Disclaimer: not mine

Decided not to keep you all waiting

Chapter 19

Unversed…and Ventus had fought them, no wonder Ventus had stirred if they had been the enemy back then. So the question was, where had they been for the last decade and why were they back? They had to be connected to Xehanort if they had appeared then and now, didn't they? Then why hadn't they seen them on other worlds before? As they moved deeper into the factory they found more and more Unversed but no Heartless or Nobodies and it made Sora nervous, though he couldn't quite work out why. It didn't help that he was still hurting over Donald's careless comment about needing more dependable help than he was.

"So, Monsters, Incorporated used to rely on scream power from human kids for energy, but now we collect their laughter instead. It turns out laughter's ten times more powerful," Sulley explained as they made it to the massive factory floor.

They stopped as Boo pointed ahead. "Kitty!"

"And we'd never have figured it out without Boo," he finished his explanation.

"Cool," Sora grinned.

"Our ship's powered by laughter, too! Guess we've got that in common," Goofy grinned at the two monsters.

"Sora's a laughter machine!"

"Come on, I am not," Sora shook his head. He bit back a groan as Unversed appeared, causing havoc with the door system. Several doors opened and the Unversed entered, causing screams from the unaware inhabitants. "Unversed are back!"

"This is terrible!" Sulley cried from across the room, Sora mostly ignoring him, focused on the fight.

Mike pointed at a white door with pink trim adorned with purple flowers making its way out of the room on the mechanical system. "Look! There's Boo's door!"

Sora glanced at it but was too far to try and stop it, seeing the kid running off.

"Go get Boo!" Mike yelled and thankfully Sulley went after her since Sora was a little too busy with a group of Unversed.

Sora grimaced as he dismissed his Keyblade, the place was a bit of a mess now. He watched as Mike rushed over to three of the empty door stations, swiping a card at each terminal. He smiled as three doors slid into the room on the rail system. They stopped above each station where mechanical arms extended from the floor, grabbing the doors and pulling them from the rail. They retracted back into the floor and the machines locked the doors in place.

"Ride's here!" Mike announced.

"Nice," Sulley nodded.

"Grab on to the door when you're ready," Mike told them even as he stayed by the controls.

"Got it." he jumped onto the green door in front, in case they had to fight while on the way. "Ready!"

Mike pressed a button on the terminal and the door lifted back up into the air. At first nervous, Sora laughed at the ride up as Donald and Goofy jumped onto the red door station. Sulley, holding Boo, took hold of the yellow door, Mike grabbing Sulley's tail just as the door lifted off the ground. Boo chuckled once the doors latched onto the rail system.

"Boo? Hold on. Don't want you to get hurt."

An invisible figure skulked around the Laugh Floor as the doors began sliding towards the Door Vault.

"Boo's door, here we come!"

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Harry collapsed to one knee, leaning heavily on his Keyblade. That was…he shook his head and shakily switched Keychains, placing that one deep in his pocket. That was for emergencies only! Such power…he knew why Dumbledore had been fascinated by the legend now, though he wondered how different it would be as a wand rather than Keyblade.

He settled down to rest, he could take an ether but he preferred to let his magic naturally recover, probably due to all the health lectures he'd gotten over the years about the dangers of too many potions…even if they were very different types of potions.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Luna paused, tipping her head back to look at the stars even as a hand rested on her extended abdomen. She bit her lip and then smiled slightly. Finally, Harry was going to meet the other parts of his Heart. She was happy for him…but also worried, something was coming, something very dangerous.

Luna smiled as Susan joined her, escaping the noise of the party Draco and Hermione were hosting for their friends. It was good to see everyone again, even with Harry's very obvious absence. She knew several of them had worried that without him acting as the glue between them, the group would drift apart, but so far that wasn't happening. They had the issues of their world to hold them together. Neville had joined the Wizengamot, adding his voice to their side in politics and shifting the Longbottom alliances from those his Grandmother had kept. She knew Hermione hated it, but Harry had been right, without him in public view, things had settled a little.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

"There it is!" Sulley called, spotting the right door. He ran ahead with Boo in his arms and opened the door, quickly heading inside. Goofy closed it behind them and the slithering figure of the purple monster appeared on the outside of the door, dropping his camouflage. He lifted his head, checking that the coast was clear, and silently followed them into the now solid white door. The group burst out the other end only to find themselves still in the Factory.

"Wait! How'd we take a wrong turn?" Mike demanded as they turned back to the door, where two eyes and a mouth appeared.

