliott" actually was responsible for the Heartless' presence.
However, Sora was not one to take chances — especially on this particular quest! Not with so many things having gone wrong in the last handful of worlds.
The wagon seemed rather noiseless for a change. Mortimer and Cinnamon Teal knelt before a large crate. On the surface of the box was a piece of scrap paper. A bunch of doodles and other markings dotted it.
"Let's see," Mortimer thought aloud. "What kinda size trap do we need?"
"Maybe one big enough to swallow a ship," Cinnamon Teal suggested.
Mortimer grabbed a pencil and started adding to the drawings. He grinned. "Now, all we need is bait."
The sound of a bell ringing entered the wagon. Doctor Terminus groaned. "Why do I hear a bell ringing?" he muttered.
Hoagy grinned. "School must be out."
"It's too early, stupid."
Hoagy peeked out through the canvas entrance. He turned his face back inside. "See," he pointed to the opening. "I told you. School is out."
Shouts and screams entered the interior of the wagon. Cinnamon Teal scowled in irritation. "What is all this noise?"
"Wait!" Terminus paused, almost like he sensed something amiss. He turned to Mortimer. "Go see what's happening."
Mortimer rolled his eyes and rose to his feet. He headed for the exit and stepped outside. He was a bit astounded. People were milling about near the schoolhouse. "What's going on out here?" he asked the nearest member of the crowd.
The older man turned to face the tall, long-snouted mouse. "Something crashed right through the school," he told Mortimer.
Mortimer headed down to the street. "Get serious!" he stated.
The man pointed to the schoolhouse. "Look at it, I'm telling you. It's a big hole in the side of the wall."
Mortimer marched for the school. He shoved his way through the crowd of spectators. "Move outta the way!" he said over and over to the annoyed bystanders.
When he reached the building, Mortimer got a better look at what the older man had meant. The side of the schoolhouse had a large cutout about the size of a giant Heartless. However, it did not look like any Heartless he'd seen before. And he had seen lots of types of Heartless!
The sight of the creature's shape made Mortimer show a sinister grin. An idea crossed his mind. Perhaps they did not need to sell a bunch of fake remedies to get rich, rich, rich and fund whatever Maleficent was up to for her next scheme.
Deep down, he was still wondering why the evil fairy wanted anything financial-related in the first place. It seemed a little out-of-character for her. Then again, he had also learned never to ask questions when it came to Maleficent's plans, whatever they were.
He about-faced and headed back to the wagon. This time, everybody made space for him to pass. Once he reached the canvas opening, the tall mouse strode inside. "I have an idea," he declared, still giving a sinister grin.
Doctor Terminus, Hoagy, and Cinnamon Teal all whirled around to face him. "Why don't we buy this 'dragon'?" Mortimer suggested. "Remember what that crazy lighthouse keeper said? He's owned by a boy named 'Pete'."
Dr. Terminus looked a little puzzled. "You think this kid, Pete, would sell it?"
Hoagy gave a nod for Mortimer. "Money talks."
Terminus rolled his eyes. "First there's a dragon. Now he tells me money talks. Will miracles never cease?"
Cinnamon Teal walked over to a nearby pedestal where a large book was kept. She started flipping through the pages, a look of curiosity in her eyes. "Dragons… dragons… dragons," she stopped on a specific page. She pointed to the page. "Here. Dragons."
Terminus set down the items in his hands and stepped to the tome. He scanned his finger along the page. "'List of useful parts'," he read. "'Claws, ears, tongue'…. "
He turned to the others like he had just seen a human fly effortlessly for the first time. "Hey, this could be a very profitable business. There are so many cures from bits of dragon."
Mortimer was unconvinced. He crossed his arms. "Like what?"
Terminus turned back to the book and started to flip through the pages. "'Dragon whiskers'," he read aloud. "'Dragon toes… A dragon tooth… And a dragon nose….'"
