Xemnas: Your name shouldn't be WanderingChild, it should be LazyyyyChild.

Me: Oh shut your trap

Xiggy: He's got a point, you know. You did have this thing all set and ready to go since April…..

Me: I sold my soul to my job and didn't get around to typing it up, what more do you want from me?

Melody: It's okay, I don't care. I got to kiss Demyx for the entirety of your procrastination.

Demyx: What she said!

Me: Ohhhh geez…..okay guys heres yet another long awaited chapter. I do not own any part of Kingdom Hearts unfortunately. Though I do own Melody and the KH2 characters alter personalities.

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Chapter 16: Re-united

"Do you honestly believe that a child will be able to defeat Xaldin? As for as I see, she can barely hold her ground," Xigbar huffed.

"Well then you haven't seen her like I have. She's a strong one, that girl. She will go beyond her limits to protect the ones she loves. I have faith in her," Saix stated.

"She'll save us," Axel said, no hint of doubt found in his words.

"You are all fools to believe such things," interrupted a new voice. "If you haven't heard the news yet, your precious Princess is gone." At this statement Axel jumped, ready to attack the Nobody who dared to hurt Melody. Saix put his arm out in an attempt to restrain the Furry of Dancing Flames. Axel growled out in frustration and glared daggers at their intruder.

"My, my, a little feisty there, aren't we Number Eight?" the intruder smiled.

"And to what do we owe the pleasure of your presence here?" Saix asked.

"Why, I'm just here to check up on a few of my favorite friends," Xaldin said, bowing innocently; Axel snorted in response.

"What did you mean by 'Melody being gone'?" Saix asked, referring to Xaldin's earlier statement; Saix suspected that Number Three knew nothing about Melody being alive and well.

"Just that; she's gone. Kaput. Dead. I witnessed her death with my own eyes. She must've been shocked by the betrayal of her dear Prince, being the one to killed her and all. I'm thinking about making him my new partner," he mused to himself.

"I think it'd be best if you left now, Xaldin. Don't you have a Keyblader to take care of?" Saix asked, not bothering to hide his anger.

"You're right, Number Seven. I have much more important tasks at hand than to hang around you useless Nobodies. I bid you all farewell," he smirked, bowing once more before disappearing through a portal.

"That guy knows just how to get on my nerves," Axel growled, throwing himself beside Xigbar with a grunt.

"He does it purposely, ya know," Xigbar said, smirking at the irritated red head.

"Whatever," Axel muttered, picking invisible dust off his coat.

"He's clueless about the Princess," Saix mentioned. "We could use this to our advantage."

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Melody's eyes went wide with surprise at what just happened. "I-I'm sorry," Demyx stuttered nervously, quickly pulling away. "I shouldn't have done that, I'm sorry," he apologized again, making his way towards the door hurriedly. Melody's shock instantly diminished when she realized he was about to leave. She sprinted from the bed and took hold of his arm, stopping him in his tracks. Demyx stood his ground, not daring to turn and face her in his embarrassment.

"Don't run away from me again. Please," Melody whispered. Demyx sighed and glanced down at the girl beside him.

"Melody, there's something I need to tell you," he said quietly. She looked up curiously at the Nobody, wondering as to what he had to say. "Truth is, I' in lo-" At that precise moment, the bedroom door swung open, revealing a very surprised Riku.

"Riku?" Melody and Demyx questioned.

"Melody?" he exclaimed, rubbing his eyes in disbelief. "Aren't you…? Wait, you're alive?"

"Well, yeah, I am," she laughed nervously.

"But how? Sora said he saw you fall, and Demyx…" he stated, very confused.

"I was saved," she said, thinking it best not to mention any names. "Point is I'm still alive and kicking and ready to fight!" she said enthusiastically.

"You're joking, right?" Demxy said, staring at her as if she had two heads.

"Far from it," Melody stated seriously, gazing up at him. "Every one is counting on me to help them. I may be powerless, but I can't just sit back and continue to watch the ones I love get hurt anymore. I will do everything I possibly can to stop this darkness and protect my friends."

"You are truly a wonder," Demyx whispered, staring down at her in awe.

"Then let's go find Sora. I'm sure everyone will be so happy to see that you're okay," Riku smiled, gesturing for them to follow him as he walked around the corner. Melody nodded, determined to help as much as she could. Demyx smiled and took hold of her hand.

"Let's go find your cousin. I'm sure everyones worried about you," he said.

"You're probably right," Melody sighed. "Though, this may be the perfect opportunity to get back at Sora," she pondered out loud.

"What does that mean?" Demyx asked curiously as they walked down the hallway, catching up with Riku. A mischievous smile was her only response.

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"We'll never find him," Donald complained. "This place is huge!"

"Never say never, Donald," Goofy chided.

"Don't worry guys, we'll find him," Sora smiled at his friends. "Between Riku, Kairi, and us searching this castle, we are bound to stumble upon something."

"You're right," Donald responded, feeling reassured and following Sora into a room. Donalds' mouth fell open at the sight of the enormous staircase before him.