"Who cares? All that matters..." the colour-changing monster revealed himself, "...is that it's the last turn that you losers are ever gonna take."

"Randall?!" Sulley yelled, the two locals glaring at the newcomer.

"Who's he?" Sora asked in confusion.

"A creep we banished for trying to collect screams by force. He used to be Boo's scarer," Sulley explained, Boo glaring at Randall from the safety of his arms, trying out her own roar.

"How did you even get back here? The door we sent you through is sawdust!" Mike crossed his arms, his glare impressive despite only having one eye to glare with.

Randall waved him off. "Yeah, and I almost got turned into somebody's wallet. Lucky more me, a real nice guy came along and fixed the door. So here I am."

Mike clenched his teeth, growling.

"And starting today, I'm numero uno! Top of the leader board, baby." Randall got in Mike's face, flashing his wide smug grin.

"Ha! You, a top laugh collector?" Mike laughed in his face, punching him lightly in the side, causing Randall to drop the grin. "In your dreams, Randall. My laugh totals are off the charts."

"Who said anything about collecting laughs? I'm after negative emotions." He touched his chin with a sticky toe. "And my new factory friends have kindly invaded the factory to get 'em for me."

"Negative emotions?" Sora asked, frowning.

"He's gotta know," Donald muttered to Goofy.

"Yeah, Organization XIII must be helpin' him," Goofy agreed.

"Laughter's just not sustainable. Once junior chorts his last chortle, you've gotta start over. But negative energy? Especially sadness? Give 'em something that really breaks their little hearts, and they'll stay sad forever. We'll never have to worry about energy again," Randall paced as he explained, their group eyeing him suspiciously.

"We're not gonna let you hurt anyone like that!" Sora snapped at him.

Randall whirled around, angry at being interrupted.

"Not you OR your little Unversed helpers!" Sora summoned his Keyblade, and Randall crossed his second pair of forelegs.

"Just try and stop me. You'll see soon enough. I am gonna be a legend around this place." He smiles with narrow eyes. "Now, consider YOUR careers officially over."

"What?!" Mike yelped.

"And that goes for the rest of you, too." Randall turned around, waving them away, and turned invisible once again.

"Hey!" Sora called, but he'd disappeared. "Where'd he go?"

"We're in control of this factory now. And I suggested a few improvements - some real doozies I just know you're gonna love. In fact, you're not getting out of here alive," Randall called over the PA.

"That weasel means business! He'll never quit," Mike growled.

"We have got to get Boo to safety first. Then, we can take care of Randall. Time to find a way out!"

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Riku pulled out his phone, seeing the message from Master Yen Sid, trying to get his mind around the old wizard using a phone.

"What is it?" Mickey asked.

Riku stared at the message in shock, re-reading it be sure he'd seen right…and he had. "Master Yen Sid wants us all back at the Tower…he's detected another Keyblade wielder travelling the Worlds."

"Really?" Mickey's eyes widened. "We better find them fast then, before Xehanort gets his claws into them!"

"Yeah," Riku nodded. They headed for their ship, someone new wouldn't know what to be careful of, and would be easy prey for the Organisation, especially since they needed their Thirteenth. The thought of someone ending up possessed, without knowing about anything…maybe even younger than he'd been…made him feel sick.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Harry grinned as he flew through the Lanes, he loved his Glider! It was faster and more responsive than any broom he'd ever flown. He didn't know how he could breathe without even a bubblehead charm but it had to be the Glider's magic somehow or his clothing? He knew it was the clothing that protected him from the Darkness of the lanes.

This…this was freedom! He'd only ever dreamed of this before and to truly experience it himself was more than he'd ever truly dared to believe he would have. He missed his friends back on Earth, but he didn't miss the World itself. And Merlin had promised to teach him the spells necessary to ensure he would land in the right time for when he wanted to visit so it wasn't like he was cut off from them forever. There was just so much he wanted to do first! Like finding Ventus, save Aqua if she was still lost in the Realm of Darkness, plus meet Riku and Sora.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Kairi smiled as Riku and King Mickey walked into Yen Sid's study, but then sighed. "Sora's running late?" she asked.

"I haven't heard from him," Riku admitted. "He's probably busy saving a World and hasn't had time to check his messages."

