Author's Notes

New Year, new chapter.

Aztec 13, Happy New year. May all my readers have good news, good health, and new opportunities. Hope you all enjoy.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, nor the Disney and Square Enix characters. Please support the original works.


Chapter Eighteen: Halloween Town


The fog was thick. Like jellied brains. At least that's what it felt like as a thin layer of sweat coated Sora's forehead. He pushed his legs through the wet, white mist, grunting as each step felt as though he were wading through slowly hardening caramel. Behind him, Riku, Mickey, Donald, and Goofy were panting. They couldn't have been running for more then five minutes, but already Sora felt the tempting need to stop, sit, and breathe.

Tombstones that were as tall as a house sprang up around them through the mist, telling Sora that they were just a few more steps away from entering Halloween Town. Yet the party had to stop, hands on their knees, to try and get oxygen to their sore muscles.

Goofy wiped the sweat off his muzzle. "Gawrsh, I'm tired."

Donald wobbled, putting his hand on Goofy's leg to keep himself standing. "Sure hope we're going the right way."

"I just hope we don't get ambushed," Sora said.

Riku, still panting, put a hand up to his wolf ear. "We're okay. Don't sense anything nearby. Wait. Some kids are coming toward us."

Mickey huffed and puffed. "What kids?"

A trio of trick-or-treaters appeared through the fog. They scampered like gnomes, easy wading through the thick atmosphere. They were short, shorter then Donald. In the lead, was a little witch girl. She turned her head around, barking at her two companions.

"Hurry up! We're going to lose them!"

The next trick-or-treater, a boy in a red devil costume, growled at the boy bringing up the rear, a boy in a skeleton costume.

"Move it, Barrel. You're so slow."

"But you're not going that much faster then I am," complained skeleton boy.

Donald lunged in front of the devil boy, making the kid screech to a halt. He glared at Donald when he stopped.

"Oh great. It's you."

"Hello Lock." Donald crossed his arms, tapping his finger on his elbow. "What kind of trouble are you getting into this time?"

The devil boy took off his red mask, revealing a pale, thin face underneath. When he sneered, he revealed a row of pointy teeth.

"None of your business!"

Donald stomped his foot. "What happened in Halloween Town?"

Lock put his devil mask back on, but not before sparing a second to stick his tongue out at Donald. "Like I'm going to tell you!"

Lock jumped forward, smashing his foot down on Donald's flipper. Yelping, Donald grabbed his leg, jumping up and down and shouting all manner of angry curses. While he was busy forgetting that he could simply heal himself with magic, the witch girl, Shock, pounced on him with a giant trick-or-treat bag.

The bag swallowed Donald. He fell over, squirming in the brown burlap until Shock and Barrel gave him a mighty kick. The bag, and the screeching duck inside it, rolled into the fog. Goofy slapped his hands over his mouth before he chased the bag.

Laughing, the three culprits made a break for it. They would have gotten away if Sora and Riku hadn't reached down and plucked Lock and Barrel off the ground. Shock kept running, yelling, "later idiots." She didn't get very far either, as Mickey trapped her in a small reflect spell.

Barrel kicked and punched the air, which only made Riku lift him higher. One look at Riku's face and Barrel froze.

"Werewolf!"

Riku's lips peeled back to reveal a set of fangs. "I've always wondered what naughty trick-or-treaters taste like. Maybe I should take a bite."

"Don't eat me!"

"You do look a little chewy. Maybe I'll just settle for information instead."

Barrel covered his eyes. "I'll tell you anything!"

"Traitor!" Shock and Lock accused.

A furious scream cut through the fog. Donald came back. He was kicking his arms and legs in the air, completely unhindered by the thick fog as his rage blinded him to nothing else but unintelligible ranting. Sora was barely able to make out the words "so much trouble" and "doggone kids." Goofy returned, looking more hurt then angry.

"Now that wasn't a very nice thing to do."

Shock's response was to take off her witch mask and blow a raspberry at Goofy. Steam escaped from between Donald's mummy wrappings. Only Mickey saved Shock from what must have been the world's most annoying lecture. He raised a hand, stopping Donald in his tracks. The duck had been seconds away from charging like a mad bull.

Lock squirmed, thrashing in the air. "You big jerks! Let us go already! We've got places to be!"

Sora stretched out his arm, holding Lock as far away from his body as possible. "And just where are you going?"

"What's going on in Halloween Town? Tell us and we'll let you go," Mickey said.

"Boring monster stuff," Barrel answered.

"Heartless?"

"Yeah, like he said, the same old boring monsters," Lock snapped. "Now let us go. We've got bigger fish to fry!"

"Like what?"

"Witches!" Shock kicked the inside of her reflect spell. "Do you really have time to stand around and talk to us? Before we left, the mayor and old doctor were in a lot of trouble."

The party released Lock, Shock, and Barrel. Sora ran, as fast as the fog would let him, to the town. Riku came up behind him, easily taking the lead, as he was the only one that could "see" through the fog. Trusting Riku's senses, Sora hoped they had entered the town proper. He couldn't see any buildings, but he did see a round structure a few feet before them. Riku skid to a stop, and it didn't take long for Sora to realize why.

Though the visibility was low, he spotted several black creatures crawling over the giant, round thing. Then Sora had to bend low and cover his head. A loud bang shook the fog around him, and something had flown through the air. A sharp and thin sheet of metal sliced through the air over head, crashing into a distant building.

Sora lifted his foot as another smoking piece of metal slid over the cobblestone toward him. Kicking the hot metal before it could hit him, Sora realized that it must have been part of some kind of machine.

