DISCLAIMER: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, nor the Disney and Square Enix characters. Please support the original works.
Chapter 9: Castle Rumble
Down by the racetrack, Minnie and Daisy had gathered up all the spectators in front of the ticket booths. The people were shivering, and it didn't take Riku, Mickey, and Kairi long to understand why. A whole castle, appearing right out of nowhere and dropping onto a race track should have been terrifying enough, but the knee deep layer of snow that came with it, only added to the shock. White puffs covered what remained of the racetrack and part of the town, near the ticket booth. A massive castle sat right over part of the track. Pine forests that surrounded the castle, spread out over the nearby farmlands and plains of Disney Town. It was though the castle had been pasted right over Mickey's territory.
The snow wasn't the only surprise. The sky looked as though it had been split in half. One side was the sky of Disney Town, bright, blue, sunny, cloudless, and the other side, was a dark, midnight sky. The moon hung over the dark castle's tallest tower, bathing the baroque towers and gargoyles in a silvery glow. Snow clouds hung in the air.
"Look!" Kairi pointed to the night sky above the castle. "Those are the same black patches I saw in Moana's world."
Mickey looked up. Above, splotches of darkness covered sections of the sky, making it look like a painting with drops of black ink on it.
Riku sniffed. "There's a lot of darkness overhead."
Mickey went to the crowd of people by the ticket booths, calling Minnie and Daisy over.
"Is everyone all right?"
Minnie put her hands on her chest. "Yes. Thank goodness. A few colds and some minor injuries, but nothing Daisy and I couldn't heal."
"What about the racers?"
"Safe," said Minnie.
"We got lucky," said Daisy. "No one had been in the section of the race track when castle suddenly dropped in. The real problems are the people's concerns."
Minnie looked out into the town, her gaze solemn. "Everyone's worried that something like this may happen again. What will they do if another large building appears in the town, or in their homes?"
Mickey tapped his temple. "Gosh. That is a problem." With a sigh, he turned to Riku and Kairi. "Looks like I can't go into the castle with you," he said.
"This isn't like the worlds melting together, like the oceans," mused Riku. "This is like if someone were to drop a whole world into another."
"Right. That's why I'm going to find Professor Von Drake. Ask him if he can research a way to predict these sudden appearances. Then at least we can warn the people if something like this were to happen again."
"That's a good idea," said Minnie.
Mickey held her hands, his face concerned. "You got this?"
"Of course," giggled Minnie. "Don't you have any faith in me." "Always." Mickey's ears dropped a little. "But I still worry."
Minnie closed her eyes, shaking her head. "Don't you have somewhere you need to be?"
Nodding, Mickey turned to Riku and Kairi. "Be careful."
When he was gone, it was Minnie's turn to address the two friends.
"Daisy and I will evacuate this area. Keep your wits about you, Kairi, Riku."
Minnie gave Kairi an ether before she began leading the civilians somewhere safe. As Kairi and Riku walked through the ticket booths and onto the broken racetrack, Kairi rubbed her arms. It wasn't just because her boots sank into the snow. It wasn't because they passed from the sunny day of Disney Town in the dark, winter night of the mysterious castle. It was because a tingle of light had reached her. One so powerful that it made her spine tingle.
They passed through the pine forest surrounding the castle, eventually stopping in front of a stone wall. A gate was embedded into the middle of the wall. Through the intricate metal work, Kairi could see a bridge that was covered in a sparkling layer of sleet. She carefully pushed the gate open and stepped onto the bridge, looking up at the castle straight ahead. There were lights moving behind the castle's stained glass windows. Massive, reinforced wooden doors rested at the end of the bridge.
Riku came to stand beside Kairi. Suddenly, he tensed.
"Oh no."
Across the bridge, the wooden doors banged opened, slamming into the castle walls. A large creature appeared in the doorway. Haunched over, stream puffed from the creature's wide nostrils. The creature snarled at Kairi and Riku, revealing two rows of straight, sharp, white teeth. Its furry, wide chest and bear like upper half stood on long, thin, wolf legs. His wolf tail swept the ground angrily. He was gritting his teeth so tightly that the horns on his head looked as though they were trembling. The only sign of intelligence in that brutish face was the deep, blue eyes that stared across the bridge, right into Riku's face.
With a roar, the creature leaned forward and galloped across the bridge.
"You," the creature hissed. "Leave my castle now!"
Kairi skid in front of Riku, her arms spread wide. Her reflect spell went up, and the creature banged his huge paws against it. From inside the bubble, Kairi cried out.
"Calm down, Beast! Can you hear me out? Please?"
The creature growled at her, stepping back to charge at her protective spell once again.
There was a cry from the castle doors.
"Beast! Stop!"
The soft voice made the creature halt his attacks. He haunched down low, his hackles raised, not taking his eyes off Riku. A lovely young woman ran across the bridge. She put her hand on Beast's back and the creature visibly relaxed. Turning, the young woman faced Kairi.
"I feel the light. You're one of the seven princess of heart."
Kairi let the reflect spell drop. She fidgeted under the young woman's hazel eyes. She had seen the princesses of heart, had known of them, but this was the first time she had every spoken to one face to face.
"You're Belle, right?"
The young woman nodded. Then she faced Riku. "I recognize that darkness. I felt it in Hollow Bastion. Who are you?"
"That boy," the Beast hissed.
Riku put up his hands. "I'm not the same as I was back then. Please, let me explain."
The Beast reared back on his hind legs. Belle grabbed his arm. Kairi stood in front of Riku, her hands up.
"Easy! If you don't want to listen to him, then listen to me! I'm Sora's friend too! You know him, don't you? Do you remember me? You helped me and Sora escape from Hollow Bastion."
The beast blinked at her. His upper body lowered, relaxing. Slightly. Taking that as permission to explain, Kairi began pace.
"Okay. Here are the facts. Riku was the one that fought you in Hollow Bastion. That is true. And he was in league with the people that kidnapped Belle. At least, at the time."
The Beast's growls were slowly rising.
"Uh Kairi, you're not really painting me in a very good light here."
"Shush, let me finish!" Kairi held up her finger. "But! It was because of Riku that we were able to restore the worlds. Without his help, your world wouldn't have come back. He's already learned his lesson, and paid the price for it. And he's really, really sorry for all the things he did." Kairi looked over her shoulder, glaring at Riku. "Right?"
Riku bowed his head. "I'm truly sorry for how I treated you back in Hollow Bastion, Beast. And Belle, I'm sorry too, for everything I did while under Maleficient and Ansem's influence."
Belle's smile was soft and knowing. She stepped away from Beast and held out her hand. "It takes a lot of courage to take responsibility for your mistakes."