"That sounds like him," she smiled. Sora would put saving people over checking his phone. She just hoped he got there soon, she missed him, they had barely had time to say much after she woke him up from that spell. Ever since he'd become a Heartless to free her Heart from his, it felt like the Worlds were conspiring to keep them apart. She just wanted them to be together and safe. Once they beat Xehanort they would have that, they would!

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

"Everybody look for Boo's door," Mike ordered.

They heard a snicker as a certain purple fiend slithered into the Door Vault.

"Randall..." Sulley growled in annoyance.

"Didn't you learn your lesson with that pile-of-junk fiasco?" Mike crossed his arms.

Randall scoffed. "Oh, I learned a lot." He moved aside, pointing out the very same pile of junk behind him.

Its existence there startled them, but Mike quickly waved it off and moved closer. The Unversed symbol appeared on its hood, which scared Boo, who hid behind Sulley.

"Wait, Mike. Something's different!" Sulley warned him, picking up Boo and leading her to safety as Sora, Donald and Goofy ran up to Mike.

"Oh, please. It's just more junk."

Randall cackled from a high ledge, distracting Mike from the ooze seeping out behind his back. He turned around to see an enormous Lump of Horror rising up from the machine. Mike shivered and backed away, Sora and company running to his rescue.

"An Unversed!" Sora called, summoning his Keyblade.

Mike landed on his butt as the blobby creature opened its mouth wide, scream containers bursting from the goo.

Sulley grabbed Mike by the head and lifted him up. "Mike, time to reach down and let the scary out."

Mike smiled, then smacked his own face, Sulley letting him down to the floor. "Oh, I'm ready, Sulley. I'm ready!"

"Finally... This is exactly what I need to take over the company. But first, I am getting rid of YOU." Randall looked down at Mike and Sulley. "Attack!"

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Harry grinned as he saw a new World coming up but then he paused, frowning slightly, absently rubbing his chest. There was something…he spun the Glider around and sped off, following the small tug on his Heart.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

The doors finally arrived at the Laugh Floor, and the group jumped off as they locked into their terminals. Sora glanced around, feeling…off, rubbing at his chest. So when a hooded figure stepped toward them, Sora reacted instantly.

"Who are YOU?" He demanded, Keyblade in hand. Why did it have to be the Organisation?

"Gotta say, that strange facade had me fooled at first, brother," the other said, and Sora blinked, brother? The figure took off his hood, revealing a dark reflective helmet.

"Wait a sec..." he murmured and then gasped. "Oh yeah! You were at the cathedral! And hey! Who are YOU to call anyone strange?" he snapped.

"Say, do we know this guy?" Goofy whispered to Donald behind where Sora was standing, they really needed to learn how to whisper properly.

"Uhhh..."

"We haven't ever met in the flesh. I am Vanitas," the helmeted figure at least introduced himself…and Sora felt Ventus stir more strongly than he had since the exam.

"This is the part where you spout some mumbo jumbo and disappear, right?" Sora asked, even though he really doubted it.

Vanitas walked through one of the workstations, getting closer. "This whole world...was powered by scream. They converted the screams of human children into energy." He picked up one of the scream canisters. "And this very company was what made it all happen. It's as rich a source of negative emotion as we'll ever find."

Yeah, that really did not sound good. Sora tried to reach for Ventus, to try and understand why Vanitas was giving him such a bad feeling.

"For the last time, we already stopped doing that!" Mike yelled angrily.

"Did you? Then how do you explain all these canisters of surplus scream?" he held up the canister. "This facility was everything I could hope for. And I was lucky enough to find a pawn whose heart was darkened by thoughts of revenge." He actually juggled the canister in the air as he said that.

"You mean Randall," Mike grumbled.

Sulley shook his head. "All Randall ever cared about was winning. And this guy took advantage of that weakness."

"My heart is made of just one thing. And the Unversed collected enough screams and sadness from those children to reconstruct it."

"Yeah, and the whole time they were trashing our company in the process!

Sulley held Mike back from rushing at Vanitas, but Mike struggled against the grip on his head.

"But, even with all this negative emotion, my heart is still incomplete. I need something else." He dropped the canister. It clanged to the ground before screaming off into the air.

"Whoa!" that was….kinda neat but creepy.

Sulley dodged away, taking Mike and Boo with him. They all watched as the canister flew around the expansive room, bouncing off the walls until it ran out of scream and crashes to the floor, rolling to a stop at Sora's feet.

"The half of me that sleeps on...inside of your heart."