He grinned. "Every little piece… every little piece…. We could make a million by slicing him, dicing him."
He turned to his assistant. "Hoagy, we could sell every little shell. There's enough of him to go around," he fumbled his fingers like holding cash. "Money, money, money by the pound."
He grabbed a pair of scissors. "I can take a scissor and clip him up, rip him up. Every little part is a work of art. Think of what a dragon heart would bring wrapped up in a ribbon and a string?"
Hoagy seemed to smile brightly. He headed for the book and started reading. "'Dragon liver can cure a cold… Dragon powder grows hair'," he gasped. "'With dragon blood, you'll never grow old'."
Terminus held out his hands with glee. "Every item is covered with gold! Dragon, you're my wagon to destiny! You're the key! Every little shred moving me ahead! Every dream of mine will be fulfilled! Oh, what a dragon business we can build!"
Mortimer thought he heard some noise from outside. He peeked through the canvas entrance. His eyes widened. Large Body Heartless were appeared from the ground. He had never ever seen such a thing before. Such types of Heartless tended to simple appear from thin-air. This was the first time he had seen them rise up from the ground.
He turned his head back inside to see Terminus and Hoagy both gathered by the book. "'Dragon cartilage keeps you thin… Dragon fat is for burns'," they gasped. "'A dragon tear will clear up your skin'."
Doctor Terminus raised his hands back up in delight. "Watch the profits come rolling in! Oh, lead me to the dragon! I'll buy him up, tie him up, drag him from the cave! Show him that I'm brave!"
He gave a laugh. "I'll bind him up! Grind him up! Lop him up! Chop him up!"
He turned to his red-haired assistant. "Can't you hear that jingle-jangle sound?"
Hoagy smiled. "Oh, yeah!"
Together, they proclaimed, "It's money, money, money by the pound!"
The sight made Mortimer realize the truth. Terminus's greed was drawing the Heartless into this world. If what that silly, old book stated was accurate, maybe they could use the parts of the dragon everyone was talking about to make actual remedies.
So much for their con-job!
"Let's go pay Pete a visit," Dr. Terminus decided.
"Not me," Mortimer shook his head. "Not if Sora and his pals are there. If they're here, they'll recognize me."
Cinnamon Teal yawned and stretched. "And I need more sleep. Hypnosis is a tiring job," she strolled over to the makeshift bed and climbed in to sleep.
Terminus shook his head in turn. "Hoagy, you're coming with me."
Hoagy gave a nod. "I wouldn't have it any other way."
Sora's fears proved to be true. The whole way back to the lighthouse was lined with Heartless. It seemed the hostile creatures were awaiting the group's arrival. Not to mention, these ones seemed more of a challenge than the ones they had fought in the town. In fact, many of them were of the Large Body variety.
For all they knew, Amemi, Indigo, and Launchpad might be in trouble. After all, the three had gone for a stroll along the beach that morning. What if the Heartless had already gotten to them?
Sora could not bear the thought of his only sister being at the hands… err… claws of these Heartless. He had to save her!
"It's over!" he yelled as he sliced his Keyblade directly into the last Large Body blocking the road. The remaining Shadow Heartless scattered away. Donald used his magic to eliminate several of them. Goofy hurled his shield into the air. The spinning motion of the weapon eradicated the rest.
They continued on their way up to the lighthouse. Sora was nearly out-of-breath by the time they reached the old structure. He barely had enough breath to shout, "Amy!"
"I'm over here!" came a reply.
Sora, Donald, and Goofy swung their attention to the entrance doors of the lighthouse. There was Amemi, standing beside the building with Nora and Pete. Indigo was standing near the edge of the cliff, gazing out at the ocean. Launchpad was slouched against the lighthouse's foundation, his arms tucked behind his back and his legs crossed. He seemed to be dozing.
Not a single Heartless was in sight.
