Disclaimer: not mine
Chapter 11
Axel stood in his room, looking out the window. Back home finally… did he do the right thing in letting that Sora kid and Naminé go? Too late to second guess himself now. He glanced over as Saïx walked in without even bothering to knock.
"Why didn't you report in?"
Axel turned around, leaning against the window sill. "Oh, good to see you, too. You're welcome, thanks for the kind words."
"I'm told Naminé has gone missing," his old friend stared at him, and Axel shrugged.
"There one minute, gone the next. I don't know how she got out." Which was sort of true, he didn't know how she had left the Castle once he had left himself, but he was pretty sure it was with Sora.
"You searched every room, I expect?" Saïx pushed, and Axel snorted in disbelief.
"You're kidding, right? That's like counting grains of dust in a building full of sneezing people." It would take forever!
"What about the chamber? Did you find it?"
"Come on, I would have told you that much. I gotta hand it to you... You were right. About Marluxia, the traitors... You knew exactly what was up."
"All I did was find a place to send everyone who was getting in the way."
Okay…that hurt, or would if he felt anything. "Well, it's nice to know where I stand! Sheesh..." he shook his head, looking away.
"Did you come back in one piece or didn't you?" he turned to leave.
"I disposed of Zexion," Axel offered, even though technically he was pretty sure he hadn't, someone else had…not Sora though…huh, had Naminé's powers worked on someone else so he'd forgotten them? Yes, he was sure there'd been someone else there too, someone interesting. "That's how you wanted it, right? I'll play it your way," he watched Saïx leave and sighed. "...for now."
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Leon turned at the strange noise, seeing inky blackness rise up, forming… a portal? And then a hooded figure emerged, and he readied himself for a fight.
"Whoa! Leon, it's me!" a familiar voice called, and then the hood was shoved down to reveal Sora.
"Sora? How did you do that?" he asked in shock because that was not something he had been able to do before.
"I only walked through it, didn't open it," Sora shrugged slightly. He looked…tired, which was worrying considering the kid no longer slept. "It's a really long story. Is Merlin here too? I was hoping he was from here too since you guys knew each other so well…"
"He's here," Leon assured him. "This way."
They started walking and while Leon wanted to know what had happened he figured it was best to wait. Soon they were inside Merlin's house and he smirked as the Wizard yanked the vampire into an enthusiastic hug.
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Merlin immediately hugged his latest student, relieved to see him again. When the Worlds had been restored he had been very concerned about where the boy would end up, so seeing him healthy was a big relief. He let go and stepped back, hearing Cid snickering, but then frowned as he looked Sora over. "Gracious! What are you wearing?"
Sora rubbed the back of his head. "A coat?"
Merlin crossed his arms and stared at him over his glasses, even as Yuffie moved in to hug Sora and poke at the coat. That was no normal coat at all, and it concerned him why Sora would think he needed it. Sora sighed but began to explain what had happened since they had last seen him and the others…who weren't with him now.
Hearing Sora speak of his best friend, brought back memories of hearing about the boy before, but until then he hadn't remembered him, a very worrying idea. Messing with a person's memories wasn't all that difficult, but to do so in a way that erased others memories of them at the same time? And his memories? It seemed he needed to work on his mental defences more often.
This Naminé was far too powerful to leave without training, although it would have to wait since she was rather busy at the moment. It was good that she had made the decision to restore their memories herself, but her existence raised questions about young Kairi, could a 'Nobody' exist outside of the person they were made from without it being detrimental to either?
The DiZ character was a concern, while he was helping for the moment, would that last? Something about him sounded familiar as well…
"It's so strange, listening to you talk of this Riku…you must have told us about him before, especially if Ansem possessed him, and yet I can't remember it," Leon commented when Sora fell quiet, the others nodding in agreement.
"This Organisation sounds like trouble ta me," Cid grumbled.
"Indeed…" Merlin adjusted his glasses. "And with Sora now alone, that makes them even more dangerous. I do believe…yes, yes, it would be best if you remain here for a time and continue your training. I've already readied the training room."
"And it'll give me time to get you a ship that doesn't run on 'happy faces'," Cid grumbled, shuddering, and Yuffie laughed at his reaction.
"Indeed, while young Naminé may be right about you learning to use these Corridors, I think it would be best to not rely on them. Granted, as a vampire, you have a certain resilience to Darkness…still, as your Sire proves, it is nevertheless possible to be corrupted by it," Merlin warned, and Sora nodded.
