Hello, fellow readers! Welcome back to Harmonic Hearts! Before continuing, what do we have:
Raximus: Yeah, sorry about that. I have a reason why I did this at the end of this chapter.
johannvanguard: Kind of. You'll see what I mean.
Nisha: Thanks for the assurance! Yeah that's one thing I never liked in later KH games, they made Sora dumb when he really wasn't. Oh yeah, we're getting into some serious fun. I'm glad you enjoyed it, here's more!
Thanks for the feedback! Now, let's continue!
Interlude 3: Promise
Once Sora and Riku told Master Yen Sid what happened, the wizard took a moment to process this before speaking:
"I sense that Xehanort has found a way to control time, but the method is what I wonder. In the case of his words, if they are to be trusted, he won't be striking anytime soon."
"Hope so." Sora said before asking something, "Oh, how's Kairi doing with her training?"
"She understood the basics rather quickly. But unlike you two, she chose to start with magic, which will certainly help in the future. On the matter of Aqua and Ventus, I recommend giving them time to readjust to the Realm of Light."
"Then what should we do in the meantime?" Riku wonders.
"A trip to the Dark Realm can be taxing to those who enter it. I recommend taking time to relax for now, I'll inform you on any clues I find."
With that said, the two took their leave. Now with free time on their hands, how should they spend it?
"I can show you the worlds I went to!" Sora suggests.
"That's a lot of places. Let's stick with one for now." Riku recommends, "Anywhere you have in mind?"
"Yep, come on!"
The CHS courtyard had some of the students hanging around the steps, conversing before noticing a portal of light appear. Near the statue, Sora and Riku steps out of said portal before it disappears, the latter looking around at the scenery:
"Huh. You weren't kidding about it being-"
"Bland?" Sora repeats what Donald said before.
"Ordinary, yeah."
The students gave them a warm welcome as they walked by, though mostly towards Sora. Riku wasn't surprised, considering what his friend had done here. Entering the foyer, the duo were greeted by Principal Celestia who was walking by:
"Sora, good to see you again. Who's your friend?"
"This is my best friend, Riku. We had time on our hands, so I decided to show him around here." Sora answers.
"Nice to meet you." Riku simply said.
"I suspect you're also a keyblade wielder?" Celestia wonders.
"Yes, ma'am. Recently got it too."
"Don't worry, we'll watch for danger." Sora assures her.
"That's good to hear. I'd like to stay and chat, but I have to go to a meeting. If you're looking for the Rainbooms, Sunset is using the science lab to figure out how the magic works in this world."
Before they can ask why, she already took her leave. The two shrug and headed on over, though after asking for directions. Upon arriving, they see the group enter the classroom and follow, entering to see various machines placed throughout.
"Uh, I thought we were rehearsing." Rainbow mentions as Sunset walks over, writing something on a clipboard.
"Well, you are. Sort of." The latter looks up, which she then notices their visitors:
"Hey, Sora!"
The others turn around as Sora greets them, "Long time no see!"
Riku sidesteps as the girls surround his friend, happily greeting him back. It didn't take long before Sora turns their attention to him:
"Oh! Girls, this is my best friend Riku. He's one of the friends I was looking for."
"Oh yeah, you did mention that!" Pinkie recalls before zooming over, eagerly shaking Riku's hand:
"Hi, I'm Pinkie Pie! Always happy to make new friends!"
"G-Good to know." Riku said before she stops shaking his hand. She then starts zooming around the group to introduce them:
"This is Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Sunset Shimmer!"
Riku chuckles at the cartoony antic before composing himself:
"Nice to meet you all. Sora told me about his visits here, so you don't have to worry about dumping exposition on me."
"So... why he was looking for you?" Rainbow bluntly asks him, which Riku casually shrugs at:
"It's a long story..."
"So, Principal Celestia said you're studying magic in here?" Sora mentions, looking at one of the machines nearby as Sunset answers:
"Yeah. I made these for a science fair once, showing off how to conduct plasma without the ball. Now I reworked them into reading specific frequencies, which includes magical energy."
"So, what does this have to do with us playing music?" AJ wonders.
"Simple. I'm trying to figure out how the magic in this world works, why you pony up from it and why it's tied to playing music."
That made Sora think for a moment. Ever since his first adventure, he never questioned how he can use magic. There were many answers for it though, two examples being Donald and Merlin who are straight up wizards. Then the Keyblade itself, which is a whole world of magical mystery.