Screams echoed from within the mist, and not the fun kind. Halloween Town always had screams, but those were the thrilling, delighted kind that came with suspense and surprises. These were the screams of people fighting for their lives. It wasn't long before it was Sora's turn to fight for his.

A heartless lunged at him through the fog. Sora gave his keyblade a swing, and discovered, to his shock, that his attacks were slower, his hits weaker. The fog exerted pressure on his weapon, and the neoshadow heartless easily sidestepped his attack, claws inching toward Sora's neck.

"Reflect!"

Mickey's magic surrounded the party. The heartless bounced off the magical glass.

Donald raised his staff. "Your Majesty, we need to blow the fog back."

Nodding, King Mickey tapped his keyblade against Donal's staff. Together they shouted, "Aeroza!"

A sphere of wind grew from between the pair. The winds spread out, whirling like a tornado. A dome of air spread over the town square. The spell wasn't able to completely cleanse the fog, but it was enough that Sora was able to move at a reasonable speed. The party could now make out the shapes of the heartless, as well as a few civilians.

"B-by order of the mayor, I demand that you leave Halloween Town at once! And take this insufferable fog with you-yow!"

Sora spotted a ridiculously long top-hat behind the fountain in the center of the town's square. He and Riku ran toward the top-hat wearing, triangle-shaped, man. They sliced through a line of heartless that had pushed the man over. While Sora helped the town's mayor, Riku moved about them, keeping the heartless back.

"You okay?"

For such a terrified politician, the mayor spared a second to adjust his spider bow tie. He waved his megaphone at Sora.

"Y-you! Boy! I remember you! These creatures are your specialty, aren't they? Well, I demand you get rid of them right now!"

"Sora! On your left!"

The neoshadow that had been creeping up on Sora was easily sliced into quarters. The mayor screeched, his white face somehow getting paler. His green lips quivered as he held on to Sora's leg for dear life. The mayor's panic pulled Sora off balance, making him stand on one leg. The heartless capitalized on Sora's weakness. Luckily, Riku was there to slice the heartless while Sora was busy getting both feet on the ground.

"Riku!" Mickey called. "The aero spell won't last forever. Get the civilians someplace safe before the fog resettles."

Glancing at Sora, Riku said, "I'll the handle the heartless."

With Riku providing cover, Sora pried the mayor's hands off his leg. He ran toward the guillotine in the center of town square, with the mayor sticking close to his side. Just a step away from the guillotine, Sora tripped. Standing, he picked up whatever had tripped him.

It was a severed arm.

A blue arm that was stitched together.

Recognition hit Sora in the gut. He knew exactly whose arm he was holding. He searched through the fog. He didn't see the owner of the arm, but he did spot several yellow eyes, gathered together over someone on the ground. Sparing a second to cast an aero spell around the mayor, Sora charged at the group of heartless. They never saw him coming. Several blizzard spells later, Sora was kneeling on the ground, leaning over a rag doll with a missing arm.

The doll opened her big eyes after Sora casted a healing spell. She blinked at him.

"You're here?"

Sora held up the severed arm he had picked up earlier.

"Hi Sally. I think you dropped this."

The arm waved back at its owner.

Reaching with her attached arm, Sally took her lost limb from Sora. She pulled a needle out from behind her ear. Too bad she had no time to sew her severed arm back on. A neoshadow lunged at her from behind. By the time Sally had turned to scream, Sora had already tossed his keyblade, razoring the heartless into nothing.

Catching his keyblade when it came back to his hand, Sora helped Sally to her feet. She pulled back.

"We have to go back to the lab. Dr. Finkelstein is all alone."

Sora looked back over his shoulder. The mayor had moved to cower by Donald, Goofy, and King Mickey. Knowing his friends could keep the mayor safe, Sora gestured for Sally to lead on. The journey to Dr. Finkelstein's lab was slow, but safe, thanks to Sora.

Just outside the lab, by the metal gates, Sora spotted a wheelchair lying pathetically on its side. Heartless were gathered around the frail, white figure on the ground, beside the wheelchair. Sora shot several blizzard spells, freezing the heartless before slicing the ice cubes with his keyblade.

Sally ignored the melting chunks of magical ice as she ran to help the man that had fallen from his wheelchair. She hauled the old doctor back up into his seat. Dr. Finkelstein's head bobbed forward, muffling grumbling coming from his beak-like mouth. The man's beady, black eyes opened after Sora casted a healing spell.

"Sally?" Dr. Finkelstein groaned. "What happened?"

"The heartless attacked and destroyed your giant, electric fan."

The doctor banged his fist on his wheelchair. "My experiment! Cursed creatures! I was just about to blow away this incessant fog! Where's Jack when we need him."

"Jack's not here?" Sora asked.

Donald yowled, catching Sora's attention.

"Hurry! We can't blow the fog back much longer! Goofy is out of ethers and I'm almost out of magic!"

Sora pointed to Dr. Finkelstien's lab. "Hide," he told Sally and the doctor. "I'll come meet you after the heartless are gone."

Though she was down an arm, Sally was able to push Dr. Finkelstein's wheelchair through the gates. Once the gates were closed, Sora dashed back into battle, regrouping with Riku. When the two boys met back up, they got into that mysterious headspace where concentration, instinct, and movement met. The pair began decimating whole groups of heartless.

"How many more are there?" Sora asked as he sliced through what must have been the ninetieth heartless he'd defeated that day.

"More then I can count. The god news is that I don't sense any more civilians in the square. Mickey and the others have taken them all somewhere safe."

Sora's body tensed, but it wasn't from stress. "Are you saying that you and I are the only one's on the battlefield."

"Yes."

"No one else? Your positive? No collateral damage?"

A slow, understanding grin spread over Riku's face. "We're clear. Go ham."

