A/N: We're winding it down, people. Really. Only a few more chapters to go. But, don't fear, the sequel will be up before Friday. In the last chapter, I'll tell you the name of it! Thank you for the feedback once again, I love you all. :D Uhm, so, I got a suggestion to make it M rated, and I will definitely think on it. (As of 2011: Yeah, no M-rating for any of my stories. Sorry. xD)

Disclaimer: I keep forgetting these... Let's have Keira announce things.

Keira: Why do I have to waste my breath on this?

Quince: Okay, I'll do it.

Keira: Hey!

Quince: -mutters something about women-

Keira: What was that?

Elie: These two will never shut up, Lollipop doesn't own anything from Kingdom Hearts. She doesn't own ANY of the songs in this fanfic, either.

"Quince, what's going on?" asked Keira in a desperate voice. The light was blinding her, so she couldn't even fathom looking back at him. She could sense trouble though she could not see it, and, in fact, she could not see much at all besides the wall she was struggling to hold up.

Quince inhaled deeply as he hugged her from behind. So surprised was she that she accidentally released Shadow Heart, not that it mattered much: the room was disappearing around her. Everywhere she looked was a bright white light.

XxX

The light was drawing nearer to them, and Kairi was both wondering why as well as fearful about what it might do to them. But before she could say anything, Naminé tapped her shoulder, and they stared at each other without speaking, though they reached some type of understanding. Both were inspired by the light. What else would be better to defeat a creature of darkness? Nearby, Yuffie and Tifa's carelessness resulted in them falling off Maleficent as she stood up on her hind legs. Everyone but the princesses were hit by the resulting shockwave.

Naminé and Kairi were clutching hands, the strange light from before surrounding and protecting them. Leon fired two shots from his Gunblade at Maleficent before she knocked him away with her large tail, and Yuffie ran over to check on him. Without any type of fear, the girls approached the dragon. The light from the castle affected all but the princesses, injuring Maleficent and blowing the others away. Kairi and Naminé's light intensified, hitting a peak, shooting off of their bodies like a rocket and homing in on the dragon.

Maleficent managed a weak roar as she began to fade into Naminé and Kairi's light before vanishing in thin air. The girls exchanged a satisfied glance before collapsing, though, fortunately, Roxas and Sora were there to catch them.

XxX

Though the darkness was exceedingly familiar to Keira, she did not find it any bit welcoming, especially when she found that she was alone. She called Quince's name several times, despite the fact that no one and nothing was in sight, and she felt her heart sink. 'I'm alone again.' When she turned her head, she found, with shock, Quince on his knees and quickly bent down to his level. Despite the eerie orange glow surrounding his body, she put her hands on his shoulders as she came to a horrific conclusion. "You're... fading away?" she mumbled, not understanding why this was happening and, at the same time, not wanting to understand at all.

He nodded slowly as he reached out to touch her face with one hand, taking one of her hands within his other. "Yeah, I guess I am." He laughed, but it was not bitter-sounded for a change; it was familiar and happy as it always had been.

She pursed her lips as tears began to blur her vision. "This isn't funny! You can't really plan on leaving me, not again."

Quince frowned back at her. "You're too pessimistic." She could only stare at him as a single, salty tear rolled down her cheek and onto his hand. "As usual, you worry too much," he added in a lighter voice. "I did this for you, so you better not regret it or throw it away."

Keira shook her head, deciding to simply not accept what was happening. "No. No, you're okay. You're just fine." She insisted. "This is just a power of yours, nothing more."

"You are so pathetic," he laughed; she realized he was teasing her. "You'd find a reason to excuse Global Warming if you could."

She did not laugh as more tears slid down her cheeks. "I am not pathetic; I just don't want to be alone. How am I supposed to get home?" Quince took his hand out of hers, wiping the tears off of her face before his lips brushed against hers. Keira returned it with eagerness, though it was not a normal kiss that a teenager should have. She put all of her emotions into it, communicating her begging that he stay with her as the tears fell more freely from her eyes.

"Follow the light in your heart, it will always guide you," he said with a smile as they broke apart and he released her face. They stood, and she threw her arms around him, making it very obvious that she was not letting him go without a struggle. Despite her grip on him, she could feel his body fading from her grip as the orange light engulfed his body further. "Don't worry; I'll always be with you, Stef." His words continued even after his body disappeared, and Keira's body shook as she fell to her knees and allowed the sadness to overtake her.

