OHMIGOD!

Hello, guys! Lilith here, and I FINALLY got the next chapter out after an unintentional long hiatus!

...Okay, okay, I need to chill down and just get some questions cleared up: I've been heavily distracted, some things were going on, and I've been a bit more focused on other fics of mine and that made just getting THIS ONE CHAPTER OUT! *takes a second to calm down*

In any case, I am terribly sorry for the wait, all of you! For the past few days, I was desperate to get this bugger out. If anything of this chapter felt a little rushed to you, then I am sorry about that. I just wanted to get it done or else I'd regret and even longer delay. But if you like what I've delivered, great!

For the record, this chapter is heavily Luna-centered, so you've been warned. I promise the next chapter will have more focus on Sora to balance it out. other than that, you'll be fine.

As usual, constructive reviews are welcome. Rude words are not welcome!

I own nothing of Kingdom Hearts except my OCs.

Read, leave me a review (or a welcome back if you want!), but no flames allowed.

Chapter 14: Return to Neverland

"Say, uh, Luna…We hadn't seen Medea in a while. Is she sick?"

When she realized that the question was coming from Goofy, Luna turned from the window to find that the comical knight was looking around as he was searching for where the Guardian could be hiding. That was when it occurred to her that nobody has ever seen how exhausted her protector was after the confrontation with Oogie Boogie when he possessed his own manor; only she noticed it because she recalled how tired Medea was after the confrontation with the Ice Colossus ten years ago.

"No, Medea's not sick. She just needs a little time to regain her strength after changing her size in the last battle," Luna assured her friend, "I guess because she doesn't use it often, she hasn't overcome the depletion of stamina she suffers after using it. It wasn't the first time this happened to her."

"If she was having that kind of problem, why doesn't she seek medical attention?" Donald asked.

That was when Medea raised her head out from Luna's shadow. "Hey, it's not that simple. It's like Luna said: I haven't adapted yet. Besides, I may have been involved with her for years, but I am still a budding shadowy being that has yet to expand her potential."

"Hey, guys! We've got something from our pals in Traverse Town."

Sora's rather timely interruption shifted everyone's attention as he just finished up with the fax machine and pulled out a couple sheets of paper. Wondering what it is he received, most of the party gathered around to see what's in his hands, and what the matter was about.

"Aerith provided a translation for those research reports that have been picked up so far," Sora told them as he showed the paper. "I've been sending them to our friends from Traverse Town as we journeyed through the worlds."

"I wasn't aware that you were doing that," Luna admitted.

"I dunno how Sora finds the chance to grab them during our trip," Donald confessed, "but we got something, I guess."

As Sora handed them the papers, Luna examined the reports that have been sent to find that they were apparently documented by a person with a name that felt suspiciously familiar…but she didn't have any idea where she did.

'I believe darkness sleeps in every heart, no matter how pure. Given the chance, the smallest drop can spread and swallow the heart. I have witnessed it many times.

Darkness…Darkness of the heart. How is it born?

How does it affect us so?

As ruler of this world, I must find the answers. I must find them before the world is lost to those taken by the darkness.'

"Gee, that feller must be a pretty curious person to write this, huh?" Goofy wondered.

"I don't know…It may sound that way," Luna answered as she kept reading. "But something about this…I don't know what bothers me about it."

But then, something among the few reports found caused Luna to suddenly develop a bitter frown at what was written in it. Her hands started to tighten as she read the last bit of the report sent to them, nearly crinkling the paper in the process.

'The shadows that crawl beneath the castle…Are they the people who lost their hearts, or incarnations of darkness? Or something entirely beyond my imagination?

All my knowledge has provided no answer. One thing I am sure of is that they are entirely devoid of emotion. Perhaps further study will unlock the mysteries of the heart.

Fortunately, there is no shortage of test samples. They are multiplying underground even as I write this report.

They still need a name. Those who lack hearts…I will call them the Heartless.'

"Hey, are you okay, Luna?"

Sora's questioned snapped her out of it as Luna turned to her friends. "What…? What do you mean?"

"You were frowning at the report, and almost crushed the paper," Goofy pointed out.

Luna looked down at her hands a moment, realizing what she was doing, and – not wanting to make any more trouble – carefully handed the documents back to Sora so that she wouldn't do anything worse than she already did.

"I'm sorry about that. I don't…know what came over me," Luna apologized. But then she felt uneasy. "Something about those reports just…bothered me for some strange reason. Something about it reminds of something sinister I've known about before. But…I don't remember too clearly where exactly this happened, or who was involved for that matter."

"You think it might have something to do with your fragmented memory?" Sora asked.

Luna shook her head. "I don't know."

But then, when everyone least expected it; an alarm began to sound off in the cockpit, sending everybody aboard the ship into a state of alert despite not knowing what exactly is the cause. Their confusion was answered, though, when a giant, wooden ship sailed through the wide space of the skies and was about to head right towards them without a second warning.

"Is that what I think it is?" Luna gasped in shock.

