Chapter 23
The ghostly figures, mainly because you could see right through them, had stopped just outside of the large hole. Roxas had his hands in his pockets, his demeanor cool and collected. Naminé smiled, her hands clasped lightly in front of her as usual. "Hello again Kairi, Sora," she said in her quiet voice.
"Hey Sora, nice to finally meet you," Roxas said. Sora stared at him, finally realizing why everyone was presuming him to be Roxas: they looked exactly the same – well, except for hairstyle and choice of clothing. The two newcomers looked around, their smiles completely oblivious to the obvious problem. "So, why the long faces?" Roxas asked.
"Well…" Goofy began, unsure of where to start. "You see, this girl here, she's…"
"Geni," Naminé supplied. Seven faces turned to her inquiringly. "We met when she entered the castle before," she added quickly.
"And you didn't stop her?" Riku said softly, his tone dripping with accusation.
"Why would I? She had just as much of a right to be here as any of you," Naminé said carefully. "Probably even more so."
"Considering she used to live here as well," Roxas added.
"That's not the point," Naminé said as she turned to face him. "The fight against the darkness was not only for the Keyblade masters and Riku with the darkness in his heart. The darkness had stolen something precious from her long ago, remember? Her life."
"Her…life? What do you mean?" Sora said. He had still not moved from his sister's side; none of them had really. "I mean, she was still here only moments ago. The darkness took half of her heart, nothing more."
"I'm sorry, but you're quite wrong, Sora. Yes, Geni's heart was taken, but what the Heartless left her was much worse. She had no life; she couldn't do anything, she couldn't go anywhere, and everyone would treat her as if she were crippled."
"But…"
"We only did that because Geni didn't have the strength or stamina of average people," King Mickey finally interjected.
"Did she?" Naminé wondered aloud.
"Of course not. She would get tired from walking around her room, for goodness sakes. That's why we kept her inside the castle, just in case she collapsed or got sick."
"So you were helping her then."
"Where are you going with this Naminé?" Riku finally said as he glared at her.
"All I'm saying is that it didn't sound like Geni had a life, that she really lived, to me."
"And how would you know that?"
"I may be a Nobody," she shrugged, "But I think that I've seen more of this universe, and done a lot more than she ever has, in my short existence."
"Geni had everything she could have ever wanted," King Mickey said as he walked over to her, his anger beginning to show. "She had teachers and tutors, books, her own room, anything she could ever need. She could even learn everything and anything she wanted to."
"Yes, you gave her all of that and she learned. But, what about what she wanted to do, what she couldn't learn from all of that?"
Kairi interjected before anyone else became angry. "Well, what did Geni want to do Naminé?"
"To see other worlds, make new friends, meet her brother, and be herself once more."
"She did do all of that," Sora protested.
Roxas finally spoke up. "Sure she did. But did she ever remember any of it? Did you ever ask her about it?" He gaze passed from Sora, Riku, Donald, Goofy, and finally to King Mickey. "All of the missions the Organization gave to her were erased from her memories. All she knew was the castle and The World That Never Was. So she has only really visited one world besides her homes in Hollow Bastion and Disney Castle. You limited her freedom yourselves; you didn't allow her to grow into her own being. All of you, in one way or another save for Kairi, made the chains binding her grow in strength all the time."
"Keeping her in the castle, keeping her quiet and subdued, keeping her from helping to destroy the Heartless and Nobodies, allowing her to help but only in the smallest way possible…" Naminé's list kept growing until Riku had finally had it.
"But we did that to protect her!" Riku finally shouted.
"So you call this protecting her? By letting her sacrifice herself for your sakes? Even for a plan that she already knew was going to fail?" Roxas said as he gestured towards the pale girl on the ground. At this, no one could meet his words or his eyes. Riku, Sora, Kairi, King Mickey, Donald, and Goofy all knew that what he spoke was the truth.
"We tried; we ran as fast as we could…we defeated them as quickly as possible…" Donald warbled as he tried to offer up an explanation to their inquisitors.
"You tried?" Roxas said.
"Were you trying hard…or hardly trying?" Naminé said suggestively.
"NO!" Sora stood as he shouted, his blue eyes still shining with a few unshed tears. "None of us wanted this, and we tried as hard as any of us could to prevent it. I didn't want Geni to come along because if she stayed at the castle while we battled the Organization, if we defeated them, maybe then there would have been a way to restore her heart…somehow…"
"So all of this…all this battling…was for her? To help her? To save her?" Roxas inquired. His eyes glanced briefly to Naminé, sparkling with mischief.
