Riku leapt into action. "Axel, put him down!" he yelled as he leapt at the corridor, hitting it too late as it dissipated and the silver haired keyblader hit the floor and skidded a bit. "DAMN IT!" Punching the floor, he pushed himself upright and glared around the room, which was now silent. "AXEL, GET YOUR SKINNY ASS BACK HERE RIGHT NOW BEFORE I FLAMBÈ IT FOR YOU!"

There was silence, and Riku's attention was caught as a note flickered out of a small dark spot before floating to the ground. Picking up the piece of paper, Riku snarled as he read the note. "ZEXION!"

Chapter 7 - I'm Not Insane!

Sora held back a yelp as he was tossed to the floor and pushed himself upright, rubbing his hands as he turned to glare at the Fire user, freezing as he came face to face with a lot more than just one Nobody. Quickly counting them, he paled as realised there were eleven of them. "Uh…"

"First things first, Sora, no one here intends you any harm," a slate haired nobody said as he stepped forward, hair falling over half his face in a curtain as he knelt in front of the brunette.

"Who are you?" Sora asked curiously as his eyes darted around the dark room for any sign of escape. "I don't remember seeing you before, although you look familiar."

"My name is Zexion. You wouldn't remember me, because we never met, and even if we did, it was at Castle Oblivion."

"The place I have no memories from…" Sora finished, putting all the puzzle pieces together. "So, wait, I'm not going insane? You're all real?"

"We are," Zexion confirmed, standing upright and holding out a hand for the Keyblader.

"Sorry for the scare earlier Kiddo. Dem here swore he saw you and we had to be sure," Xigbar said with a grin as he leant against a wall.

Sora sighed heavily, taking the offered hand. "And you couldn't think of another way to do it? I seriously thought I was going insane for about an hour."

"Meh, you've been insane for year's kid," a blond woman commented dismissively as she rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, cocking her hip to the side as she eyed him contemplatively.

Needless to say, Sora felt very self-conscious and he stood fully upright, taking in all the identities of the nobodies around him. "What are you all doing here?"

"We woke up here one day," Zexion explained. "Xemnas is the only one that hasn't arrived."

"And hopefully he won't," Axel grumbled, crossing his arms as he leant against the wall, his vibrant red hair standing out wonderfully against the dark brick.

Saix snarled at him angrily.

Axel just rolled his eyes. "Down boy."

"How many times do I have to say it? I'm not a pet," Saix growled, glaring angrily at the pyromaniac.

There came a snicker from Xigbar, but after a fierce glare towards the Freeshooter, the others wisely remained silent.

"Anyway, we need your help," Zexion continued.

"So, you're not going after Kingdom Hearts again?" Sora asked curiously, looking perplexed.

"No, we've decided against it," Vexen grumbled.

"It didn't work out so well for us last time," Xigbar added with a shrug. "All it did was cause pain. We're all together again, so I don't see why we should risk it again."

Vexen didn't look at anyone and just stared at the floor.

"Sora, we need your help," Zexion repeated quietly, catching the brunette's attention again. "We need you to help us explain to this world that we don't mean any harm. We've been hiding in this castle for far too long, and any attempt we've made at finding our way around without being spotted has been thwarted."

"Alright," Sora agreed, nodding. "Why are we all here?"

"No one knows," Xaldin replied with a shrug. "We've speculated, but that's all we can do."

"It would be bad to come to an unfounded conclusion," Vexen agreed with a nod.

"Oh shut your trap you old fart," Marluxia growled, glaring at the blond scientist.

"No one asked you, flower breath," Vexen shot back with a glare of his own.

Sora grinned. "You two really don't get along, do you?"

"We have our reasons," Marluxia replied coldly, raising an eyebrow at the brunette.

"Look, can we send Sora back so we can go eat? I'm hungry," Demyx whined.

"Yeah, let's send the squirt back," Axel agreed. "I'm sick of hiding. It's done nothing back waste time and effort."

"Says the two timing spy and traitor," Larxene grumbled, rolling her eyes.

"Can you do anything but bitch?" Axel bit back in annoyance.

"Of course I can," Larxene replied sweetly, "as to whether I want to do it or not around you is a whole other matter."

"Girls, girls, you're both pretty," Xigbar grumbled, drawing a quiet snicker from the others. "Can we let Sora go now? If we stay together any longer we're going to kill each other probably."

