DISCLAIMER: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, nor the Disney and Square Enix characters. Please support the original works.
Chapter Eleven: Twilight Town
As the team walked out of the massive train station, they found themselves gaping at the new world. The red and orange shadows of the sun bathed the city in a peaceful, late afternoon glow. Just beyond the wide, elevated plaza they stood in, was the view of the town. Sora, Donald, Goofy, Max and Kairi ran toward the railing at the end of the plaza, leaning over to to stare at the railways, roofs, streets, and lit lanterns of the town below. Standing next to King Mickey, Riku stretched, breathing in the scents of salty ice cream, and listening to the exited chatter of the town's residents as they passed by.
Mickey called for a huddle, and the team lined up in a circle so that they could all face each other.
"It looks as though," Mickey began, "this world hasn't crashed into any others yet, so we will have to be careful not to let anything slip."
Donald elbowed Sora. "You hear that?"
"What? Why me?"
Riku and Kairi tried, and failed, to hide their snorts.
Goofy cleared his throat, before his two friends could start an argument. "So, Master Yen Sid is somewhere in this here town?"
Mickey nodded. "Twilight Town is the only world I know of where the sun never sets."
Max looked over his shoulder, glancing at the town. "So where do we meet with him?"
Mickey wore a guilty grin, scratching the back of his head. "I have no clue."
Donald and Goofy hung their heads.
"Um, excuse me, Your Majesty," said Sora, tentatively, "isn't Yen Sid your old master? Wouldn't you know exactly where he is?"
Donald glared. "Sora! Show some respect."
This time, it was Jiminy that stopped the two friends from arguing. The cricket hopped out of Sora's hood, landing on the boy's shoulder. "If the master is here, then there must some clues to his location. We should split up and search. We don't have time to waste, right?"
Riku raised his hand. "Good idea. Seconded."
Mickey gave each of his teammates a look. "Everyone agree?"
A round of nods were his answer.
"Okay. Meet back here in two hours."
"I was thinking about something," said Riku as he followed Mickey through the town. "Even though this world hasn't attached itself to another one, like Beast's castle, or how the oceans were blending together-"
"There was no un-passable wall around it," Mickey completed Riku's thought. "I asked Professor Von Drake and Gadget to upgrade the gummi ship with a new wall piercing system, just in case. We may need it later."
"Does that mean that, there may be people in this world, that don't belong here?" Riku wondered. "Hope the master has some answers."
The two friends resumed their search through the rather relaxed town. Worries about the state of the world quickly faded from Riku's mind, as he was caught up in the excitement of summertime. He smelled fresh herbs and flowers on every street. Flowerbeds and trees were lovingly placed here and there, no doubt to make the town feel a little more rustic. The back alleys had a cool, evening breeze, and whispers from teenagers hiding out or lazing off in their secret meeting spots.
Riku and Mickey were either walking up and down hills or passing through bustling streets with trams, restaurants that smelled of gumbo, outdoor movie theaters, and even an arena where a crowd had gathered, cheering for two combatants that were fighting with foam swords. Eventually, they came up to a place called "Market Street." Unfortunately, they had no time to ask around the venders for clues, as a little girl charged up to Riku and shouted.
"You!"
Riku froze. "M-me?"
"Yes, you. Tall, serious face. You look like the dependable type."
Mickey chuckled.
The little girl ignored Riku's scrunched up face. She grabbed his hand and began dragging him into the street.
"Wait a minute." Riku pulled his hand back. "What's going on?"
The girl's light flared and despite the fact that she was shorter then Mickey, Riku found himself taking a step back.
"Is this how you treat a lady? Are you a hero or not? I have a problem and you can't be bothered to take time out of your day to help me?"
Mickey stepped between the girl and Riku, bowing.
"Gosh, I'm sorry about my friend's rudeness, miss. What can we help you with?"
Riku snorted. "Really Mickey?"
"Well at least someone has some manners," the girl huffed.
Smiling in defeat, Riku shrugged. "All right, I'll bite. Why don't you start by telling us your name."
"Eiko," said the girl. "Eiko Carol. And I can't find my moogles!"
"Moogles?" The word rung a bell. Briefly, imagines of Traverse Town ran through Riku's mind. His visit there had been short, and he had spent most of his time searching for and antagonizing Sora, but he did remember walking past small, white creatures that looked a lot like teddy bears, except with smaller, cat like ears, a big, round, red nose, bat wings, and a little pom pom resting at the end of an antennae that grew out of the moogles' crowns.
"Yes moogles. You know, cute creatures that fly around saying 'kupo' all the time."
"Did something happen to them?"
