Hello, fellow readers! Welcome back to Harmonic Hearts! Last time, we finished up the first visit and now, we return for the second visit. In terms of the theater timeline, this will take place after Space Paranoids' second visit.

Before we dive in, what do we have:

Raximus: If you mean the RCs, I wanted to give off a feeling of playing a video game. That and I just like flashy finishers.

johannvanguard: Leave it to you to summarize chapters.

Guest: Well here it is!

Nisha: I was thinking of that, but I couldn't get it out right. You could interpret him trying to stop Maleficent as that. As for your suggestion... I'll get back to you on that.

With that said, let's get started!

Visit 2-1: New Sun, New Shadows

Canterlot High

The trio teleports into the courtyard of a familiar school, looking around for anything new. So far, no noticeable changes.

"At least there's no heartless around." Goofy mentions as they approach the entrance.

"Good. It means the others are safe." Donald adds.

"I wonder how they're doing." Sora chimes in.

Upon entering the foyer, they were met by three new faces. Though, a familiar face was the one to greet them:

"Hey guys!"

"Hey Sunset!" They greeted back with Sora continuing, "How've you been?"

"I've been doing pretty well. Currently helping out around the school and stuff."

"Like what?"

"Well, I volunteered to show new students around CHS." She gestures to the new faces, who were watching until the ponytail girl exclaims:

"That spiky mannequin came to life!"

"Mannequin?" Sora repeats, with Sunset realizing what she means.

"She means she saw a mannequin that... strangely has your clothes and hair." The frizzy haired girl clarifies.

The trio were confused before Sunset explains it, "You remember when Rarity said she got ideas from your special clothes?"

"Yeah?"

"Well after you three left, she went to work on those ideas. After some time, she launched the new idea called 'Sora's Drive Line' at the boutique she works at."

"Wait, are you saying that other people are wearing my clothes?" Sora was honestly curious before Sunset remembers:

"Oh, I'd have to give the tour! The others are in the band room if you want to see them."

"Oh OK, we'll see you later!" With that said, the trio head to where that was.

As they left, the twin-ponytail girl rolls her eyes. "Really? Living mannequins?"

"You never know! It's like those horror movies you see in commercials!" The ponytail girl answers, which makes the frizzy-haired one shake her head.

"Anyways, Canterlot High is a great school. I'm sure you're gonna love it." Sunset assures them, leading the way as the frizzy girl agrees:

"Oh yes, we'd really sense there's something... magical about this place."

Back with the trio, they eventually find a set of doors left open. Music is clearly heard through it, making them take a peek to see their friends playing instruments. Upon finishing up, Rainbow lets out a cheer:

"All right! That was AWESOME!"

"Yes, yes it was-" Rarity offhandedly agrees before seeing the trio enter, "Sora, Donald, Goofy!"

"Hiya!" The trio greets back with Sora continuing, "We heard music when we walked by. Are you starting a band?"

"Yup! We had to if we wanted to enter the musical showcase!" Rainbow confirms.

"What's that?" Donald wonders.

"The school arranged a fundraiser event to raise money for after-school programs!" Pinkie clarifies, "Sunset suggested the idea!"

"Gawrsh, that sounds like a swell idea!" Goofy agrees.

Sora then remembers something, "Sunset told me there was a new fashion line named after me, is that right?"

The girls immediately turn to Rarity, who lets out a nervous chuckle:

"Well um, you see-"

"Can I see it!?" Donald and Goofy chuckle at their friend's excitement.

Rarity happily obliges, pulling in a coat rack from somewhere to reveal said fashion line. The trio is surprised at the accuracy, seeing two sets of his normal attire and drive forms respectively. As they look over them, she gives them insight on her work:

"I had to go through SO many revisions! I didn't want to just copy the look, I wanted to capture the magic. Obviously not the transforming magic, but the feeling of being a world-traveling adventurer!"

"Honestly, I don't think the line would be as successful if those videos didn't go viral." AJ brings up.