Beast growled. "How can you forgive him for all that he's done?"
Belle put a hand on her hip, looking cooly over her shoulder, back at the beast. "I forgave you, didn't I?"
Beast sat down, his paws resting between his hind legs, his lips sealed shut. He hummed from deep within his throat, his tail tapping the floor. While Belle and Riku shook hands, Kairi walked up to Beast and gave him a pat on the head. He started, glaring at her with wide eyes as though she had lost her mind.
"I never got to thank you for helping Sora. If you weren't there for him when he was all alone in Hollow Bastion, I wouldn't be here either. So thank you, Beast."
His blue eyes softened, the frown falling from his face. Looking away, he grumbled, "You're welcome."
Belle wrapped her arms around herself. "We should probably continue this inside the castle."
Beast stood, looking out beyond the bridge, into the split sky, into the distant plains and city scape of Disney Town.
"What about the town? Those other outsiders?"
"If they come to the castle, then we'll just have to greet them graciously, like good hosts," Belle scolded.
"I don't think anyone will come here," said Riku. "The people outside are too frightened to risk it. I'm sure you're just as surprised that you suddenly appeared in another world."
Beast looked at him, his eyes narrowed. "How do I know this isn't any of your doing?"
Once again, Kairi to the rescue. "My friends at Hollow Bastion looked at Ansem's old notes. Not even he reported on something like this happening. Even if I didn't trust Riku, I doubt he would know anything about what's going on. If Ansem had no idea something like this could happen, then how could Riku cause it?"
Her logic won Beast over, though he did let out a low, annoyed growl. He stood and began walking toward the castle, waving his arm at them.
"Come inside, before you all freeze."
As soon as Kairi and Riku walked through the massive doors, a blast of warm air surrounded them. The entrance hall was not nearly as huge as the audience chamber in Disney Castle, but it was still a cavernous room with vaulted ceilings and massive, stone pillars. Made of dark blue stones, rich earthy tones in the carpet and antique furniture, the castle felt old, distinguished yet forgotten at the same time.
Beast gestured for them to walk into a small room on the right side of the foyer. They entered into a parlor. A single, tall, cushioned, red and gold chair sat in front of the fireplace. Beast collapsed into it. Taking off her metal gauntlets, Kairi went to the fire and rubbed her palms together. Belle went to stand by Beast. Riku was the last to enter, and he shut the door behind him.
"So," he began carefully, "can you tell us what was going on in your world, before the castle just somehow came here?"
Belle looked at Beast and then back at Riku. "I was reading in my room when I felt something. By the time I got down to warn Beast, the castle just," Belle snapped her fingers, "popped up right here."
Kairi frowned. "What exactly did you feel?"
Belle interlocked her fingers, bringing her joined hands close to her chest. "It's hard to explain. You would think that this," she gestured to the castle, "would be caused by darkness, right? But that not what I felt."
"Well, I'd say we've had quite a scare dears," said a kindly old voice. "Perhaps we should just discuss it after a spot of tea?"
Riku stumbled backward, away from the door. A tea cart, which was wheeling itself, had rolled in, nearly running over his foot. The cart stopped between Belle and Beast. On top of the cart was a white, china tea pot with a frilled, pink cover. Dainty, white tea cups with golden handles surrounded the pot.
Riku gripped the door, his brows furrowing. "Kairi, are my senses going crazy, or is there actually a talking teapot in the room?"
"Don't be rude," Kairi snapped, ignoring the fact that she had been just as surprised back when she had met the walking broomsticks at Disney Castle.
"It's quite all right," said the tea pot. She bent forward, pouring tea out of her spout nose. "Have some lavender blend. It will soothe your soul on such a cold night."
"Thank you, Mrs. Potts," said Belle as she took a cup.
The surprises didn't end there. There was a dog bark. A second later, a footstool ran into the room. Its four legs moved like a canine, its golden tassel waving like a dog tail. The stool's front legs pawed at Kairi. After a series of pets, the stool moved around her, and barked.
"Oh, you want me to sit," Kairi realized. "Thanks."
Just as she sat down, a golden candelabra hopped into the room, followed by a miniature grandfather clock. Riku would have stared if his eyes worked. Instead, he stood very still, waiting for someone else to acknowledge the situation.
Beast waved the candelabra and clock over.
"Well?"
The candelabra bowed his head low, making the fire atop his waxy head flicker. "We've checked the east wing, master."
The clock pulled at his mustache, which was really just the clock hands on his face. "Not a single monster in sight, courtesy of yours truly."
The fire on candelabra's head and hands brightened. "Excuse me? What about my contribution."
The clock waved his partner off dismissively. "Lumière helped, a little."
The wax melted faster as the flame atop the candelabra's head blazed. "Why you overgrown pocket watch!"
The candle holder reached out and spun the clock hands on the clock's face ,so quickly that the clock's eyes spun. The clock fell on his behind. He quickly stood, handlebars peeling away from his sides, turning into tiny hands.
"En garde, you parrafin-headed pea brain!"
The two living pieces of furniture wrestled on the ground. Atop the tea table, the tea pot jumped up and down, snapping. "Cogsworth! Lumière! We have guests!"
Riku stepped above the two and picked them up, pulling them apart. The candle holder and clock continued slapping the air between them. Beast growled and the two servants froze, finally behaving. Putting them back down, Riku asked Cogsworth, "What did you mean by monsters?"
The little clock cleared his throat. "Well, you see, our grand castle has been having an infestation as of late."
"Heartless?"
Cogsworth stumbled a bit. "Why, yes."
"Since when?"
Lumière tapped his golden base like a foot. "Let's see, in the past few days, perhaps?"
Belle nodded. "Usually, my light keeps them away, but now they've infested the west wing."
Cogsworth wailed. "The poor master! He can't even go to his own room now without having to fight through a horde of flying, sword wielding monsters to get there."
"Riku, did you hear that," asked Kairi.
"Invisibles," Riku mumbled. "Are those the only ones that appear here? Are there any other kind of heartless?"
Cogsworth jumped up and down. "Yes! Foul beasts! As if we didn't have enough problems! If it weren't for the fact that we must protect the rose, we would have sectioned off the west wing by now."
Suddenly, Beast rose from his chair and barked. "Cogsworth!"
The little clock covered his mouth. "Forgive me, master. I misspoke."
Kairi eyed the little clock and then Beast. She repeated Cogsworth's last sentence in her mind. What kind of rose needed protecting? Curiosity begged her to ask the question out loud, but with Riku on thin ice, she didn't want to upset Beast when he was already on edge. She tried to speak to Belle instead, but the moment she opened her mouth, she froze, and had to turn around to compose herself.