Eiko huffed, pacing back and forth. "They've been gone all day, without checking in with me. That's not like them, especially Mog. She would have come back by now. What if they're in trouble? I can't find them anywhere!"
Her outburst seemed to take all her spunk with it. She stilled, hiccuping silently, the lowest, almost imperceptible sound of sniffling escaping her nose.
Mickey tugged on Riku's sleeve. "We can look for them, can't we?"
"Yeah, we'll help. Please don't cry."
Eiko growled. Riku swallowed. Now what had he done?
"I'm not crying, dummy. Crying won't solve anything. I'm just worried about my friends, that's all."
Riku held up his hands. "Okay. Let's move on then. Can you give us more information?"
Eiko took a quick, relaxing breathe, lowering her hands from her hips. "I sent my moogles out this morning to pick up supplies for a big delivery we have to get done by the end of the day. It's for a really important client. But no one came back, and they always let me know if they're going to be late. What if they were eaten by those dark monsters?"
Mickey's ears twitched. "Monsters."
"Weird stuff has been happening around town. There are all these rumors about 'seven wonders' or whatever." Eiko huffed. "But this is real. I've seen those monsters in the sewers and around town." Eiko pressed her hands on her head. "Oh no! What if they ate Mog?"
"Now, now, I'm sure Mog and the rest of the moogles are all right," said Mickey. "We'll go bring her back."
Eiko stomped her feet. "Not without me you won't. Mog is a scardey-cat, and she won't come out of her hiding place if I'm not there."
Mickey didn't even bother saying no. He simply nodded and said, "Well then, lead the way."
As Riku followed Eiko and Mickey, he spared a moment to grin. School by children, yet again.
Sora yawned, for the third time in fifteen minutes. The leisurely way the trams moved about the neighborhood made him want to flop down onto the cobblestone streets and take a nap. Even though the town was full of people celebrating the zenith of summer, the noise felt more like a soft, jazzy hum then the hustle and bustle of a busy city, almost as though everyone and everything in Twilight Town was on the same relaxed wavelength.
Shaking himself in an attempt to stay awake, Sora moved about a section of the town called the "Tram Common," asking residents if they had seen anything out of the ordinary. Other then learning about a haunted mansion somewhere, Sora wasn't able to get any useful information on Yen Sid's location. He hoped his friends were having better luck. Donald and Goofy appeared in and out of Sora's line of sight, as they tried to gather clues. Max and Kairi, who had decided to tag along with Sora's team for now, walked by, munching on a pair of light blue popsicles.
"I thought we were searching for clues, not getting ice cream," said Sora.
Kairi licked the blue syrup off her lower lip before grinning guiltily. "His Majesty didn't say we couldn't do both. Plus, it felt rude not to buy from the merchant after chatting him up for information."
"Did you get anything?"
Max, who had just finished his popsicle, chewed on the stick between his teeth. "Nope. The only weird thing around town so far is the watermelon waiting list."
"Apparently everyone's going to the beach and there's a shortage," Kairi explained.
"Well, maybe Donald and Goofy found something."
No sooner were the words out of Sora's mouth, when his two friends came to stand near him. Goofy's expression was a little down, while Donald's eye was twitching with annoyance.
Sora pressed his lips together. "Let me guess, no luck?"
Donald tapped his foot. "Nope."
"Come on." Sora patted Donald's shoulder. "I'm sure we'll figure it out. Sometimes we've just got to wait for the right moment."
Either the universe had heard Sora's statement, or he had really bad luck because something thumped him so hard on the back that he stumbled forward, nearly crashing into Kairi. She was quick to react, grabbing his shoulders before he could hit her head with his own. While Sora was trying to gather his wits, Kairi shouted over his shoulder at someone.
"Hey, be careful!"
"Sorry babe," came the cheeky reply.
Kairi's face reddened. "Excuse me?"
"Gotta run!"
Sora stood, turning around just in time to spot the blond culprit that had nearly knocked him over. The boy jumped onto a passing trolly bus. This wouldn't have been so shocking to Sora, if the blond boy hadn't waved his hand. There was a familiar star shaped charm in his palm.
Frantically, Sora searched the pockets of his cargo pants. When he could not find the object he was looking for, he waved his fist at the blond boy and the retreating tram.
"Hey! You no good thief!"
The thief responded with a cheeky wink of his blue eyes. "The sly eagle hides its claws."
"What does that mean?" Sora growled. He was about to chase after the tram, but stopped when Kairi grabbed his hand.
"What just happened?"
"That jerk just stole your lucky charm."
Kairi's hair puffed up. "WHAT? I'll clobber him!"