Smacking Riku's hand in a rather loud high five, Sora dove into the thickening fog. Now that Mickey and Donald no longer pushing the fog back, the atmosphere pressed on Sora, slowing him down. He cast an aero spell around himself. Though he couldn't move at his normal speed, at least his attacks and magic would hit hard enough to damage the heartless. So there was nothing to stop Sora from gleefully running around the battlefield, as fast as his legs would allow, throwing magic spells left and right, and blasting any heartless that were unlucky enough to be standing wherever the magic hit, which was almost everywhere.

Unless he were ambushed, Sora had no way of knowing if there were heartless nearby. Not that it mattered. With no innocents to worry about, and energy to spare, Sora laid a manic, magic path of destruction until his energy ran out. While Sora threw down some chaos, Riku had taken on the role of assassin. Like a wolf hunting unsuspecting rabbits, he slipped into the darkness, using his senses to locate and surprise attack unsuspecting heartless.

By the time Sora was out of magic, Riku had cleared all the remaining heartless from the square.

"Clear." Riku wipped the sweat off his forehead. "Nice job, Mr. Crazy. You know, for the first time, I feel a little afraid of you."

Panting, hands on his knees, Sora turned his head up so he could give Riku the toothiest grin ever. "Happy Halloween."


There was a sudden rush of cold air when Riku and Sora entered Dr. Finkelstein's lab. The breeze moved through the entire metal interior, making the fur of Riku's ears, mane, and tail puff up in response. Across the room, Dr. Finkelstein pulled a lever. The air settled.

"There," Dr. Finkelstein growled. "Any good mad scientist has a reliable ventilation system. There will be no fog in my lab."

"What great forward thinking, Doctor."

The mayor, now that he was no longer in danger, wore his happy face. His skin was tanned, peachy. One eye was black and beady, the other was a spiral. His green lips and sharp teeth were gone, replaced by a wide, red-lipped smile.

Dr. Finkelstein made a low, "humph" sound, tapping his finger on his wheelchair. "Only a temporary fix. We can't stay holed up in my lab forever. I have work to do. Something must be done about this fog!"

The Mayor's head swiveled like an owl's. His tan, happy face was replaced by his white, anxious face. "But Jack's not here," he whined. "I'm only an elected official. I can't handle things by myself. I need ideas."

Sally put a hand on the mayor's shoulder. "I think we should just tell anyone left in town to stay inside. We can't know what's lurking in the fog. Better to be safe."

"B-but that means we have to go outside. What if there are more of those creatures?"

"Should be safe for a while," Riku said. "I don't sense any lingering darkness, at least nothing strong enough for heartless to appear. Now is the best time to get out there and make an announcement."

The mayor's head turned a full one hundred and eighty degrees, his happy face appearing again. "Well then, as my duty as mayor, I shall make sure everyone stays indoors. Excuse me."

Finally with a task, the mayor ran out of the lab, closing the heavy, bolted, metal door behind him.

Sora moved toward Sally. "Is your arm okay?"

Sally spread her arms wide, revealing that both arms were attached to the rest of her stitched together body. "Nothing that a needle and thread can't fix. It happens all the time." Sally's long, yarn-like, brown hair fell over her shoulders, as she leaned forward. "But Jack..."

"He's really missing?"

Sally nodded. "He vanished right before the fog appeared."

"Then we'll help you look for him."

"No. We should get rid of this fog first. Low visibility like this is dangerous."

"How do we get rid of the fog?"

Sally opened one of the steel cabinets that were built into the lab walls. She opened several jars, sighing. "If I can gather some missing herbs, I can make a potion that can neutralize it."

Dr. Finkelstein banged his fist on his wheelchair again. "Oh, no you don't, girl. The last time you used deadly night shade, I had a headache for three days. What we're going to do is reconstruct my giant, industrial fan."

"But the heartless already destroyed it once," Sally argued.

"And you think I'm going to let you go back out there? With those heartless ready to snap at your ankles the moment you are caught unaware?"

Sora stepped forward. "We'll do it. We'll gather the herbs Sally needs. If that doesn't work, then you can use your fan idea."

Dr. Finkelstein's lips twitched. "Fine." He whirled his wheelchair around to face his desk, muttering. "These children and their potions and magic. When did people start doubting the will of science?"

While the doctor looked over a series of schematics on his desk, Sally took stock of the inventory, and wrote down a list. She handed the list to Sora.

"Look for Jack too."

Giving Sally a thumbs up, Sora let her guide him to the front door. One he had stepped outside, Sally put her fingers in her mouth and whistled. In the distance, an orange-red dot of light appeared. It inched closer and closer to the lab, and Mickey summoned his keyblade in response. Sally put out a hand, silently urging Mickey to relax.

Barking echoed from within the fog. At first, the party could see nothing. Then a fluttery creature glided forward. His body was so translucent, that it nearly blended in with the fog. He had no legs, his ghostly body flared out like a curtain underneath his red collar. He had a long muzzle, with a tiny, glowing, orange-red jack o' lantern as his nose.

Sora reached out. "Zero! How have you been boy?"

Zero barked happily, licking Sora's cheek with his ghostly tongue. The ghost dog zoomed around Sora, Donald, and Goofy, barking, his long ears flapping in the wind. Sally called Zero over, and he hovered before her face, tilting his head to the side, as if to ask what she needed.

"Can you light their way to the curly hill?"

Zero turned, pointing his glowing nose into the distance.

Sally clapped. "Good boy."

Zero nudged his head toward the west, indicating that he was ready to lead.

Before he vanished into the fog after Zero, Sora waved at Sally. "Stay safe. We'll be back with those ingredients before you can say 'hocus pocus.'"