He did not like mentioning her to the boy, but he needed to be aware of the risks. Perhaps with a few more years of training he could get his magical reserves up to a level where Sora could use his own preferred method of travel? Not that Sora's magic levels weren't already impressive, especially considering the fact he had only known of magic for a short time.
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Naminé stood before Riku's pod, watching him sleep, he looked so peaceful that no one would ever guess how close they'd been to being too late to save him. Still, even with barely a single memory returned, she could feel the Darkness locked away within him. She hoped Sora was right and that Riku would have the strength to fight it.
She missed Sora and the King, they had talked with her while they were moving and setting things up. DiZ, much like the Organisation members, only spoke to her when he wanted a progress report or to remind her to work quickly. Sooner or later, they would be found and if it was while Sora and the King were away then they would have little defence.
She knew that Sora had found his teacher and was receiving further training, which was good, he would need it while travelling alone. She wished she could see further into the future than only a day or so, but he would just have to manage.
She sighed and got back to work.
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Axel sat on the clock tower, eating his ice cream, glancing over at Xion. He didn't know why he had brought her along after the mission, but he supposed there was worse company to have. She may be a puppet, one of Vexen's creations, but with the extra data and now growing experience of her own, she was becoming more like the rest of them.
It was…kind of nice, having company, even if she didn't talk much.
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Yuffie grinned at Sora who nodded and shifted his stance. She loved training with him, he really made her work on her stealth thanks to his enhanced senses. It was like working with Cloud but where Cloud beat Sora out on strength, the kids senses were definitely better than even a Soldiers. She wasn't sure which of them was faster now though, maybe they should organise a race to see?
Merlin had done a great job with the time spell, they could spend almost as long as they wanted in the room and very little time would pass. Though, if they spent too long inside they would start to age, which was fine for Sora but not the rest of them, well other than Merlin, who knew how old he was already.
She was teaching Sora to fight like a ninja, to make use of his body's natural strengths without having to think about it. Plus, it never hurt to know how to use weapons other than the giant mystical key. They'd heard how it'd been taken from him once and while they all hoped that couldn't happen again, it was best to plan as if it would. Weapons like Leon's and Cloud's would look ridiculous due to Sora's size but the stuff she used was perfect.
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Sora stared down at his clothing in shock and then looked at his reflection to double check he was seeing what he thought he was. He grinned and then let out a cheer, he'd grown! Enough that his pants and sleeves were noticeably shorter and…yeah, his face had thinned out a little too. Just how long had he been in the training room?
"Sora?" Merlin poked his head around the door and Sora held his arms out. The Wizard blinked at him before laughing and congratulating him. "Let me see, let me see," he muttered, weaving magic around him. "Hmm….it seems that the room messed with the spell and gave you everything in one go rather than more gradual change. This is all there will ever be," he warned, and Sora shrugged.
"It's better than being stuck like I was forever. I was never going to catch up to Riku anyway." If Riku didn't grow in the pod he probably had, he seemed to be about the height he remembered Riku being, but he was only sleeping so he should still be aging in there, right? He'd really need a haircut by the time he woke up then!
"True, you are not the most blessed with height, Sora," Merlin agreed, and Sora couldn't decide if he was teasing or not. "Still, new clothes will be needed. The Fairy Godmother does like designing them and her work is just as good as those three Fairies, I believe they ended up with Yen Sid when their World fell. Perhaps they are still there. Better run along and let her know, especially if you want anything different."
Sora nodded and went to find her, there were a few changes he'd like for practicality and because a change would be good. Not that anyone would see his clothing when he was using that stuffy coat.
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Cloud stood at the back as everyone said temporary goodbyes to Sora. He had been shocked to feel the changes to the teen since they had met at the Coliseum. The others may not sense it, but he could, Sora was no longer human…and it wasn't something usually considered Light. No, he was pretty sure at least Merlin knew, but if the others did then they were keeping quiet to keep Sora's secret. He could feel that Sora carried Darkness within him now, tightly controlled, locked away, for now. If that ever failed then hopefully the kid would be strong enough to face it and come out the other side.
Sora glanced over and Cloud nodded at him, the kid smiling at him in return. The first time they met, Cloud had nearly killed him, and yet when Sora had seen him in town there had been no anger or anything, just Sora happy to know he had made it home when the Worlds had been restored.