And then she was off, bolting after the tram at top speed. Max reacted the fastest, chasing after Kairi, quickly disappearing around a nearby building. Sora, Donald and Goofy followed, but lost sight of Kairi and Max after a few more blocks. Stopping, they were too busy trying to catch their breaths to notice the busy plaza full of excited Twilight Town citizens right behind them, or the young woman that perked up at the sight of them. Before the trio could try and pick up Max and Kairi's trail, a familiar voice called out.
"Sora? Donald? Goofy?"
Sora turned, facing the restaurant that was the focal point of the plaza. A young woman in a green dress ran from between the restaurant's outdoor seating area, reaching out to grab Sora's cheeks.
"It is you! You've gotten taller! Oh, and I like the new black outfit."
Sora squinted at the woman through squished cheeks, staring into her deep, brown eyes. She had lovely, dark brown skin. When she smiled, dimples appeared in her rosy cheeks.
Goofy bowed. "Hello ma'am. Do ya know Sora?"
Letting him go, the young woman laughed. "Of course you don't recognize me. I was green and slimy the last time we met."
Donald and Sora stared for two more seconds, before the pair of them jumped. Mouths opening wide, they said, "Tiana?"
She curtsied, lifting up her green, flapper skirt.
"Is is you! And you're so beautiful!"
Tiana pinched Sora's cheek. "Since when did you become such a sweet talker? Taking notes from Naveen?"
"Is he here too? But wait, how are you here? This isn't your world, is it?"
Neither Sora nor Tiana saw Donald's angry twitch. "Order," he grumbled.
"No," said Tiana, "but Naveen and I have made a good home here." She gestured to the busy restaurant right behind her.
Sora looked up at the lavish building. The smell of sweet and spicy Creole cooking wafted to his nose, making his drool. He hadn't eaten anything since calming down the riot in Disney Town.
Tiana laughed. "I know a hungry look when I see one, and I still owe you a favor."
Grabbing Sora's wrist, Tiana led him to the restaurant, which Sora now realized had the words "Tiana's Palace" written in bright, green neon over the top balcony. Lit up like the fourth of July, string-lights shining along the roof edges and balcony rails, Tiana's restaurant truly was an inviting sight.
"Come inside. Say hi to Naveen!"
She pulled Sora through the outer seating area and into the main room of the restaurant. Donald and Goofy gawked at the elegant interior. The first thing that caught their eye was the golden chandelier that hung over the large, main room of the restaurant. Round tables, each covered with green, lilly pad table clothes, were set up in neat rows. Golden columns, railings and lacy accents decorated the walls and ceiling. At the end of the long room was a stage, where a band, playing a trumpet, trombone, clarinet, piano, tuba and drums filled the room with exciting jazz.
Sora watched as waiters, dressed in white suits and black trousers, went from table to table, setting down silver cloches in front of excited patrons, all dressed to the nines and bouncing along with the music. One of the waiters, a tall, handsome man with a chiseled jaw, placed a bowl of gumbo in front of a young couple. When he smiled, he displayed a row of perfect, pearly-white teeth. Tiana waved to the young waiter, and he ran across the room, grabbing Sora in a hug, lifting the boy off his feet.
"Ashidanza! Sora, you are here!"
All Sora could manage, as he was squeezed too tight to speak, was a happy, albeit choked, chuckle. "Naveen! It's great to see you."
Letting the boy go, Naveen leaned forward to, rather over-enthusiastically, shake Donald and Goofy's hands.
"What are you doing here? Are you still searching for your friends?"
"Actually, we found our king," said Goofy.
"And Sora found his friends. But now we've got a different mission."
Naveen guided the trio to an empty table. The second they sat down, Tiana put a plate of steamy, crispy, golden-brown squares in front of them. A snowy layer of powdered sugar sat atop the squares.
"My famous beignets." Tiana winked. "On the house. Dig in. Tell us about this new mission."
"Don't mind if I do!" Donald picked up a beignet and took a big bite. Then his face melted as he settled in his seat and chewed, his eyes rolling into the head. "Yum!"
Seeing his reaction, Sora took a bite out of his own sweet pillow. His teeth went right through the soft, airy dough. The combination of melty pastry and punching-your-taste buds-with-flavor sugar made him forget everything for one glorious second.
"Okay, your cooking has only gotten even more delicious since the last time I saw you," said Sora though a mouthful of dough.
Naveen put his arm around Tiana proudly. "That's my wife!"
"Ahyuck! I remember now. You said kissing a princess would reverse the spell you two were under. So now that you and Tiana are married, she's a princess. Congratulations!"
"Thas wondorfu!" came Donald and Sora's muffled responses. Two mouthfuls of sweet dough wasn't very good for articulation.