"You don't have to be so afraid of me," Belle chuckled.
Kairi blushed. "I'm sorry. It's just that I've never met another princess of heart. I mean, I did see the others through Sora's eyes, but I never got the chance to actually talk. This is, a little weird."
"It's all right," said Belle. "I remember how I frightened I felt when I awoke at Hollow Bastion. It was truly a terrible place."
Kairi looked down at her shoes. To think that her old home had become nothing more then a nightmare for so many. Could Leon and the others really return it to the garden of hopes she remembered when she dreamed at night? Or was it doomed to be stigmatized as Maleficient's headquarters forever. Kairi bit her lip. Was her presence the only thing that could return Hollow Bastion to its former glory?
"But the other princesses gave me strength," Belle continued. "And so did he."
She gazed at Beast. There was a glimmer in her eyes, a gentle curve of her cheeks, and Kairi couldn't help thinking about Sora and how he had wrapped his arms around her after she had changed him back from being a heartless.
"Maybe you can help me with something, Belle."
Kairi explained what had happened on the islands, the patchy sky at night, and the hordes of heartless she saw rising out the realm of monsters. When she explained how the heartless had corrupted an entire island, she paused.
"How can there be so many pureblood heartless about? The realm of darkness was closed and I destroyed the heartless machine. We haven't seen too many emblem heartless since then, but still, there really shouldn't be this many purebloods around."
Belle nodded. "I've wanted to go to the castle library, to see if I can find some clues."
Beast walked over. "No. It's too dangerous. I forbid you from going into the west wing."
Belle crossed her arms. "If you were to walk alongside me, the danger shouldn't be a problem."
Beast stomped his foot, as if that was that. "And don't go sneaking off in there again. If you would only listen to me-"
Belle held up a finger. "If you would only trust me-"
"The answer is no!"
Kairi raised her hand. "Might I make a suggestion?"
Beast's growl made Mrs. Potts, Lumière, and Cogsworth shiver. Even Riku swallowed. Kairi, on the other hand, didn't even blink.
"I can walk beside Belle and help her get to the library safely. We could hunt for clues together."
"I agree," said Riku. "Plus, both Kairi and I can sense heartless when they're coming. If Beast and I lead the way and Kairi guards Belle, there shouldn't be too much trouble."
Belle didn't wait for Beast to agree. She simply walked to the door and out into the foyer. "I'm going, whether you like it or not. So let's move."
A cacophony of bangs, crashes and screams reached Sora's ears as he followed Donald and Goofy into the square. Disney Town citizens were running around, flailing their arms, ducking and hiding from oily, weirdly flat heartless that stretched like rubber bands. Max stood between a group of heartless and a frightened lady cow. He slashed at the heartless, but his might as well have been trying to dig through a mountain with a toothpick. Rather then damage the creatures, he was simply stretching them this way and that with his swords.
Goofy raised his shield and charged, bulldozing into the heartless in front of Max, sending them flying like bowling pins.
"Are ya all right, son?"
Max nodded and then turned to the older woman he had been protecting. "Find some cover, Ms. Clarabelle."
The cow pinched Max's cheek. "Oh thank you, Max. I'll make sure to put in a good word for you in the next town meeting."
As the cow scampered off, several more rubbery heartless fell from the sky. Goofy defended his son from the attack. Back to back with Max, the father and son duo took turns, slicing and pushing the heartless back, making openings for the civilians to escape. The heartless caught on, stretching their oily, weasel bodies, getting in the way of the civilians, biting and swiping at anyone that tried to step one foot outside of the square. Max tried to cut through the elongated torsos and arms of the heartless, but his swords did no damage. Goofy, still struggling to keep civilians out of harm's way, spared a moment to shout at Sora and Donald.
"Fellars! These are the same heartless from Roger Rabbit's world! Quick, Max! Tell a joke!"
Max x-sliced through a heartless, watching as it stretched back into shape after his attack. "Now is not the time for jokes, Dad!"
A heartless slithered down from above, about to jump on Max's head. Sora leapt forward, to defend him, but Max whirled around, hitting the heartless with both of his swords and throwing it back. The heartless smashed into a nearby mailbox.
Sora let out an appreciative whistle. "Cool! You use two swords! Just like Kairi said."
Max turned around and blinked. "Who are you?"
"I'm Sora."
Donald wailed, raising his staff. "Aeroga!"
A sphere of protective winds surrounded the group, sheilding them from an onslaught of rubber toon heartless. They washed over the spell like a wave, clawing and kicking at the protective sphere.
"Save the introductions for later," Donald snapped, "we need jokes and we need them fast!"
Max's lip curled. "Intro's are out but jokes are totally okay? Have you lost it?"
"The spell's going to break! Get ready!"
Sora raised his keyblade over his head. Donald's staff buzzed with electricity. Max and Goofy got behind the shield. The protective winds around them dissipated, unable to take anymore of the heartless' beat-down.
"Thundaga!"
Lightning came down from the sky, frying the heartless surrounding them. Sora threw his keyblade, making it fly around them in a circle, pushing the heartless back. Next, Max and Goofy charged, slicing and thrashing back heartless, clearing a path to the other side of the square. But nowhere was safe. No matter how many paths the father and son opened up, the people couldn't escape, and the heartless wouldn't go down.
"Sora, over there!"
Donald suddenly took off, running toward a wheeled cart that was stacked with pies. Raising his staff, Donald threw fire spells at the rubbery heartless that been attacking the pie cart. The spells did little to destroy the heartless, but they did blow them back, or confuse them long enough for Sora to send them flying. A few powerful keyblade swings did the job. Soon the pie cart, and the old duck that had been in front of it, were heartless free.
Donald stomped his foot, glaring at the old, spectacled duck. "What are you doing here, Uncle Scrooge? Go find someplace safe!"
Uncle Scrooge tapped his cane on the ground. "And leave me pie cart to be destroyed? Why would I throw munny like that away, eh?"
"But this place is dangerous!"
"I can see that. Blasted heartless. I came here, bringing some pies and ice cream to calm down the concerned townsfolk, and maybe make a profit while doing it, and then these creatures arrive! No one is going to buy a pie if they're busy running for their lives."
Sora pushed back another rubbery heartless, watching as his fire spell did nothing but make it mad. Time to bring out the funny.
"How much for three pies?" he asked Scrooge.
"Oh about a three hundred munny should do it."
Donald quacked. "That's so expensive!"
Sora threw his money pouch at Scrooge and then picked up a pie. Max ran by with Huey, Dewey and Louie right behind him. Sora aimed and fired.