"Uh, a big ship is coming toward us," Goofy observed.

"Quite gawking! That's a pirate ship!" Donald panicked as he tried to steer the ship.

"It's going to hit us! Hold on to something!" Sora panicked.

Before anyone could make any response or take any course of action, the pirate ship made a collision course at their gummi ship, causing the entire craft to lurch violently from the impact of the wooden vessel. The last thing Luna could recall happening to her was her being forced from her seat and hitting her head against the wall, rendering her unconscious just as Sora also fell over and slammed somewhere else…

When she regained consciousness, Luna woke up to find Sora using a Cure spell on her and Donald and Goofy were nowhere to be found.

"Hey, you okay, Luna?" Sora asked in concern. "You hit your head pretty hard. Thank goodness it wasn't serious."

Luna looked around the cockpit. "Sora…where is Donald and Goofy? What happened to them? Did they get grabbed by the travelers of the pirate ship?"

"I don't know. When I came to, I noticed they were gone, but we were left alone," Sora replied, "I guess someone wanted us to come aboard their ship, and used our friends to do just that."

Medea emerged from the shadow for a moment. "If that's the case, then it could very well be a trap. You two had better be careful this time."

"We'll be careful. Just take it easy a little longer, Medea," Sora reassured her.

After Medea returned into the shadow to rest a little more, Luna followed Sora out of the gummi ship to find their comrades on the ship that they collided with. Upon boarding the deck of the ship, it brought back a sense of familiarity within her that made her suspect what she believes it is: the sails, the cannons, everything about the vessel reminded her of a particular place that she had once been to before besides the coliseum years before. But then, something within her childhood memory sparked back a realization of where they found themselves exactly: if this was a pirate ship, then that could only mean…

"Sora…I think we'd better get Donald and Goofy," Luna warned nervously, "and get out of here as quickly as we can."

Sora turned her in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I didn't think you'd come, Sora. I knew Luna would, though." Startled by the familiar voice greeting them, Luna and Sora turned around to find Riku on the higher level of the deck. "Good to see you both again."

"Where are Donald and Goofy?" Sora demanded.

"Where is Kairi, for that matter?" Luna added.

An icy look crossed Riku's gaze. "Are they that important to you? More important than old friends? Instead of worry about them, you should be more worried about her, like Luna."

He moved to the side to reveal that Kairi was hidden behind him, prompting the shock of Sora and Luna. But the latter quickly figured out that something was not quite right about her friend: though she was undoubtedly there, she was in no better condition than an empty shell of her former self, lacking the personality of a living being. It didn't really help that her eyes were vacant and glassy, whilst her body was more like a puppet without the strings to support their movement.

"No…What happened to her?" Luna gasped quietly.

"Kairi!" Sora exclaimed.

"That's right. While you were out goofing around and dragging Luna everywhere with you, I finally found her," Riku told them.

Thinking this to be the only chance to retrieve their friend before things got any worse, Sora was about to get over there to save Kairi, but was stopped by a curved hook belonging to the owner of the ship. Luna immediately recognized him as Captain Hook, the pirate that caused a lot of trouble back in Neverland years ago when she was last there with Ventus.

"Not so fast. No shenanigans aboard my vessel, boy," the captain warned. But the instant he noticed Luna; he had a sense of familiar knowing – mostly bad memories. "You! You're that brat who threw me to the crocodile!"

But Luna completely ignored the captain as her focus was more towards the immobile Kairi, not making any response to her or Sora being within the vicinity of the deck…that is, until she noticed just a slight shift of her head, directing the empty gaze towards her. She didn't know what caused it, but she didn't have the time to worry about that either.

"Riku, why are you siding with the Heartless?" Sora demanded, upset at what his friend was doing.

"The Heartless obey me now, Sora," Riku answered, "Now I have nothing to fear."

"You're stupid," Sora insisted, "Sooner or later, they'll swallow your heart!"

Luna shook her head. "Listen, Riku, you don't understand! I've seen what happens to those who slide too far into the dark. Jafar, Ursula…when they pursued the most selfish of goals, they become nothing more than monsters, no better than slaves to their demons!"

"Not a chance. My heart's too strong." Riku looked over to Luna with assurance. "Don't worry about it, Luna. I know what I'm doing." But then he gave a harsher look towards Sora. "I've picked up a few tricks along the way. Like this, for instance."

Riku raised his hand out towards them and, without a word of warning, Sora's shadow below him stretched out and a blackened copy of him emerged from the shadow. Sora jumped from shock at what just happened right in front of him, whereas Luna could only watch dumbstruck at what she was seeing; but neither of them were prepared for what else was about to come next under their noses.

"You can go see your friends now. But Luna stays with me."

'Luna, move!' Medea's screamed in Luna's mind.