"Believe it or not, they're still quite popular. Even some of the students are wearing them." Rarity adds, "Plus, it was a challenge to get the measurements just right. Which reminds me-"

The trio then see her pull out measuring tape, zooming over around Sora and back to her position in seconds:

"Now I have them for future reference."

Before the trio asked how she did that, the bell rings to signal lunch. Once it does though, Sora notices something move outside one of the windows:

"Heartless?" He mutters.

"Did you see something?" Goofy asks him.

"Yeah." He affirms before turning to the girls, "We'll be right back, gotta make sure the school is safe."

"We appreciate it." Fluttershy said, the others agreeing as AJ adds:

"Go ahead and do ya'll thing!"

The trio went to do just that, ready for a fight.

Earlier...

Sunset was giving the new girls the tour as she points out the classrooms they pass:

"Those are the science labs, these are the computer labs and- Oh!" She cuts herself off upon seeing a poster, "We're having a big musical showcase this weekend! I suggested it, but I'm surprised the school rallied behind it."

"A musical showcase?" The frizzy one repeats.

"Even if you're new, I'm sure they'll allow you to join if you're interested." Sunset adds.

"We do sing from time to time." The twin-tail girl mentions, but the ponytail one wasn't as subtle:

"Hello, we sing like ALL the time! That's how we get others to do what we want!"

Sunset was understandably confused as the frizzy one signals her to be quiet...

"What, what did I say?" To her obliviousness.

"What she meant to say, was that the event would be a great way to meet the other students." The frizzy one clarifies.

"Oh yeah! What she said, that's what I meant. To say."

The twin-tail girl rolls her eyes as they stood in awkward silence. This was when Sunset realizes something:

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Sunset Shimmer."

"Adagio Dazzle." The frizzy-haired one went first.

"Aria Blaze." The twin-tail one casually said.

"I'm Sonata Dusk, nice to meet you!" The ponytail one enthusiastically finishes.

"I'm guessing this concludes the tour?" Adagio wonders, "We would like to sign up for the showcase."

"Oh, pretty much. The principal's office is where you go for it." Sunset answers.

With that said, the new girls took their leave as the bell rings for lunch. Sunset went ahead to the cafeteria, as for the new girls:

"Sonata, you need to think before speaking." Adagio insists, "You could have blown our cover."

"Cover? I wasn't told we were doing that." Sonata admits.

"You shouldn't be told that, it's common sense." Aria retorts, "Then again, that's asking for alot."

"What's that supposed to mean!?"

"It means what it means!"

"Girls!" Adagio steps in to stop their bickering, "Forget it. It won't matter when we sign up for that musical showcase."

"Interesting timing, don't you think?" Aria mentions.

"Does it matter? We'd be fools to not take it. Now come on." With that, they go to sign up.

The trio exit the school into the courtyard, where they find nothing out of the ordinary yet. Searching around the entire perimeter, they reach the soccer field where they find an interesting sight:

A dark figure, wearing a dark bodysuit cloaked in black and red, was summoning creatures from its own being.

Whatever it was, they know it can't be good. Readying their weapons, they approach with caution. The creatures were on alert when they reached a certain distance, getting the figure's attention:

"Another keyblade wielder, interesting."

Now that they were closer, they saw the figure wore an interesting helmet that hid his face behind dark glass.

"Who are you?" Sora questions.

"I'll be asking the questions." The figure shot back, "Then again, I doubt you'll last long enough to answer them."

He moves his hand to conjure more of the creatures, surrounding the trio as he gladly tells them what they are:

"These are the 'Unversed', a horde of fledgling emotions under my control. Let's see if that key isn't just for show."

Now knowing what they're up against, they went on the offensive. It wasn't very long to decipher the three species they fought against:

The blue critters, known as 'Flood', are the equivalent of the Shadows. They even sink into the ground to avoid attacks.

The larger blue ones, known as 'Scrapper', are the Soldiers. They are just as nimble, but mainly uses their claws.

The big blue ones, known as 'Bruiser', are harder to pinpoint. Closest would be a Large Body, without the fat armor to block incoming attacks.