Finally swallowing his beignet, Sora rubbed his belly. "Say, how long have you been in this town?"
"For a few months now," Tiana answered.
Donald gestured to the full to bursting restaurant around him. "Business is booming."
Naveen's wide grin grew along with his pride. "The townsfolk can't get enough of my wife's cooking. It's delicious, no?"
"Uh huh," said Goofy, finally taking a bite of his beignet.
"Oh stop." Tiana pushed Naveen playfully.
"So this world hasn't been connected to the others yet, but people still show up here, people that don't belong." Sora looked at Donald and Goofy. "I hope this means that we don't crash into another world any time soon."
Donald glared at Sora, while Goofy gave him a saddened look.
"What?"
Jiminy hopped out of Sora's hood. He landed on the boy's shoulder and poked his cheek. "Sora, even though Naveen and Tiana aren't from this world, you can't just spill mission secrets like this out in the open. What if someone is listening? Naveen and Tiana might know about other worlds, but the citizens around us don't. Remember King Mickey's warning?"
Donald crossed his arms. "He held out for half an hour at least."
Jiminy hopped off Sora's shoulder, landing in the middle of the table. He bowed and said hello to Naveen and Tiana. Then, carefully, he filled Naveen and Tiana, reciting their last adventure and the current situation they found themselves in.
"So that's why we were thrown out of our world and found ourselves here," said Tiana.
Naveen reached over and ruffled Sora's hair. "You took care of that villainous shadow man? Incredible."
"It wasn't easy," grouched Donald. "Dr. Faciliar was really tricky."
"Well I'm just glad he's not something we have to worry about anymore," said Tiana. "So why are you here in this town?"
"We're looking for someone that can give us some guidance on how to solve the world crashing problem, but so far we haven't found any clues on how to find him," Jiminy explained. "But before that, Ms. Tiana. I have a question. When you first arrived in this town, did you notice anything strange during the transition?"
Tiana shook her head. "It was so quick that I don't remember much. One moment we were in our world, then, poof. We were here."
"Speak for yourself," Naveen shuddered. "I felt strange, like I was about to be turned back into the frog by the shadow man's dark magic."
"Dark magic," Jiminy repeated as he took notes in his journal. "Well, that's something to ask the master."
"Anything else I can help with?"
"You're a savvy business woman. Have your customers said anything strange?"
"Well, some of my youngest regulars love talking about this man they once saw drinking tea in the outdoor area."
Naveen waved his hands in front of his eyes, like a storyteller about to describe a dramatic scene. "It's mysterious, no? The children say an old man, pulled out a huge scroll from a teeny weeny bag, right outside the restaurant."
Donald and Goofy shared a look.
"Old man? Tiny bag?"
Goofy pointed to his hat. "Did the hat he wore have white stars on it?"
Tiana shook her head. "I'm afraid I don't know what he looked like."
Jiminy flipped through his journal. "There's only one man I know that can take big things out of a tiny bag."
Donald and Goofy exchanged a look. "Merlin."
Sora pushed his chair back from the table, standing. "Do you know if we can talk to one of those kids?"
"I sure do. Jenny would be your best bet. She's usually at the sandlot right about now."
"Then we've got a lead. Thanks Tiana."
Kairi was quickly realizing that Twilight Town was Sora's kind of town: lazy, tranquil, with a warm breeze and cotton candy clouds rolling across the dusk sky. And nowhere exemplified that feeling more then the part of the town that was called the "Sunset Terrace."
Kairi walked alongside Max through a neighborhood three times more cozy then the downtown area she had been before. Ivy grew along the peach, pink, and brown buildings. A tram ran down the single road of the neighborhood. If one were to look up, they could see the train track hovering over the edge of the neighborhood like a halo. If she were to look down, she could see the green hills far below, and the countryside that marked the edges of the world. It would have been a beautiful place to enjoy the sunset, if she weren't so dang frustrated!
"Where did he go?"
Kairi leaned against one of the buildings, trying to think of what to do next. She and Max had chased the blond, monkey-tailed boy all the way to Market Street, through the back alleys, finally making it out into the sleepy neighborhood they had found themselves in, with no thief in sight.
Kairi seethed. Stupid blond thief, with his stupid blue jeans, white dress shirt, and boots. Couldn't he be wearing something that would be easier to spot, like a suit of armor? Thinking of armor made Kairi turn to look at Max. He leaned against the wall, by her side. He'd changed out of his armor into civvies, now wearing a red hoodie, a pair of cargo jeans, and boots, which made him blend in better when visiting other worlds.
"So much for finding clues about Master Yen Sid," Max grouched. "All we've managed to do is eat ice cream and get robbed. That charm the thief stole is the same one you found in Hollow Bastion, isn't it?"