XxxxxX

Roxas and Sora carried Kairi and Naminé on their backs as they returned to Betwixt and Between. Axel had summoned a portal that brought them close to the beginning of the World that Never Was, where they found the rest of the Princesses of Heart awaiting them. "Thank you for your help," said Cinderella as she inclined her head; the others chorused her.

"Do you all need a way to get home?" asked Sora as he shifted Kairi's weight.

The princesses shook their heads. "Oh, no, don't worry. Last time we were just brought back," Belle told them with her beautiful smile. As she spoke, she and her others were engulfed by a warm light. "Like this."

"Take care, everyone," called Aurora before she and the others disappeared before their eyes.

Yuffie, despite herself, yawned before informing the others, "We'll take the portal to Betwixt and Between and then take the Gummi Ship to the Radiant Garden."

Riku's eyebrows knitted together. "One Gummi Ship, won't that be a little...?"

The King cut him off, "I had Chip and Dale help Cid make a big Gummi Ship. Let's get goin', fellas." With that, he entered the black and green portal with Donald and Goofy. Yuffie, supporting a limping Leon , followed next, then Sora and Roxas. An uncharacteristically silent Elie followed, mourning the loss of her old friend and cousin. Cloud, Tifa, and Riku did not follow immediately, stopping to stare up at Kingdom Hearts.

Tifa spoke first. "She's not gone."

"How do you know?" asked Cloud and Riku in unison.

Tifa simply smiled. "Light never fades; we'll be seeing her again someday, you'll see." And, with that, she limped into the portal as well with Cloud close behind, only limping a little. The destruction of the castle had taken quite the toll on everyone.

Riku took one final look at the moon, at the great Kingdom Heartsas memories floated through his head. "Give up?" mocked Keira as she flipped over Riku and landed near where Sora had crashed the Gummi ship by the Castle's gates... He saw himself mock-bow at Keira outside of Beast's ballroom as she rolled her eyes at him and whispered, "So, do you know how to dance, or should I lead?" To which he snorted, "Of course I know how to dance, I'm just no good at it." Then, his thoughts, for the first time in a while, returned to the last time they had been together, hanging out at an outdoor cafe back in Radiant Garden, shortly before Aerith was killed. He managed a weak smile. "Take care of yourself, Stefa," he murmured the name for the first time before he also disappeared within the portal.

XxxxxX

Keira had not moved from her spot in the darkness. She assumed a decent amount of time had passed, but, having no idea where to go and no will to move at any rate, she did not care. Her tears had finally stopped and dried on her face and, though she felt alone and melancholy, she was no longer frightened. Hissing a sigh from between her lips, she finally stood up and glanced around. "Guess I can't stay here forever. The light... will guide me," she decided. As quickly as she said it, her heart fluttered, and light began to appear in the distance, slowly expanding. She hesitated for just a moment before running toward it, entering the world as Stefa once again.

XxxxxX

Once they returned to the Radiant Garden, everyone who was seriously injured retired to their rooms. Cloud helped Tifa to hers, as did Roxas and Sora with Naminé and Kairi. Yuffie remained with Leon. Riku quickly realized that he could not remain in the house for long as the bittersweet memories from the journey continued to plague hum, so he left and sat on the ledge of the Borough so he could stare at the distant castle. "We won the battle, but I still kind of feel like we lost," he admitted once he realized that he was not alone.

King Mickey stood behind him, a sad smile on his face. With a small jump, he also joined the keyblade wielder. "Gosh, Riku, it's okay for you to feel that way." Riku noted that the mouse had lightened up a little since they left the World that Never Was.

"It is?" asked Riku with surprise as he turned toward Mickey.

Mickey nodded. "When ya lose someone important to ya, you'll always feel that way, even if you've won the battle. That's the beauty of darkness and light: which is why ya can't have one without the other, 'cause, otherwise, you'd just feel completely bad instead of even the tiniest bit good."

"Yeah," he agreed as he stared back at the castle. "Things'll turn out alright again, but what about the Organization?"

King Mickey chuckled. "Ah, Organization XIII, they'll always be runnin' away from battles. They'll stay gone for a while as they plan their next move, but they'll be back." He stated.