Almost by instinct, a Shadow Hand rose from her shadow and grabbed Luna, elevating her off the deck just as a trapdoor opened up beneath Sora's feet and dropped him inside the ship. As much as she wanted to find Sora and her comrades and get out of here as soon as possible, her chances of doing so was ultimately diminished when she felt herself being pulled out of its grasp and was brought onto the higher part of the deck – which she comes to realize that she was now in Riku's hands, and has nowhere to run, not with the pirate Heartless all around the deck.

"It's alright, Luna. You have nothing to worry about," Riku reassured her before turning back to the lower deck with a command. "Let's get under way already. And keep Sora away from Kairi and Luna until we're ready to land."

Before she could question what he was thinking, Riku led her away to the captain's cabin just as Luna caught one glimpse of the Heartless taking Kairi below the vessel; but now that it was just her, she found herself inside the cabin, out of the reach of everyone else. To complicate things a little more, she was alone with Riku, who had just closed the door behind him before turning back to her, obviously more than pleased that he found what he was after.

"Luna, I've found a way to help Kairi," he told her, "a way to restore her heart."

"Restore her heart?" Luna asked, baffled at what she was hearing. "What do you mean?"

"What do I mean? I mean that I've found a solution to save Kairi, restore her heart so that she can be with us again," Riku explained, "Maleficent told me that if the seven Princesses of Heart are found and brought together, then there might be a way to find Kairi's heart and bring her back to us. If there's anything you know about the Princesses – or anything that might hasten Kairi's recovery – then maybe your help could actually be of greater benefit."

As much as Luna wanted to offer a word of wisdom on the problem of saving Kairi, she recalled that he associated himself with the worst person possible and – thinking back on her clearer childhood memories – she did remember about what dangers occurred to those who were wrongly harmed by the vilest of villains for the sake of their selfish gains. In fact, she knew all too well about how dangerous it was to be within the vicinity of anyone with malicious intentions, and how those who don't identify the warning signs suffer the consequences, all the while realizing too late what manner of mess they've made. But how on earth could she possibly warn Riku about this if he wouldn't hear her out or at least take her word very seriously the last two times they encountered each other?

All the same, she had to keep trying…If only to prevent him from suffering the same fate as her lost brother.

"Riku, as much as I want to help, there's just…There's just something about your ideas that just makes me disagree with it. Maleficent is a terrible woman, and I would know because she did terrible things to not only an innocent princess, but she also manipulated my brother into doing something he would never do of his own will," Luna tried to reason with him again. "There were even other bad people that tried to exploit my brother, and it brought harm to other people who never asked to be used or toyed with. It was because of them that I…" She could easily notice her faltering in her speech due to her dread of recalling the darker part of her memories, but she forced herself to try and tell him. "I…I lost several loved ones, people who tried to take care of me…my friends…even my brother. If you really want to help Kairi, then please…stop aiding the witch in her cruel ambitions! Just talk to Sora, and maybe we can find an alternative option to saving her, without causing more assaults on other worlds."

Unfortunately, despite her efforts to try and persuade him into reconsidering his terrible choices, it was pretty clear that he was very disappointed at what might as well be her refusal to accept the offered proposition. But with the mention of Sora's name, though, a very annoyed frown crossed his face – which gave Luna a good reason to dread what problem he's developed over someone he had known for so long.

"Honestly, how do you put with him? Everywhere you went with him and those new friends of yours," There was evident jealousy in Riku's voice at the implication of Donald and Goofy, "he would continually dawdle after all his boasts on wanting to save Kairi. Only you still have enough dedication to her to at least try to find her despite what situation you got yourself into. Don't you want to help her?"

Luna frowned in disappointment. "I won't deny that I want to help her, Riku. But I don't want to help someone with vile ambitions accomplish their goals. I don't want to say it again, but Maleficent is someone you shouldn't trust. She's a vile witch, and is not someone to listen to."

Riku sighed as he shook his head and turned away. "I should've guessed…Maleficent was right about you. Your impressionable mind made you too quick to judge her. That's why you don't trust her in the slightest." He then turned back to her. "It was with the help of Maleficent that I was able to find Kairi, even though she was left in that state you've seen her in. I was able to know where you were because of her help, or else tracking down Sora would've been even more difficult. If it weren't for her, I wouldn't even be where I am right now."

She should've known that Maleficent had a lot of influence over Riku; after all that she's been through, Luna realized that any chances of getting her friends back together will only continue to decrease if one remained under the thumb of the wrong person for too long.

But before she could question anything or try to find a way out of her precarious situation, she got herself a bit of a startle when Riku approached her a little too close for comfort. If she didn't hear anything else in the room, she could've sworn that her heart might've been beating pretty loudly from anxiety. And it really didn't help that she didn't have it in her to fight back against him since he hasn't even threatened her, at least not at the moment.

"Be honest. You do want to help Kairi," he asked her intently, "You want to, don't lie to me."

