Author Notes: Third chapter. Whoo-hoo.
Excuse my lack of enthusiasim, but I'm a little irked 'cuz I can't center little bits of my text. So sorry for the irkiness of non-center-alignment. Well, it irks me, anyways. Y'know, isn't 'irk' starting to sound kinda funny to you?
Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything related to it. But I do wish I owned Sora. -long sob-


"When you doubt the path trod thus far, when the hand you held is lost to you; gaze anew at the heart that once was. For all answers are within."

"Lost." Taiyou echoed from her visions, that single word had so much impact- so much feeling and meaning. It would have brought a tear to her eye if her heart and her expression didn't feel like stone. She was determined to find this cure for Shanteru- or risk her life doing it. She kept herself going by reminding her of the good times with her pal, and the limited time they had left to have any more. She was on the verge of breaking down- but she kept searching, her notions stronger than any emotions, whether bravery or fear, but they both clutched at her heart.
Night had returned, and a quarter moon rested contentedly in the sky. Taiyou observed with envy. If only she knew her place in this world... to be a part of the sky, where all her pain and suffering would just melt away… Deep within her heart she just wanted the moon to open a path for her towards the sky, a path she could follow where everything would be all right.

Suddenly, moonlight spilled out amongst the starlit sky. The heavenly brilliance seemed to pour like a stream as if the moon itself had burst. The twinkling transparent waters were of nothing she had ever seen before, and they trickled down to the end of her feet. Fascinated, Taiyou couldn't help but venture closer, until she taken her first step on the moonlit road. The path parted about her feet like water, opening as her weight was placed on its delicate form. She feared she might fall through and drop to her death, but a phrase stuck to her mind- asentence her mother used to tell her when she was only little, andkept her from retreating:

Follow your heart, for it always knows the way.

She slowly made her way toward that wondrous slice of the moon, but before she reached it a large shadow appeared, blocking her path. Taiyou shrieked, about to turn and flee, but it engulfed her with such haste she could not respond, and she neglected herself in its deepness.
A light flickered in the overcoming black, and soon it illuminated and took shape into a human. A young boy- the same boy she had encountered earlier on her trail. He sent her that same understanding smile, and calmed her with his words; "Listen to your heart," he said, covering his hand to his own, "And you'll find your light in the darkness."
Her eyes softened and her spirit calmed at the sight of this boy. Mimicking him, she put her hands to her chest. Almost suddenly, a word had caught her tongue. A name that she was compelled to bursting, losing her presence in his oceanic eyes once more.
"Roxas?"
With a slight nod, the light surrounding this boy, Roxas, erupted into hundreds of white doves. As they flew away, feathers floating to the ground, the light died and Taiyou felt the floor collapse on her. She let out a stifled yelp as she was sent plummeting into an even greater darkness.

--x--

The key to her heart rests here. Mumbling, Taiyou found it hard to open her eyes this time. She wished she didn't have to. The entire meaning of her journey seemed to be slipping from her fingers like sand. Again she hauled herself up, until something had stuck her. She noticed that she had returned to the cave, the same place where she first met Roxas, and studied the sketches on the walls. The same sketches were still there, but instead of a cave, it just looked like a dark passageway under an island. She could hear the rushing water of a mighty falls near, and the floor under her feet was nothing but sand, dimmed to gray with the lack of light.
She perceived her environment for the second time. The same jumbled drawings were scratched on the rock wall, but looking ahead she noticed something different. A beautifully carved door with a golden rim stood in her direction. Interested, Taiyou opened the door only to be blinded by the brightest light she had ever witnessed. Hesitation pulled at her, but she carried on until the door slammed shut behind her and the light disappeared.
All of the enclosure she stepped into was darkness. There was a faint light in the distance, that pulsed with unwelcome and terror. As if in a dark realm, Taiyou had nothing to look towards but the light. She approached it with caution to discover a weapon plunged into an iron stand. Images of that key shaped blade pulsated into her mind. Nearly sub-consciously, Taiyou took hold of its (handle). Her hand started to burn and throb with pain, but the blade would not let her release it. She tore it from its prison. The impact sent her flying onto her back, and she stared at her newly claimed weapon with fear.
She could feel itsstrength in her arm, as ifall her hate and all her negativity drained into it to be given off as power. Still trapped in the shock of it all, she swiftly lifted herself to her feet and ran towards the door that once stood there. But this time when she opened it, there was nothing but endless darkness. Sadness flooded over her to not be welcomed by the comforting light, but she dived into the murkiness anyway, not knowing how much time she had left.