Kairi nodded.
Pushing off the wall, Max waved at Kairi over his shoulder. "Come on. Let's go clobber that thief. We haven't explored down this way yet."
Smiling, Kairi jumped onto a passing tram with Max. They rode it all the way across the neighborhood, getting off on a small square on the left side of the tram's last stop. A man stood in front of a waterfall that trickled down along a wall. Max waved at him.
"Can you help us? We're looking for someone."
The man's expression lit up when Max described the thief's appearance.
"Boy with a monkey tail. Yeah, I saw him. He went up to Sunset Hill." The man pointed to a balcony above the square, where an archway marked the end of the neighborhood. "Head up the other side of the street and climb those stairs. Big, beautiful vista point. Can't miss it."
Thanking the man, Max and Kairi did as they were told. Sunset Hill really lived up to its name. A dirt road led up to a small summit that overlooked the cloudy, dusk sky surrounding the town. At the bottom of the hill, Kairi felt a tingle of excitement when she looked up at vista point above. Then screams reached her ears.
People raced down the road, passing by Max and Kairi, their faces white with terror. Max and Kairi were up the trail in seconds. At the summit, standing on a small, round vista point surrounded by green bushes, was the thief. He stood in front of a terrified little girl, protecting her from the row of shadow heartless clawing at him.
Kairi summoned her new sword. Charging, she cleaved through the line of heartless. She heard steps from behind her and felt the itch of darkness on her back. When she turned around to attack an incoming heartless, Kairi was surprised to come face to face with the thief instead. He held a dagger in each hand, the heartless he had just defeated bursting into dust.
The thief shouted at the girl he had been protecting. "Run!"
She raced down the trail, out of harm's way. Now there was nothing to hold Max, Kairi and the thief back. Shadow heartless peeled off the floor in waves. Max, Kairi and the thief sliced and slashed, devastating heartless round two, round six, round fourteen, round thirty.
Standing back to back with Max and the thief, Kairi threw a reflect spell around them. The heartless smashed into the magical class, and the second the shield went down, Max and the thief flashed in a circle, their duel wielding cutting the heartless into chunks.
Round forty. Round fifty. Round seventy.
"Why are there so many?" Kairi gasped. She sliced through round ninety six, and the heartless showed no signs of slowing down.
Max stopped for one moment to take a deep breathe. The thief charged him, knocking Max out of the way before slicing through all the heartless that had almost swarmed the young knight.
Round one hundred and one.
The heartless twitched, gathering close together, standing on top of each other like a totem pole. Max, Kairi and the thief didn't give up, even as their breaths came out in exhausted coughs. Even a curaga spell, the last of Kairi's magic, barely gave them any energy.
The heartless rose up, higher and higher, spewing from the ground like a geyser of darkness. A tube like swarm burst up into the air, swimming through the sky. Max and Kairi raised their swords, trying to cut through through the wriggling swarm as it flew over their heads. The thief cartwheeled out of the way before the swarm could crash into him.
The swarm thinned for a moment, the heartless spreading out. Kairi, Max and the blond boy hacked through any heartless that were out on their own. Then the swarm collected again, turning into a ball of writhing arms and legs as the heartless came together into a tight sphere. The fighters lowered their stance, ready to defend.
Then something strange happened. Rather then thrash and fight back, the ball of heartless flew up into the air, avoiding the swords and daggers aimed its way. It burst off the vista point, swimming through the sky like a dark eel, vanishing into the town, leaving a trio of utterly confused combatants behind.
There was silence, except for the huffing and puffing of the fighters. Kairi, her arm shaking, lifted her sword, pointing it at the thief. Haunched over, her sword was more like a gesture to gain his attention then to strike fear.
"Why didn't you run?"
The thief swallowed, trying to get moisture into his dry throat. "Can't just walk away. Goes against my nature."
His voice was raspy, but it had a chipper, cheeky ring to it.
Putting away her sword, Kairi stomped over to the thief. Still breathless, she could only speak one word at a time. Poking the thief, hard, in the chest, she said, "Give. Me. My. Lucky. Charm. Jerk!"
The boy stumbled backward, his blue eyes wide. "Wait, that was yours? Then why did that boy have it?"
"Take a wild guess," Max huffed, putting away his own swords.
The thief blinked. "Oh." He exhaled, slowly. "Oooh. Well so much for asking you out on a date."
Pulling the star charm out of his pocket, he held it out to Kairi.
Snatching her charm back, Kairi glared. "Like I would have said yes to a flirty creep!"
The boy's body bent at the waist, hanging. "Ouch."
"Brutal." Max agreed, putting a hand on Kairi's shoulder. "Nicely done."