"I would…but I still don't agree with who you're helping," Luna answered despite her discomfort. "Nothing you do will convince me otherwise –"

When she least expected it – and a little bit thankful that Sora was not around to watch this incident unfolding – in mere moments, Luna suddenly felt herself on the receiving end of Riku's rather abrupt kiss on her lips. Really, she wasn't prepared for quite the unforeseen action, more so when she felt her facial cheeks burning up in shock; but at the very least, her hands made the right move by latching against the desk behind her to keep herself from keeling over from the haphazard impact she just felt.

By the time he was done delivering that surprise, Luna was already blushing from the sheer embarrassment and shock, and reeling a little whilst trying to regain her footing.

"Why did you do that?" Luna questioned while gasping for breath.

"Isn't it obvious? I thought you'd know after being with us all those years," Riku answered, "As relieved as I was when you regained much of the innocent girl I first met years before, it still hurt that something is still weighing you down and you couldn't tell me what. If you come along with me, perhaps we can save Kairi together. Maybe we can uncover the real reason why your mind was broken in the first place."

As tempting as it was to accept Riku's proposition to help Kairi, the last thing he said perplexed her as she didn't have the foggiest where he got such an implication that her mental state was badly broken prior to arriving at Destiny Islands. Where did he get the idea that something terrible happened to her before she found herself on the islands with a serious gap within her memory? Who could've told him about it?

But before she could ask him about it, a dark portal formed in the cabin, and a familiar villainous witch made her second appearance directly.

Luna gave a death glare as several Shadow Hands appeared around her, ready to strike at any moment. "You…!"

"Now, now, little girl. I'm not here to fight," Maleficent answered her, apparently not interested in a confrontation. "You should thank me for taking care of your admirer. Isn't it amusing how far someone would go for someone they love?" The witch then turned to Riku. "Unfortunately, it's confirmed that Wendy is not one of the seven Princesses of Heart. That means we are still one short, and the seventh has yet to be found."

Riku folded his arms. "I see. Then we'll leave her behind. Now that I have Luna, we don't need to worry about anything else."

This raised a few alarm bells inside Luna's mind after she heard this. When did she agree to go along with Riku? Clearly he would've known that there was something wrong with the things he did, and that what he just said is a warning sign of bad influence from the wrong crowd of people! It convinced her beyond a shadow of a doubt that Maleficent must've been brainwashing him into doing the terrible things on her behalf, probably in exchange for retrieving Kairi and reuniting with Luna. Now how was she going to get herself out of this problem?

"I'm not going, not with the witch around," she refused.

You're not continuing with Sora this time," Riku insisted. "I've let you go one too many times, and I'm not about to let that happen again."

Just hearing her friend say that sparked a little irritation in Luna's mind, wishing that she had a little more help in snapping Riku to his senses. It really didn't help that Maleficent showed a pleased smile before she disappeared through the dark portal to someplace else, leaving the young Shadow Mage alone again with her backstabbing friend.

Not too long after the witch departed, Captain Hook entered the cabin to give his report on the situation.

"Are Sora and his friends still locked up?" Riku asked the captain, all the while pulling Luna close to him.

"Yes, I'm sure, which will make bringing Wendy along that much easier," Hook replied.

'Who could Wendy be? Is she involved with this?' Luna wondered in her mind.

'Could be. I'm not familiar with that name, though,' Medea answered her in her thoughts.

"Don't bother. She's not one of the Princesses," Riku informed the pirate.

Hook was shocked at this. "What? So Wendy's not one of the chosen ones?"

"There are seven of them, supposedly," Riku explained, "and Maleficent says she's not one of them." That confirmed it, leaving one innocent soul safe from danger. "Hoist anchor as soon as possible. Leave all the dead weight behind, including her."

That got Luna unnerved. "Riku, you won't leave her somewhere dangerous, would you?"

At that question, Riku rubbed her arm in reassurance. "Don't worry, Luna. I won't be crazy enough to do that. She'll be dropped off someplace harmless."

"…Very well," She was appeased at this.

"After all the trouble of capturing her?" Hook fumed angrily, obviously displeased at the work done for nothing. "And why those seven? What is Maleficent planning anyway?"

"Who knows?" Riku shrugged. "As long as it means getting Kairi's heart back, I couldn't care less."

The captain scoffed at this. "You're wasting your time! The Heartless have devoured that girl's heart. I'll stake me other hand that it's lost forever."

That ticked Luna off a bit. "No! If they did, I would've noticed it…somehow! Kairi's heart is still around. There's just no clue where."

After her abrupt outburst, Luna was surprised at Riku's pleased smile towards her. "She's right. I will find it, no matter what." He pulled her closer. "With Luna's help, perhaps she can locate where Kairi's heart has gone to."

That didn't sit well for her. Just hearing his insistence on her aid made Luna wish she didn't make that comment moments earlier, even though she was making an objection to someone who doesn't even know how hearts work.

But before any protesting could be made from her, a timid voice piped up from the speakers.

"Uh, Captain…"

Captain Hook turned his attention away to answer. "What?"

"The prisoners have escaped. What's more, Peter Pan is with them."

