Disclaimer: not mine

I've already written this covering the first game, so it'll be fast to post that far.

Chapter 2

They waited quietly, seeing Sora's fingers twitch, his nose scrunch up, and then suddenly he was across the room, tearing into the first pack of blood, growling. He drank them all, stray drops of blood decorating his face and chest, even as he crouched in place, ready to attack or defend. Merlin nodded encouragingly at Donald and Goofy and they glanced at each other.

"Sora?" Goofy finally called as softly as he could and Sora focused on him, revealing red eyes and sharp fangs as he snarled low in his throat, clawed hands curled, wings spread out behind him. Despite only being dressed in a pair of shorts, it was rather intimidating to see him like that. "Sora, it's Goofy. Can you hear me?"

Sora cocked his head to the side, sniffing, looking confused. He whined softly and Goofy knelt down so that he wasn't towering over the crouched figure. Sora shuffled a little closer, still sniffing, and Merlin let up the spell masking Goofy's scent a little, not wanting to overwhelm him.

There was a reason none of the Traverse Town group besides Merlin was there. As a human turned vampire Sora needed human blood to feed on, Goofy and Donald weren't human. That should mean he wouldn't see them as food, although he could see them as a threat to his food maybe.

"That's it Sora, nothin' scary here. You're safe, we're at Merlin's," he explained, and Sora shifted closer again, letting out a little chirping noise, head shifting to the other side. "Can ya understand me, Sora?"

He moved again, running into the wards, hissing in alarm as he fell back in confusion.

"Gawrsh Sora, be careful."

That got his attention again and he whined, cautiously tapping at the ward.

"Do ya think he recognises me?" Goofy asked without turning to look at Merlin.

"It is possible although it would be very unusual."

So he settled in to talk to the boy, wanting the bright kid he knew back.

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Donald sat beside the wards, talking, even as Sora fed, the new vampire watching him warily but not growling or anything which was hopefully a good sign. Merlin had set up a clock/calendar to let them know how much time was passing for Sora and it had been five days since he'd woken. He hadn't slept since but apparently that was normal, and they were taking sitting with him in shifts so that they got enough sleep while also keeping him company.

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Jiminy talked to Sora, reading from his journal as the boy sat beside the ward, watching him. He seemed very confused by him, more so than the others. He figured it was his tiny size that caused most of that.

Sora was very easily startled; snarling, snapping, and growling, but he never blindly tried to attack. He'd crouch, bare his fangs and claws, but it was all warning. That was a good sign as far as he could tell. Surely if he had fallen to the Darkness, his eyes would show it, and while the red was rather off-putting there was no yellow or gold which was the mark of Darkness. It was heartening to see the blue still present in his eyes even if there was more red.

He would do his best to act as a conscious for Sora once he began showing more sign of understanding them. Hopefully Sora would retain his ability to tell right from wrong and control his actions.

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It was too bright and loud. His head hurt…throat dry…he whined from the discomfort. Let him sleep…but sleep wouldn't come.

"Sora, come on Sora, time to drink," a voice called, and he curled tighter.

Drink? He licked his dry lips. Sora…he was Sora? It hurt to try and think. Something …something was wrong. Slowly, he pushed himself up and stared around, where?

"Sora?"

He looked over at the voice, head tilting to one side, familiar? Yes…he knew it? He got to his feet and moved closer, scenting the air, feathers and ozone? Something else…something that had his mouth watering, stomach rumbling. He reached out only to hit something, unable to go further, whimpering.

"Shh, it's okay, here it is."

He snatched the things pushed towards him, the good smell came from them, and he ripped into them with his teeth, gulping the warm liquid inside. It tasted so good! He finished and looked around, back at the familiar white and blue kind of all blended together and he blinked, the image becoming clearer. He knew it! He pressed against the thing he couldn't see, reaching out, and then the other was pressing against it too and he was happier, but he still couldn't reach!

"Sora?" the voice was hard to understand but he knew it. It…it was…

"D...dd…ddd…" the sounds felt funny, but he smelled the scent change, becoming happier when he made the noise. He shook his head, gripping at it. What was wrong with him?

"Hey! Stop it Sora, don't hurt yourself!" the tone almost had him flinching back, hand going up to block a blow…because Donald would whack him with his staff…

"D…on…ald.."

Donald froze, eyes wide, and then he quacked in happiness. "Sora," he smiled at him. "You remember me!"

"Don…ald…Donald," he forced himself to repeat until it sounded right. Talking felt funny, like there was something wrong with his mouth and he reached up, touching sharp teeth. "Wrong?" he asked in confusion.