"We'll be ready the next time," he mumbled.

"You're right, we will," agreed Mickey. "In the meantime, try to enjoy yourself. Sora, Kairi, Naminé, and Roxas will need ya to be laid back and all when ya return home."

Aside from the distant cries of birds, there was silence for a long while as a breeze blew about Riku's hair. Then, he finally said, "Tifa said that light never fades. Do you think she was right?"

"Of course she was," answered Mickey with a smile. "Even if you're surrounded in complete darkness, you'll always be freed by the little bit of light that you can find."

'Trust me,' A familiar voice giggled, 'I would know. Now, be a good boy, Riku.' Riku's heart clenched at the sound and looked around, briefly, for its owner. He was disappointed to find no one else around. As Mickey continued on about something or other, he mumbled, "What?"

"I said, did you Sora, and Kairi return to school when ya got home last time?" repeated the king.

Riku forced himself out of his thoughts and focused on the conversation again. "Oh, school." He groaned, remembering the familiar brick building and his friends. "We're going to have a lot of explaining to do."

"That's for sure!" laughed Mickey.

XxX

A few weeks later, everyone was nearly healed completely. Some small cuts remained, but most of them had begun to turn into scars. The last days of Kairi, Roxas, Naminé, Sora, and Riku's time in the Radiant Garden were closing in, and they knew they'd soon have to return home and explain, yet again, why they had been gone for so long. On this day, however, Elie decided to take her leave.

She had become much better; at least, she wasn't as sad as she had been. However, it had been so long since she was home that she did not know what to expect. For a while now, she had been putting off her return to Jewel's Grove simply because she was afraid of what she would find. Elie conjured up a portal in the Marketplace where Sora, Roxas, Kairi, Riku and Naminé had joined her. "Sorry, I can't stick around for the party tonight, but I really should go home," she said with an apologetic smile.

"We could drop you off or something after, you know," offered Sora, his hand grasping Kairi's.

Elie's smile became sly. "I think you might be just a tad too busy." She replied before poking him in the nose. Roxas, Naminé, Riku, and Kairi laughed.

"We really could bring you back, though." Roxas said in a serious voice that didn't suit him. In the short amount of time they had come to know her, they had really come to appreciate her company.

Elie waved him off. "Nah. I can't wait until next time that we meet, and then you can meet the real hyper me." Sora laughed nervously as Kairi's hand broke away from his so she could hug the other wielder.

"Thanks for everything, Elie."

"Stay out of trouble now, Kairi," warned Elie with a grin as she summoned a portal and waved at the others. "You know, this is the last time that I can, or should, use this, probably. Tell everyone else bye for me. Have fun at your little party," she added as she disappeared into the portal.

"Let's go and see what we can do to help out." Naminé suggested. The others agreed, and they headed for the castle. When they had reached the castle's ballroom (A/n: Added this, probably isn't really in the game), they found it already decorated with a stereo, a bar (whose bartender was going to be none other than Tifa), lights, and many other important things.

Cid was arguing with Merlin about something while Yuffie, grasping Leon's hand, led him to different areas of the room. "Leon! Yuffie!" called Roxas, drawing their attention.

Leon raised an eyebrow at them. "What're all of you doing here?"

"Oh, thanks," said Kairi, feigning hurt. "I guess you don't want us around."

"Very funny, you know what I meant."

Naminé smiled. "We wanted to see if we could help with anything."

"Nothing at all," chirped Yuffie. "It's thanks to you that all of the worlds are safe... for now," she added, knowing that the worlds were never truly safe, especially with the Organization still out there somewhere.

"Yeah, but you helped," pointed out Riku.

Yuffie countered, "But you did most of the work."

"Alright, alright," Leon cut in before the two of them began to fight. "Why don't you go see what the others are doing, or something?"

"Or 'something'?" asked Kairi, her lips stretching into a devious smile.

Leon raised his eyebrows. "Hey, hey, none of that; none of you are even legal yet."

"Two years," noted Riku.

"Three," added the others.

Leon shook his head. "Just go."

"Alright, alright," agreed Sora as they began to walk away.

Yuffie's voice reached them as they exited the room. "We'll see you tonight at five!"