One thing that the figure noticed was how in sync the trio were. One attack goes into another, each spell wasn't wasted, he can even argue they read their own minds. Still, he does know one thing about teams like this:

"Enough." Upon saying that, he dismisses the remaining Unversed into a black mist. Absorbing it back into himself, he continues:

"I'll admit, you're not half bad... together, that is."

Without them noticing, he opens two portals behind Donald and Goofy before swinging his arm. A harsh wind begins to push them back, but a strong gust sweeps the two away into said portals!

Sora realizes this too late as he was the last man standing, "Guys!"

The wind ceases as the figure approaches, "I recommend you worry about yourself."

In a flash of dark flames, Sora sees him summon a keyblade in his hand! Unlike his though, it has a motif for gears in the design. More questions pop up in Sora's head, but one still keeps repeating:

"Who are you!?" The figure stops before chuckling:

"Fine, I'll humor you. Remember it as you disappear into the void." He then gets into his battle stance, which strangely reminds Sora of Riku:

"I am Vanitas."

A bit earlier...

The students were currently eating lunch in the cafeteria. As the girls ate their food, Sunset takes an empty seat next to AJ:

"How the tour go, Sunset?" The latter asks her.

"It went fine, but..." The former answers, "These girls, I felt something off about them."

"Off like what? Like this?" Pinkie puts her hair as a beard, "Or off like this?" She then put lettuce on her eyebrows with carrots as fangs, "Or! Or-"

"Or just let her tell us?" Rainbow gestures, which Pinkie obliges as one of the carrots slips out.

"That's just it, I couldn't put my finger on it. They acted a bit... strange around me." Sunset then gasps, "Or maybe they already know me, of what I've done! Oh, so much for making a good first impression."

She puts her head on the table before hearing Fluttershy, "Uh huh."

The others didn't like that, which made her quickly recover. "O-Oh, that's likely not it."

Meanwhile, the new girls were waiting in the hall as Adagio was getting excited:

"Here we are, girls. The moment we've been waiting for."

"Lunch!?" Sonata exclaims.

"...No. No Sonata, a chance to regain our true power."

"Oh, right." Aria just glares at her as Adagio continues:

"Our voices are just strong enough, to make the students strife for competition. By fueling their desire to win, it'll be easy picking."

"So... do what we always do?" Aria summarizes, "Yeah, real hard thinking on that plan."

Adagio shakes her head before reminding them, "I told you before, this school hides the Equestrian Magic we saw! All we need to do is drag it out."

"And then we'll get lunch, right?" The two just stare at Sonata as she points at a poster, "It's Taco Tuesday!"

"...If we pull this off, fine." Adagio begrudgingly agrees, making her clap in glee. "Now just follow my lead."

"Or my lead." Aria offhandedly comments, which Adagio didn't like as she grabs her shirt collar:

"MY lead."

She lets go soon after, making Aria dust off her shirt as Sonata stifles a chuckle. Once they got into position, they swing the doors open.

Objective: Defeat Vanitas! (BGM: Enter the Darkness/ Battle of the Bands)

The two keyblade wielders stare each other down, not moving an inch in the howling wind. Loose blades of grass were picked up, swirling around their feet until one flies higher than the rest. Once it reaches their eyesight-

SLASH!

They struck, clashing their blades in a quick barrage of slashes. They knock each other back soon after, with Vanitas being quick with Dark Firaga. Sora counters with Blizzard that pierces the fireball, making it split into three homing shots that he quickly rolls under.

Vanitas swats the icicle away before dodging more, sinking into the floor soon after. Sora sees a shadow zooming towards him, quickly leaping away from a rising slash. A swarm of fireballs rain down as Vanitas rise skyward, making him use Reflega to protect himself.

The spell shoots the damage right back, knocking the masked boy away before he... stops?

"Too slow."

Sora got sent flying by a surprise attack from Vanitas, who added Blizzaga into his slash. The former shakes off shards and retaliates with Thundaga, making it rain down lightning bolts. The latter casually dodges them, closing the distance and forces his opponent back.