Kairi looked down at her charm. "You did help us fight those heartless though. So thanks for that. Do all thieves protect kids and fight monsters, or is it just you?"
Straightening, the blond boy grinned. "Call me Zidane."
"Only if you apologize."
"Huh?"
Max rolled his eyes. "For stealing, idiot."
Zidane shrugged, putting up his hands. "All right. I'm sorry."
"Why'd you do it anyway? It's not like my lucky charm is valuable."
"I was supposed to get that boy to come up here." Zidane put his chin in the space between his thumb and forefinger. "Geez, I messed up this delivery. Big time. I guess I should track down that boy again."
Getting angry, Kairi pulled her arm back to give Zidane another mighty poke, but before she could hit him, he backflipped, leaping over the hedges behind him, and landing, as gracefully as a trained actor, on the trail below the vista point. Before he ran back into town, he shouted.
"Take a look around up there, Max, Kairi! Might find some clues! I have some damage control to do. See ya!"
Kairi started to run down the trail, but was suddenly jerked backward when Max caught her arm. He pulled her toward the fence along the edge of the cliff that Sunset Hill stood on. Then he pointed into the horizon. They were so high up, it was like they were standing in sea of orange clouds. And something was sailing above the orange puffs. Riding on thin air, a single train car moved across the sky.
"Look! At the front of the train!"
Kairi gasped. "I see it! It looks just like Master Yen Sid's seal!"
The train car was blue, with golden accents. Sitting right in front of the locomotive's engine chimney, was a blue cone with a silver star pattern. The train car got close to Sunset Hill, close enough that, had they thought to do so, Max and Kairi could have jumped on it. The train passed, vanishing into the clouds.
Someone was clapping.
Surprised, Max and Kairi turned. Standing right in the middle of Sunset Hill, her umbrella tucked neatly under her arm, was none other then Mary Poppins. She nodded her head approvingly and then pointed back into the town.
"Well done, you two. You've passed the test. Now then, please head back to the station and wait for the others to complete their tasks."
Max and Kairi looked at each other and then back at Mary. "Wait. Test? What test?"
"The test to find Master Yen Sid, of course."
"Wait a minute, was Zidane a part of the test? Was that why he had to lure Sora up here?"
Mary gave Kairi a rather cool look. "Let me make something quite clear."
Max and Kairi leaned forward, waiting.
Mary's smile was sweet. "I never explain anything. Now, off you go. His Majesty and Sora's group should join you at the train station shortly."
"Is that her?"
The Sandlot, as Tiana had called it, turned out to be a big empty space, with a lot of park benches. A massive dirt square was at the center of the area. There were posters on the buildings that housed the square, describing a game called "struggle." Across from Sora, Donald, and Goofy, was a little girl that matched Tiana's description. She was on her hands and knees, looking under a park bench. Sora made his way across the square, careful not to surprise the brown haired girl.
"Excuse me. Are you Jenny?"
When the little girl stood and faced Sora, he was surprised to see that her blue eyes were full of tears.
"Yes?" She sobbed, whipping her eyes with the sleeve of her blue, turtleneck sweater.
Donald and Goofy ducked their heads, eyes filling with concern.
Sora bent forward, hands on his knees. "Is everything okay?"
The girl blinked, tears running down her cheeks. "I can't find Oliver anywhere."
"Oliver?" Donald repeated.
"My kitty." Jenny held out her hand. In her palm was a blue collar. The collar was ripped, the edges covered in black ash. "We were playing hide and seek. This is all I found." Jenny squeaked, her puffy cheeks trembling.
Sora reached out and put a hand on Jenny's head. "Hey. Everything will be okay. I'm sure Oliver is all right. In fact," Sora stood, "we're going to find him." He nodded to his friends. "Any objections?"
Donald and Goofy grinned. "Nope."
Jenny's looked from face to face. "You will? Really?"
Sora held out his pinky. "Yeah. I promise."
Half sniffling, half giggling, Jenny looped her pinky around Sora's.
"What does Oliver look like?" Goofy asked.
Jenny handed the collar to Goofy. "He's orange, with three stripes on his back, and a white muzzle."
"Okay. Please go wait for us at Tiana's place, Ms. Jenny. We'll be back with Oliver before ya know it."
A tiny smile appeared in Jenny's face. She curtsied and the trio bowed in turn, which seemed to lift her spirits just a bit more. Once she walked off toward the road that led to Tiana's restaurant, the trio spread out, searching the sandlot. No luck. Moving to the alleys behind the playground, the trio looked around the trashcans and crates staked along the walls.