"Yes." This time it was Kairi who answered. She stood up next to Sora, her fingers entwined with his. "That is all any of us ever wanted to accomplish since we met her."
Roxas and Naminé looked to each other, and smiled. "Well, if you feel so strongly about it, then why don't we?" Naminé said. The six people in front of her stared at her like deer in a car's headlights.
"Help her? How?" Goofy asked, scratching his head.
"Kingdom Hearts has already taken her heart," Donald supplemented. "And King Mickey even said that…she's gone…"
"Is she really?" Naminé said. "Sora, what about the stone Geni gave you and its special properties?" Sora looked confused for a moment, until he started grabbing for the cord under his shirt. Finally plucking it out, he stared at it in amazement. The little crystal still had a tinge of purple to it; it was faint, but it was still there.
"But…that's not possible…" Sora thought out loud. "It's still glowing a little. Somehow she's still alive." Several gasps were heard around him. Kairi bent to see the crystal better.
"What does this mean then? Since her heart is gone, and now her body…" Kairi interjected.
"What if someone else had taken it first?" Roxas said with a grin.
"Who?" King Mickey asked, all anger drained from him.
Roxas turned back towards the tear, and called into it. "Hey! You're on, you two!" More blurry shapes began to appear like before, and soon the fuzzy shape split into two distinct forms. As they walked out of the portal, Sora, Donald, Goofy, and King Mickey gasped in shock.
"Axel!" Sora shouted, running up to the supposedly dead Nobody.
"Hey," he said. He was still wearing his robe from Organization XIII, and looking pretty good except he was see through like Roxas and Naminé. "Got someone for you to meet," he said as he stepped aside.
Sora had his second heart attack of the day when he beheld the person standing behind Axel. The person was a girl, and that girl was the twin of the one lying on the ground not too far behind him. She, unlike Axel, Naminé, and Roxas, was completely solid. Of course, she had her own obvious differences; her hair was tied into two spiky buns behind her ears and she had two long spikes framing her face that were dyed purple. Besides her eccentric hairstyle, her clothing was rather plain. She was wearing a pair of long black pants, and a blue tank top over a black one that had its straps slid down onto her arms. She was also wearing a pair of black boots, and had a necklace with a heart locket on it similar to the one Geni had back at the Disney Castle. Sora could only stand there with his mouth open in amazement. "Wh-who are you?" he finally spit out.
"My name is Cirèna," she said with a smile. "And you must be Sora. I've wanted to meet you for so long, and Geni too. But I believe that our first meeting must also be our last, for her sake."
"This is Geni's Nobody," Axel explained after still seeing many blank looks directed towards them. "However, Cirèna is more than a Nobody: she is also part human as well."
"That's incredible!" King Mickey said, walking over to her. "How is that possible?" he asked Axel, quite intrigued by her as he walked around her and inspected her closely.
"Well…it all began twelve years ago…"
"Hold it Axel." Riku had now stood up to join the group. "First things first, how are you all here?" he asked, using his arm to gesture to the four of them. "And didn't you use up all of your power in the void before?" Sora added.
"Sheesh, one question at a time. For one thing, yes I did – and dying is a good a word as any to use for what happened. When Nobodies use up all of their power, they disappear back into the nothingness. However, the three of us didn't for some reason. Before I completely disappeared, I saved some of my power to open one last portal to The World That Never Was for Geni after she followed you. Once I did that, I found myself standing in an empty place – was really foggy though – with Roxas and Naminé here. Don't ask me where we were, because none of us still have any idea."
"Anyway," Roxas said, giving Axel a look, "for some reason all of us just appeared there. For me, it seemed only moments from when we joined back in Twilight Town. For Axel, only moments after he opened the portal. And for Naminé, moments after she met Geni down by the bridge. None of us knew what was going on, but soon the fog began to lift and we found ourselves in a strange room. And Cirèna was there waiting for us."
"I knew that it would happen one day, that someone would come for me when the time came," Cirèna finally said. "You see, I've been in existence since Geni's heart was taken from her when she was three. However, even though I was a typical Nobody – the body left over after the heart leaves – I had one thing not one Nobody in existence ever did have: a heart. For some reason, the half of Geni's heart that was taken was transferred into me. So, I'm really half Nobody and half human."
"So that's what happened," King Mickey mused.
