Complete adaptability to the familiar chill of darkness was almost always difficult, especially when a small trace of light was present in the heart. Shadows were not characteristically aggressive to incomplete beings; instead, they often coaxed these types of disassembled creatures to side with them by providing a certain sense of security. Darkness sought to fill voids in order to control or possess a thing. They didn't understand emotions, never had to before. The essence of a pure void could be manipulative and often portrayed the Dark World as a safe haven. Nothing attacked you in this realm of silence, nothing ridiculed you, nothing provoked you, and there was nothing to run to or to run away from. The pathways to new worlds and realms were often long, empty roads. Only the clicking of footsteps could be heard but sometimes even footsteps were joined in harmony with the appearance of a Shadow Heartless or two. This time there were several Neoshadows emerging from the floors of darkness to walk next to him. He was focused on his mission from Maleficent, however, and there was no time to lose.
Leaving his weakened friend and roommate at the Forest of Thorns awakened Shinnosuke's determination to protect Fait with all he had. Even seeing the hurt Melvin felt for Fait solidified his decision to fully obey Maleficent's orders. Losing his world, friends, and family was a heavy burden but losing the person who created that life was even heavier. Shinnosuke had to walk a long ways before he finally sensed a joining of two lights. The warmth emanating from this source could only be described as one thing: love. True love to be exact. He could sense that strong love at the end of the Corridor of Darkness and either the Neoshadows could sense it as well or they had chosen to follow Shinnosuke because of his power and strength of will. Perhaps in sensing Fait's light returning, his unrivaled lust for destruction now emanated from his very being. Maleficent made his task fairly simple: capture all of the Princesses of Heart and take from their respective worlds a source of power linked to each young maiden. While Queen Minnie was not a Princess of Heart, King Mickey's world held the Cornerstone of Light. Ere go, there must be a source of that nature in this new world he had to enter. That joining of light he sensed was getting closer and the Neoshadows were calling out to more power. They were beginning to move quicker like they were preparing to dash out of the corridor and wreak havoc on the unsuspecting world. Good.
Shinnosuke needed allies like this to fulfill his duties to the dark mistress in order to protect everything he knew and loved. Holding a hand over his heart, Shinnosuke spoke quietly to himself, "I'm sorry, Fait... I can't let you serve Maleficent on your own... Not if it means you'll just go back to that horrible place... or worse..."
Several months ago...
Shinnosuke was busying himself with the children for the night. Simple tasks like making sure clothes were put away and toys were cleaned up for tomorrow's use was the norm for him. Everyone's homework was complete and checked over so the weekend was free from any other menial assignment. As Shinnosuke turned, his gaze lingered on his son, Cain, who was beginning to shift to get more comfortable in his wicker-frame bed. Sometimes, the little one would mutter in his sleep before his dreams overcame him and a light snoring was the only noise he would hear from the boy until morning. His tussled blonde locks fanned out from his head and onto the pillow covered with a red cotton sheet, giving Cain a pure and innocent glow. His body tended to straighten out when he was fully relaxed. Fait's music box, which was created from advanced magic and a song from the heart, glimmered and played a beautiful tune to ease the children into slumber. It was a unique addition to the nursery of their shared home. A small model of their world floating above a hollow disk with an intricate comb plucking at the imprinted tune was in constant motion during the evening hours.
Lilliana, Melvin's daughter, was the next to shift about in her bed as she settled into slumber. Melvin loved to spoil his daughter with flowers and created a small garden in an orb-like jar to attract a good fairy. The flowers' scent helped her stay asleep so she wouldn't scare a curious fairy. Shinnosuke would sometimes catch a fairy or two showing interest in Lilliana's small home for them, but he rarely stayed to see if they would enter the orb the girl held so gently. Her long purple hair was braided neatly and her cheeks were colored with a light blush. Her bed sheets were a mossy green and brown. Melvin was in the kitchen arranging the snacks for tomorrow as he usually did and Fait was putting away the leftovers from dinner. That's when Shinnosuke's attention and main concern was brought to Aiden and Ollie, Fait's son and daughter. Aiden was the one clinging to the music box as though Fait was lying next to him, and Ollie was holding one of Fait's old teddy bears. Both were cuddled next to each other but mostly because Ollie crawled into the bed with Aiden right before he could argue against it. Shinnosuke smirked at the tiny girl when she whispered "Night, night" with a small smile but his worry renewed when Aiden whispered "Mummy." Fairly soon, Fait would be leaving to do Maleficent's bidding again. Would he, or any of the children, be able to see her again this time? Fait kept her identity a secret from many worlds for several years but Shinnosuke wasn't sure if she would be able to do that this time.
"So you're really going to leave?" a familiar voice asked.
It wasn't Melvin but it was Melvin's love interest, Talua. She was one of Fait's best friends along with Zeta, and she often helped babysit Lilliana when Melvin was away. Talua won't admit it but she loved Melvin and Lilliana. It was in her behavior and her body language. Slow to leave the kids momentarily, Shinnosuke merely eavesdropped on the conversation pouring into the hallway. The nursery was at the back of the house while the kitchen was in the front. It was the preferred layout for the sleeping quarters. The rest of the house was fairly expansive. They lived along the outskirts of the village area. It was more relative to the countryside and it was closer to the royal castle situated further away from the busy metro area. The local, competing schools were situated in the suburban part of the world. That's where all of his friends went for classes and the extracurricular activities. Of course, Shinnosuke, Melvin and Fait picked up their kids and went home together. The kids loved when their parents had to do some late-night studying because that was the only time they were allowed to sleep late and get midnight snacks. Shinnosuke found that he was going to miss those times, and maybe Talua was going to miss them the most because she was beginning to understand why Fait worked on the side of darkness on a more personal level.
"Yeah, I start training tomorrow," he heard Fait reply. "Maleficent will oversee it in the Realm of Darkness. She said something about making sure no other visitors would interfere, but I don't remember anyone being down in the depths before. I know I used to hear voices sometimes but that was it."
"What if I take your place to work for Maleficent?" Talua offered, earning a gasp from Melvin.
"No!" Melvin argued in an almost soft tone. He sounded like his breath was taken away from him. He then said, "You can't just do that! You'd never be able to handle Maleficent's trials!"
"Why not?" Talua retorted, raising her voice in frustration. "If all she wants is someone with enough power to wield a keyblade, I can go in instead. I can materialize my weapon now! Let me go!"
"Thank you, Talua," Fait responded with that soft, kind voice. "But I need you to stay on the side of light. Someone has to restore the worlds that the darkness will destroy, especially if I have anything to do with it. You're the only one right now who can do that. Your power is beyond great and has potential to become greater but I can't let you go down this path. Maleficent's darkness is overwhelming. You'll suffer."
"What about you? You think you're invincible?" Talua argued.
"No," Fait said simply, surprising everyone. "I've endured Maleficent's training since I was a little girl. Every success, every failure, every delay, every trip, every lesson is etched into tomes of her memory. Her punishment is based on hard evidence and a strong history. She punishes whoever works for her based on what I can endure. I'm not just telling you to stand down because it's safer. I'm telling you to stand down because she's done more to me than you think."
"I can't watch you suffer again, Fait," Shinnosuke said to himself with a darkened tone in his voice. It was a cross between a growl and a hiss. He then said, "Even if it means never returning to the side of light!"