XxX

The following evening, Naminé and Kairi decided to dress for the occasion. They did not wear really fancy dresses, but something a little different. Kairi wore a blue sun dress with flowers while Naminé wore a slightly ruffled red dress with her hair in a high ponytail (a real red daisy in her hair). After insisting that they loved Roxas and Sora's normal outfits, the boys did not wear anything out of the norm..

Axel, however, was a different story. He had finally gotten rid of his Organization coat and Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather decided to help out one last time. He wore a white shirt beneath a black jacket with black jeans that had various chains on it. "I like this outfit," declared Axel as he entered the castle with Roxas, Naminé, Sora and Kairi.

Naminé grinned up at him. "Doesn't have that Organization XIII feel anymore, huh?"

"Definitely my own," he agreed before asking, on a new note, "What are we all going to do when we're through here? You know, living arrangements-wise." They fell silent as they sat on the idea.

"We're definitely returning to the Islands," said Sora. "I'd hate not being there."

Kairi nodded her agreement as she turned toward the others. "What about you three? I thought you were going to stay at Roxas's Twilight Town?" Naminé and Roxas exchanged a brief glance.

"Well, we were thinking on it," began Naminé.

"And that would probably be the first place that the Organization would look for us," finished Roxas.

Naminé nodded and raised her index finger. "Although the islands would be the second, we couldn't stand not returning there with you and Riku." Axel rubbed the back of his head with unease, and she looked at him. "But, since we weren't planning on living with Sora, Riku or Kairi, we need someone who could pose as our guardian, so the three of us can live together, Axel."

At her unasked question, he smiled. "Thanks, I'd be glad to." Their conversation halted as they reached the Postern, and looked up at Hollow Bastion, which looked much better than it had in quite a while.

Sora glanced around as he suddenly realized something. "Anyone see Riku?"

Kairi bit her lip. "No, but you can't really expect otherwise, can you?" she asked as they entered the castle and took one of the lifts.

Sora sighed and shook his head. "I guess not."

Roxas decided to change the subject. "They sure did what they could to make this place look exactly as it did before." His heart still contained the memories of his previous life, Sora's life.

The subject immediately became depressing again as Naminé spoke. "I feel kind of bad," she mumbled, resting her hand on her chest. "The only reason we have these hearts is because Keira somehow made them for us. She made us whole, apart from Sora and Kairi."

Roxas nodded. "I know what you mean."

"I feel kind of good," stated Axel, drawing wondrous stares from the wielders. "Keira was never forced to give the Organization hearts," he reminded the others, who laughed as they entered the ballroom.

Nearly everyone in the Radiant Garden could be found at the party. Because of this, entering and exiting the dance floor was nearly a matter of life or death, or, rather, life or getting stepped on. They all took part in dancing at some point and, after several quick-paced songs, Sora and Kairi retreated to the bar. "What brings you two over here?" asked Tifa with a wide, knowing smile.

"Drinks," Kairi panted. "Please?"

Tifa decided to have a little fun with them. "What kind of drinks?"

"Don't give them such a hard time," said someone else from behind the bar. Cloud walked up the counter and slid two mugs topped with foam their way. "Root beer," he added at the almost surprised expressions on their faces.

"Thanks." Sora downed his entire drink in two sips.

Tifa abruptly tore herself away from the teenagers as she looked over to a spot where a couple of children appeared to be causing a bit of trouble: a woman, covered in dark liquid, was yelling at Marlene and Denzel. "Oh, no," groaned Tifa before running off to see what had happened. Cloud very nearly chuckled as he moved to serve another customer.

Sora turned in the stool so that he was facing Kairi. "I've got something for you," he announced.

She tilted her head to the side a little. "You do? What?"

"Close your eyes and give me your hand." She followed his instructions as he dug into his pockets and fished out a silver and purple-lined ring with an engraving. He slid it onto one of her fingers. "Open them."

Kairi read the engraving, "'My destiny, for my love, Kairi.' Oh, it's so pretty, Sora. Thank you!" She threw her arms around his neck.

Sora returned the embrace, a blush coloring his cheeks. "Uh, it's kind of a promise ring," he said in such a quiet voice that she had to strain her ears to hear him. She simply giggled and kissed his lips. A little later, they met Roxas, Naminé, and Axel on the dance floor.