Sally waved until the team vanished into white mist. The fog didn't seem to bother Zero. He zoomed through it as though it were, well, normal fog. The poor dog found himself looping back several times to make sure Sora and the others were still following. Eventually, the streets of Halloween Town faded, and the dark, dirt, spiral patterns of the outer graveyards appeared beneath Sora's feet.

Zero stopped before a pair of graves, barking. He shined his nose on some plants growing out of the dirt before the two tombstones. Sora read the names on the stones.

"Deadly Night Shade and Witch Hazel." He checked his list. "Yup. These are Sally's ingredients."

Not knowing exactly how much Sally needed, the team picked as much of the herbs as they could carry. Zero barked, already moving to lead them back to Halloween Town. He was so excited that he passed right through Riku's torso.

"WHOA! Okay. That feels very weird."

"What does it feel like?" asked Donald.

"Like an ice cube just phased right through me." Riku shuddered. "It's even worse since I can't really sense Zero's shape."

"What do you mean?"

"I can feel the general shape of things. I'm guessing Zero is a ghost?"

"Uh huh."

"I get it," Mickey said. "You can't sense Zero's shape since he's intangible."

"So, what do you sense then?" asked Sora.

"Just a spec of excitable light, and a tiny bit of darkness."

"Ya know," said Goofy, "I've always been curious about how you 'see' things exactly."

As Riku followed Zero, he began to explain just how his senses worked. Donald and Goofy asked questions which were quickly and patiently explained.

"Well, besides sensing the light and darkness, I can smell and hear things very well. But I also sense pressure and temperature. Changes in the atmosphere, vibrations on the ground, things like that."

"Gee. It sounds like there isn't anything that can take you by surprise," said Goofy.

Riku shook his head. "I don't know about that. I'm not infallible, I just..."

Riku's voice faded from Sora's ears. Instead, he heard a melody. It whispered in his ear like a sweet lullaby. Sora found himself turning away from his friends, wandering deeper into the mist, away from Halloween Town. The sound shifted, and he could almost hear the words of a song. He wanted to find the source of the song, to go to it, to play. Or maybe-

"Sora!"

Hands slapped down hard on Sora's shoulders, shaking him out of his daze.

Sora blinked into the concerned eyes of a handsome young man. Riku, Sora realized.

"What's gotten into you? Where were you going?"

"Huh? I was going somewhere?"

Riku put a hand on Sora's forehead. "Are you sick?"

Sora swayed, trying to remember where he was, or what he had been doing before-

"I-I heard a voice."

The wolf ears on Riku's head stood straight up, alert. "That's not possible. I didn't hear anything." Riku turned, talking to someone. "Did you hear something?"

"No." King Mickey's voice. "Fellas?"

"Not a peep," said Donald.

Goofy came to stand at Sora's side. "You okay, pal? Maybe you're tired. I mean we have been going non stop since Twilight Town."

"Naw, he probably got lost. It's hard to tell up from down in this fog," said Donald.

"Let's take a break," Riku suggested.

Sora shrugged off Riku's hands. "Did I hit my head? I was sure I heard a voice. No. A song. I think."

Donald tapped his flipper. "You think?"

"I think the fog is messing with us," Riku suggested. "Either way. Are you feeling okay to walk? We should get back to Sally as quickly as possible."

Sora looked from concerned expression to concerned expression. Even Zero looked worried. Shaking his head, in the hopes of clearing out the lingering haze from his brain, Sora grinned.

"I'm good. Let's get back to Sally."


Sora didn't know what frog's breath smelled like, but he was sure that the stink from Sally's brew smelled just like it. They were standing outside, in the town square, by the fountain. Sally was mixing the all kinds of gross, wriggly ingredients into the fountain's green water. She stirred the strange stew with a long, thick, wooden spoon, ignoring all the fumes that wafted up every time she added a new ingredient.

"Oh maaaan," Riku moaned. "When will it stop!"

"I'm almost done," Sally said. "Just hang on a little longer."

"I've never smelled anything so foul!" Riku sat on the ground, hands covering his nose and mouth. His eyes were red and puffy, burning from the fumes, tears running down his cheeks. "I think I'm going to be sick."

Donald flicked his wand in the direction of Riku's head. "Aero!"

The wind sphere surrounded Riku's body. Rather then ease his nasal pain, Riku shot to his feet, wailing. "Oh geez! It just went straight up my nose!"

Zero whimpered, looking at Riku with understanding in his black eyes. Riku swayed on his feet, as though he were about to keel over. Sora, and Goofy grabbed Riku's arms, stopping him from face planting the floor.

"Gawrsh. My nose is sensitive too, but nothing like this."

"You should move away from here until the potion is done," Sora said.

"But-"

"Donald, Goofy, and I can protect Sally. Go take it easy."

Riku's face was turning a nasty of green. Mickey reached out, taking Riku's hand.

"Just let us take care of you, for once. It's okay to ask for help, you know."

Pressing his lips together in an attempt to keep himself from barfing, all Riku could do was nod. He let Mickey lead him away. They vanished into the fog, but not far enough that Sora couldn't hear Mickey's voice.

"We'll be waiting in the lab."

Sally paused for a moment, holding a bottle over the fountain. "I'm sorry Sora. Maybe it was the vinegar? I know the werewolves in town really hate that smell."

Or maybe it was the smell of everything in the fountain. But Sora didn't have the heart to tell Sally that. Instead, he gave Sally a reassuring smile.

"Riku will be okay. Are you almost done?"

"Just a few more stirs and I can add the last two ingredients."

Sora sure hoped so, because he wasn't sure what he was smelling. A skunk? Moldy cheese that had been fermented in rotten garlic and garbage? Whatever it was, it made the fountain water bubble red, then black, then slimy green again. Finally, Sally added the deadly night shade and witch hazel.