"Sorry, Donald," Sora laughed an apology.

"Hey, look!" Goof called out, pointing down the hallway they just came down. Sora and Donalds; attention was now on the black figure at the end of the hallway. "Do you think it's him?" he asked.

"Maybe, but I don't think so," Sora said, watching the figure approach the from afar.

"It could be Demyx," Donald offered.

"Could be," Sora pondered, summoning his keyblade just in case there was a threat. Another figure appeared beside the cloaked one.

"Look, it's Riku!" Donald pointed out, jumping up and down in excitement.

"Riku!" Sora called out, running up to his friend. "Who's that?" Sora asked as the figure soon join them.

"It's jut me," Demyx said, pulling down his hood. Sora nodded in acknowledgement, Demyx following suite.

"Did you find him?" Sora asked hopefully.

"No, unfortunately," Riku stated. "But we did find something out that may interest you.

"What's that?" Sora asked eagerly, Donald and Goofy leaning in to hear the news.

"We have a secret weapon against Xaldin now."

"What?" the keyblader questioned, looking from Riku to Demyx for his answer.

Demyx smiled, "Well we'll show you; follow us." Demyx and Riku began heading up the stairs, Donald and Goofy trailing behind with Sora tagging along at the end. Suddenly the door slammed shut before he could follow his friends.

"Gotchya!" âme a voice from behind Sora who was suddenly tackled to the ground. Sora dropped his keyblade during his fall and frantically reached out for it to attack the cloaked figure on top of him.

"Calm down, silly," the stranger said at seeing slight panic in the teenagers eyes. "It's only me." Sora stopped struggling and looked at them confused.

"It can't be," Sora whispered as the person on top of him removed their hood. "You're-you're-I saw you fall! How are you-are you one of them?" he stuttered out in shock.

"She's quite alive, I sure you," Demyx stated, making his presence known while staring down at the smiling girl.

"I'm still me," she grinned happily.

"This is unbelievable," he whispered in concern. Sora suddenly sat up, pulling Melody into his arms in a hug, surprising her.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again, do you hear me?" he half shouted into her shoulder. Melody's surprised expression turned into a soft smile as she returned the embrace.

"Hey, Sora?"

"Yeah, Mel?"

"I totally scared you." Sora pulled back and looked at her with a bewildered expression before a smile settled across his face.

"Yeah, I guess you did," he said sheepishly. "But don't get used to it, I won't let it happen again!"

"Whatever you say, dear cousin," she laughed. Riku and the rest of the gang appeared next to Demyx in the opened doorway and stared down at the two smiling teens.

"Melody!" Goofy and Donald shouted out in excitement and ran over to her, tackling her with hugs.

"Hey, guys," Melody laughed, hugging them back happily.

"Surpise," Riku said, helping Sora off the ground as Demyx helped up Melody.

"Surprise is right," Sora retorted. "where's Kairi?" he asked, noticing all but Kairi was present.

"I haven't seen her since we separated," Riku answered.

"Neither have we," Sora said, concern etching his face as he turned to Demyx and Melody in hope they had.

"Last time I saw her was when I was with you guys back in the Dome," Demyx said while Melody shook her head in response.

"Well I'm sure she's still searching for Xemnas," Riku said. "you know her, always going the extra mile to help you out."

"Yeah," Sora said, a light blush forming on his cheeks, causing every one to laugh.

"Shall we?" Demyx asked, holding his hand out to Melody after the laughter died down.

"To where?" she asked, placing her hand in his without a moments hesitation.

"Well if you're to save everyone, we might as well start by finding Xaldin and Xemnas," he answered, smiling affectionately at the Princess.

"And we'll all be right behind you to help," Sora said sincerely, everyone else nodding and muttering their agreements. Melody smiled at her friends, thanking the worlds for giving her such amazing people in her life.

"Thanks, guys. I knew I could count on you."

"Since our group grew, we could cover a lot more ground if we split up again," Riku suggested. "We can divide up into groups of two."

"Donald and I can back track and see if we come across Kairi," Goofy offered.

"Alright, then Sora and I will scale the higher floors for any signs of Organization members," Riku declared. "Demyx, you know this castle best; I'll leave finding Xemnas' where abbots up to you. Melody, you go with him."

"Right," Melody agreed. "Let's go."

"You take extra care of her, you hear me?" Sora told Demyx in all seriousness.

"I'll protect her with my life," Demyx swore, pulling Meldoy into him protectively.

"I know you will," Sora said, a small smile playing on his face. "Okay, time to go." With that said, the teens went their separate ways.

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Me: And there it is! Chapter Sixteen is finite!

Saix: And she even got a heads start on Chapter Seventeen!

Me: Though I'm not making any promises in how long it will take to post! Sorry guys, my life is unpredictable.

Melody: She found a new muse for inspiration though so I'm sure she'll be writing more often. And if you review, she may just be even more inspired to finally make Demyx and I confess our love to each other!

Demyx: Yeah!-Wait, what?

Me: Review!