"Hey Max, have some pie!"
By the time Max had turned his head around to ask Sora what he was talking about, the pie slammed into his face, covering his muzzle and ears with pieces of flaky crust and sweet, red, syrupy cherries which slide down his neck and onto his armor. Huey, Dewey and Louie pointed, laughing.
Max growled, shaking the pie off his head. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Ya gotta be funny Max," screamed Goofy from across the square. "It's the only way to beat 'em!"
"Speaking of." Sora picked up another pie, reached over and smashed Donald's face into it. Donald, his face covered in blueberry, jumped up in the air waving his arms and legs.
"Why you!" He chased Sora around the cart, quacking furiously.
"Come on, Donald, we all know blue is your favorite color!"
Huey, Dewey, Louie, even Uncle Scrooge, screamed with laughter. Nearby heartless doubled over and began writing in pain. Seeing this, Max reached over and grabbed a pie. He waiting until Sora had his back turned, sill running away from an enraged Donald.
"Hey, Sora. I hope you like pumpkin!"
Max smashed the pie into the back of Sora's head. Yelping, Sora shook as pumpkin pulp went down the back of his shirt.
Scrooge growled at Max. "Hey! You'd better pay for that!"
Donald fell over, laughing as Sora danced around, desperately scratching his back.
"Ew! Talk about a sticky situation!"
A few civilians that had been hiding nearby began chuckling, adding to the ducklings and Scrooge's laugher. This time, the heartless fell to the floor, convulsing. One by one they began popping like popcorn, bursting into nothing.
"Bringing some more yer way!" Goofy charged, banging heartless into the air with his shield, sending them toward the pie stand.
Sora finally gave up on trying to get the pie out of his shirt. He pointed at Max. "This means war!"
Max picked up a pie in each hand, grinning. "I only have pies for you!"
The ducklings ran up to the cart and picked up all manner of sweet treats. They screamed.
"FOOD FIGHT!"
Nothing could stop Huey, Dewey, and Louie. They pelted heartless with ice cream, pies, and cobblers. Civilians left their hiding spots and joined in, tossing so many pies into the air that soon Scrooge had more munny pouches then he knew what to do with.
"Hey, heartless! You should split," said Dewey, throwing a banana pie, which the heartless promptly stepped in, causing its foot to slip, making it land flat on its back. Max and Sora roared, gripping their stomachs.
The heartless writhed and then, pop! It was gone.
Huey picked up a pie and tapped his brother on the shoulder. "Hey Louie, what is a ghost's favorite dessert?"
Louie cringed. "Oh no. Don't-"
Huey smashed a blueberry pie into Louie's face screaming, "Boo-berry pie with I scream!"
Louie, pie falling off his face, glared at Huey. "Really? You want a piece of this?"
He smashed a raspberry pie in Huey's face in revenge.
Max fell over, kicking his feet, his laughter turning into a series of "ahyucks."
More heartless exploded. With the civilians, the ducklings, Max, Sora, and Donald engaged in the pie brawl, Goofy didn't see all the slippery jam and melted ice cream on the floor. He slipped and slid toward the heartless he had just gathered up, sending them flying. Up in the air, the heartless were defenseless as cannon balls of pies splattered them in the face. The food fight had reached its fever pitch! The laughter was so loud that no one heard or noticed PJ and Bobby running into the square. The pair of them quickly got splattered in pie slices. The joy from the fight quickly took over and soon Booby and PJ were pelting Max and Sora with so many sugary sweets that Sora was sure he was going to have a toothache by the time it was over.
"Incoming, bro-oh! Awooooo!"
Max and Sora turned to face their new opponents, shouting, "you're going to get creamed!"
PJ and Booby ducked, whipped cream pie sailing over their heads, smacking Goofy in the face instead.
"Oops! Sorry Dad!"
With whipped cream covering his face, Goofy wasn't able to see. He slipped again, this time on a scoop of ice cream. He slide over the floor, crashing into PJ, Bobby, Donald, the ducklings, even Scrooge. The five of them careened out of control, knocking the pie cart over. The civilians stepped back, eyes wide as a bunch of peach pies went sailing into the air. The rolling ball of dogs and ducks were sliding straight toward a mailbox! Breaking out into a run, Max and Sora got in their way.
Pointing his keyblade at the incoming wrecking ball of ducks and dogs, Sora shouted, "Aeroga!"
A sphere of wind protected the group, but wasn't stopping them from slamming into Sora and Max. The two boys put up their hands, catching the wind sphere and pushing Goofy and the others back, away from the mailbox. The wind sphere slid backward, popping. Goofy, Donald, Huey, Dewey, Louie, Scrooge, PJ ,and Bobby lay on the floor, confused. Then the peach pies they had knocked over came raining down on their heads.
Max ran over, his eyes wide. "Dad, Peej, Bobby, are you okay?"
"Yup," said Goofy, giving him a thumps up. "Just peachy."
Sora snorted, sending each and every one of the food fighters into a frenzy of delighted screams. The remaining heartless couldn't take two steps without having their heads assaulted with the light of laughter. One by one, they vanished and when the last one was gone, everyone in the square threw up their arms, howling at the top of their lungs.
The square was a total mess, splotches of ice cream, fruit and pie crusts hung off the buildings and the banners that were strung between them. Scrooge's cart was destroyed, leaving him with no choice but to hire Huey, Dewey, and Louie to help him carry his profits away.
Max and Sora shook hands, finally able to properly introduce each other.
"So, you're Max!" Sora grinned, his teeth pink from all the strawberry pie that had been thrown in his face. "Too bad these heartless are invincible, except for laughter. I would have loved to watch you fight. Kairi talks about it all the time. She says that as good as she is at dual wielding, you're ten times better."
Max blinked. "She really said that?"
"Yeah, she talks about you a lot, says you're the best sword instructor ever."
Max smirked. "She talks about you too. Says you're loyal, brave, and kind."
Sora stood up proudly.
Next to him, Donald and Goofy snickered.
"Do you two have something to say?"
"Just noticing how your face is all red," said Donald.
Sora slapped his hands on his cheeks. "It is not!"
Goofy covered his mouth. "Ahyuck! You should just be more honest with your feelings, Sora. Be like Max. He and Roxanne-"
"DAD!"
"What?" Goofy innocently replied.
Clearing his throat, Max faced Sora "Thanks for helping us take down the heartless."
"No problem." Sora pointed to the pie mess. "It was pretty sweet."
Max snorted at the pun. "You know, the way my Dad talks about you, I was expecting some well behaved, traditional hero. Man, am I glad I was wrong."