"It's okay Sora, I'm gonna get Goofy and Merlin. I'll be back in a second." And with that Donald was gone and Sora whimpered, wrapping his arms around his legs.

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Goofy walked quickly into the room and saw Sora beside the wards, arms wrapped around his legs, and eyes tightly shut. "Sora?" he called, and Sora's eyes snapped open, focusing on him.

Sora scrambled up onto his knees, pressing a hand to the wards. "Go…Goofy," he said and Goofy grinned, kneeling down.

"Well hey there Sora," he put his hand up opposite the teen's. "Welcome back."

Sora tilted his head, looking curious, wings twitching. "Back?"

A glance at the time keeper showed that for Sora it had been two months since he'd been turned, and he was already beginning to speak! Single words maybe but it was a start!

"Don't worry about it," Donald told him, and Sora looked confused. Looked like they needed to keep things simple but at least he was responding to them more now.

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Merlin watched the boy as he leant against the wards, listening to his companions as they chatted. He was doing better than Merlin ever could have hoped. He would be letting one of them through the wards tomorrow, to see how Sora handled it, and if that went well then he would make it so that they could come and go.

His memory was a scrambled mess, and he was more animal than human, but he was still far better than most vampires his age, able to concentrate on things other than food. He was truly listening to his friends after all, even trying to join in.

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Goofy slowly moved through the ward on his knees and Sora watched, red/blue eyes going wide. He reached out and then stopped, hesitating, making a curious noise. Speech wasn't coming easily for Sora, but he was trying. Goofy slowly reached out, not wanting to startle him, he hadn't had any physical contact since arriving at Merlin's after all. He gently touched Sora's cheek and he stiffened, nearly pulling back, but then he whined softly and leant into the touch, leaning forward more, sniffing at him.

"That's it Sora, you're okay," Goofy told him.

Sora chirped, nuzzling into his hand. "Goofy," he murmured, words a bit funny due to the fangs but they didn't care, they sounded just as odd to others too.

"I've got you Sora," he promised as Sora crawled closer, carefully wrapping an arm around him, not wanting to hurt his wings or make him feel trapped. Sora nuzzled at him and then settled in against him and…yep, that was purring. He shivered as he felt fangs scrape near his throat. "No Sora, no biting," he chided, and the teen whined.

Goofy reached out and grabbed a blood pack. "If you're hungry ya eat this." He held it up and Sora took it, obviously sulking but he needed human blood and Goofy wasn't human. It was a good thing he had lots of experience raising his own son, it made dealing with Sora easier from the start. He was sorta like Max when he was really little at the moment. He definitely understood teenage moods better than poor Donald.

Things would have to change now, Sora wasn't human anymore, he had different needs and instincts that would need to be worked with. They didn't even know if he could still summon the Keyblade. What would they do if he couldn't? The King had said to follow the Key but…they couldn't just leave Sora, not now when they were the only stability he had. No, Sora was still Light, no matter what he had become. He hadn't truly tried to hurt anyone, just lashed out when taken by surprise but even that was lessening.

"Goofy?"

"Yeah Sora?" he focused back on the boy cuddling into him, one hand tangled in the front of his jacket, the claws tearing the fabric slightly, but it was easily fixable.

"Where Kairi?" he asked and Goofy hugged him tighter, petting his hair.

"It's okay Sora, don't worry about it now," he finally said, still not sure how much Sora was really understanding and remembering between conversations.

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Leon slowly approached the boy he barely knew, using every trick he knew to keep himself calm and his heart rate steady. He was the boys' natural food source now after all and the last thing he wanted was to kick start hunting instincts. He hardly looked like the kid that had beaten him in a fight in front of the shop Cid sometimes manned the counter of when not messing around with Gummi ships. The hair, the shape of his face, height, that was all that remained the same. The small wings could almost be classed as cute but the fangs, claws, and red in his eyes all screamed predator. At least there was no gold, no sign of the Darkness in him.

Sora was watching him intently, body tensed slightly although not crouched, scenting the air. Leon held his hand out, offering the contents and Sora perked up immediately. Kid still loved food even if his diet had changed rather drastically. He took it with a funny little chirping noise that Leon took as thanks, sinking sharp fangs into the pack to drink the contents. At least he wasn't such a messy eater now.

When he was done he stared at Leon again. "Leon?" he asked, and Leon nodded. That made Sora grin, showing off his fangs, but Leon didn't flinch.

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Riku slid to the floor, breathing heavily, feeling a little sick. There was still one Princess to find and he'd been sent out on several searches with no luck. Travelling through the Darkness was not a pleasant sensation and he had to be careful how far he went in each trip. He glanced over at his bed but didn't bother getting up. He felt…hollow, exhausted…so alone.