"Exactly. I was born into the universe at 3 years old, and have been growing since then like any other human would. However, I have always had the knowledge of a Nobody and the knowledge that my existence was only temporary. I was taken in by a kind family on the world that I happened to arrive on, and have been living there since with some knowledge of the Heartless. But, since I was created from Geni, I knew I must eventually return my borrowed life to her. And so I have waited."
"So that's it? You're just going to give up your life, just like that?" Kairi asked, slightly awed by her bravery, but also confused. "What about your own life? You still have your own heart, so you are your own person."
"I don't regret the life I've lived," Cirèna said with a smile. "I've had a family, plenty of friends, and many experiences to make memories with. I've even felt emotion, something no other Nobody has done. I've lived my life to its fullest with the gift that was granted to me, and now it is time to return the favor."
"How?" Sora asked.
"By giving Geni back what is rightfully hers. I have been safekeeping this since it came to me only a short time ago." Cirèna undid the clasp to her locket, all the while walking towards Sora. Holding it out in front of her, she said, "Watch." The locket began to glow, and the hinge on one side opened with a click. Light began to trickle out of the locket and hover above it, until it had emptied. It swirled around in a small tornado until it began to take shape. And that shape was heart-shaped, halfway. "I believe this is Geni's?" she said, knowing obviously it was hers.
"Geni's heart!" Sora shouted with joy. "But how –?!"
"Her heart sought its other half, mine. It suddenly appeared in front of me, and I knew it was time to go home. I know that Geni is gone; I felt her presence disappear just before we arrived. However, since I am half human and full of life force, when I join her heart with mine inside of her body, it should bring her back." And with that, hope was rekindled in all hearts present. "However…"
"What?" Riku said quickly.
"There is also a slightly possibility that Geni's body would still reject the transfer, and all of this would be in vain."
"But…there is still the possibility that it will work, right? We have to try," Sora said earnestly.
Cirèna smiled at him. "I knew you would say that." She turned towards the other Nobodies. "Thanks, you three, for all that you've done."
"Hey, no problem," Roxas said. "It's about time we got going." Roxas, Axel, and Naminé stepped back into the rift of light.
"Hey, don't forget about us now!" Axel said as he waved goodbye. The rift slowly began to close on the three friends.
"Never," Sora said definitively as he watched the three of them disappear. "Where are they going?"
"I don't know," Cirèna answered with a shrug. They stared in silence until a polite cough interrupted them. "Um, shall we get started?" Cirèna said. "I don't know what will happen, so you all might want to take a step back or two. What I do know is that her body will be restored first, followed by her spirit, mind, magic, etcetera. As to how exactly…I have no idea." They nodded, and the six of them retreated a good fifteen feet away from Geni's still body and Cirèna holding her heart in her hands.
"Hey, Cirèna?" She looked up, and saw Riku watching her with an intense gaze.
"Yes?"
"Thank you, for doing this for her. You know, you could have kept her heart for yourself and become fully human. Yet you willingly are going to give up your own existence just to try and bring back hers. Not many people are that brave."
"It's no big deal," she replied. "I only hope that it works. Wish me luck!" After several well wishes and thumbs up, Cirèna knelt down next to Geni. She took the staff that was wrapped in her hands and replaced it in its holster at her waist. Her hands were shaking, and she hoped none of them noticed. Yes, she was happy, but still scared as to what would happen to both of them. Would one survive and one not, or would they both fall in the end? Please, please, let this work, she thought to herself.
Taking Geni's heart in her right hand, she picked up one of Geni's hands with her left. Suddenly, her body and the heart began to glow softly. The heart flew gently from Cirèna's hands and disappeared into Geni's chest. Cirèna herself began to fade, her light transferring from herself to Geni. When the light had completely disappeared...nothing happened. Didn't it work? Did Geni's body reject the hearts and the life force?
Suddenly, light burst forth out of Geni's chest in long tendrils which surrounded her in a swirling vortex. It lifted her body up off of the ground, her legs and arms dangling slightly below her. The vortex of light was solid, an impenetrable barrier surrounding her. It was also very bright and very windy, to say the least. The six hopefuls watched this event with shielded eyes, but also peaked through their fingers hoping to see something miraculous happen.
"What's going on?" Kairi said, her hands shielding her face.
"Well, my guess is on what Cirèna said. Geni's body is being restored, and whatever goes along with that," Riku assumed. What he wasn't revealing was his personal doubts. You can't really bring anyone back from the dead, can you? Riku didn't think any of them could stand another death today – especially if it was the same person who had died before. His feelings were about to be put to the test, for at that moment the vortex began to dim and slow as well. Geni was gradually falling back to the ground, the light continuing to fade until it was a dim glow on her skin. Gently she was set on the ground; but even as the light finally faded away she did not stir. They waited several moments, hoping for some kind of sign. When finally nothing appeared to have changed, Riku was the first to go and investigate.