Sora gave a deep sigh of relief. He had been all worried for nothing. He calmly put his Keyblade away and strolled over to where the sandy-haired teenager was waving him over. Donald headed into the direction of where Launchpad was lounging. Goofy looked both ways and shrugged, unsure what to do.
"I'm glad you're okay," Sora told his sister as he approached the front of the lighthouse.
Amemi looked puzzled. "What are you talking about?" she asked.
"The Heartless were in town. I thought they'd attacked here, too."
Amemi shook her head. "We haven't seen any Heartless here," she dipped a large paintbrush into a can of white paint. "Besides, Elliott's down in the cave. He'll scare them away."
Sora sighed. How could he explain to his sister how Elliott be actually be the reason why the Heartless were in this world? Did she believe he was there to protect them?
All he did know was the Heartless had suddenly shown up. When he and his team had first arrived, the monsters had not been around. Now they were. Just like when Donald, Goofy, and him had first crash-landed into the Deep Jungle. It was not until after Clayton had tried to shoot Terk that the Heartless had suddenly shown up and abducted both the young gorilla and Jane alike.
At least Amemi, Indigo, and Launchpad seemed alright.
"Wake up!" Donald hollered at the top of his lungs. Launchpad literally jumped awake and banged his head against the side of the lighthouse. The impact was enough to leave a small crack in the foundation.
"Yeesh!" the pilot groaned as he rubbed his head. "Talk about a rude awakening!"
Sora had to shake his head and smile. He had not seen such a sight for a while. He had not realized (until now) he had started to miss the silly interactions between his teammates. When he had started out on this quest, all that squabbling had annoyed him up to the point he sometimes had been forced to demand they stop.
However, that felt like a lifetime ago now. So much had happened, and still the quest was not over.
He turned back to his sister. "Hey, what're you doing?"
"We're painting the lighthouse," Amemi explained. She took the paintbrush out of the can and started to slide it up and down the side of the building. "Nora and Pete could use some help, right?"
Sora shrugged. Although he was never one to do chores around the house, he did not mind lending others a hand every once in a great while. Besides, wasn't that what he already did while defending the worlds with the Keyblade?
He was not just a simple peacekeeper. He was more like a servant of the worlds. And they expected so much out of him.
"Why not?" he finally said.
Amemi stared at her brother. She smiled. "I didn't expect you to say that. Sora, I feel like you're finally growing up."
Sora placed his hands behind his head. "Who says I'm growing up? I'm still the same. I just want to help. That's all."
Amemi shook her head. "Yeah, you'll never change."
"Yeah!"
The two started to laugh.
From the nearby cliffside, Indigo spun her head back to see the brown-haired young man and sandy-headed girl laughing. The angel had to shake her head and smile. "Those two seem to be created from the same slice of peachy pie," she remarked.
She turned back to the sea. In the distance, a flock of seagulls caught her eyes. They seemed to be soaring away into the distance. Her left hand reached for her heart. Her antennae started to move. "Now, if only I could make out what this heart is telling me. All I can tell is… something about fading Light…. "
Sora carefully applied some brushstrokes using his paintbrush. It was a good thing Nora had several. Donald had dragged Launchpad over and the two of them were also helping, although the duck-pilot was getting paint all over himself.
Sora's thoughts went back to the necklace in the shop. He wondered where he had seen it before. It did look awfully familiar for some reason. Maybe his sister knew where he had seen it last?
He turned to Amemi. "Hey, Amy, have you ever seen a yellow necklace with a crown on it?"
Amemi's eyes remained focused on her work. "I remember having one like that until about two or three years ago," she shrugged. "I guess I lost it back home."
Sora was unconvinced. If his sister had lost it, could it have ended up in the ocean and gotten washed out to sea? He recalled what Riku used to say about the worlds being connected to one another. In fact, the silver-haired youth had claimed the oceans were all connected to one another, allowing access between worlds via boats or rafts.