"Huh, I thought you were more into studying ancient books and artifacts." Rainbow admits, which Sunset provides a bit more backstory:
"Back when I was Princess Celestia's student, I much preferred going out into the field than bookwork. It's satisfying to solve mysteries by rolling up my sleeves and getting my hooves-uh, hands dirty." She finishes as she puts on some rubber gloves.
AJ understands that mentality, "Ah can relate to that."
"Uh, are you sure we need to figure it out?" Fluttershy wonders before Sunset puts a wired helmet on her head:
"It'll be fun. Just start playing, you won't even know I'm here." She then turns to Sora and Riku, "You two mind helping me out a bit?"
"Not at all!" The former answers, with the latter just shrugging in agreement.
The trio went to work, starting with Fluttershy. Giving her the go-ahead, she starts to play that soon activates her magic. Watching the wavelengths on the screen, they were surprised to see it shapeshift into a pulsing butterfly. Turning around, Fluttershy's magic soon bursts, flashing the room before it powers out. The only light sources was her butterflies, with one landing on Sunset's nose.
After getting the power back on, they shift over to Applejack. This time, they kept an eye on her as she plays a solo, transforming in the process. Once it was done, she reverts back with no noticeable change, until a pile of apples land on Sora. The boy was buried except for his head, showing his confused face.
After pulling him out, they went to Rarity next. Hooking her up, they let her play her keytar, which causes her transformation. Jotting down some notes, Sunset didn't notice Rarity floating up a bit, which made one of the cords wrap around her leg. Sora was quick as he catches her from falling over, due to the cord pulling her out from under.
Once she gets herself untangled, they move on to Pinkie. She plays her drums as they watch the machine pulse with power. Activating her transformation, she goes into a solo, finishing it up before a sudden burst shot out. Riku instinctively puts up a barrier, making the balloons bounce away from the trio.
Deciding it'll be safer from a distance, the trio used the studio as Rainbow stayed in the classroom. She plays her guitar to activate her magic, which was starting to show results on Sunset's laptop. Although, the cord connected to the guitar got a bit too much as colors courses through, soon bursting right out of the laptop. Needless to say, there was quite a mess to clean up.
The Rainbooms waited in the classroom until the trio enter, with Sunset holding up her clipboard:
"Finally, after all this testing, I've come to a definitive conclusion!"
They waited a moment before she just drops it onto the floor, "I got nothing..."
"After all that?" Rainbow questions.
"To be fair Rainbow, it's never that easy to get it first try." Rarity points out.
Sora then notices something moving nearby, seeing Sunset's bag vibrate:
"Your phonebook is going off."
"Huh?" Sunset then sees what he means, "Oh!"
Riku recalls his friend mentioning this, saying it's capable of sending messages across the parallel worlds. She opens it to the most recent page, revealing a message from Spike:
"Hey, Sunset! How's it going?" - Spike
Seeing the message jogs Sora's memory from his previous visit:
"Oh right, I promised Spike I'd visit Equestria sometime!"
"Equestria?" Riku repeats, "Like, horseland?"
"They prefer ponies." Sunset casually corrects, "If you want, I can tell him you're coming over."
"Yes please! Come on, Riku!" With that said, he grabs his friend and runs out the classroom before quickly adding:
"We'll be back!"
After they left, Sunset writes said message to Spike:
"Doing all right, just trying to figure out how the magic works on our side. Sora was just here with one of his friends, but the two are about to head on over to Equestria."
Shortly after she wrote that, Spike responds back with an interesting request:
"That's great! Can't wait to see them! I'm with Twilight right now and she was thinking of having you over. She's currently having a meeting with Mickey, one of Sora's friends."
Sunset was surprised at the sudden invitation, but didn't see why not as she turns to the Rainbooms:
"Feel free to take a break, girls! Spike said that Twilight wants me to come to Equestria!"
"Then what are ya waiting for? Get going, we'll be here when you get back!" AJ encourages with the others nodding in agreement.
With that said, she quickly writes that she's on her way before putting her book in her bag. Leaving the book with the Rainbooms, just in case of emergencies, she then leaves the classroom after the boys.
Earlier...
After some time in Radiant Garden, King Mickey left Ansem the Wise with the Restoration Committee before heading back home. He was about to do so when he remembers something that Sora mentioned from his travels.