"Alright," Zexion nodded and turned back to the blue-eyed keyblade wielder.

"How will I contact you if I need to?" Sora asked curiously.

"We'll be around," Zexion replied with a small smile. "Just call."

Stretching out a hand, the slate haired nobody sent Sora back through a dark portal. Sora closed his eyes and fell.


"Hey, Sora! You okay?" a voice asked, calling him back from darkness.

Sora opened his eyes to stare up at Riku. "Riku?"

"Yeah, it's me." The other teen gave a relieved smile. "Are you okay? You don't seem to be hurt."

"I'm fine. They just wanted to talk."

"Oh, okay. Wait, they?" Riku asked, suddenly looking alert.

Sora nodded and sat up. "Yeah, the organization is back."

"What?"

"They're not going after Kingdom Hearts again, and Xemnas isn't around either."

"You're sure they're all back?" Riku asked urgently, grabbing his best friends arms as he stared into the clear blue yes.

"They are," Sora confirmed with a nod.

Riku let out a breath of frustration. "Great… just what we need."

"I don't think they're our enemies this time Riku. I think they honestly just want to help."

"With what? What do they know that we don't?"

"They don't know either, but I think they've changed sides."

"Sora, that is impossible. They're nobodies."

"So? Everyone can have a change of heart."

"They're nobodies. They don't have hearts."

"Well… the theory still applies!" Sora snapped in frustration.

"Sora…"

"You changed, didn't you?"

"Yes, but… that was different," Riku growled, rubbing at his hair in frustration.

"Naminè changed sides."

Riku sighed, obviously feeling defeated by that one. "I guess…"

"It is possible Riku." He placed a hand on his friends and stared him straight in the eyes. "Just give them a chance."

"Fine," Riku murmured. "Just one. The moment they screw up I'm key blading their ass though," he threatened.

"That's all they need," Sora replied quietly as he smiled and squeezed his friend's hand. He looked around the room for the first time in confusion. "What am I doing in the hospital wing?"

"You don't remember?" Riku asked with a hint of worry. "You fell out of the wall in the Great Hall. You were unconscious."

"Don't remember a thing," Sora replied with a small apologetic smile.

"It's alright. Come on; let's get you back to the Gryffindor tower. It's almost dinnertime. You've been out for a while."

"Yeah… oh wait! I need to talk to McGonagall!" Sora scrambled out of bed, avoiding Riku's grasping hands and slipped his shoes on, grabbed his robe and darted out of the Hospital Wing, slipping his robe on over his head as he ran, heading for the Headmistresses Office, which he vaguely remembered where it was.

"Sora!"

Running through the corridors, Sora grinned as he caught sight of the elderly witch leaving her office. "Professor McGonagall!"

"Mr Hikari?" she asked, turning to look at him in surprise. "Are you feeling better? You gave us all a scare, disappearing and reappearing like that."

"Yeah, I'm fine. I need to talk to you." He slowed to a stop in front of her, barely glancing at Riku who only just caught up to him.

"About what?"

"Sora, just forget about it," Riku urged, grabbing his friends arm.

"No," Sora insisted, focusing on her determinedly. "It's about why I was taken today by Axel."

Minerva focused on the spikey haired teenager in front of her curiously. "Yes, why were you taken?"

Riku suddenly snarled and darted in front of them, the keyblade appearing in his hands as he focused it on the person walking down the corridor.

Zexion raised his hands calmly but didn't stop walking. "Calm yourself Riku. I come in peace."

"And how do I know that Zexion? You've always been a manipulating bastard."

"Riku, calm down," Sora insisted, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Hi Zexion."

Zexion nodded a greeting. "Sora. I apologise. I didn't think the darkness would make you pass out like that."

Sora shrugged. "It's fine. I've been through worse."

"Who are you?" McGonagall asked curiously, taking in the image of the man in front of her. He was short, dressed in a dark leather cloak and black combat boots, his hair a purple-grey colour that covered one of his eyes.

"My name is Zexion ma'am. I just wish to talk." Zexion stopped in front of Riku, who was glaring angrily at the man, but had at least straightened up. The keyblade hadn't disappeared yet though.

"Let's head up to my office." She turned and led the way back to her office. The other three followed.