Managing to guard his combo though, Sora knocks him off balance with Counterguard. Quickly following up, he lands a full combo with Guard Break for serious damage. Seeing the masked boy freeze in midair again, he was prepared for the surprise attack with Reflega.

This time though, Vanitas shoots out of the ground with a swarm of fireballs. The barrier reflects the damage, but he swiftly dodges it and flies around Sora, surrounding him with sharp crystals. Using Reflega again, the barrier bursts on hit and shatters them to pieces.

Sora then notices the pieces morph, growing into shadow clones that then attack en masse! Too slow to cast Reflega or even guard, he was forced to take a beating as Vanitas charges up an attack:

"Pathetic!"

He pierces through, landing a direct hit that sends Sora flying before absorbing the remaining clones. Sliding across the ground, the latter quickly rolls to recover to his feet. Vanitas starts to charge another attack, but then starts to hear something.

Glancing towards the school, he felt negativity emitting from inside along with... singing? Curious of the source, he dismisses his keyblade:

"Consider yourself lucky! I have business to attend to. But if we meet again, you'd better be worth my time." With that said, the masked boy disappears in a dark portal.

Sora uses Curaga to heal, yet still had to catch his breath. Whoever that 'Vanitas' was, he proves to be skilled and cunning. Now though, he finds himself in a bit of a situation:

Donald and Goofy got forced out to a random world, likely very far away from here. While he's tempted to go find them, Vanitas and those 'Unversed' are too dangerous to leave alone. Especially since this world now lacks magic to even protect itself.

Once his breathing returns to normal, he goes to warn the girls of the danger. Entering the school, he eventually finds them going through the foyer and overhears their conversation:

"Those three have to be using some kind of dark magic, how else can you explain what happened back there?" Sunset asks the group.

"Don't worry. Once we tell Principal Celestia about this, those girls will be kicked out in no time." AJ answers, "The last thing we need is another event ruined by some power-crazed lunatics." Realizing her phrasing, she quickly apologizes to Sunset:

"No offense, by the way."

"None taken."

While curious on what that was about, he puts that in the back of his mind as he approaches them:

"Girls!"

The group stop to turn around, seeing the spiky-haired boy as Fluttershy starts the conversation:

"Sora! Glad to see you."

"Same to you guys but, I got bad news."

"Where's Donald and Goofy?" Rarity notices them gone, which was a good place to start:

"Well we went to go see if there were Heartless, only to find something much worse. We don't know where he came from, but we ran into a masked boy named Vanitas, who can summon these 'Unversed' creatures. After taking them out, he sent Donald and Goofy to another world before I faced him myself."

"Wait, you aren't saying that he bested you?" Rainbow pieces together from his bad news.

"Kinda, but he left shortly after." He answers before recalling something, "I don't know why he glanced at the school before he did..."

From what he told them and from what they know, one possibility pops into her head... one very terrifying possibility:

"Sora! We'll explain on the way, but we have to go warn the principals about this NOW!"

"R-Right!" Agreeing with that idea, the group were on their way to the principal's office.

Meanwhile, the new girls were walking on the second floor as Adagio looks over the railing. Seeing some of the students bickering, she smiles at the potent mist they emitted:

"See? I told you we'd find the magic here."

"Yes we know, you're right." Aria said before letting out a sigh, "You know you repeat yourself a lot, right?"

"I don't care, I like the sound of my own voice."

The two then hear a loud crunch, coming from Sonata who was finishing her last taco:

"Mmm, very tasty."

"I don't understand why you like those." Aria mutters.

"I disagree."

A new voice startles the trio, turning around to see a rather strange figure. He wore a dark bodysuit with an interesting helmet, hiding his face behind dark glass:

"I had one earlier, not half bad."

"Yes, someone else who gets it!" Sonata exclaims before Adagio looks right at the figure:

"Who are you supposed to be?"