The world where he learned about Ven's heart, he met two girls that were pupils under the same princess. One of them is now a princess herself, who was given the board title of 'Princess of Friendship'. He's curious how that works exactly, so why not go ask her himself?
Looking through the Gummi Ship world log, he scrolls through the various coordinates of where each world is, conveniently labeled too. It didn't take long to find the right one as he presses it, making his ship warp to said destination. Upon arriving, he warps himself into the world soon after.
In a flash of light, the mouse arrives at the courtyard of a high school. His eyes soon finding the horse statue, he presses his hand on it, seeing the portal is still active. With no hesitation, he jumps right in.
Going through a colorful void, he soon lands on his feet to find himself in a library. He can guess it has double the amount he owns, ever since he started traveling worlds over reading books. Back to the task at hand, he goes into the castle halls to faintly hear two separate voices.
Following the source, he eventually reaches a room with the doors open, looking inside to find the kitchen. He sees a baby dragon making cookies as an alicorn assists with her magic, indicated by her horn glowing. As he stirs the batter in the bowl, he notices the mouse:
"Hello! Welcome to the castle."
The alicorn looks to see who he's talking to as Mickey walks over, "Hi, I'm Mickey! I came here from far away to see the 'Princess of Friendship'."
"That would be me." The alicorn nervously smiles, still getting used to said title.
The baby dragon finishes stirring the batter, evenly distributing it on a pan as she walks over to the mouse:
"I'm Twilight Sparkle, and that's Spike. What brings you all the way here?"
"I've heard about you from a friend of mine, who helped you defeat and reform Sunset Shimmer."
"...You know Sora!?" Twilight and Spike said at the same time, the latter making sure not to spill the batter.
Once they broke the ice, they converse while eating Spike's homemade cookies, which Mickey found delicious. Twilight gave him an abridged version of her journey to becoming an alicorn, with Spike clarifying here and there. Needless to say, the mouse was intrigued by such customs.
She was really curious on the idea of other worlds, which he makes known that the stars are just that. His story covered his Mark of Mastery to become a Keyblade Master, his travels in the Dark Realm, and what he did to help Sora out. He even admits to aiding the boy here and there in battle, which Sora doesn't know about.
"He even has Star Seeker now, the keyblade I used during my Mark of Mastery." Mickey mentions.
"You mean the blue one with white stars? Yeah, he used that when he fought this Alicorn heartless." Twilight recalls, "Oh, can you use Drive Forms like him!?"
"Nope, that power come from the clothes the Three Good Fairies gave him. In fact, I believe he can use them to the fullest, as each form is based on the bonds he shares with others."
Twilight made sure to write this down, which Mickey didn't mind as he knows another friend who does the same. Speaking of friends, one pops into his head:
"How's Sunset doing, by the way? I heard she's in a band now."
"It sounds a bit confusing, but the girls I'm friends with here in Equestria, she's friends with their counterparts at CHS. Their band is called the Rainbooms."
"That's great! But, is there a reason why she didn't come back here?"
His question made her think. At the time, there was no real reason why she should have stayed at CHS. Perhaps it's because she was ashamed to return home? Or to prove that she did change to those she bullied? Likely the latter, but the former is also a possibility.
"I never thought about it, but I'm sure she has her reasons. She's always welcome to visit Equestria. Isn't that right, Spike?" She turns to speak to the dragon, but doesn't see him anywhere:
"Uh, Spike?"
"Here!" The baby dragon walks back to them, holding a familiar journal. "When you mentioned Sunset, I went to get this."
This gives her an idea, "In that case, how about we invite her over? If she's available, of course."
"Sure." Spike takes out a quill and writes a message to see what's she up to:
"Hey, Sunset! How's it going?" - Spike
They didn't wait long as they got a response back:
"Doing all right, just trying to figure out how the magic works on our side. Sora was just here with one of his friends, but the two are about to head on over to Equestria."
That was unexpected, which he responds back shortly after:
"That's great! Can't wait to see them! I'm with Twilight right now and she was thinking of having you over. She's currently having a meeting with Mickey, one of Sora's friends."
"Well, that's a surprise." He comments, which Twilight asks about:
"What is?"
"Sora and Riku were over there visiting too. They're on their way here right now."
Mickey lets out a chuckle after hearing that, "That's a coincidence."
Spike then sees another message from Sunset, "Oh, she accepted the invite! I gotta make more cookies!"
Twilight giggles at that while she levitates the book near herself, "While you do that, we'll be waiting for the others."