Maybe the necklace had been transported to this world from the islands? Unless…. Two to three years ago was about the time the Destiny Islands had been lost to the Darkness. Could the Heartless had brought it here? That seemed to make sense to him. After all, he had found his favorite book lying in Hollow Bastion's library while going through that whole "maze" thing. It even had his name scribbled in it. That had indicated it was the same book. Not to mention, the book was missing from his room when he finally returned home after defeating Xemnas with Riku.
Could the Heartless have transported his sister's necklace here? It seemed likely. Now he really needed to get that trinket from that shop!
A series of footsteps approaching caused Sora to turn his head to the side. Two men were coming to the lighthouse. Neither one of them looked familiar. One was a tall man with black, curly hair, a handlebar mustache and goatee, and blue eyes, and dressed entirely in black clothing, a matching cape, and a top hat. The other was a short, slender man with red hair and wearing a nice, gray suit complete with a bowler hat.
"Hey!" Sora said. He tapped on his sister's shoulder and pointed the pair out to her. This led to a chain reaction of grabbing everyone's attention. First, Amemi pointed them out to Nora. Then Nora to Pete. Pete to Launchpad. Launchpad to Goofy. Goofy to Donald.
Donald scowled at them; "I was trying to paint!" he snapped.
Nora frowned when she the men approaching. "Well, if it isn't the infamous Doctor Terminus," she muttered.
Sora felt confused. "Who?"
"A troublemaker. He sells phony remedies everywhere he goes. Just to make a quick buck."
The taller man with the black cape grinned as the men reached the group. "Good morning, Miss Nora," he bowed politely. He gestured to the lighthouse. "So, this is where you live, eh? At last we've seen the light."
The man was only one chuckling. Well… except for Goofy and Launchpad. Then again, those two laughed at just about anything! It did not matter what it was. As long as it sounded funny to them.
"I tell you," the man went on. "You've got to have a sense of humor these days."
He eyed Pete rather closely. "And you must be Pete."
Pete gave a nod. "Yes, sir!"
The man gestured to himself. "I'm Doctor Terminus," he gestured to the red-haired man beside him. "And this is Hoagy, who's doing his internship with me."
Hoagy waved at everyone. Donald scowled, clearly not trusting the two men. Goofy waved back. "A-Hyuck! Hi!"
"I heard about the incident at the school," Terminus continued.
"I'd rather not discuss it," Nora said, crossing her arms. She turned back to the lighthouse.
"I realize you must be disturbed by it, and, uh, up to here in dragons," Terminus quickly added. He gestured to his neck-level. "You know, Pete, I have always loved dragons. They're such wonderful creatures — when they're not busy destroying things, of course."
Nora turned back. "What's your point?"
"I've had a dream since I was your age," Terminus pointed to Pete. "That one day… I would have my very own dragon. I would consider my life to be fulfilled… and would be most grateful if you would sell me your dragon."
Now Amemi looked perplexed. "You wanna buy Elliott?"
"Sight unseen. As is."
Hoagy politely removed his hat. "We'll give him a good home. Bless him."
Pete shook his head. "I couldn't sell him."
"Sure you could!" Terminus countered. "That's what life is all about — buying and selling," he reached into his pocket and pulled out a few items. "I'll give ya three dollars."
Hoagy leaned in close to the black-haired man's ear. Terminus seemed to answer whatever the red-haired man had said. Sora could not make out what the two were saying. Whatever it was, he had the feeling it was probably not something good.
The two men turned back to Pete. "Five… dollars," Terminus said.
"I can't sell him," Pete repeated. "I don't own him."
Terminus and Hoagy both looked astonished. "Well, what did ya do, rent him?" Hoagy asked.
"Well, who owns him?" Terminus added, equally bewildered.
Pete shrugged. "Well, nobody, I guess. He just came to me. He only goes to those who need him."
"I need him," Dr. Terminus emphasized.
Amemi stepped forward. "Look," she said. "I don't know exactly what you're up to, but forget it. Elliott's not for sale."