An inaudible gasp slipped out of Luna's mouth at that familiar name. 'Peter Pan is here? Then that means Sora is out, and he is probably looking for me and Kairi.'

But Hook was outraged at the news. "Blast that Peter Pan! All right, then! Bring the hostage to me cabin, Smee! Hop to it!"

'Hey, that's your cue, Luna! Get the hell outta here, now!' Medea ordered from inside the shadow.

Just as Riku and the captain were distracted by the Guardian's voice, Luna seized this opportunity to make her escape as quickly as possible. Within seconds, she hastily sank into her own shadow – to the shock of Riku – and slinked her way across the floor and down the narrow gap of the hatch to the decks below, hoping to be able to catch her friends and warn them as soon as she found them. If another familiar friend from her childhood is there with her pals, then perhaps it might make escaping the pirate ship much easier…

Inside the lower cabin below the captain's quarters, a young girl in a blue dress heard a strange sound closing in to her location and turned to find a black shadowy form entering the room. But then a strange lady emerged from the shadow, looking around in curiosity until she turned to her direction.

"I am sorry. My name is Luna," Luna apologized politely, "Are you…a captive on this ship?"

"Yes, I am. My name is Wendy," Wendy answered her, "but I am not the only prisoner on board, it seems. Those creatures kept another girl in here with me, but she hasn't been moving for a while."

Out of curiosity, Luna turned around to find that Kairi was undoubtedly here, not making any movement. Worried for her foster sister, she hurried over and knelt down to her to check her conditions – if only to make sure nothing serious happened to her, aside from the absence of a heart. All the same, it hurt her to know first-hand what had happened to her friend.

"Kairi…how cruel you had to end up like this," she couldn't help shaking her head sadly, "If only I knew how to help you…"

But right when she least expected it, Kairi slowly moved her left arm up to Luna's face and gently touched her cheek, almost as though she were – albeit with no words being spilled out – reassuring her that she wasn't at fault. It made her wonder what could've caused her to react like this, even though she doesn't have her heart in the first place. Was there something she was missing all those years ago, or did she have some form of knowledge about Kairi's situation but forgot about it some years prior?

A ringing sound suddenly caught her ears, causing Luna to shift her attention to where it might be coming from…which was right below her.

"What is it, Tink?"

Now there's a familiar voice if Luna ever heard one: that could only belong to the perpetual child of Neverland.

This apparently also caught Wendy's attention as she recognized the voice and peered through the net below their feet.

"Peter? Peter Pan?" Wendy asked as she looked down.

Luna joined in, and could make out the familiar faces inside the room down below them. She could see that Sora, Donald, and Goofy are all there and freed from the brig, and she also could see her two Neverland friends looking through as well; after being around the wrong crowd, it was refreshing to see her own comrades again.

"Hello there, Peter. Hello, Tink. How are you?" Luna asked sweetly.

"Luna! Luna, you're okay!" Sora cried out in relief, "Thank goodness."

"What happened t' ya, Luna?" Goofy asked, "Somehow you weren't with us."

The faint sound of footsteps made Luna afraid of what's approaching. "I'll try to explain later. I think I hear something."

"Please, hurry! The pirates are coming!" Wendy implored.

That got Peter worried. "What! I'll be right there! Just hold on!"

"Wendy? Is there another girl with you, besides Luna?" Sora asked out of concern.

"Oh, why, yes. But she seems to be asleep," Wendy answered, looking towards Kairi. "She hasn't budged an inch, except when Luna arrived."

From above, Luna watched as Sora tried to reach out towards the lifeless Kairi, as though he were hoping for some form of miracle that she is still there. It was a bit heartbreaking to see, but what else could she do?

"Kairi? Kairi!" he called out to her.

To her greatest amazement, Luna watched Kairi's right arm budge towards the net, and then after a few moments, she could've sworn that she saw a small twitch from her fingers. Now how was that possible? Could Sora's presence have caused her to respond to him as much as she responded to hers?

She just had to tell him, hopefully to motivate him to come and help.

"Sora…she moved!" Luna exclaimed, "I don't know what happened, but maybe she's –"

But her words were immediately cut off when she felt someone grab her roughly and cover her mouth from behind. Although she couldn't turn enough, she could see from the corner of her eye that it was Riku who ambushed her without her knowledge.

"There you are. That was pretty clever, slipping away like that," he said to her, a bit frustrated at her escape attempt, "but not good enough to get far."

After being forcefully led out of the ship crew's cabin and back up to the captain's cabin, Luna found herself back in the precarious situation she got herself into earlier. Wendy was nowhere to be seen after the pirate Heartless abruptly showed up, but she did spot a few proceed to carry Kairi's limp body; ready to leave at any moment with the precious cargo (yeah, yeah, weird to say that, but what else could describe the situation?).

"What were you thinking, telling Sora where you are?" Riku questioned her harshly. "Are you really that determined to keep following him?"

Luna shook her head, her anger starting to rise. "Don't make me say this again, Riku: I am not going with you, not with you being involved with that witch who made trouble in the past! Nothing good will come out of dabbling into a force you don't understand, not any better than I do!"