"Cover your noses," she warned.

Green smoke overflowed from the fountain. It spread through the fog, mixing with the white mist. Miniature whirlpools of green and white spiraled in the air, until they vanished. The fog slowly thinned as it reacted with Sally's potion. The black, angular buildings of Halloween Town came into focus. The stars shined for the first time since Sora set foot in Halloween Town.

When the fog was completely neutralized, the fountain stopped spewing green smoke. Sora could now see hunks of metal and wiring covering the town's floors. It was amazing that none of his friends had tripped over the metal chunks during their last fight.

"Where did this mess come from?" he wondered aloud.

"It's the remains of Dr. Finkelstein's experiment. He tried to use a giant fan to blow the fog away. But the heartless destroyed it."

"So that's what made that huge bang when we first got here. Well anyway, the fog's gone. That's one problem solved. Now we just need to find Jack."

Sally put her hands on her chest. "I still have a bad feeling. I just hope Jack hasn't gotten himself into too much trouble."

"Don't worry. We'll find him," Sora assured her. "Let's go get Riku and Mickey."

Yet, even with Sally and Zero's help, Sora and his friends searched every inch of Halloween Town, and found no sign of Jack. At least they were able to clear all the heartless they ran into during their search.

"Do you think he might have been whisked off to another world?" Goofy whispered to Sora.

Sora looked over Halloween Town's black hills. In the distance he saw the town's famous curly shaped hill. He sure hoped Jack wasn't in another world. There weren't a lot of spooky worlds out there, and Jack was a walking, talking, skeleton. Who knew how other worlds would react to the dead.

Turning to Sally, Sora asked, "Is there anywhere else you think Jack might be?"

Sally looked uncomfortable. With a sigh, she said, "There is one more place. Though I'm hoping that Jack is not there. He got into a lot of trouble with Mr. Santa Claus the last time he went to Christmas town."

Sora snapped his fingers by his ears, to make sure his hearing was working. "Sorry, for a moment there, I thought you said, 'Santa Claus.'"

Sally tilted her head. "I did. Is that strange?"

Donald and Goofy grabbed each other's hands, jumping up and down. "There's a Christmas Town?"

No one saw it, but Mickey nervously grabbed his ears, and began pulling them down.

Riku let out a sound that was half snort, half raspberry. "What? You can't seriously...oh geez, you're not joking."

"I'm afraid not," said Sally, giving Riku a confused look.

Riku leaned back, groaning up to the sky. "I'm assuming that you're glaring at me right now."

At some point during Riku's statement, Sora had stomped up to his friend, gotten up on his tip toes, and glowered right into the older boy's face.

"You said Santa wasn't real! I could have had eight years of extra presents!"

"I was nine," Riku defended, taking a step back. "Who believes in Santa at that age? Hey! Where are you going?"

Sora had started marching in a totally random direction. The smile on his face was so wide that his fangs looked bigger, making him resemble a hungry cat that had just found the biggest, fattest, open can of tuna.

"Uh, hello? I just found out that Santa is nearby. We don't have time to waste. Come on. Let's go. Let's go. Let's go!"

"Uh huh. And just where do you think Christmas Town is?"

Sora froze, his foot dangling in midair. Turning around slowly, his chagrined expression making Riku laugh, he said, "Sally, how do we get to Christmas Town?"

Mickey, Donald, and Goofy giggled.

Sally pointed over the hills. "Beyond the graveyards, there's a forest. The entrance to Christmas Town is there. Look for-"

Sora bolted, not even bothering to listen to Sally's directions. Goofy and Mickey exchanged a nervous glance. Donald, it seemed, had jumped on Sora's hype train. He dashed after the keyblade wielder, shouting, "oh boy, oh boy!"

Not wanting to be left behind, Goofy chased after his less responsible friends. Before Mickey and Riku followed, they gave Sally a quick apology.

"You don't have to say sorry," Sally laughed. "They remind me of Jack and I. Restless. Ready for excitement."

"Let's just catch up to them before they get into any real trouble," said Riku.

Catching up to the others, Riku convinced Sora to let Sally guide them. She led them through a forest of thin, leafless tress. Eventually, she stopped in a clearing, in front of a semicircle of trees. Each tree trunk had a section of bark that was colorful, depicting an image. One tree had a pink and white Easter egg painted on it. Another tree had a turkey. There was a four leaf clover, and a big, red heart. But, in the center of all the trees, was the one that had Sora completely hypnotized. He stared, unblinking, at the image of a christmas tree. Red and gold ornaments decorated the tree. Crimson, shiny presents were stacked, like stairs, at the base of the tree.

Sally stood in front of the trunk with the christmas tree. She reached for one of the golden ornaments, turning it like a door knob. The bark depicting the christmas swung open like a door, revealing that the tree trunk was hollow.

"Say hello to Mr. Santa Claus for me," Sally said.

After giving Sally a quick salute, Sora dived in, headfirst, into the bottomless, tree trunk. He fell through darkness for a second, before a swirling, blue vortex of snowflakes pulled him down. One second he falling, the next he slammed face first into snow.

Now normally, Sora would have jumped back up on his feet and raced straight to Santa's house. But he didn't. Because he couldn't see anything. The snow scrapped against his face, hardening and burning his skin. The wind slapped him around, and all he could see as shivers completely took over, was a world of thick, white powder.

"B-b-boy, this is a b-bad time to visit the north p-p-pole," Goofy said as he came to stand at Sora's side.

Mickey waved at his friends, and the team gathered close. "We should find shelter." Raising his keyblade, Mickey chanted. "Reflect!"