Goofy tilted his head. "Whatever gave you that idea, Max? All I said was that Sora was a real good boy."
"For you, 'real good boy' means he likes mambo, the world's biggest yarn house, or fishing."
"I do like fishing," said Sora. "The world's biggest yarn house sounds awesome. What's a mambo?"
Max's eyes got wide. Quickly he turned around and stepped in front of his father. "Don't even think about it!"
Goofy slumped. "Aw, why not? It's fun!"
Donald smacked Goofy's leg. "Save it for the next ball."
Goofy hung his head, but quickly recovered. He put his hand on Max's shoulder. "We'd better make sure no one is hurt. Donald, Sora, ya got some magic to spare?"
Sora and Donald nodded. Just as they had finished curing the civilians' injuries, there was a series of claps. Turning toward the source of the noise, Max cringed. Two, rather distinguished, looking men that had entered the square. PJ jumped behind Max. His body was too big for Max's thinner frame to reasonably hide him, but PJ still cowered behind his friend, gulping. Sora looked from PJ to one of the men that had entered the square, realizing there was a slight resemblance.
Like PJ, one of the men was tall and fat, his fur as black at PJ's. The only difference was that PJ was a dog, and the fat man was a cat. He wore a navy blue suit that would have looked refined, if it weren't for fact that his chest was covered in all manner of ridiculous medals. Even his top hat and cane seemed a little too much. The man next to the cat was a tall, lanky mouse, who's arms and legs were way too long. His outfit was just as aristocratic, except, instead of medals, he wore a beige ruff around his neck that was so huge, it nearly took over his entire dress shirt.
"Well, well, well."
When the fat cat smiled, his bulbous chin and two lower buck teeth made him look more sneaky then inviting. "Look at this mess." He threw out his arms, gesturing to the remains of the pie fight. "First people appearing in town where they shouldn't be, and now we have monsters? And where is our noble king?" Squinting, the cat put his hand over his forehead and looked around, clicking his teeth. "Why Mortimer, I do believe our famed Majesty is no where to be found."
The tall, lanky mouse crossed his arms and shook his head. "Ha cha cha, you're absolutely right, Lord Pete. The king is nowhere to be found. Where is he in his people's time of need?"
The civilians quickly gathered around the gazebo to hear the big cat talk. Goofy and Max had to push their way through the crowd. Once Max had reached the bottom step of the gazebo, he pointed at the fat cat.
"I told you before, Lord Pete," Max snapped, speaking the title as though it were an insult. "King Mickey is doing something about all this! And you're one to talk! You rallied all the people here and got them rioting, and then, as soon and those heartless showed up, you were out of here!"
Lord Pete smirked, crossing his arms. "Yes, I was on my way to gather my troops. But by the time we got back, those creatures were gone. At least I was doing something. Just how long is His Majesty going to let us wait? Hmm?" He waved his arm, gesturing to the civilians. "Seems to me, a more capable leader should be takin' care of business. Why, look at all these poor people. Confused, covered in filth."
Mortimer Mouse shook his head. "Tis a real shame."
Max pulled out his swords. "That's it. I'm arresting him."
Goofy grabbed his son around the shoulders. "Max, that's not how we do things."
"But-"
"Put those away. We can't arrest someone that hasn't broken the law."
Seething, Max sheathed his weapons. By this time, Sora and Donald caught up. Donald joined Goofy at the bottom of the stairs and the two of them began talking to Lord Pete and Mortimer. Sora leaned toward Max and whispered.
"Who are they?"
Max narrowed his eyes. "That's Lord Pete, PJ's dad, and his right hand man, Mortimer Mouse. The two of them are nobles here, but they're more like crooks to me."
"Come on, Pete," said Goofy. "Ya aughta be working with us, not against us. We're all in the same boat."
"And I am, Goof." Pete reached over and poked Goofy in the nose so harshly that Goofy's muzzle wiggled up and down.
Donald stomped his foot. "Hey! Watch it."
Pete ignored the little duck. Instead he addressed the people. "I'm just takin' action while His Mousiness sits around. Who's with me? Give me your support and I'll have these monsters under control sooner then you can say, 'Sayonara darkness.'"
There were murmurs among the crowd now.
Max crossed his arms, glaring at Mortimer. "And what's your excuse? I didn't see you helping out in the battle earlier."
Mortimer cleared his throat. "Lords such as ourselves don't engage in such fivelity."
"Fivelity?"
"He means, 'frivolity,'" grouched Donald.
"Whatever." Max pointed to the other end of the square. "If you have nothing else to say, then kindly vacate the premises. We've got civilians to sort out. Better yet, why don't you practice what you preach and see if anyone needs a hand."
"Very well." Pete adjusted his top hat. "But mark my words. When His Mousiness doesn't live up to his words, you fine people," he gestured to the crowd, "will know who to call."
Pete and Mortimer left the gazebo. Max watched them work through the crowd, asking for donations as they offered their form of "help." Still, the people were willing to donate in order for an escort to Pete's estate and to have someone listen to their woes. There was nothing Max could do, other then grit his teeth. Pete barked for his son, and PJ, after giving Max a hesitant look, followed his father.
"I can't understand how Pete and Mortimer are lords. I wish King Mickey would revoke their noble status."
Goofy put his hand on his son's shoulder. "Now Max, that's not nice. Pete is only trying to protect the town in his own way."
"By stirring up trouble. I don't trust those two."
Bobby walked up to stand next to Max's side. He shook his head, clicking his teeth.
"Bro, quit the attitude. PJ's old man may be totes lame, but he's still our buddy's old man, man."
Max shrugged. "Come on, we've got civilians to take care of."
Sora, Donald, and Goofy helped clean up the mess while Max and Bobby took care of the civilians that hadn't gone to Lord Pete and Lord Mortimer for help. Once everyone was cleared out, and the square was empty, Sora asked Goofy what they should do next. It was Bobby that answered.
"Her Queenliness and the duchess went down to the race track. Huge castle just downright dropped in there. Might want to check it out, my dudes."
"I'll stick around," said Max. "With PJ helping his dad, I might need to take over his patrol."
"Good idea," Goofy agreed.
"Wish you could come with us," said Sora. "I would have loved to watch you fight. Man, if I had two keyblades, I'd be unstoppable, like," Sora pressed his tongue to his teeth, looking for the right word. ":ike a drive form or something. Do you think we can have a fight later? Kairi said she was never able to beat you while dual wielding. I'd like to give it my best shot."
Max shrugged. "Sure, if you're ready to lose."
Sora put his hands on his hips. "You haven't even seen what I can do."