Terminus turned to the young woman. "Go paint your lighthouse."
Amemi scowled. She stormed to the doorway. It seemed she was going to head inside. Rather, she sat down and crossed her arms in irritation. Sora knew that look. It was the one his sister only gave whenever she wanted to be left alone.
Dr. Terminus turned his focus back to Pete. "Pete, my boy," he started to say. "You're conversant with Elliott. Now, talk to him. Tell him how much I need him. Deliver Elliott to me and the fiver is yours, and that's better than a dragon, hmm?"
Pete appeared to be hesitating in his response. Sora stepped forward. "Well," he said. "Maybe should talk to 'Elliott' yourself."
"Mm-hmm," Nora nodded.
Terminus glanced around. "Wh-Where is he? Does he speak English?"
Pete pointed to the shoreline. "Down the beach."
Terminus and Hoagy both whirled their attention in said direction. "Where?" the former asked.
"Right there," Pete instructed. "By the water."
"Right. I still don't see…. "
Pete smiled. "That's because he's invisible today."
"Oh, yeah!" Goofy laughed. "A-Hyuck!"
"I may not see him," Launchpad chuckled. "But at least I know he's not there," he paused. "Wait a minute. Did I say that right?"
Nora, Pete, and Donald all burst out laughing. Even Sora had to laugh. It now seemed Elliott was just a figment of Pete's imagination. Of course, that did not explain the damage to the schoolhouse. Maybe the shape had been a complete coincidence. In reality, there was no dragon.
Just the Heartless showing up in this world. This made him wonder how far and wide the Heartless had spread on this venture.
Doctor Terminus and Hoagy started off away from the lighthouse. They neared the enormous foghorn. Sora returned to his painting.
"Sora, can I ask you something?"
Sora spun around. He jumped back a few inches. There was Indigo standing directly behind him. "Whoa!" he exclaimed. "Why… How did you sneak up on me like that?"
Indigo smiled. "I flew down to you. I was in the air and saw the whole scene."
She pointed to Terminus. "We must keep an eye on Doctor Terminus. I can sense a strong Darkness inside his heart."
Sora nodded. He had the feeling the angel was correct. He had not liked Dr. Terminus from the moment the man had arrived at the lighthouse. Maybe it was his dark clothing. Then again, the spikey, brown-haired youth had seen magicians who wore similar outfits back on the islands. In fact, he recalled Amemi forcing him to watch an episode of "WordGirl" in which the main character and her family went to a magician's convention.
Still, Sora had the feeling Dr. Terminus was nothing like those fictional magicians from the shows and movies. He wanted to know what they were really up to. Once he found that out, perhaps he and his friends could determine where all this talk about a "dragon" started.
Then, and only then, might they be able to get focused on figuring out where the Heartless had originated from here.
Doctor Terminus and Hoagy both waved goodbye with enormous smiles on their faces. Deep down, the former was only pretending to smile. In reality, he was furious. Why would Pete and Miss Nora mock him like this? All he did was ask to buy Elliott. Apparently, the dragon was no one's property. Therefore, it was his for the taking. He was sure of that.
He gestured for Hoagy to follow him behind the huge foghorn on the edge of the cliffs overlooking the sea. A small flock of seagulls flew away as the men ducked behind the contraption. Terminus turned to his assistant, a serious look on his face. "They know they're sitting on a gold mine," he told Hoagy. "Well, they've had their chance to make a few dollars."
Hoagy seemed puzzled. "Then, what is the plan?"
"You heard Pete," Terminus continued. "That dragon doesn't belong to anybody. He's fair game, and he's gonna be ours!"
He took out a pair of dull scissors from his cape. "We'll bind him up, grind him up, lock him up, chop him up," he gestured into the wind with his hand like listening. "Can't you hear that jingle-jangle sound?"
Hoagy gave a grin. "Oh yeah! It's money, money, money by the pound!"