They were about to call it quits and move on when Donald quacked, pointing into the mouth of the alley. Someone stood there, wearing a tan, steeple crowned hat that was so long, it bent in the middle, the top half hanging down behind the boy's head. From the back, he looked like a child, who couldn't have been older then nine years old, wearing a blue tailcoat, and stripped, green trousers.
When the boy turned around, when Sora saw the glowing, yellow eyes and the dark face, Sora growled, summoning his keyblade.
"A heartless," he hissed.
The heartless tilted its head. It took a step back, as though afraid, bringing its gloved hands up to its chest. Something orange moved in its palms. A kitten.
Goofy covered his mouth. "Oh no! Is that Oliver?"
Sora and Donald charged.
"Let go of that kitten right now!"
The heartless dashed out of the alley. The trio chased it all across the sandlot and into the Tram Common, getting some odd looks from the citizens as they passed. The heartless ran into a back lot behind a few buildings, stopping in front of a wall. There was no way out except for the way it had come in, and Sora, Donald and Goofy stood in front of its escape route. Old forgotten scrap decorated the large lot. The pointy hatted heartless cowered in a corner as the trio closed in around it.
The cat in the heartless' hands hissed at Sora, Donald and Goofy, making the trio pause for just a second, enough time for the heartless to scream.
"L-leave me alone!"
Sora, Donald, and Goofy nearly fell over.
"IT TALKS!"
The heartless held up a trembling hand, its fingers spreading wide, red light glimmering in its palm. "Firaga!"
Goofy jumped in front of the burning fireball, stumbling backward as the spell hit his shield.
Donald actually fell over, his beak and eyes wide. "A heartless that knows fire spells?"
Sora, his keyblade still in his hand, but no longer raised, inched closer to the heartless. Instead of attacking, the heatless took a step back, its upper body stiffening. Was it, Sora wondered, actually afraid?
"Hey!"
A shadow flashed over Sora. Looking up, he only had a second to bring up his keyblade and block the pair of daggers that were coming down toward his head. Stumbling backward, pushing back against the two blades, Sora glared straight into the eyes of the thief that had stolen Kairi's good luck charm. Grunting, the boy gave a mighty push, shoving Sora several steps backward.
"Back off!"
Thief barked at Sora, Donald, and Goofy as they three of them stepped closer, weapons at the ready once more. Rather then be intimidated, the thief looked over his shoulder, at the heartless behind him.
"You okay, Vivi?"
The heartless nodded. "I'm okay. Thanks Zidane."
Turning his attention back to Sora, who was still in an attack stance, the thief lowered his weapons, shaking his head.
"Aren't you supposed to be the good guys?"
Goofy lowered his shield. "I'm confused. Ain't you a thief?"
"I have a name. It's Zidane."
Sora stomped forward, arm outstretched. "Give me back what you stole."
"Kairi has it." Zidane waved his hand dismissively. "But forget about that. Why are you guys bullying little kids?"
Donald stomped his foot. "We're not bullying anyone!"
The heartless, no, Vivi, tilted his head, peaking out from behind Zidane. "Then why were you chasing me?"
"Because you have that kitten. We've been looking for him."
"Then why didn't you just ask?"
"We thought you were," Donald's voice slowed down, getting weaker, "a heartless?"
Vivi pulled down his pointy hat so that the rim covered his face.
Zidane glared at Donald. "Wow. Really?"
Donald covered his eyes, his feathers reddening. "Well, he looks like a heartless."
Vivi let out a little squeak.
"Vivi's not a heartless." Zidane nodded at his friend. "You could search the entire universe and you wouldn't find anyone with more heart then him."
Vivi lifted his head, and it was then that Sora realized. Even though Vivi's eyes were yellow, and his face dark, much like the heartless, his eyes were more oval shaped, and there was a certain childlike wonder in them. Goofy realized it too, as he came forward, extending his hand.
"Gosh. We made a big mistake, fellars." Goofy waved at Vivi. "I'm sorry. I guess we still need to learn not to jump to conclusions."
Donald and Sora flinched, bowing their heads. "Yeah. Sorry."
Zidane stepped out of Goofy's way, allowing Vivi to come forward. The boy shook hands with Goofy, and then lifted the little kitten to Goofy's eyes.
"Oliver?"
The kitten looked at Goofy. Suddenly, he leapt out of Vivi's hands, landing on Goofy's shoulder, purring as he rubbed his white muzzle into Goofy's cheek.
"Ahyuck! This is him, fellars. Thanks for finding 'im, Vivi. Jenny will be so happy."
The boy pulled down his hat again.
Putting away his daggers, Zidane extended his hand to Sora. "Sorry about taking Kairi's lucky charm. Let bygones by bygones?"