"If Kairi couldn't beat me, what makes you think you can? I'm the one that taught her. And you've seen how crazy strong she is."
"Then I'll ask her to tag team with me," Sora grinned. "The two of us working together will take you down for sure."
Donald groaned. "Oh brother, there he goes again."
Goofy giggled. "I think it's great that Sora can make friends with anyone he meets. Besides, he and Max aren't that different."
"True," Donald's eyes narrowed, his grin cheeky. "They both can't talk to their crushes without blushing."
At this, both Max and Sora turned, their eyes wide. "What's that supposed to mean?" they barked.
Laughing loudly, Donald turned his heel and ran. Bobby and Goofy watched, grinning as the little duck used his short stature, as well as an ice spell, to trip both boys, and escape scot free.
Donald ran out of the square. By then Max had stopped giving chase. Goofy took his place, following Sora and Donald. By the time they reached the race track, all thoughts of giving Donald the biggest, most annoying noogie ever, were completely erased from Sora's thoughts.
The first thing he noticed was the split sky, one half daylight, and the other, midnight blue. Below the night sky stood a castle with architecture that was much more elegant then the surrounding buildings of Disney Town. Donald and Goofy stared at the castle, mouths open for a moment. Then they spotted the crowd, running to give Queen Minnie and Daisy some backup.
Entering the west wing was like walking into starless night. Their footsteps echoed as they walked through the silent, black void. Riku and Beast led the party while Kairi hung back, walking beside Belle, who was holding up Lumière to light their way. Kairi wondered if this was what Riku saw whenever he opened his eyes. A world of black ink. If it weren't for Lumière's candle glow, none of them would be able to see where they were going.
"To your right," Riku warned.
Beast threw out his claws, slashing through an invisible heartless before the creature could so much as try to thrust out its sword.
"Kairi! Behind you!"
"Belle!"
Beast jerked toward Belle, his eyes wide. A moment later, he relaxed as Kairi blasted the incoming darkball with fire magic. He grunted at Kairi and then turned back around.
As the party resume their walk, Belle sighed. "He's been overprotective since I returned from Hollow Bastion."
"Can you blame the master?" Lumière asked. "Losing the world was hard enough, losing you must have been devastating."
"I just wish he would start trusting me. I'm not going to break like some china doll."
Kairi crossed her arms. "I know how that feels."
Just then, something moved out of the corner of her eye. Kairi faced the thing, charging up a lightning spell. Belle raised Lumière, shining his light on something along the wall. All that stood there was an empty suit of armor.
Kairi let out a breathe of relief. "Just my imagination."
As they passed by the armor, Kairi, for some reason, couldn't help looking back over her shoulder at it. The armor stood against the wall, motionless. She quickly forgot about it as they moved, deeper into the darkness. The party finally made it to the stairs. Beast opened a set of double doors, and they entered into a spacious library. Unlike the rest of the west wing, this room was lit. Kairi let out a gasp.
Belle's library put her grandparents' collection to shame. Hollow Bastion couldn't hold a candle to the large space before them. The ceiling stretched high over their heads. Each wall was inlaid with shelves upon shelves of books. They bookshelves stretched all the way up to the ceiling. Spiral staircases with golden handrails led to the library's second and third floors. The entire room was painted in a rich cyan color, with golden accents and tile work that matched the walls. A fireplace lit the room up with a golden glow. Beast went to the floor to ceiling windows and opened the curtains, letting moonlight into the room. Kairi had never seen so many books. There were more then she could read in an entire lifetime.
"Before the heartless appeared, before the castle changed locations," said Belle, "I noticed books appearing in the library. Books that didn't belong. Books that told stories and talked about histories from other other worlds." Belle placed Lumière on an oak desk and began searching for books. "Each one has a," Belle waved her hands, searching for the word, "a tingle of light. Like it's calling for me."
Kairi ran to the nearest wall and closed her eyes.
"I sure hope we find something," she said.
"Never underestimate the power of books," replied Belle, flipping through the pages of an emerald colored tomb.
At the library doors, Beast shoved Riku's shoulder.
"Why don't you help your friend instead of standing around?"
Riku rubbed his shoulder. "I would, but I wouldn't be much help here."
"You're content to just let her do all the work?"
"That's not it." Riku waved his hand in front of his eyes. "I'm blind. I lost my sight because of abusing the darkness. I can't read anything, and I haven't gotten used to braille just yet."
Snorting at Riku, Beast lumbered off to help Belle with the stack of books she was carrying. As he picked up her burden and deposited the books next to Lumière, the candelabra waved at Beast.
"Master, perhaps you should forgive the boy. It seems as though he has learned his lesson. Perhaps he's not so different from a certain young prince that also made mistakes?"
A low rumble came from Beast's throat. He collapsed into a nearby arm chair and began rifling through the books Belle had picked out, ignoring Lumière. Across the room, Riku went to stand at the shelf Kairi was searching through.
"Boy," he sighed, "now I know how you feel. Beast's cold shoulder could give Max a run for his money."
Kairi snapped her book shut, pouting. "I hope he and Sora are having better luck then we are. So far, the only thing on different worlds I've found is metaphorical."
"That's a big word for you," Riku teased.
Kairi smacked his arm.
"I'm kidding," he chuckled. "If Sora were here, he'd find the cushiest chair to nap in, instead of looking through books." "Yeah," Kairi sighed, her eyes dreamy. "I'd probably thump some books on his head to wake him up." She climbed a nearby ladder, reaching for a book on the top shelf. "Catch!"
The book landed in Riku's outstretched hands. His grit his teeth and narrowed his eyes, leaning as far away from the book as possible.
"This one stinks!"
Hopping off the ladder, Kairi took the book away from Riku, opening it.
"I can see why. It's covered in flour and," Kairi covered her mouth, "is that crusty stuff...cheese? 'Sweet bread ala Gusteau? ' Who would want to use any of the recipes in this smelly old thing?"
"Don't know. Don't care. Just get that thing as far away from me as possible."
Riku stumbled backward, covering his nose. His back hit a nearby shelf. Several books came loose, and Kairi, gritting her teeth, sprinted forward to catch them before they could bombard her friend's head. Riku thrust out his hands, juggling and kicking books back up into the air. Kairi ran around, stacking books up in her hand like a tower of pizza boxes. Just as Kairi caught the last book and set her load down on the ground, Belle called to her from the other side of the room.
"I found something."
As Kairi moved toward Belle, she felt a feathery soft tingle on her skin. Belle placed a book on the desk next to Lumière. On the leather cover was a heart symbol that Kairi had never seen before. Yet, she felt an eerie familiarity to it.