Maybe it was wrong to call him kid…he'd changed, grown up. Thankfully, he'd lost that horrible bright red…outfit. The magical clothing was far more practical and less of an eyesore. He looked like one of them now and not an island child. He'd already being wearing more muted colours before his growth spurt, but now he wore trousers more like Leon's, although without as many belts, and he wore a long sleeved black shirt…covering as much skin as possible, which was a big change. Was it because he found other Worlds colder than his home, or did it have something to do with what had changed? He had a black jacket trimmed in red too, not that it mattered, when he put the strange black coat on, it hid everything, even hiding the collar of his jacket, and changing his fingerless gloves into full ones.
Honestly, none of them were happy about Sora leaving alone to hunt the Heartless and Organisation. Compared to them, he was very young, well compared to all of them except Yuffie. Even with the defence system, it still took all of them to keep the town safe.
He had only seen Sora that once in town and now…he regretted not agreeing to help train him. Now, all he could do was watch the ship take off.
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Sora looked down at the membership card Leon had given him, grinning. He was an official member of the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee! He had taken time out from training to help them in their work and deal with any Heartless that popped up. This time, no one had bothered keeping track of how long had passed for him under the effects of the time spell, what would be the point?
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DiZ looked up as Sora walked in, studying him closer…interesting, it appeared the boy had hit a rather large growth spurt in the few weeks he was gone. He'd even gotten new clothes from somewhere, and a ship.
Naminé smiled at Sora and he smiled back at her. "Welcome back Sora," she greeted and DiZ left.
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Seeing DiZ had left she leant in. "That was a lot of training," she murmured, and he shrugged.
"Is everything okay?" he asked, and she took his hand, leading him to the room where Riku's pod was.
As soon as they were inside, Sora moved to the pod, placing his hand against it, staring at the sleeping teen within. "Hey Riku," he whispered, and she ignored the way he sniffled.
"All of the readings are stable," she offered, and he nodded.
"His memories?" Sora looked over at her.
She wished she had better news, could give him a definite date of when Riku would wake, but she couldn't.
He nodded, obviously seeing something in her expression and she went to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. Sora leant back into her touch and took a shaky breath. "I know you're doing your best and it's stupid to expect results so fast."
"Except that for you it isn't fast," she pointed out. "Sora you were under that time spell for possibly years. It's only been a few weeks outside of that. A little has been restored but I don't know how long it will take. I won't stop until he has everything back though."
"Thanks Naminé, for everything."
"Everything?" she looked away.
"It wasn't your fault Naminé, they used you and they would have hurt you if you hadn't obeyed."
"I'm just a Nobody…I shouldn't even exist," she whispered, and then he was gripping her shoulders.
"Who told you that?" he demanded, and she swallowed nervously. "DiZ," he growled, assuming correctly.
"Sora…"
He jerked back, eyes going wide, almost backing into the pod. "I…I'm sorry," he whispered. "Naminé…I'd never hurt you."
He thought he had scared her? She reached out and took his hand. "I'm not scared of you Sora. I know you would never hurt anyone. What you are doesn't dictate who you are…" Oh, was that why he was mad? Because if that was true for him…then maybe it was true for her too?
He smiled at her and she smiled back. "If you mean that then it's true for you too." She was shocked when he carefully wrapped his arms around her, but then she mimicked him, and it felt…warm, safe…nice. So that was a hug. "I wish I could just stay here with you guys."
"You have a duty to the Worlds, Sora. And if the Organisation is watching you…"
"Then they aren't looking so hard for you which buys times," Sora sighed. "Fine, but if DiZ gives you trouble, you tell me. I'll…I'll bite him or something."
She laughed at that, knowing Sora wouldn't actually bite someone, but it was nice of him to offer.
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Sora sat with his back against the pod, going through his things, talking quietly despite being told Riku couldn't hear him. There was always the slim chance he could after all, even if only in his dreams…if he was even able to dream in that sleep. Maybe he would dream his memories as they returned?
"I miss you," he admitted, turning his head to look up at the pod.
He looked so peaceful just floating there. When was the last time he saw Riku so relaxed? He couldn't remember, Riku had become so…tense, arrogant, almost cold in those last months before the Islands fell. What would Riku be like when he woke up? Those few minutes at the Door, he'd seemed so much like the old Riku, and what Kairi had said of how Riku had held Ansem back when Sora was out, that sounded like him too. No matter what, he would be there for him, he would never turn his back on Riku.
He sighed as he smelt the man approaching, wonderful. He packed his things away and stood, turning to face the door, smelling DiZ's surprise that he was waiting for him. "Need something?" He didn't trust DiZ, especially after Naminé's not quite admission over what he was saying or how he was treating her.