Maleficent said they'd found Kairi; he would be leaving soon to get her. He was so grateful, finally, he would at least have one of his friends back, even if Kairi wouldn't wake. He wasn't sure he believed the warning, she had to be alright, she did. He was doing all of this for her.

He wondered what Sora was doing, what world he was on…did he ever think of them? But…Sora had wanted him to go with them that first meeting, it had been the duck who'd said no, Sora arguing…no, he'd just done it because it was expected, he'd seen him later in that house, talking and laughing with others.

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Merlin sat with Sora, telling him stories of magic and other worlds, teaching him, and he was happy that Sora was listening. He'd sped the time spell up again, knowing they needed to get Sora to the stage where he could leave as fast as possible. In vampire terms, he was now almost a year old and he had no trouble being around any of them, even when hungry.

Leon worked on controlling his strength and speed with him, teaching him how to fight without getting lost in the vampires instincts while Merlin and Donald had recently begun trying to teach him magic. He was teaching Donald as well; he was relatively powerful, but his spell inventory was rather simple. Sora was having to relearn what he had known, the magic different now that he was a vampire, thankfully his species did not dictate what kind of magic he could use otherwise there would be no hiding what he had become.

There was no sign of his Keyblade but it had come to him before because he'd been in danger from Heartless so it may take such danger to reclaim it. Merlin was also teaching him everything he could that he thought Sora may need. He was working on a powerful spell, tied to an accessory that Sora could wear, an illusion to make him appear human. No one could ever suspect what Sora now was, too many would see nothing but a monster and attempt to destroy him.

It was why he had not contacted his old pupil Yen Sid for help with the Keyblade end of things, he was worried about how the younger wizard would react to Sora. He had never wielded a Keyblade, had no interest in ever doing so, he was a Wizard and would always be one, unlike Yen Sid. He had seen more worlds in his centuries then Yen Sid could ever dream of. Though he did wonder if it was his fault the boy had become so…such a stick in the mud as he aged. Would it kill him to smile or offer comfort or praise to those he trained? No wonder the young King had wandered off several times.

Sora would be an even better pupil, he understood concepts instinctually now that Yen Sid brushed aside, an understanding that came from being turned, to having to the find a true balance within himself. And he had an innate kindness and willingness to accept people that Yen Sid lacked. He also had the potential to far outlive the both of them, to become to future generations what Merlin was at the moment. Merlin was very old yes, but he was not immortal, not truly.

There were still some gaps in Sora's memory but everything from the fall of his Islands onwards appeared intact which was good. He'd listened to his tearful recounting of the meetings with his childhood friend and had been the one to have to explain that it seemed young Riku had been seduced by the Darkness…like Sora's creator had been. Sora was determined to save his friend and Merlin didn't doubt him for a second.

And the girl, Kairi, that was a name several of them remembered, could she be the same girl? The Heartless had taken her heart from what they had told him the other boy had said, leaving her in some strange catatonic state and that was not normal. Could she be brought back?

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Sora stood at the door out into Traverse Town, hesitating. It felt like forever since he'd been there but that was because of the time magic. He glanced down at himself, his island clothing replaced by things that Merlin had given him with protective magic woven into the cloth.

He wasn't used to such long pants! They were black, the same as his shoes, his shirt was red and his jacket was a mix of dark blue and white, his fingerless gloves black and blue. All that was missing was the yellow of his old shoes. The colours were darker but more decorative too, with swirls and fancy stitching. They covered as much of his skin as possible to protect him from the sun should the illusion fail, or he had to remove it for some reason. The only thing that was the same was his necklace and he was grateful that Goofy had managed to save it.

He still hadn't managed to call his Keyblade and that worried him, was he no longer worthy? The power came from the bearers heart…and his was utterly still within his chest, it would never beat again. He was nothing more than a walking corpse, although thanks to Merlin's magic he would grow a little bit more in the coming years, letting him pass for a bit older hopefully, though he wouldn't grow as much as he would have if still alive. He was stuck at sixteen forever and it hurt…Riku and Kairi would keep getting older, would leave him behind, and that was if they even wanted to be friends with him now.

Without the Keyblade, would Donald and Goofy stay with him? Or would they leave him behind one day? Would someone else be chosen to hold the Keyblade instead?

"Alright?" Goofy asked, laying a hand on his shoulder and he looked over at them.

"Yeah," he managed a shaky grin.

"Take your time," Donald told him, and Sora nodded.