The heart was jagged, with sharp corners. The bottom point of the heart was stretched out into three points. It vaguely reminded Kairi of the symbol that each emblem heartless had on its body, except this symbol wasn't red, with black vines. It was painted in a metallic, silver color.
Opening the book and flipping through the pages, Kairi stared at ancient letters she didn't understand. The pages were yellowed with time, the edges decorated with tiny circles, as though bookworms had made artwork out of each corner.
Belle turned a page, and Kairi blinked, running her hands over the picture. Two keyblades were depicted on the page. The two weapons crossed, making an X. They had the same color and design as Sora and King Mickey's keyblades.
Flipping another page, Kairi stiffened. From corner to corner, the pages were painted. Detailed and masterfully colored, Kairi couldn't help leaning forward, mesmerized by the images in front of her eyes. She stared at a disk of stained glass with a seven pointed star in the center. At each point of the star was a heart, each a different color: pink, silver, yellow, baby blue, turquoise, gold, and red. The center of the star had a strange symbol. Though the paint was faded, it looked faintly like a pair of doors. Doors that were opening to let light through.
But the true light sleeps, deep within the darkness.
Belle turned one more page. This time, there wasn't a painting. Instead, there was only one passage, written in golden letters on the center of the page. Belle read aloud.
"'When all hearts have returned from the light from whence they came, the true Kingdom Hearts shall open. Then...' The rest is too faded to read."
From somewhere deep within Kairi's heart, came a question. A wash of cold emptiness swept through her as the words were strung together in her mind. Pat.
Kairi screamed, dropping the book, scrambling backward until her back hit the bookshelves. Beast rose up, growling as he looked around, searching for a threat. Belle yelped, putting her hand on her chest. Riku froze, the hand that he had put on Kairi's shoulder still in the air.
"Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you. Are you okay?"
Kairi heaved. "I-I'm," she exhaled, "fine."
"You and Belle were so quiet while staring at this book, I thought you two had zoned out."
Riku picked up the book she had dropped. Then he flung the book onto the ground, waving his hand back and forth as though it had given him a static shock.
"Ouch."
Kairi grabbed his hand, looking it over. She didn't see any injury, but Riku still hissed when she touched him.
"What happened? Did you get a paper cut?"
"No." Riku nodded toward the book. "It burned me when I touched it."
Belle picked up the book and set it back on the table. "Strange. I wonder why."
Beast lumbered over. "What harm could an old tomb do?"
Yet, the instant he placed his paw on the book's open page, Beast roared, stumbling backward. He bared his teeth, snarling.
"What is that thing?"
Belle reached out and held Beast's paw, rubbing his fur gently.
"Are you all right?"
Beast turned his face away, his teeth grinding together. "B-Better now," he stammered.
Belle spared a moment to smile before she turned to face the book on the desk. "How interesting," she mused. "It seems as though only Kairi and I can touch it."
"Or maybe only a princess of heart can touch it." Kairi tucked the book under her arm. "I think I should take this with me, show it to King Mickey or Master Yen Sid. Maybe they can decipher it."
Riku walked toward the doors, holding them open. "So we're done with the library then."
"Yeah," said Kairi, following him. "We should go back to King Mickey, and tell him about Belle and the Beast, so that he knows that the castle isn't a threat."
As Beast neared the exit, he narrowed his eyes. "What about all the heartless in my castle? Will this king be so gracious if he knows about the infestation here?"
Belle tapped her foot. "Let's at least introduce ourselves to the people outside. Working together is better then being locked up in here."
A low growl hummed in Beast's throat.
"Sora is here too," Kairi added. "I bet he'd be happy to see you."
Beast blinked at her, and then cast a look at Belle.
"Fine. Lumière."
The candelabra hopped, facing Beast.
"Yes Master?"
"Keep an eye on Belle."
Picking up the candle holder, Belle got into formation next to Kairi. As they exited the library, Beast and Riku took the lead, with the girls following close behind. The book felt heavy under Kairi's arm as she passed through the dark hallways. As she walked, she wondered about the book. Where had it come from?
A lump formed her throat, and as Kairi pushed it down, she remembered the question she had asked herself in the library, seconds before Riku put his hand on her shoulder, startling her out of her line of thought. Her grandmother's story. How had she known that fairy tale?
Since destroying the heartless machine, Kairi had recovered a few more memories of her childhood. She remembered walking through the flower fields with her grandmother. She remembered how her grandfather would read her bedtime stories, before his research consumed him. And she remembered the researchers in the castle.
How had her grandparents known about the heart? How had her grandfather known about the darkness when the worlds were still sealed off from each other? What had happened to all the researchers when her world was destroyed eleven years ago? Had they vanished? Was there more that the rulers of Hollow Bastion knew then she remembered? Even if her grandfather hadn't known that worlds could collide, was there knowledge that he didn't record? Was there knowledge, that died with her grandmother as well?
Kairi was jerked out her thoughts as every hair on her body stood on end. Next to her, Belle's grip Lumière tightened. Riku stopped for a moment.
"What is it?" asked Beast, flexing his claws.
"We're not alone in here," said Riku. "There are heartless watching us, but they're not moving. Something's waiting, just ahead."
"Something big," whispered Kairi.
Beast turned around, pointing at Kairi. "Take Belle back to the library."
"Incoming!"
Riku pushed Beast with all his strength, somehow managing to push the big creature out of the way, as something came rushing toward them from the darkness. At the same time, Kairi threw a reflect spell around herself and Belle. Throwing her shoulder against the magical glass, Kairi forced her spherical shield to roll, barely avoiding a set of clawed, muscular arms that reached out to grab her and Belle.
The shield bubble popped when the two girls hit a nearby wall. Kairi quickly stood, every inch of her skin itching as she felt shadows and neoshadows closing in.
"Thundaga!"
Lightning lit her surroundings for a second, frying the heartless that had surrounded her and Belle, as well as giving Kairi a brief, horrifying glimpse of some kind of giant, manacled monster several feet away.
The rattling of chains reached her ears. The monster thundered toward her. Even from a distance, Kairi could feel its stale, cold breathe against her cheeks. It entered the region of light that surrounded her and Belle, the light that came from Lumière's candlesticks. It only took a moment for the creature's hideous appearance to be seared into Kairi's mind.
Rising up on its long, thin, hind legs, the creature threw its head back. The mane of blood red tendrils, that flowed out of the back of its horned head, touched the floor. Blue veins pulsed on its body, the broken chains on its wrists scratching against the floor as it spread its lean, muscular arms wide. From out of its sharp maw, came a stream of smoking darkness as it howled. Small fry heartless came running, beckoned by the creature's call. Through the heart shaped hole in the giant monster's chest, Kairi saw neoshadows rushing toward them.