Though the ball of magical glass stopped the party from being bombarded by wind and ice, it could not push away the cold.

"Aero spells might make the c-cold w-worse," Mickey explained. "Riku? Can you lead us?"

Riku's eyes were shut tight. "Just give me a second." He rubbed his temples, turning in a circle, sniffing the air. "Okay, this way."

"Sure is nice having you to lead the pack through the snow."

Riku groaned. "Please don't tell me you just intentionally made a wolf pun."

Mickey covered his mouth. "Sorry, it sort of slipped out."

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I thought it was howl-arious."

Riku rolled his eyes at Sora.

"Stop with the puns," Donald snapped. He began pushing on the reflect spell. "Let's get this ball rolling. I'm freezing here."

Goofy scratched his head. "But Donald, wasn't that a pun too? And how are you cold? Aren't you a snowman?"

The entire party, except Riku, paused to look at each other. Their spooky clothes had been replaced by more Christmasy attire. Sora's suit had been replaced by a black santa outfit. Though his duds were more festive, they were still spooky. His black gloves had sharpened fingertips, his boots were pointed, and one of his eyes were covered by his santa hat.

Mickey was wearing a red and green uniform, resembling a Christmas elf. Donald's body looked as though it was made by a pair of snowballs. His arms and legs looked like wooden sticks. Goofy was a reindeer, complete with horns, a red nose, and small, red jacket with a white fur collar.

Riku was no longer a werewolf. Instead, he wore a bright red, gold, and blue uniform, complete white trousers. His uniform jacket had golden tassels on the shoulders. There was a small, red and gold, square hat on his head. It leaned to one side. For a moment, the entire team forgot the cold as they stared at Riku, trying to figure out exactly what he was. Mickey got it first.

"Oh, you're a toy soldier! It looks great on you."

Sora gasped, opening his mouth. He snapped his jaw shut when Riku stuck out his hand, gesturing him to stop.

"If you laugh or make a toy soldier, nutcracker, or ballet pun, Sora, I swear I'm going to-"

"I wasn't going to say anything." Sora pressed his lips together, but a few chuckles hummed in his throat. He took a long breath through his nose. Though his barely hidden laughter stopped, he couldn't erase the happy smile on his face.

"Sure you weren't."

"Honest. I'm just glad you're getting into the spirit of christmas."

"Not by choice."

"Enough already. They're just costumes," Donald huffed. "Come on. Let's go."

The team rolled the reflect spell through the blizzard. A few steps in and the spell picked up speed, rolling down an incline. What should have been a thrilling, joyful sled ride down a snowy hill was ruined by the bitter cold. At the bottom of the hill, a blade of ice sailed through the storm, stabbing the reflect spell and popping it.

Everyone tumbled out into the snow. Squinting into the storm, Sora saw a flash of something blue. Water was sailing toward his eyes. In midair, the water froze solid. Reacting fast, Sora screamed a fire spell, melting the ice blade before it could skewer him. More blue flashing in the now. Then, a dozen ice shards flew at the party. Mickey and Donald melted the ice with fire spells, while Goofy, Sora and Riku knocked the ice back with their weapons. The blades were as relentless as the blizzard, coming from every direction. Worse, the howling wind and snow pinned the party down.

"There has to be a heartless nearby," Mickey grunted, burning yet another barrage of ice. "Riku, can you pinpoint it?"

"Straight ahead. Wait! It moved!" Riku hissed. "There's too much moving around, I can't concentrate."

Sora saw another flash of blue, followed by more water. Rather then focus on the impending ice blade, he kept his eyes trailed on the blue creature. Goofy charged in front of Sora, stopping the blade before it could injure his friend.

"You okay, pal?"

"Yeah. Thanks for the save."

Another blade was flying toward Goofy. Sora threw his keyblade, forcing the icicle off course. The keyblade flew through the show, hitting something in the distance. Sora heard a splash of water, followed by the sound of exploding heartless. He squinted in the direction he had thrown his keyblade barely making out a shape. What he did see was something that looked a lot like an umbrella.

"It's the same water heartless Ariel and I fought against. They're causing the storm."

Goofy hid his head behind under shield as several more ice blades came down from the sky. "That's a great discovery, but maybe you should take care not to get hurt."

Sora went back on defense. But soon his fingers felt frozen solid, and he could no longer feel his toes. "If we stay pinned down like this, we'll freeze."

"What do you suggest?" Riku grunted.

"We charge through in on one shot. Go crazy with fire spells. Some will hit, some won't, but at least we'll disrupt the attacks."

"I got ya. Line up behind me, fellars!"

Goofy jumped in front, taking the hits while Mickey, Donald, Sora, and Riku lined up behind him.

"On three!" Mickey announced.

The team nodded, readying their weapons, mentally preparing their spells.

"Three!"

"CHARGE!"

Goofy ran as fast as his feet would allow. Right behind him, single file, the magic users followed.

They ran blindly through the storm, tossing out fire spells which lit up and melted the snow particles as they flew through the air, sometimes colliding with the blue bodies of water core heartless, sometimes fizzling out because of the snow.

For one second, there was a break in the storm, and Sora, spotted an oversized water core heartless, floating above what looked like a carousel. Without thinking, he flung his keyblade. His fingers felt like solid ice, but the moment he let go of his weapon, Sora knew he had made the right choice. He heard the muffled sound of a heartless exploding. The blizzard weakened and the party could now see, or feel, the heartless through the white powder.

The ability to aim turned the tide. One after another, water core heartless went down and the storm slowly subsided. With less going on in his periphery, Riku was able to move over the snow, once again defeating heartless by using the darkness to sneak up on them. When the last water core was defeated, the air was still.