"Normally, I'd be leading the conversation... but I'm feeling a bit generous today. My name is Vanitas. From what I've gathered, you're the singers that are drawing out negativity from others."

"How did you know that!?" Sonata exclaims, much to her sisters' annoyance.

"Simple." He holds his hand out towards the railing, absorbing some of the negative mist from below. "I can do the same."

While the girls were shocked, that quickly turns to anger as Aria speaks up:

"So what, you think we'd share it with you!? We need that to regain our powers!"

"And we worked very hard to find that magic!" Adagio adds, "So you better back off!"

Silence fell upon them... before he bursts out into laughter. He went on for a few seconds before speaking:

"You three have guts! But no, I have my own source to gain power from. What I'm curious about is why, what does this place have that you're looking for?"

"Oh, I know this one! We're here cause Adagio said there was Equestrian Magic here, which will help us take over this world!" Sonata blurts out, "Was that it!?"

Aria pinches the bridge of her nose while Adagio sighs, "Yes, glad to see we're on the same page."

"I see... well I don't care about this world, so have fun with that."

The three glance at each other as he starts to take his leave, but Adagio gets an idea:

"Wait!"

He stops to look back as she continues, "Why not an alliance then? I have a feeling you'd be a great help to our cause."

"...Guess you're smarter than you look. If that's your plan, you wouldn't get very far."

"And why's that?"

"I'm not from this world. That also goes for another keyblade wielder, who I fought with earlier. If he found out your plan, he'll stop it in its tracks."

"Keyblade..." Adagio repeats, "Why does that sound familiar..."

"Perhaps this might jog your memory." Vanitas gladly summons his keyblade, making the trio look on in curiosity. "A weapon mostly lost to time, where only a select few can wield them. Considering the wielders can also traverse worlds, someone may have been here a long time ago."

The trio glance at each other again before Adagio shifts the topic back, "In other words, facing this other keyblade wielder would mean we failed?"

"Most likely. But with my power source, he wouldn't be able to approach you without going through me."

"Oh? Then is that a yes?"

"It'd mean I'll fight him again, so sure. What are your names, by the way?"

"Adagio Dazzle. This is Aria Blaze and Sonata Dusk. A pleasure to work with you, Vanitas."

And done! How's that for a start? I'll begin with the big changes:

1. Why was Donald and Goofy sent away?

Two reasons, beginning with the longer one. First, I felt it would be a nice parallel between Sora and Sunset here:

Sunset throughout this movie was mostly treated as a loner. The students at CHS and the Dazzlings kept putting her down while the girls, not out of malice or anything, really only gave her a second chance. They mainly kept an eye on her to make sure she doesn't revert back to her old self.

Sora on the other hand, never really been alone throughout his adventures. The only time he was truly alone was when he arrived in Traverse Town, up to when he meets Leon. So I felt that him 'stranded' in this world, along with having Vanitas as a constant threat, would be a great test for his character.

Second reason... I honestly couldn't think of any major plot stuff or even minor stuff for them to do. That and the first reason was more interesting in my eyes.

2. Why is Vanitas back?

If the chapter wasn't clear enough, he shares some characteristics with the Dazzlings. Main one being that he controls the Unversed, where the concept of them is NEGATIVE emotions. And from my research, some story material reveals he can draw out negativity from others' hearts.

That alone was enough to make my decision without even considering the potential interactions with Sora and the Rainbooms. I'm looking forward to those the most!

And in case any of you are wondering, Union Cross doesn't exist in my canon. He's Ven's dark half, that's it.

Now for the chapter itself, I originally set this to before the Dazzlings showed up, but I changed that to have the trio meet them upon arrival. The 'Sora's Drive Line' idea was spur of the moment, but the silly visual of other people wearing Sora's outfits makes me smile.

Also when I said I had an idea for the music-heavy part of the movie, I just thought 'why not have the music as battle themes?'. Up to you on which versions you listen to, instrumentals and covers alike. But just in case that's not your style, I'll have a KH battle theme as the alternate.

With all that said, thanks for reading and I'll see you next chapter!