Just moments after making her protest, it was pretty clear to her that he was far from willing to understand her problems. In fact, at the first opportunity, he was about to reach out and grab her so that she wouldn't even try to escape…or at least, he would've been able to do that, if not for one unforeseen lifesaver.

Without warning, Medea swiftly emerged from Luna's shadow and moved herself right in front of her while unleashing her Black Claws at him, forcing Riku to step back a few paces just to keep himself from losing an eye or something at the Guardian's hands. It was easily noticeable that she not only fully recovered, but her dangerous frown indicated that she was less than pleased that somebody had the gall to try and force her master into something she doesn't want to do against her will.

"Get away from her, you brat!" Medea growled.

Then, Sora and friends arrived on the scene just as Riku was about to take his leave through a dark portal with Kairi in tow, but one Luna short.

"Riku! Wait!" Sora called out, but too late.

Unfortunately, any chances to stop him or confront him was immediately cut short when the shadowy form of Sora showed up, ready to dispatch them. Needless to say, fighting against the abomination was no cakewalk, especially not when it summoned extra copies of itself to give the party even more trouble than they already needed.

"How are we supposed to get rid of these guys?" Sora questioned frantically.

"How the hell should I know?" Medea retorted, "You're the one who knows yourself better, you tell me."

After a rather frustrating chase around the captain's cabin trying to eliminate every shadow clone of Sora, they were finally able to put a stop to the nightmarish fiends that dared to mock Sora's image. Though it would've been a good time for a reprieve, the boys were more worried about what happened to their lady friend while they were forced to trek the lower sections of the ship on their own.

"What happened between you and Riku? Did he do something that hurt you in any way?" Sora asked her, just to make sure she's okay.

"Sora was really worried about you after we noticed you weren't with us," Goofy added.

Luna hung her head a little. "Well…it's…it's too hard to explain. Could we talk about it later, when we've helped Peter and Wendy?"

"Yeah, if that pirate does anything to either of them, I'd be more than happy to give that croc-fearing wimp something else to fear," Medea agreed.

Not wanting to waste any more time, the now reunited party hurried down the hatch on the other side of the captain's cabin to find that Peter had already located an alive but unconscious Wendy by the corner of the crewmen's cabin. Perhaps she had fainted from fright after the Heartless came in and took her elsewhere on the ship.

"Wendy!" Peter hurried over to her, making sure she's okay. Tink flittered around frantically, trying to get his attention. "Come on, Tink! Not now!"

Frustrated at her friend's shifted attention, Tinkerbell flew away angrily like she didn't want to speak with him for a while.

Peter, meanwhile, picked up Wendy and was about to leave with her. "Well, this is as far as I can go. I've gotta help Wendy."

Without another word, Peter Pan flew off to tend to Wendy, leaving the rest of the party to find the pixie and get off the ship as soon as possible. Sora, admittedly, couldn't help but question their situation.

"Is Peter always this way, Luna? How does Tink deal with him?" Sora asked.

"Well, he may sound like a jerk, but he's nowhere near malicious," Luna replied, "When things get tough, he's a good boy at heart. Perhaps he just has difficulty showing it in his otherwise childish behavior."

"Yeah, well, if he doesn't come back for his fairy this minute, I'll give him something to be childish about," Medea muttered.

"Maybe we'll find her completely unharmed and with no more pirates to worry about," Donald commented.

…But the duck spoke too soon on that department.

No sooner did everyone arrive on the open deck of the ship, they were greeted by more pirate Heartless accompanied by Captain Hook and Smee, who have been expecting them after all the mischief they had caused in the decks down below. And it really didn't help that they were completely surrounded.

"You just had to say that," Medea growled angrily, glaring at the now embarrassed duck.

"Quite the codfish, that Riku – running off with that girl without saying goodbye," Captain Hook mocked them, "And one other girl short, apparently."

"Run off where? Tell us, where did he go?" Sora demanded to know.

"To the ruins of Hollow Bastion, where Maleficent resides," the captain replied, "But you won't be going there." He then pulled a lantern – with Tink trapped inside it! "Unless you intend to leave your little pixie friend behind?"

It was at this point that the party was faced with a serious dilemma: either they figure out some way to save Tink, or try to confront the captain head-on and risk the pixie's life, or make a rather futile escape from the ship. And it did make things any easier with the Heartless coming closer to them, ready to pounce at any moment.

"Hand over the Keyblade and I'll spare your lives," Hook demanded, "Be glad that I'm merciful, unlike the Heartless. So, which will it be, the Keyblade or the plank?"

Now, it would've been possible to give out an answer to him if one little wrench in the works hadn't shown up: out of the blue, the sound of a ticking clock clicked below one side of the ship. At that sound alone, the captain immediately dropped his intimidating persona and became a nervous wreck, unable to take action from one particular thing he hates most.