Panting, the party looked around. With the blizzard gone, Christmas Town glowed all around them. Bright red buildings with candy cane accents, gingerbread walls and frosted roofs filled the air with childlike cheer and wonder. The holly jolly sight would have been mesmerizingly magical, if it weren't for the freeze that had settled in everyone's bones. Blizzard or no blizzard, it was colder then an ice queen on her coronation day. A door opened somewhere, and a great, golden light shined over the nighttime snow.

"Goodness gracious," a wise, grandfatherly voice called. "Over here, friends. Come in, warm yourselves by the fire."

Chasing the voice, the team stumbled through a wide, wooden doorway, into a warm, golden den. Donald and Goofy collapsed in front of the hearth, sighing happily as the fire warmed their feet and hands. Mickey rubbed his frozen ears. Riku shook the snow out of his long hair. The only person that had completely forgotten about the ice in his joints, was Sora. He was transfixed by the old man standing in the middle of the den.

Santa Claus stroked his floor length beard as he looked over his guests. Then he clapped his hands. An elf waddled out from Santa's workshop. He moved about the den, handing over steaming cups of cocoa to each of Santa's guests. Sora took his mug automatically, eyes never leaving Santa. It wasn't until the delicious taste of hot chocolate, marshmallows, and cinnamon cascaded on his tongue, that Sora finally stopped gawking at Santa long enough to look into his mug and lick his lips.

While Sora was busy chugging hot cocoa so fast, it was a wonder his mouth didn't burn, Mickey was pacing nervously, and Riku was frozen in place, dumbfounded.

"He's actually real," Riku whispered.

Goofy, having finally warmed up, accepted his cocoa. He was the first to give Santa a polite greeting.

"Gawrsh, Mr. Claus, you really saved us. I thought my nose was about to fall off." Goofy took a sip of his cocoa. "Ah-yuck! It's delicious!"

When Santa laughed, his round belly made his beard bounce. "It's the least I can do. You have my sincere gratitude for getting rid of those creatures. That storm had me trapped me in my workshop for days. Neither I nor my elves could get much work done."

"That sounds awful."

"Indeed it was. But never mind that. Let me thank you for your good deed. I believe you have some use for this."

Santa picked up a shimmering red present with a golden ribbon. He handed the gift to Goofy.

"Oh boy!" Goofy pulled the ribbon and lifted the present's lid. Inside the box were several ethers, potions, and one shiny elixir. "Ah-yuck! Thank you, Santa! It's exactly what we all needed."

Santa gave Goofy a gracious nod.

Next, it was Donald's turn. With his head bowed and his forefingers pressed together, he waddled up to Santa and spoke.

"Um, sir, I've been very good this year. Am I on the 'nice' list?"

"Just a moment."

Santa unrolled a scroll he had pulled out from coat pocket. The scroll was so long, that it kept rolling, all the way to the other side of the room.

"Ah, here you are." Santa pointed to a name on the list. "Donald Duck. Back on the nice list." He winked. "No longer greedy, I see."

Donald did a happy little jump, pumping his fists into the air.

Santa turned to Mickey next. Rather then look excited, the King ducked behind the large, red armchair in the middle of the den. For the first time since he got there, Sora turned his attention away from Santa. Even Riku tilted his head quizzically at Mickey.

"No need to be shy, Little King. I've already forgiven you for that last fiasco."

Santa's words brought concern to Donald and Goofy's faces. The two of them went to stand by Mickey's side.

"Are you okay, Your Majesty?" Donald asked.

"Yeah. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were scared to meet Santa," Goofy added.

Mickey squeaked.

Riku's lips curved into a half-smile. "You are, aren't you? You think you're on the naughty list?"

Mickey's laugh was nervous. "Let's just say I wasn't always the responsible king I am now."

"Indeed," Santa crossed his arms. "I'm still cleaning up from the last time you broke in here."

"Broke in?" Riku's jaw dropped. "Mickey? Noooo. Really?"

"I just wanted to get Minnie the perfect gift for our anniversary! I didn't mean to make such a big mess," Mickey defended, covering his eyes in shame.

Santa walked over and put a hand on Mickey's head. "Now, now. No need to be afraid. You're not on the naughty list anymore."

Mickey's sniffed. "Really?"

Riku crossed his arms. "I can't believe you were ever on the naughty list in the first place. So even the great King Mickey had his young and mischievous days. I have got to hear this story."

Mickey blushed.

"Young man, you are thin ice." Santa rounded on Riku, marching up to the boy with a stern look on his face. "In all my years, I have never seen someone so intent on being on the naughty list."

Riku gulped.

"Now I've forgiven most of your past actions since you apologized and have been doing your best to grow from them. However, teasing King Mickey for his past mistakes and making fun of your two best friends for being in love is not nice."

Riku put up his hands in surrender. "You're right. I'm sorry. I'll stop."

"Good."

Santa turned to his last guest, but found that he couldn't get his attention. And it wasn't because Sora was starstruck. It was, quite simply, because Sora's brain had stopped working. How he remained standing when his body swayed from side to side was a total mystery. Worse, his eyes had rolled upward to stare blankly at the ceiling, his mouth hanging open in a half smile, half shocked expression.

"I-In love?" Sora whispered.

Santa cleared his throat.

Sora snapped back to reality, though not without a heavy blush on his cheeks. Mickey, Donald, and Goofy exchanged silly looks, while Riku tried his hardest not to say something snarky and invite the wrath of St. Nick.

"I know why you came, Sora, and I'm sorry to disappoint you. Jack Skellington isn't here. Or anywhere in this world for that matter."

Sora bowed his head. "That's not good. I hope he's not in trouble."

"Do not worry. Jack is the Pumpkin King. I'm sure he'll be all right. But let us move past that concern for now. There is something I must tell you all."