No sooner had the words left the red-haired man did a deafening blast roar into their ears. Doctor Terminus held onto his top hat to keep it from blowing away. Hoagy's bowler hat went flying. He lunged at it and tumbled over the cliff. Terminus charged after him. The two men lost their footings and descended down to the sandy beach below.
Terminus landed face-first into the sand. He sat up and spat out a mouthful of sand. Hoagy was more fortunate. He had landed on his back and was just in a slight daze from the fall.
"Curse that boy with the Keyblade," Terminus grumbled. "Maleficent was right. I need to find reinforcements."
"What about those 'Heartless' monsters you, Mortimer, and Cinnamon Toast brought along?" Hoagy offered.
Terminus paused in thought. A sly grin appeared on his face. Maybe his assistant had a valid point, like he did every now and again.
Sora wanted to jump high into the sky. He might have ended up on the lighthouse's beacon had he actually done it. The sound of the foghorn going off was plenty to startle him. He whirled his attention to the entrance of the lighthouse.
There was Goofy, stepping outside. Launchpad was directly behind him. "Looks like we got rid of them birds," Goofy chuckled. "A-Hyuck!"
Sora had to laugh. No wonder the foghorn had gone off. It was just a prank of Goofy and Launchpad's design. Amemi, Nora, Pete, and Indigo all found themselves laughing along with the seventeen-year-old Keyblader. No one laughed harder than Goofy and Launchpad (of course!).
Only Donald was not amused. "That was not funny!" he scolded, stomping his feet in anger. "There's no fog out here!"
The door to the lighthouse banged open. Out came Lampie. The older man was filled with alarm and rushing around in a heated frenzy. "Fog! Fog!" he hollered. He looked this way and that way. "Where's the fog?!"
"There's not much fog," Nora explained.
"Gawrsh!" Goofy added in. "We was only gettin' rid of a few buzzards."
Lampie stared at the knight and his daughter at the same time. "Few buzzards," he frowned at the latter. "Nora, how many times must I…. "
His words trailed off. Sora shrugged and continued on with his painting. He laughed. "I was wondering if this was going to be fun," he commented. "I always thought work was boring. But, doing it here, it feels more fun."
Donald and Goofy exchanged looks of surprise. "Do you think Sora's feelin' okay?" Goofy whispered.
Donald shrugged. "I don't know," he whispered back. "But he's been acting weird all day."
"Oh, yeah! Ya mean thuh necklace?"
Donald gave another nod. "Yeah!"
"This is fun," Amemi approved her brother's statement. "I never imagined I'd hear Sora say such a thing."
Sora stopped painting long enough to give his famous grin. "What did you expect?"
Indigo shook her head and smiled. "I had the feeling anyone as laidback as Sora was a hard worker inside."
Lampie gave a friendly grin. "If it's so much fun, I'm gonna leave it to you all to finish up," he yawned and headed for the door. "While I go in and take a nice, little nap."
Nora grabbed her father by the shoulders and held him back.
Pete was smiling brighter than Sora had seen him smile before. "This is the best time I've ever had in my whole life," he admitted.
"It is?" a surprised Lampie said.
"Yeah."
The lighthouse keeper turned to his daughter. "Tell him, Nora."
Nora turned to face Pete. Indigo, Sora, Amemi, Donald, Goofy, and Launchpad all turned their attention to her. "Pete," she said. "Lampie and I have talked it over. We feel the time has come for you to stop running."
"Yes, it's true," Lampie confirmed with a grin. "If it's all right with you, we'd like you to live here with us."
Pete opened his mouth in complete surprise. Through it, Sora could make out a smile full of delight. "Oh, Nora, Lampie, do you mean this could be my real home?"
"It certainly does," Nora approved.
"And Elliot too?"
Nora seemed a little hesitant. "Well, I…. "
"Sure, and Elliott too," Lampie said for his daughter. "But Elliott has to live in the cave."