"It's him! The crocodile that took me hand!" Hook panicked in fear. "Oh, Smee! He's after me other hand! I can't stay here!" He instantly took off to his cabin, ignoring the hostages. "Go away! Oh, I can't stand the sight of him! Smee, you take care of them!"

The door to the captain's cabin slammed shut, leaving his right-hand to deal with the situation on his own.

Medea couldn't help shaking her head at the cowardice. "Boy, does that bring back memories…"

"I would like to reminisce, but we have other problems now," Luna commented, her head toward Sora at the far edge of the plank.

Apparently with the captain out of commission due to unforeseen circumstances, Smee had to give the command as to someone walking the plank. And the first person to go ahead on was Sora. Both Donald and Goofy were pretty much panicking at this point, knowing that a friend was about to be forced to jump off the edge of the plank and let the ravenously hungry crocodile gobble him up. But before he made his move, a familiar voice called out to him…

"Fly, Sora! Just believe, and you can do it!"

After hearing this, Luna and the others watched as Sora jumped off the plank, seemingly about to end up something's dinner…but then, miraculously, reappeared and – to the surprise of the others – was flying around like Peter Pan would do.

Speaking of which, the very same boy suddenly appeared on the scene and swiped away the lantern right out from under Smee's nose, opening it to free his fairy friend from captivity.

"Thanks, Peter," Sora complimented.

"Hey, don't mention it. You didn't think I'd leave you guys and Tink behind, did you?" Peter answered proudly.

Medea rolled her eyes. "Oh, really? For a moment, I thought you were."

"Never mind that! Let's take care of the Heartless," Donald interrupted them.

With Peter Pan's assistance, it was now possible to fight off the Heartless once and for all. But since Luna was the only one who hasn't been involved with the boys for quite a while, at least Tink rectified her problem by giving her the pixie dust so that she could keep up with the battle against the more aerial fiends. Medea didn't need to worry about it, though, since she's more than capable of fighting above ground on her own.

As soon as all of the Heartless have been cleared out, the deck was pretty much empty; which meant that there's only one more enemy to deal with: Captain Hook.

"The captain hid himself in his room," Luna said, "How can we get him to come out?"

Peter smirked at the question. "Watch this."

While positioned near the arch of the door, Sora and Luna watched as Peter knocked on the door, getting the captain's attention.

"Is that you, Smee? Did you finish them off?"

Both teens struggled to hold their laughter back when Peter held his nose and imitated the timid pirate's voice. "Aye, Captain. They walked the plank, every last one of them."

Almost immediately, Captain Hook forced open the door and rushed out to meet his first mate…only to find that he was nowhere to be found. While the dumbfounded captain looked around in confusion, Peter used this opportunity to poke him in the butt from behind, causing him to jump from shock and turn to find that his childish adversary had returned to give him more trouble.

"P-Peter Pa – blast you!" Hook sputtered angrily.

"Ready to make a splash, you codfish?" Peter taunted, "Now it's your turn to walk the plank."

"Oh, hell, yeah!" Medea agreed as she readied her claws. "I'm ready for a rematch!"

"You should've learned your lesson the first time we fought, Captain Hook," Luna warned as her Hands emerged at the ready.

Despite the fact that Captain Hook is a normal person, he certainly didn't make the battle any easier with his skills with a sword and the bombs he kept on his person; more so since he summoned Heartless in flying battleships to try and turn the tides in his favor. Granted, Luna and Medea knew how this scurvy seadog worked since they had fought him before the last time they were in Neverland, but this was a first for Sora since he's never encountered him before like the girls did.

"Did ya have to deal with these guys before?" Goofy asked while smacking one Heartless away.

"Hell, no. But we did have to deal with that wimpy captain before," Medea answered, "and it was too much fun seeing him run from the croc."

But that didn't necessarily mean the battle was extremely difficult, though. While Donald, Goofy and Medea turned their attention to the flying Heartless and fought to keep them at bay, Sora and Luna worked together with Peter Pan to take the fight to the captain directly. Using her Shadow Hands, she was able to keep the bombs from hurting Sora while he charged in with his Keyblade and laid the smack down against the pirate captain.

"Pesky brats! You don't know when to quit!" Hook fussed in anger.

"What, did you think we were going to?" Sora retorted as he whacked the captain upside the head.

"Medea and I beat you before," Luna added, frightening the captain with her Hands closing in. "I can do it again, I'm sure."

"Man, I wish I saw that personally," Peter agreed, "I bet it was funny."

Finally, when there was an open opportunity, Luna used her Shadow Hand to grab Captain Hook and – just like she did years ago – threw him off the ship out into the far reaches of the ocean, where the crocodile was waiting for him. True to what happened last time, he immediately began running away with horror the instant he saw the crocodile ready to eat him up; and quite surprisingly, Smee showed up in a rowboat, rowing desperately to attempt to save his boss from becoming dinner.

After that scuffle aboard the ship, things finally calmed down with the threat of the Heartless no longer lingering around the ship. Though, after all that's happened, there was an uncertainty as to how things will go now that they've seen Kairi and what they've learned at this point.