The creature, and all the heartless around them, rushed her. Kairi threw up a reflect spell, and then quickly summoned another when it inevitably broke under the heartless' combined attacked. The thorny, maned monster's claws poked through her class, cracking it.
The shield went down. Kairi barely had enough time to throw a fire spell at the monster heartless. She managed to push back the big one, but she had no way to defend herself, or Belle, from the dozens of shadow and neoshadow heartless that had quickly attacked in that same second.
Beast leapt out of the shadows, pouncing onto the large heartless' back, slashing at it with his claws. With Beast distracting the chained monster, Riku rushed forward, slicing through a line of heartless right in front of Kairi, giving her an opening to wash away the heartless surrounding her with water magic.
A neoshadow dodged her attack, rushing past her. Desperate, Kairi reached out, to grab the heartless' antennae, anything to keep it away from Belle.
"En garde! You vile creature!"
Lumière jumped in front of Belle, the flames on his head and hands growing high, burning bright, searing the neoshadow. As the creature writhed, Belle took off her white apron. She held it above Lumière, watching as the fabric caught fire. A shadow heartless lunged at Belle from the side.
Twirling, Belle smacked the creature with the burning end of her apron. The flames were quickly moving higher. Belle tossed the flaming fabric onto a incoming horde of heartless, managing to catch two shadows on fire. If Kairi weren't busy pushing back all the heartless around them, she would have spared a moment to whoop at Belle's quick thinking.
The distraction had worked long enough for her to fry whole sections of shadow and neoshadow heartless all around them. Riku moved his attention to attacking the giant heartless, slicing at its legs while the creature was still trying to pry Beast off its back. He suddenly stopped, turning around to block an invisible that came down from the ceiling.
Kairi moved back, closer to Belle, but every bit of her wanted to jump into battle and help Beast and Riku. More invisibles flew downward. They ignored Riku and Beast, rushing toward Kairi. A few fire spells, and help from Lumière, kept them on the ropes until Riku got an opening to take them down one by one.
Thud.
The large heartless had grabbed Beast, and slammed him down onto the floor. It lifted its foot, and was about to stomp on the dizzy Beast. Riku flashed forward, catching the creature's leg with his soul eater. But the creature was smart. It lifted its leg, ready to kick. Reacting, Riku used his own darkness to flash away, but he wasn't the only one that could use the darkness to maneuver. In a blink of an eye, the thorny heartless shifted into the darkness, appearing right behind Riku. It took advantage of the boy's surprise, smashing its massive, closed fist into Riku's chest.
Riku went flying. While helpless in the air, the invisible heartless lifted their swords, and succeeded in slashing Riku twice. He fell in a heap on the floor. Kairi screamed, running forward, frying the invisible heartless. She took a single step toward her friend, and Riku lifted his head from the floor, shouting at her.
"Don't you dare! Run! You and Belle are more important."
Fury bubbled in Kairi's gut. "That's stupid!"
"Beast!" Belle's cry was the only thing that stopped Kairi in her tracks. She turned and gasped, watching as the large heartless threw Beast. His back smashed against a stone column nearby. Landing in a heap on the ground, Beast could barely lift his head, his eyes fluttering closed. Belle ran.
Kairi reached out, to grab her, but a grunt from Riku made her turn. He was surrounded by the remaining invisible heartless. For one, single second, Kairi's fingers encircled around Belle's wrist.
Everything slowed down.
Kairi reached out, her fingers interlocking with Belle's. An ancient, eternal force collided with her heart. Her eyes glassed over, her irises vanishing. Before her, Belle closed her eyes, her feet rising from the ground. The two young women floated in the air, shining like single star in a black night. Slowly, they lifted their free hands, interlocking their fingers once more.
Riku and Beast stilled, watching as a red light shimmered on Kairi's chest. From Belle's heart, came a golden glimmer that was just as dazzling. The two lights came together, and then, the entire world was engulfed in sweet, soothing silence.
Riku froze, not fully believing what his senses were telling him. He was awash in light so powerful, he couldn't feel any darkness. It was a familiar touch, much like the excited energy he had felt when he had combined his powers with Alice's. But this was different. This was as soft as a breathe of spring, and as beautiful and deadly as a poisonous butterfly. Before his mind went completely blank, soothed by the pure white light all around him, he wondered. What happens when two princesses of heart combine their powers?
Jiminy's Journal
Beast (First appeared in Beauty and the Beast, 1992): The master of the mysterious castle that dropped into Disney Town. Though Beast may be irritable, and stubborn, he softens whenever Belle is nearby. Beast would do anything to protect Belle and his castle. He is at odds with Riku, as their last encounter had been very hostile. It's a good thing that he respects Belle and Kairi enough to let Riku into his castle, albeit reluctantly.
Belle (First appeared in Beauty and the Beast, 1992): Another princess of heart. Free spirited, intelligent, and adventurous, Belle is not the type to let anyone order her around. She has a forgiving nature, and the uncanny ability to bring out the best in others. If she isn't spending time with Beast, she'll often be in her library, reading for hours at a time.
Mrs. Potts (First appeared in Beauty and the Beast, 1992): An enchanted tea pot that lives in Beast's castle. Nurturing and mature, you can always count on Mrs. Potts to soothe others, whether it is by lending an ear or preparing a pot of tea.
Lumière (First appeared in Beauty and the Beast, 1992): Though he is relaxed and more fun loving then his rival, Cogsworth, Lumière is rather insightful, often offering sound advice to the grumpy Beast.
Cogsworth (First appeared in Beauty and the Beast, 1992): Ever loyal and eager to please his master, Cogsworth is an old clock that takes his role of managing the castle very seriously. His stuffy nature puts him at odds with Lumière at times, which often annoys the Beast.
Pete (First appeared in Alice Solves the Puzzle, 1925): A Lord that lives in Disney Town. Pompous and self-important, Pete feels more like a crook then a noblemen, especially when he calls King Mickey and Queen Minnie's leadership into question. Nevertheless, he is willing to help others, provided he has the right incentive.
Mortimer Mouse (First appeared in Mickey's Rival, 1936): Lord Pete's right hand man and another Lord that lives in Disney Town. While Pete feels like a con artist at times, Mortimer feels more slimy and underhanded.
Dark Thorn (First appeared in Kingdom Hearts 2, 2005): A vicious pure blood heartless that relentlessly attacked Beast, Riku, and Kairi. Although its legs are manacled and chained, it has surprising speed, lashing out at anything with its sharp claws. It seems as though it can command the lesser heartless, making them focus their attacks.