Current time
Twilight and Mickey waited in the room where the portal was, the former placing the journal on the table before they heard said portal react. Out came Sora and Riku, who strangely didn't change form. She and Spike had to when they went to CHS so-
"Hey, Twilight! It's been awhile." Sora greets, which Twilight gladly returns:
"Good to see you too. So, who's your friend?"
"This is my best friend Riku. We have time to spare, so I decided to show him around your world."
"That's great! Nice to meet you, Riku."
"Uh, likewise." Riku said, still processing what he's seeing before he notices Mickey:
"Mickey!? What are you doing here?"
"I came here to see what the 'Princess of Friendship' is about. Guess we just had a similar idea." Mickey answers.
The four then heard the portal react again, where a unicorn enters the room. Sora and Riku took a moment to process it, but Twilight knew who it was:
"Sunset!"
"Twilight!" Sunset waddles over to her on her back hooves, which looked rather adorable, but confused the others:
"You do know you're a pony now, right?" Twilight points out.
Sunset realizes this and places her front hooves back down, "Oh, right. Sora and Riku threw me off a bit."
"Sorry. Different world, different laws." Sora said, which answers Twilight's question:
"So it's because you're not from our world... fascinating!"
The doors to the library open, revealing Spike with a fresh tray of cookies:
"Hello, friends! I come with food!"
"Cool!" Sora was the first to go get a cookie with the others following.
Riku was next, casually taking one as the two took a bite. Much like Mickey, they were surprised at the flavorful experience. Sunset was about to use her hoof before she remembers that she has magic again, levitating one to her and takes a bite.
As the three are enjoying their treat, Twilight and Mickey took one each with Spike doing the same. The group indulge in the cookies for a bit before going into conversation, which Riku was the first to start:
"So, this world can manifest the power of friendship? Like, an actual energy source?"
"Not exactly. It comes out when the Elements of Harmony are used together, but now I know there's more than one way to do it." She admits, gesturing to Sora at the last part.
"Why am I not surprised?" Riku smirks as Sora realizes what she meant:
"Was that what I was doing?"
"Wait, really? Mr. 'Friends are my Power'?"
"He certainly speaks from the heart." Sunset adds, "Still, that does raise a question. Is it possible that other worlds can also manifest 'friendship power'?"
"Certainly." Mickey answers, "As long as they believe in their bonds, the power easily reaches among the stars."
Sora smiles as he recalls Kairi's letter, "They share the same sky, after all."
"Wow, that sounded poetic." Riku jokingly said.
As the conversation goes on, Sora feels a tug on his shorts and looks to see Spike standing next to him:
"Thanks for keeping our promise, Sora."
"Anything for a friend, Spike."
The two share a fist bump before joining in the conversation, which goes on late into the night. Eventually, Sunset was the first to point this out:
"While I liked being my original self, I should be getting back. My friends may be getting worried about me."
"Want us to escort you back?" She was surprised to hear Riku offer that before he clarifies, "Sora would have asked anyways."
Sora smiles as he admits that, "I would."
"Ah, then sure you can. If you want, you two can stay at my place tonight." Sunset returns the gesture with another offer, which the two didn't see why not.
"You two go on back. I'll be staying here for a little bit to explore this side more." Mickey tells them before turning to Twilight:
"I know this is sudden, but would you mind if I stayed here during my visit?"
"Not at all! We have plenty of room here." She assures him.
"We'll see you later then!" Sunset and Sora started to head to the portal, Riku following suit as he casually said back:
"Goodnight, Your Majesties."
Twilight and Spike had to process what he just said before realizing:
"You're a king!?" They exclaim to the mouse, who rubs the back of his head:
"I thought I mentioned that earlier..."
And done! Now we finished the interludes! For those wondering why I did this, I do have plans for this series and I want to set up certain things for future chapters.
Real quick, the idea of Sora and Riku beings ponies crossed my mind, but there are so many stories that do that already. Then I remembered the throwaway line of the worlds having different laws, along with Donald being the one responsible for the transformations in the first game. So needless to say, them retaining their forms isn't that farfetched.
Now, we are heading into the third movie! I had some ideas for it, but just decided to keep it simple. There's a reason why I chose Sora and Riku for this visit in particular, which will be revealed soon enough.
With that said, thanks for reading and I'll see you next chapter!
EDIT: Forgot to say Merry Christmas to all of you! Or in the world of Equestria, a happy Hearth's Warming!