As he walked over to Geni's body, he noticed that the necklace Cirèna had had was now around Geni's neck. Other than that, Riku didn't notice any obvious changes to her appearance. Her skin looked slightly more pinkish than it had been, and so Riku wanted to see if it had worked or not. He was about to pick up one of her hands when everything around him was engulfed in darkness.
It was pitch black, and he couldn't see anything around him. The top of the castle had disappeared along with his friends, including Geni. He could see himself for some reason, and tried waving his arms in the darkness around him. Feeling nothing, Riku wondered what in the world had happened.
He stood up, and began walking around to see if anything revealed itself. He didn't have to wait for long, because after a few dozen steps he found himself in a long hallway full of different colored doors. Some were bright and cheery, while a few were dark and dismal. What is this place? Riku thought to himself.
"Well, well. I didn't expect this to happen." Riku looked around for the voice, preparing to deploy his Keyblade. "Over here, Riku." He looked towards where he thought the voice was originating from, and low and behold, through a small hallway to his left was a large common room of sorts. Cirèna was standing in the middle of it, looking tired.
"Cirèna? What's going on?" Riku asked as he joined her in the large, domed room.
"Welcome to Geni's heart, Riku."
Riku stared at her. "You mean I'm inside of her?"
"Sort of. This particular space exists inside of everyone to hold their thoughts and memories."
"So what am I doing here then? I was just going to check to see if what you had done had worked and then I find myself here."
"I believe – and I am guessing here – that Geni's body has restored itself, yes. But her heart must be unlocked; somehow, I think she locked it up just in case there was a way to revive her. Locking it like this was an easy way to make sure that her memory wasn't erased when she was brought back."
"Makes sense," Riku said slowly. "But, why am I here?"
"My guess is that you have something to do with unlocking it. If you can find the key, she'll wake up." At this, Cirèna began to disappear.
"Hey, wait! Aren't you going to help me?"
"Good luck Riku!" is all that she said before she smiled and vanished.
"Fine then," Riku mumbled. "What kind of key unlocks someone's heart, besides a Keyblade, anyway?" Not knowing where he was going, Riku began walking around observing the doors in the general area. He chanced opening a bright red door, and when he swung it open he was rewarded with a memory of when Geni was little and playing with a star-shaped doll. Closing that, he walked toward a dark gray door and opened that. Inside was a large bedroom that was unoccupied; however, it seemed like a small tornado had ripped through it – there were books, bottles, clothes, and miscellaneous things strewn all over. Riku closed that door as well and sighed.
"I guess finding this key won't be that easy," he thought. He turned around and walked back out of the room and back onto what he thought was the main hallway. As he walked, he noticed how quiet it was. There was not a sound, nothing besides his own breathing. And when he suddenly heard crying coming from somewhere in front of him, it startled him to say the least. As he went forward, the crying became louder and louder until he came to a four way cross section in the middle of the hallway. Looking around, he finally saw another room like the one Cirèna had been in before. In the middle of it was a little girl, crying her eyes out. Riku carefully walked toward her, not knowing what she might be. "Hello?" he ventured.
The little girl looked up and Riku got a shock. It was a miniature version of Geni, probably when she was around seven years old or so. "Who-who're you?" she said, hiccupping.
"My name is Riku," he said gently as he walked over and kneeled in front of her. "And what's you're name?"
"Geni," she said, brushing the tears from her eyes.
"What's the matter?" Riku asked. "Why were you crying?"
"Because everyone's gone and left me in the dark," she said. "I don't like the dark; there are things in it," she said with a shudder.
Riku smiled; she seemed like any other little kid he had met. "Well, I don't think there are any of those…things…around here. How about this: I'll help you find everyone if you help me find something too."
Little Geni looked up at him with a huge smile, and jumped to her feet. "Okee-dokee! What are you looking for?"
"Well, it's a key." Little Geni thought hard for a moment, her face scrunched up in thought. As she thought, Riku had a moment to really look at her. It was Geni alright, but her clothes were strange looking. She had on some puffy looking pants that got wider at the bottom that promptly bunched up at the ankle, with some ballet slipper type shoes on her feet, and a skirt that was cut into large sections on the front and back and smaller ones on the sides. She had on a shirt with long sleeves attached that flared at the hand, and some kind of leather chest protector on over that which only covered her upper chest area and back. The skirt was embroidered with strange designs that Riku didn't recognize.