Santa went to the arm chair in the middle of the room and sat down. Closing his eyes for a moment, he took a deep breath and spoke. "There is far too much light in the worlds."

Mickey, Sora, and Donald exchanged worried looks. Only Goofy had the bravery to speak.

"But, Santa, I don't understand. How can light be a bad thing? Why does too much of it cause all these problems?"

"Light is a wonderful thing indeed. However, too much of anything is harmful. In a time long forgotten by many, in a time of fairytales, light covered every inch of the universe. And then people began to fight and hoard it for themselves."

"And then darkness came and covered the world," Sora stated.

Santa nodded. "I was born out of the light of children's hearts. Light that only came to be when the children hoped to survive the darkness. If the imbalance continues, and people began to fight over the light, then I fear history will repeat itself."

"But we still don't know for sure where the extra light is coming from," Mickey said. "Or how to stop it."

"No one has all the answers, Majesty. But keep journeying and I'm sure all will be revealed. For now, why don't you head back to Halloween Town and tell the residents that Jack isn't here."

Once everyone had finished their cocoa and warmed up, Santa escorted them to out into Christmas Town and all the way up Yuletide Hill. At the top of the snowy hill, they found a tree, with a pumpkin painted on the trunk. The way back to Halloween Town.

Before opening the pumpkin door, Santa asked to speak with Riku and Sora privately. Mickey, Donald, and Goofy agreed to meet back up in Dr. Finkelstein's lab. Once they were alone, Santa put his hands on his hips, giving the two boys a once over.

"Now then. The two of you can return to the 'nice' list if you stay your current course."

Sora gulped. "Wait, I was on the naughty list?"

"I believe that, eight years ago, you said you didn't believe in Santa Claus. So, in fact, you weren't on any list."

Sora slapped his hands on the sides of his head, groaning.

"Do you believe in me now?"

"Or course, sir."

"Then perhaps there is a present in your future."

Sora's eyes twinkled. "Really? All right!" He pumped his fist.

Riku bowed to Santa. "Thanks for the kind words, but I still don't think I'm fit to be on the 'nice' list. Too old and all that."

Sora blew a raspberry. "Please! If Donald and Goofy can be on that list, I don't see why you can't."

"Your friend is right. Besides, learning from one's mistakes is something a nice boy would do. Perhaps mastering one's own light will also gain my favor."

Riku blinked. "What?"

Santa pointed to Riku's chest. "A strong heart also has a strong light. I have a nose for these things. As long is someone is good, as long as someone believes, that's enough for me. Christmas isn't just about presents. It's about joy, hope, trust, cheer, all the things that bind and hold our hearts together. Remember that, and I'm sure your light will shine even brighter." Santa nodded at Sora. "That goes for you too."

Sora saluted. "Yes, sir! Oh, I almost forgot. Sally says, 'hi.'"

"Ah, yes." Santa snapped his fingers. "That reminds me. Please give Kairi my regards."

Sora and Riku wore a set of confused faces when they through the pumpkin door. Once in Halloween Town, their attired changed back to their Halloween Town looks. The winter freeze was replaced by an autumn chill and a terrible smell that made Riku whine like a forlorn puppy.

"What is that stink?"

"I smell it too," Sora said. "Is it Sally?"

Looking ten shades of nauseous, Riku sniffed the air. "This way."

The boys made it to the curly hill graveyard. Several steps into the cemetery, Riku grabbed Sora's shoulder. He pulled Sora down behind a large tombstone, and put his finger to his lips.

"Those people," Riku whispered. "They all have a high level of darkness."

Peeking over the tombstone, Sora spotted three women at the base of the curly hill. They were gathered around a bubbling cauldron. One of them, a stout woman wearing a layered, crimson bodice and dress, looked up. She licked her lips.

"Winnie, I smell children."


Jiminy's Journal:

Lock, Shock, and Barrel (First Appeared in The Nightmare Before Christmas, 1993): Halloween Town's mischievous, misbehaving trio of trick-or-treaters. These three love getting into trouble just as much as they like playing mean pranks on people. Lock is the most aggressive little devil, and likes to think of himself as in charge, but often find himself following Shock's plans. Shock is clearly the smartest and the sneakiest witch among the three. Barrel, the team's skelleton kid, is a bit of a follower, often getting bullied and tugged along by his two meaner cohorts.

The Mayor (First Appeared in The Nightmare Before Christmas, 1993): The two faced, literally, politician of Halloween Town. He may a panicky coward, but the Mayor does care immensely about Halloween Town and the safety of its citizens.

Sally (First Appeared in The Nightmare Before Christmas, 1993): A rag doll reacted by Dr. Finkelstein. Sally has a strong intuition and is often the voice of reason in Halloween Town. She knows a thing or two about sewing and brewing potions, though her concoctions can have some side effects. She cares deeply for Jack Skellington and worries about his disappearance.

Dr. Finkelstein (First Appeared in The Nightmare Before Christmas, 1993): Halloween Town's resident mad scientist. If he isn't ordering Sally around, you can find him tinkering away in his lab. Dr. Finkelstein had made a giant fan in the hopes of blowing away the fog that had settled over Halloween Town. Would his fan have worked if the heartless hadn't destroyed it?

Zero (First Appeared in The Nightmare Before Christmas, 1993): Part dog, part ghost, Zero is Jack Skellington's loyal best friend. His nose is so bright that it can lead others through low visibility.

Santa Claus (First Appeared in The Nightmare Before Christmas, 1993): The spirit of Christmas. Despite his rather stern nature, Santa is a wise parental figure, guiding the team with lessons on how to be good, as well as warning them of the potential dangers too much light may bring.