"Uh, Kairi couldn't wake up, so maybe she's really lost her –" Goofy was about to say something.

"Shh!" Donald shushed him, not wanting to rub things the wrong way.

"I still can't believe it," Sora spoke after a moment of contemplation. "I really flew! Wait 'til I tell Kairi. I wonder if she'll believe me. Probably not…"

"How would you know?" Medea questioned, "We haven't saved her yet. Hell, if she won't believe you, she'll believe Luna, I'm sure."

"Well, that is true. I mean, I have been here before," Luna agreed.

"You can bring her to Neverland sometime," Peter suggested, "Then she can try it herself."

Sora smiled. "If you believe, you can do anything, right? We'll find Kairi. I know we will."

Luna knew exactly what he meant by that. Even after all that's happened so far, he knows that he wants what's best for his loved ones and his friends. It gave her more reason to help find her loved ones, too.

"There's so much I want to tell her – about flying, the pirates, and everything else that's happened," Sora continued. He turned to Luna. "And besides, I'm sure you'd want something to say to her about your old friends, right?"

She nodded and gave a small smile at him; it would certainly be refreshing to be able to talk to Kairi again and let her know of people she used to know back when she was a child. Perhaps that would help her foster sister know where she's been that she hadn't been able to talk about previously due to her mental issues in the past.

But then, Tinkerbell showed up and flittered anxiously, apparently with something bothering her.

But Peter had an idea what was up. "What's that, Tink? What about the clock tower? You say there's something there?"

Sora and Luna quickly looked at each other when they heard that. Does that mean…?

"Sora…? Could it be…?" Luna started to wonder.

"Yeah, I think that's what you think it is," he finished her sentence. Sora then turned to Peter Pan. "Hey, Peter, you think we could take a look into what's up with clock tower?"

"No problem. Since Hook's not going to use this for a while, we'll borrow this vessel," Peter replied jovially.

With Tinkerbell's help – mostly due to the pixie dust (if you've seen the movie, you'd know where this is going) – the ship sailed across the skies to the night-covered city of London, where Wendy was waiting for them at the Big Ben clock tower. From a distance, it seemed as though the clock tower was quite fine…that is, until it was noticed that on one side of the tower, the clock was not in the same position as the other three set hands.

Immediately, Sora got to work by flying over to the clock tower and using his weapon to force the minute hand up to where it should be until a small glow revealed a keyhole peeking out between numbers two and three. Right away, he used his Keyblade to lock the keyhole, resulting in the prevention of the advancement of the Heartless against Neverland.

Just to be sure, Luna used her powers to check for remnants, and was pleased when she found none. "That's a relief. This world will be safe, that's for sure."

Tinkerbell flittered over to her and made little gestures that would come close to 'Where've you been all this time?' like she hadn't seen an old friend in years.

She smiled at the pixie at the thought of it. "I'm sorry about that, Tink. A lot of things happened over the years." When the fairy showed a puzzled face that meant 'like what?', Luna shook her head sadly. "It's too hard to explain…and it's too painful."

But then, Luna remembered something, moving her to search her satchel and pull out the star block she plucked from Halloween Town. "Oh, yes, I nearly forgot. I remembered that promise I made to you. I made a deal, didn't I? I found something star-like to replace the shard, and I think you'll like it."

Tinkerbell flit over to inspect the block and, when seeing how pretty and shiny it was, danced joyfully in approval at the new treasure she was given. It made Luna smile just seeing somebody happy about something, which was something she sorely missed back in the brighter days of her past; if only she had a chance to have some peace with her loved ones a little longer, perhaps she would feel a lot better…

While this was going on, Peter and Wendy were just having a moment to chat on the clock tower before having to part ways. Whatever it was they've been through before Captain Hook caused a lot of trouble for them, it was pretty clear that there was friendly intentions regarding the perpetually childish boy and his business with an innocent girl from an ordinary world of her own.

"Peter, are you really going back to Neverland?" she asked sadly.

"Afraid so," Peter replied, "But we can see each other any time. As long as you don't forget about Neverland, that is."

Now, it would've remained pretty sweet if Donald hadn't started chuckling, causing Tink to flitter off and fly around Peter in jealous anger (all the while making Medea give the duck a dangerous glare for his idiocy). Then, she flew right away to hover alongside Sora and Luna for company.

"Alright, duck. What did you do to peeve her off earlier?" Medea interrogated irritably.

"Oh, boy. She's getting steamed again," Peter sighed. "Do me a favor. Look after her for me, will ya?"

Sora turned to Peter Pan, dumbfounded at the request. "What?"

"Don't worry, Peter. We'll be good with her," Luna assured him as she let the pixie sit in her hands. "We'll need as much help as we can get from here."

Neither of the two teens would ever suspect how much help they'll need, especially since they now know where the witch maintains her base of operations. But the thing is, what will it now take to save their friends, and what will they be facing from there on in?