Once they were in, she sat behind the desk and waved her wand, summoning another chair for Zexion. He gratefully sat, Sora and Riku sitting in the others.

"So, what do you want?" she asked curiously.

"My comrades and I, there are eleven of us, wish to seek sanctuary in your school," Zexion immediately began, getting straight to the point.

"And why should I agree to that?" McGonagall asked, leaning back in her chair, listening attentively.

"Like Sora and Riku, we've also appeared from another world and have nowhere to go."

"Why are you all appearing suddenly?"

Zexion took a deep breath and released it. "I think there's a background story I need to tell you first."

He began explaining about Kingdom Hearts, their experiments, how they were changed to nobodies, their quest for Kingdom Hearts, and how they were defeated. By the end Minerva was pretty sure her mind was about to self-destruct.

"Sora, Riku, myself and my comrades all arriving here have me thinking that maybe something will happen soon, something that we must be prepared for. I know it probably won't make much sense, but during our research on the other worlds we came to realise that they quite possibly have a collective consciousness that can interact and influence the way a world reacts to other worlds around it. Worlds with magic for example, would more than likely respond more to threats and would be more proactive against those threats, hence why we are all arriving now."

Sora and Riku just blinked at Zexion, Sora looking dazed, Riku looking contemplative.

"You might be onto something there Zexion," Riku murmured, his own gaze turning thoughtful.

Minerva swallowed, suddenly feeling anxious. They'd had their war with Voldermort. For them to be going into another dark phase was going to cause chaos. "You really think we might be going into another war?"

Zexion shook his head. "Something bigger. If it were just a war within the world it wouldn't react like it has. We would still be going about our normal lives. No… this is bigger. Much bigger."

"What do you propose I do?" McGonagall asked quietly, focusing on the slate haired man.

"Allow my comrades and I to integrate into the society in this school, that way if things suddenly get chaotic we'll be around and won't have people harassing us about who we are and what we're doing. We can also add our own defences to the school if we need to, and can help teach the students, if you'd allow us to." Zexion focused on Sora and Riku. "This is just my guess, but I'm thinking there might be another dark wave coming."

Sora blinked while Riku paled.

"You mean… the world could be…?"

"Overrun by darkness? Yes," Zexion confirmed, nodding solemnly.

"I thought we got rid of all the heartless," Sora whined, pouting at the thought that he was probably going to have to fight some more.

"Unfortunately no, although you have made great progress in destroying their ranks."

Sora grumbled to himself, crossing his arms. "This is so unfair."

McGonagall heaved a huge sigh, trying to think about what to do. They had the rooms for the new people, Merlin knew they did, but it was a question of what uproar this was going to cause if she suddenly invited new people. "Give me some time to think about what I'm going to do," she murmured. "Where have you all been staying?"

"A chamber down below the dungeons."

"Below the dungeons?" Minerva asked in surprise.

Zexion nodded.

The headmistress sighed. "We can put you all in rooms tonight, and feed you, but let me talk to my staff first. This should be as much their decision as mine."

"Thank you," Zexion replied gracefully, bowing his head. "I wasn't expecting anything more. You're being very gracious."

"How will I contact you if I need to?"

Zexion stood and smiled mysteriously. "We'll be listening. Sora, Roxas, Riku, have a pleasant evening." Turning, he strode to the door and walked out.

Sora blinked in surprise, feeling more surprised than he should that the cloaked nobody had acknowledged his other self.

Riku looked at the headmistress, who was looking frustrated and confused, her head in her hands. "If it helps," he began, causing her to blink and look up at him, "I've been around the Organization for a while. I think they're being genuine, or Zexion is anyway. They're not here to cause trouble, and his theory does make sense."

She nodded and straightened up. "Thank you Riku. You two should head to dinner. It's probably well underway by now."

Nodding, Sora and Riku stood. "Thanks Professor McGonagall," Sora said with a smile and led the way out of the office, Riku following him.

As the door shut, she sighed heavily and turned to face the thoughtful looking portrait on the wall. "What do you think Albus?"

"I think they have a very good point, and that you should let them into the school. But what do I know? I'm just a painting." His blue eyes twinkled mischievously as he settled back into his chair and read his book again. "It's your choice Minerva."

She sighed and smiled, shaking her head. "Alright Albus. Have a good evening."

"You too my Dear."

tbc~