Pete beamed with the sensation one gets from being overjoyed. "All right, he will."
Everyone returned to their painting. Nora continued to smile as she said, "You know what?"
The others turned to face her. Nora opened her mouth to speak. What sounded like a song came leaping out. "It's a brazzle dazzle day, so throw off the past and everything in it. That's the brazzle dazzle way, enjoying your time from minute to minute. Running through the sand without your shoes on."
"Shoes on," Pete added along.
Nora gave a nod. "Making sure that you don't keep your blues on."
"Finding a boat we can cruise on."
Amemi smiled brilliantly in the sunshine. "It's a brazzle dazzle day," she sang aloud (or so it sounded to Sora). "When you think of love and never of sorrow. That's the brazzle dazzle way.
She winked at Sora. "To do your work now and take off tomorrow."
"Flying through the air," Lampie chimed in. "You don't need wings on."
"Wings on," Pete added.
Lampie gave a nod. "Climb right up and feel the thrill it brings on. Rock with the wind as it sings on."
Nora reached a little higher than the others. "Ride higher and higher, and glide above the clouds. Free, no one to catch us or slow us. Even the birds are below us."
"Hey!" Donald scowled, clearly offended.
Nora did not pay the duck mage any mind. "It's a brazzle dazzle day. A lifetime of joy in just a few hours. All our brazzle dazzle years have just begun."
"We shall follow the Sun," Indigo chimed in turn. "And replay this brazzle dazzle day!"
Soon, the entire group was chanting away as they worked. Sora had to smile. Pete was thrilled. He knew, without the shadow of a doubt, the boy finally had a place to call home.
Deep, deep, deep, deep down, he was wondering about the necklace from the shop….
A/N: THAT'S THE END - OF CHAPTER 40!
SORALEGO278: SHEESH! I spent a LOT of time putting this one together!
AMEMI HIKARI: You did?
SORALEGO278: Yes. It was not easy including all those "'Musical Segments'" either. "There's Room For Everyone" and "Brazzle Dazzle Day" are two of my favorite songs from the movie, in addition to "Candle On The Water" (of course!) and "Bop Bop Bopbop Bop (I Love You, Too)".
AMEMI HIKARI: I like those ones, too, but I've never seen the movie.
SORALEGO278: Then, how DO you know the last song? It hasn't appeared in there!
AMEMI HIKARI: It's a S-E-C-R-E-T!
SORALEGO278: Alright, let's leave it at that. So, I would like to go over some things before I sign out for today.
(1.) That opening villain scene was originally supposed to appear at the end of Chapter 39. Yet, since that "Candle On The Water" scene turned out so well, I decided to end it there.
(2.) You might want to take note of Sora's attention to the necklace for the shop. It might have a role in the story to come!
AMEMI HIKARI: What role?
SORALEGO278: TBR (TO BE REVEALED)!
(3.) Now, as for the sequence with the Heartless, I had a little trouble trying to visualize that whole part in my mind as a I wrote it.
AMEMI HIKARI: You might want to stop listening to WordGirl music while you're working.
SORALEGO278: Actually, I think I was listening to a playlist with Disney, Ever After High, Monster High, and LEGO songs throughout it. Either way, I need to continue.
(4.) I know, Indigo and Launchpad did not have much when it comes to roles in This Chapter. Still, I DID include some foreshadowing with one of them.
AMEMI HIKARI: You DID?!
SORALEGO278: Yes, I did! As a matter of fact, I have been doing such throughout This Story. Keep an eye out as This Story continues on for at least 30 More Chapters. I will not tell you when or what I was referring to. Same with "'Kingdom Hearts - World Unto Dreams'"!
AMEMI HIKARI: Does this mean Chapter 40 is done?
SORALEGO278: Yes, it does. So, Amemi, thank you for coming today!
AMEMI HIKARI (Curtseying): Sure! I'm going to let Sora know how wonderful this experience was.
SORALEGO278: 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!"