--x--

Taiyou exploded at her friend's door. "Shantsi! Shantsi!" she cried, running as fast as her legs could carry her to Shanteru's bedroom. She opened the door with a crash, and found her friend sprawled out in her bed, just as she had left her.
That's when everything froze.
The birdsong outside had ceased, same as the howling of the wind against the shutters. Everything was at rest except for Taiyou and her ill friend. Without taking heed to what had happened, she did the best she could to prod her friend awake.
"Taiyou... is that you?" Shantsi's voice was frail and stiff.
"Shantsi," Taiyou was in a near-whisper, "I promised I'd make it all better. And I will." With that, she pointed the key to the heart of her friend, pleading it to fix her. A dark beam emitted from its tip, and all light of day faded out as if a thick cloud had moved in front of the sun. The shaft of black swam straight into Shantsi's chest, crippling her.
"Taiyou... how could you?" Shantsi looked into Taiyou's eyes, filled with torturing and swirling darkness. Taiyou couldn't believe what was happening, and she wailed, releasing the blade from her clasp. It hung there in midair, as Taiyou could only watch in horror as it sucked the life from her friend.

The sunlight had returned, but the time was still lost. The only breathing substance in the enclosure was Taiyou, her breath faint. The key dropped to the ground as darkness formed around it and it melted into the floor. Taiyou rushed to her friends bedside. "Shantsi... Shanteru... wake up. Please... please... wake up..." she begged in despair, tears flowing from her broken eyes. But Shansti's skin and eyes were as pale as a ghost; she showed no signs of slumber.
Not knowing what to do, Taiyou raced out the door, to get anyone to help. People were frozen in the streets, and nothing showed any sign of movement.

This is all my fault. She looked to the sky above, hoping to be comforted by its beauty and confidence in a shade of azure. Unfortunately, the sky too had dimmed, and Taiyou examined in helplessness as cracks began to form throughout its color. Suddenly, the sky shattered like glass, into millions and millions of pieces, leaving behind a deep darkness- like night without a moon or stars.
Taiyou gazed into the black, its coiling emptiness striking fear and hatred into her heart. She embraced herself as the pieces of the sky came hurtling down to Twilight Town, and she was knocked unconscious by their unbelievable weight.

"Time ticks on... forever
In the depths of a broken heart,
As
pieces of my soul
Scatter, one by one.

A morning sunrise
I look out- to find you
With a hopeful sky remaining
But you aren't there."

"Hey, Taiyou. Wake up, now!"
"...Mom?"
Taiyou rubbed her eyes and opened them, feeling a tight pain in her side and her head. "Ohh..." she groaned, and sat up, wiping sweat from her face. She was laying on a damp tarp, and could feel debris poke her through the thin sheet of burlap.
"Mom!"
A figure emerged in her view. Slightly dazed, Taiyou could make out his brown, spiky hair, and intense blue eyes much like hers. Focusing harder, she noticed he was wearing a black outfit, with a dark purple shirt under an unzipped jacket. Yellow bands were wrapped around his dark pants that stopped at his ankles, and he was wearing sable shoes with yellow accents, their size symbolizing how abnormally large his feet were. A chain was draped about his neck, a silver crown pendant dangling as he leaned over her with a hopeful smile.

"Roxas...?"