Sora spun as his voice was suddenly behind him, gasping as Vanitas held his Keyblade just inches from him. A voice bursts from Sora's chest. "Vanitas!" Sora touched his throat at hearing his voice….no Ventus' voice!

"Ventus... What a strange place to slither off to..." Vanitas crept closer, holding his hand out to Sora, sounding like he was smirking under his helmet. "...you insignificant speck."

Sora knocked his hand away. "What are you talking about?" he played dumb to try and buy time. If he seemed clueless often the Organisation would waste time explaining and he could see Sulley and Mike sneaking carefully through the workstations from the corner of his eyes, hopefully they had a plan.

"Oh, you wouldn't remember. When you were little...you formed a special bond, with a boy named Ventus who joined with your heart." Yes! Vanitas was explaining.

"Ven!" Donald gasped.

"Is he sayin' that one of the missing Keyblade wielders is inside Sora's heart?" Goofy asked and Sora wanted to dance as they caught on to not letting Vanitas know how much they already knew.

"How is that possible?" he asked warily as a dark mist swirled around them.

"Now, you will return Ventus to me." Vanitas told him, and Sora shifted, that did not sound good.

Vanitas swung his Keyblade, releasing a dark wind and Sora felt a tug on his heart. He managed to catch himself as he sank to the floor, looking up to see Donald and Goofy shielding him from the front.

"Donald...Goofy..."

Goofy struggled, holding back the dark wind with his shield. "The King told us about this. Ventus wasn't able to defeat Vanitas. They struck each other down, and then the King said that Ventus' heart never returned to him!"

"You're not gonna do that to Sora! No way!" Donald yelled, firing off a spell, managing to dispel the wind.

"Stay out of this," Vanitas growled. With a wave of his arm, he swiped Donald and Goofy away in a streak of darkness, leaving Sora to face him alone.

"Sora!" they cried out to him as he staggered to his feet and called his Keyblade back.

Sora blocked Vanitas but it was shaky at best, he felt odd. Whatever that wind had done, he couldn't get hit by it again which meant he needed to stop Vanitas. They clashed a few times, Sora struggling to keep up a defence, to find an opening and then Vanitas knocked his Keyblade out of his hand, leaving him unarmed, aiming his own at Sora's chest.

"Join your heart...with mine!" he yelled as the dark wind appeared again.

Sora threw his arms up in front of himself, feeling it hit, pain exploding in his chest…his Heart. His knees hit the ground but then…it all stopped. Sora sucked in a gasping breath, shaking as he held himself up using his arms. He shakily lifted his head to find someone standing between him and Vanitas…shielding him….with a Keyblade! Riku? He blinked dazedly, the person coming into better focus. All he could see was black clothing…and black hair, not Riku…not Lea…so who?

"Enough," his saviour stated firmly.

Sora's eyes widened, he recognised that voice! From his exam…but…that couldn't be right, this person was definitely older. He tried to get up, to see what was going on but groaned.

"Easy," the voice was gentle now, head turning slightly towards him, and Sora caught a flash of greenish eyes. "I've got this, stay down."

"Well, well, and who are you?" Vanitas demanded.

"Stop this Vanitas, you don't have to do this," his saviour answered, tone firm but also still gentle. Did he know Vanitas? But Vanitas didn't seem to know him… the Keyblade lowered slightly, taking a more defensive stance rather than offensive, showing he wouldn't attack first.

"Who are you?" the demand was almost hissed this time, the helmet tilted to the side slightly. "Doesn't matter! You won't keep me from my brother," Vanitas snarled, and Sora renewed his attempts to get up.

"I won't let you hurt them, brother," the one in front of him answered and from the way Vanitas jerked back, his answer had shocked him too. Brother?!

Vanitas' brother? Sora began to panic, maybe he wasn't a friend? But…Vanitas referred to Ventus as brother and Ventus was meant to be one of them. Being related didn't mean they were on the same side. He seemed completely unafraid of Vanitas, more…sad?

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

He stared at the newcomer in wary confusion. Brother? He only had one brother and that boy was not Ventus! And yet…it was him! He was the source of what he had sensed earlier, but how? He glanced beyond him, seeing Sora had made it to his knees, still pale from his attempt to separate Ventus. The King's men were up and ready to fight if needed, the situation was changing beyond his control and he didn't like that.

He met Sora's pained eyes. "I will have my brother," he snarled and then stepped back.

"Wait!" the stranger called, actually lifting a hand towards him, but Vanitas retreated into the Darkness.

TBC…