"Roxas gave you one, too, huh?" asked Kairi as she and Naminé read the other's ring. Naminé's read: 'Dearly beloved, my Naminé.' Hers was silver, where Kairi's was gold, with a blue stripe instead of a purple one. "Cute!" They said in unison. Suddenly the fast song ended and a slower one began.

A slow song began to play as a woman began, in a Russian accent, "What I thought wasn't mine, in the light, was one of a kind, a precious pearl." Naminé and Kairi really got into the song, belting out the lyrics as they slow danced with their boyfriends. When the song finished, it seemed that the entire room had heard her, for everyone clapped for them. Though they blushed, the group of them moved to join Axel back at the bar. Once everyone had glasses in hand, Naminé and Kairi chorused, "To Keira." They knocked their glasses together before taking a drink; Sora, Roxas, and Axel mimicked their actions. Finally, Yuffie, who was wearing the ninja outfit Sora remembered from his first journey, lightly tapped a spoon against her glass (Sora was quite surprised; he thought, for sure, that she would bang loudly on the crystalline) from her spot by the stereo, which Cid turned down.

Though Yuffie was not the type to make a toast, she spoke in a loud voice, "Tonight, we all know what we're here for. We're here because, once again, Sora has helped save the worlds, but he wasn't the only one." She raised her glass, which was filled with a dark red liquid. "To Sora, the Keyblade Master," Everyone in the room mimicked her actions, "To Roxas, the brave keyblade wielder, to Naminé, the brave eighth princess, to Kairi, the seventh Princess of Heart.

Roxas continued the toast, "To Axel, the newly reformed ex-Organization member." Axel playfully punched him in the arm as laughs echoed around the room.

Axel continued, "To Tifa, the kick ass martial artist." Whistles and cheers sounded in the room and the never shy Tifa blushed as she laughed.

"To Cloud," She announced, raising her glass and revealing a beautiful ring, "My husband-to-be for defeating Sephiroth, helping tame the other princess, and helping to kick ass." The room cheered its loudest as the man in question planted a kiss on her waiting lips.

Smirking, Cid continued, "To Marlene and Denzel for causin' trouble where it don't seem possible for trouble to occur." The children blinked and stepped away from the table of sweets with sheepish expression as everyone laughed and toasted.

"To the Great Ninja Yuffie for kicking butt!" Naminé, Kairi, Sora, Roxas, Tifa, Leon, and several others toasted.

"To Squall Leonhart for restoring this Castle to its original glory and helping me to kick butt," grinned Yuffie; everyone in the room was surprised when he did not correct her.

Leon raised his glass. "To King Mickey, Goofy, and Donald for every fight they have ever fought to keep the worlds safe." Goofy sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, while Donald quacked with happiness, and the King squeaked a laugh.

Tifa grinned. "To Cid Highwind and Merlin for keeping each other under control, for the most part."

Cloud finally raised his own glass. "To Aerith for always being brave and keeping her positive front no matter what was happening." Different comments were shouted by some as the rest cheered: "To Aerith."

Riku, who had been sitting in a less populated section of the room, looked up as Sora and Kairi said, "To Riku for winning his battle against the darkness, helping kick Xemnas's ass twice, and being one of the best friends ever."

"Thanks," he said with a smile. "And to Princess Stefa for helping us defeat the darkness, keeping everyone in check, and for being a great friend."

As he sipped his own drink, absolutely everyone in the room repeated him, even Marlene and Denzel: "To Stefa!" There was a mixture of people who also shouted 'To Keira!' Following this, the music was turned back up, and people returned to the dance floor, but Riku stood and decided it was time for him to get out of there.

As he stepped into the hallway and shuffled into a lift, he heard the voice from the Borough mumble, "Hey, make your way to me, to me... And always be just so inviting. If I ever start to think straight, this heart will start a riot in me. Let's start, start, hey!" The voice became particularly enthusiastic at the ending lyrics, and he smiled, though it disappeared when the voice did not speak again. How was life going to be after this?

A/N: And that's it for this chapter! It's short and was pretty much uneventful, but what can I say? Heh. Alright, the credits for the two songs are: "Gomen Nasai" by Tatu and "That's What You Get." by Paramore. I'm sure you can figure out which song is which. See you next chapter!