"Close enough." he flashed her an ear-long grin that made her slightly giggle. She blinked a few times to regain focus as he extended a gloved hand to help her up. "Hi," he introduced himself, "I'm Sora."
"Who?"
Her words unveiled a confused look on the boy's face. "You never heard of me?" he rubbed his chin, inspecting this girl from top to bottom.
She looked about his age- maybe fifteen- with the same light chocolate, unmanageable hair and sky blue eyes. She seemed to even be a reflection of himself- with a determined brow and similar height, yet her attire was torn and dirtied so much that it was almost non-wearable. "So you're Taiyou, huh..." he murmured. Taiyou recoiled as if he had thrown a blow at her.
"You've heard of me!" she gasped.
"Somewhere... I guess." Sora shrugged, not too sure how he recognized this stranger. He wasn't even sure how he ended up here or even where 'here' was. What ever happened to his old friends?
Sora put his hand on his head, appearing to be in deep thought; the last thing he remembered was traveling to Twilight Town to visit his friends Hayner, Olette, and Pence. Then all of a sudden, he woke up here in the middle of this destruction, layered with trash and shards of glass.
"Sora...?"
In all his thinking, he must have forgot about Taiyou, a girl he found lying limp under a thick fragment of cracked translucent glass with a small azure tint to it. He tended her wounds as best he could, and now that she was awake he could ask her where she came from, too.

"So... Taiyou..." Sora didn't even know where to start, "Where are we?"
"I... don't remember..." the girl just sat there, dumbfounded, looking about her and trying to reminisce. "Okay... then..." maybe he could try again, "Where are you from?"
"Twilight Town." she responded, "Why?" Sora exchanged a perplexed look, "Hmm... I wonder why I've never seen you around there, then..." he muttered under his breath.
"What was that?"
"Oh, nothing."
"Well, Sora. Where exactly did you come from?"
"I can't believe you've never heard of me before. I've played an important part in Twilight Town's history." he chuckled.
"I told you- I've never seen you around my town."
"Huh... surely you've heard of my friends- Hayner, Olette, and Pence?"
"No. I... I haven't."

Something wasn't right here. How could this girl be from Twilight Town, but not know his friends- or even him- the town's savior. Maybe she was suffering from a small amnesia...
"B-but you've heard of Roxas, then?"
"Yeah. He looks somewhat like you, Sora."
"Wonder why..." Sora joked, rubbing his neck in embarrassment. Perhaps he should be patient and wait for this girl's memory to return. Funny, though... some strange feeling stirred inside him. I know this girl from somewhere. he thought. "Hey, maybe you'll recognize me with this..."

Taiyou watched in amazement as flecks of light poured from his outstretched hand, gathering together to form one object. As the light faded, it formed a blade shaped like a key, with a complex pattern and a chain dangling from it handle. Pictures of the dark weapon that took her friend's life played through her head, and she shuddered.

"It looks like..." she started, but stopped in mid-sentence.
"So you do know the Keyblade?"
"The... Keyblade..."
"That's right."

Sora could see her eyes widening as the color drained from them. "Something wrong?" he asked, curious. "Please... put it away." Taiyou's gaze was fastened to that Keyblade, as if her whole life lingered on it. With a sigh of frustration he opened his palms, letting the weapon dissolve into thin air.

"I'm... sorry." his eyes darted to his feet.
"N-no, it's fine. I'm o-okay..." Taiyou lied, faking a smile.

Sora fake-grinned back, then raised his arm up and cast a glance at his empty wrist. "I wonder what time it is," he hummed, then looked up to check the sun's place in the sky. His jaw dropped and his optics broadened. Afraid at what he was gaping at, Taiyou paused in hesitation, but turned her head to see in Sora's perspective.
"This is Twilight Town," she whispered, disbelieving how they hadn't noticed it before. The sky was no longer clear blue- but a dark, menacing purplish gray, as that of a storm cloud. It was overcast with a murky, clouded appearance, and the sun was nowhere to be seen. Taiyou thought she spotted a pair of gleaming eyes watching her from above, and she began to feel light-headed. Instead of losing it, she shivered with terror, and let out a screech, shielding herself with her arms as if the sky was falling upon her again.

"This is Twilight Town?"

Sora uncovered his ears after her frantic phase was finished, and turned around in his location, his feet scratching up against the broken ice underneath them. He looked about for anything familiar- the train station, the clock tower... but everything was concealed within destruction, lost below the pieces of the sky.