Sora crossed his arms, tapping his finger on his bicep, smirking. "Kairi really let you have it, didn't she?"
Zidane rubbed his chest. "Your girl does not pull any punches."
"You're darn right, she doesn't."
"I can see why likes you."
Grinning wider, Sora shook hands with Zidane. Meanwhile, Donald made his way over to Vivi.
"I'm sorry I called you a heartless," he mumbled.
Vivi shrugged. "It's okay. Everyone makes mistakes right?"
Donald rubbed the back of his neck. "That was some nice magic earlier. Are you a mage?"
"Yes," said Vivi. "I'm a black mage."
"What other spells do you know?"
While Vivi and Donald talked magic and Goofy happily paced back and forth with Oliver in his hands, Sora asked Zidane why he had stolen Kairi's lucky charm.
"I was supposed to get the three of you to a certain place by five o' clock. Didn't work out."
Vivi looked at Zidane, laughing. "You messed up on your delivery? Eiko's going to be mad."
"She'll forgive me." Zidane shrugged. "Where is she anyway? I haven't seen her since this morning."
"Eiko? Delivery?" Sora repeated.
"Zidane, Eiko, and I. We run a delivery service," Vivi explained.
"Yup. Tantalus Delivery Service." Zidane reached into his pocket and pulled out a card. On it was his name, the delivery store's location, and the name of the company. "We do all kind of jobs around town. Someone left payment in our drop-box this morning, along with instructions to guide a spiky haired boy, a duck, and a dog to Sunset Hill at exactly five o' clock."
Donald tapped his foot. "You couldn't have just asked us to go there? Was stealing really necessary?"
Zidane winked. "Where's the fun in that? Besides, I was in a hurry."
Donald's feathers ruffled.
"I also had a weird message for a delivery," said Vivi. "I had just finished, and I was heading back when I found Oliver."
"Where was he?" asked Goofy.
"Behind a trashcan near the stairs that lead down to the underground tunnels. He was really scared. It took me a little while to get him to come out."
Sora wrinkled his nose. "I wonder what scared him. And why would someone give instructions to Tantalus to get us up on Sunset Hill? Unless."
He shared a look with Donald and Goofy. The pair of them put their thumbs and forefingers together, making a triangle shape that reminded Sora of Master Yen Sid's wizard's hat. Turning back to Zidane and Vivi, Sora said, "Why don't you guys stick around for a little longer? See, we're looking for someone, and I have the funniest feeling that all these things are connected."
"Fine by me. The more the merrier. How about you, Vivi?"
"I do like making new friends."
Donald glared at Zidane. "Just no more stealing okay?"
Zidane's hand flashed above Donald's head. He waved his hand around. Donald's eyes tracked the blue blur in Zidane's fingertips, focusing so hard on it, he didn't notice the grin on Zidane's face.
"Scout's honor, No more stealing. Starting now."
Zidane placed the blue thing on the duck's head. It wasn't until Zidane had bolted out of the back alley, until Sora, Vivi, and Goofy's stifled snorts turned into chuckles, that Donald, his temper rising, finally figured it out. Zidane had snatched Donald's hat, waved it around in front of his eyes, and put it back before Donald had even known what was happening.
Jiminy's Journal
Eiko Carol (First Appeared in Final Fantasy IX, 2000): Though she's only six years old, Eiko is a savvy little girl that can take care of herself just fine, thank you very much. She runs a shop in Twilight Town that deliver's special magical items. Though she may be a bossy, Eiko is also fiercely protective of her moogle friends.
Zidane Tribal (First Appeared in Final Fantasy IX, 2000): A laid back boy that runs the Tantalus delivery company with his friends Eiko and Vivi, though it's obvious that Eiko is the one that makes sure the work gets done. Zidane is a gifted acrobat with quick feet, which helps when jumping around town making deliveries, or fighting with his dual daggers. Zidane may be flirty and a bit of a prankster, but he isn't one to run away if other people need help.
Vivi Ornitier (First Appeared in Final Fantasy IX, 2000): A shy and curious little boy that works for the Tantalus Delivery Company in Twilight Town. Though a little clumsy, Vivi has a talent for black magic. His honest, hard working nature stands out in stark contrast to Zidane's easygoing style, but the two seem to balance each other rather well. Maybe that's why they have such a close, brotherly friendship.
Jenny Foxworth (First Appeared in Oliver & Company, 1988): A polite little girl that loves to visit Tiana's restaurant and play with her kitten, Oliver. She may know a thing or two about Merlin.
Oliver (First Appeared in Oliver & Company, 1988): An orange, tabby kitty that lives in Twilight Town with his best friend, Jenny. Oliver seems to gravitate toward kind people.