He could do this, he could. It wasn't like Traverse Town had a massive population or anything. Sora took a deep breath and then pushed the door open, stepping through. He winced as the bright lights shone in sensitive eyes. What would the sunlight be like back home? Could he ever go home again? The spell may make him look human, but it was only an illusion. He was still a vampire, and nothing could change that, his senses were ten times that of a humans and with all the weaknesses that implied. While sunlight wouldn't kill him, he'd burn worse than Riku if out in it for too long, no longer able to tan as he always had before. He could live under the illusion forever, let it protect him from the worst, but how would he get the blood he needed on the Islands?

"Doin' alright?" Goofy asked in concern, obviously seeing the flinch.

"It's bright," he admitted with a small shrug. He gave his eyes a moment to adjust and then headed towards the small house the group had taken over as their 'base' a while back. They passed no one which wasn't all that surprising given the number of Heartless usually found in the District.

Sure enough a group of Shadows formed around them, and they got ready to fight. Sora growled in warning and literally caught one as it leapt at him, hurling it to the ground hard enough to take it out. Okay, that was handy. He sent a blast of lightning into a tight grouping, ducking out of the way of Donald's fire spell instinctively. There was a reason he was wearing most of their fire resistant accessories now and he didn't want to have to put them to the test. Of course, that was when a bunch of Soldiers swarmed them as well.

"Donald!" he yelled as he saw the duck go down.

He leapt upward, hidden wings easily catching the air, swooping down between him and the oncoming hoard, tossing a potion back to Donald even as he crouched, he would defend his friends! He gasped as a weight suddenly formed in his hand, blinking down at the Keyblade bearing a keychain he hadn't seen before for a second before shifting his stance, unable to help grinning as he felt the boosting effects that came with the Keyblade and current keychain.

Once the fight was over he found himself being lifted off the ground in a rib cracking hug from Goofy and then Donald was there, ruffling his hair, both relieved to see the key back where it belonged. They looked it over, taking in the new shape thanks to the new keychain, Sora running his fingers over it, shivering as he realised where it had come from…Halloween Town. It was a pumpkin with little bat wings coming out of it, cute, but it wasn't really the one he would want to be using. He dug through the sealed pocket for his other chains, swapping it out for Three Wishes, only to blink as he felt a sudden drain… he looked down and grimaced, would he only be able to use the new one? He dug them all out and began testing them, Donald and Goofy watching quietly.

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"Merlin?" Sora called as he packed up the last of his things. He'd collected more than he would have thought since being turned.

"Yes my boy?"

"Can…a vampire become a Heartless?" he fidgeted with the strap of the bag Aerith and Yuffie had given him nervously. Becoming a Heartless had been one of his biggest fears since learning where they came from.

"To my knowledge, no, at least, not naturally. Your body is already basically dead, your heart does not beat. The kind of heart they steal from a person is not the physical one however when I ran tests, yours seems very firmly tied to your physical body. Likely due to the immortality part of vampirism."

"Oh," he whispered. That…was a massive relief.

"You can still die Sora," he warned, and Sora nodded.

He was only immortal as long as he wasn't killed. Still, he'd rather be permanently dead than a Heartless. There were a lot of things that could weaken or hurt him, less that could end his existence permanently. After listening to what they had done to his…Sire…Merlin had admitted the woman likely still existed, but that it would take her several years to recover. Due to that, he would never return to Halloween Town, not when she would have power over him.

"Remember my young pupil, you shall always have a home with me! Trust your heart, it shan't lead you astray," Merlin ruffled his hair gently and Sora nodded.

Part of him never wanted to leave, to stay and learn more magic, to train with Leon and the others…but he had to. He had to bring Riku back and save Kairi, he had to seal the Keyholes and save everyone. "Thanks Merlin…for everything." He knew many others would have destroyed him while he was turning or locked him away as a monster, he was very lucky they had brought him to Merlin.

"No need for thanks. Be careful out there," Merlin warned one last time and then Sora joined the others and they set off for the Gummi ship.

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Donald watched Sora settle behind the ships controls, refamiliarizing himself with them. It had been well over two years for him after all, though not as long for them since Merlin didn't let them spend a lot of time under the effects of the time spell. It didn't matter if Sora lost a few years now that he was immortal, but they weren't!

"Ready?" Sora asked.

"Let's go!" Donald told him and Sora laughed but took off, the flight as smooth as ever.

They flew passed the worlds they had already visited until they reached Halloween Town and then Sora turned the ship. "That the way?" he asked and Goofy checked the navigation screen.

"Yep."

"Okay." Sora plotted the course and the headed for the new world.

"Uh, a big ship is catching up to us," Goofy warned after about an hour of dodging Heartless ships and asteroids. The ship flew past them, its sails clearly visible.

"Quit gawking! That's a pirate ship!"

"It's going to ram us! Hold tight!" Sora yelled as he tried to avoid the ship, but it was no use.

TBC…