"King Mickey has sent word," DiZ answered, placing a file down on the table. "You are becoming close to Naminé."
"She's my friend," Sora answered.
"She is a Nobody, incapable of emotion, her kind should never exist."
Sora bit back a snarl of rage at his uncaring words. "Funny, she has more emotion then you," he told the man, seeing the flicker of surprise in his visible eye.
Yeah, Sora knew that if the man had done his homework that he would be surprised. He'd changed since being turned, how could he have not? His temper was faster to ignite now and he stayed angry easily. He'd spent the whole time in Castle Oblivion angry and scared, taking down the Organisation members there hadn't bothered him at all.
Sora took the file and flipped through it, strange creatures, not Heartless had been spotted at the Coliseum. Definitely something that needed looking into which meant he'd be leaving to check it out. He looked up at DiZ, for a second tempted to remove the illusion and give him a good scare, but he ignored that urge.
He stepped closer to DiZ and glared at him. "Leave Naminé alone. She's a better person than you by miles." With that he walked past him, going to let Naminé know he was leaving.
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"Herc!" Sora called, grinning, and the hero turned, waving at him.
"Sora! Welcome back." Hercules jogged over and then grabbed him up in a rib crushing hug, making Sora laugh and hug back.
"Well, who's this Wonderboy?" A female voice asked, and Sora looked over to see a woman approaching.
"Meg, this is Sora. Sora, this is Megara. Sora is a junior hero, him and his friends helped take out Cerberus."
"Well, well, a real hero," she grinned, leaning against Hercules who finally put Sora down.
He looked between them, picking up a scent that he hadn't before, unsure what it meant…oh! Right. He was happy for Hercules even if it made him miss Kairi and Riku more which was just dumb since they were only friends, even if he had kissed Riku…he'd been totally memoryless at the time, but Sora still hoped that some part of Riku had recognised him or something.
"So what brings you here Sora? And where are Donald and Goofy?"
Sora winced slightly and Hercules frowned. "They're alive," he said quickly, and Herc nodded in relief.
"Come on, let's talk in private. Meg…"
"Go have some guy talk," she traced a hand over his chest armour and then left.
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Hercules listened as Sora explained everything that had happened since he'd last seen the group. That was…to lose his friend, to think he'd killed him, only to have to seal him behind a Door, then to find him again just as he lost the last of his memories… "I'm so sorry Sora." Hercules gently grasped his shoulder.
"I…" Sora's breathing was shaky which considering he didn't actually need to breath was bad.
Hercules' didn't really see the illusion, he just saw his friend Sora as he truly was now. it didn't scare or disgust him to see fangs, claws, red eyes. He looked lost and Hercules wished there was something he could do to help…Mnemosyne…his Great-Aunt. She was technically a Titaness and also the mother of the Muses…his half-sisters. His family tree was very complicated. He would contact her before saying anything to Sora. This Naminé was powerful, but she wasn't a goddess.
"So is this just a visit?"
"No, sorry, but we had reports of odd creatures, not Heartless."
"Those, yeah, I haven't seen any but there have been reports in Thebes. I can show you where."
"Thanks."
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"Any idea what those things are?" Herc asked, looking around to make sure they really had gotten them all, and Sora nodded.
"Yeah, they're Nobodies," Sora ran a hand through his hair, using a quick Aero spell to dry it since it was dripping from being thrown into the nearby fountain during the fight.
"Nobodies?" Hercules chuckled at him and Sora rolled his eyes but then grinned.
"You've seen Heartless form?" Sora asked, and Herc grimaced but nodded. "Well Nobodies come from what's left behind, they're made from the body and soul. They don't always form, the person has to have a strong will. There's this Organisation XIII, made up of Nobodies that look totally human," Sora explained everything he knew as they walked the city, checking for any more.
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Sora sat in the cockpit, hesitating. He knew what he wanted to do, go right back to Twilight Town but...he needed to be seen out in the Worlds doing his job. He ran a hand through his hair and grimaced, why was it that even dead, his hair could grow? Stupid messed up vampire biology. Okay, so he needed a haircut cause the spikes were getting too long and going nuts. No one had cut his hair in years except…he sighed, hesitating but then closed his eyes, concentrating, before his fingers moved over the buttons, inputting coordinates he'd never seen before. He'd just have to be really careful not to be seen for everyone's safety. Fingers crossed the coordinates worked.
TBC…