That doesn't look like anything she would wear at the castle, he thought. His musings were interrupted when Little Geni starting squirming.
"What does it look like?" Little Geni asked after a moment.
"Well, I don't really know," Riku answered truthfully.
"How can we find it if we don't know what it looks like!" she said with exasperation. "You're weird. But…" she started twiddling her fingers and looked towards the floor.
"Yes?" Riku said as he stood up.
"Can you still help me find everyone?"
"Of course."
"Yippee! Then let's go!" Little Geni ran forward and grabbed his hand and practically dragged him out into the hallway.
"Do you know where you are going?" Riku asked, slightly suspicious.
"Nope!" the little one said happily. Riku sighed, and Little Geni led him through countless corridors, past hundreds of doors, until Riku had no idea where they were anymore. The corridors seemed to be all the same, except for the door colors that constantly changed. Soon, they came to another cross section in the hallway, and at this point Little Geni paused. "Hmm, this way looks a little familiar," as she looked to her left. "We must be getting close."
"To what?" Riku asked, confused enough already.
"To her place, of course," she replied with a giggle.
"Who?"
"The old lady," she said almost reverently. "She knows everything around here. Maybe she knows where everyone is and where your key is."
"Then let's go find her," Riku replied. Little Geni nodded, and she pulled on his arm and they took the left corridor. Not long after they came to a split, but Riku could see another one of those domed rooms ahead of them again. However, this room was not filled with doors, but windows. As they entered the room, Riku noticed someone was sitting on an overstuffed chair in the middle of the room. They were reading a thick book, and seemed not to have noticed their entrance, until… "Hey, old lady! Lady!" Little Geni let go of Riku's hand and ran in front of the chair and waved her arms around to get the woman's attention.
Riku couldn't have told if it was a woman anyway because of the dark cloak she was wearing. It draped all the way to her feet and her fingertips, and her face was shrouded by a large hood.
"Well hello little one. It seems you have brought a new friend with you." The lady swiveled and faced Riku. "And who are you, young man?"
"My name is Riku," he said politely. "And who are you, if you don't mind me asking?"
"Oh, no one in particular," she dismissed with a wave of her hand.
"What about me?" Little Geni burst out, her hands making little fists on her hips.
"Oh, I'm sorry," the lady said with a laugh. She pulled a little package from one of her sleeves and handed it to the little girl. "Here you are."
Little Geni squealed in glee and took the package while squeaking out a thank you. She promptly sat down and opened it, revealing several pieces of chocolate. "Now, for you," she said. With a wave of her hand, a chair appeared behind Riku. She placed a bookmark onto her page and set the book down beside her. "Please, have a seat. Now how may I help you?"
Riku sat down in the simple wooden chair she had provided. "Actually, I was told by Cirèna to look for a key, somewhere here in Geni's heart. Do you know what she was talking about at all?"
"I see," the lady said. "I have been watching through the windows here." She gestured towards the windows surrounding them. "These windows show me her present situation, as well as events currently happening at the same time on any world I please. I know what Cirèna did, and why you are here now. I was the one who locked up Geni's heart, to prevent us from vanishing if you did happen to succeed. Now as for that key, you are it."
"Excuse me?!" Riku exclaimed.
"Yes. You see, when someone locks themselves away, or turns in upon themselves in times of despair or distress, it takes someone who is very close to them to open them up again to the world around them. As you know, we are memories. Well, at least the little one is. She represents Geni's past."
"I see," Riku murmured.
"And I represent her future. You are probably wondering why you cannot see my face, correct?"
"A little," Riku admitted.
"I have none, because the future is never set in stone. There are thousands of choices made each day, and each one leads us to a different future that we create for ourselves. So I am always changing, always evolving. To unlock Geni's heart, you need to find her present – who she is at this very moment. But to do that, you must see something else first."
"What is that?"
"A part of Geni's recent past, which might dramatically affect her future with all of you." The lady finally stood up, and headed to a window directly in front of them. She was slender and graceful, and tall as well – only and inch or so taller than Riku at that moment. She motioned for Riku to join her. Riku followed her, and gazed in wonder at the shifting scenes upon the glass. "Pay attention," she commanded. Riku nodded, and with a wave of her hand the glass shifted one last time.
A bright city, with many of the buildings made of some kind of light colored stone, was spread as far as the eye could see. Waterways ran throughout the region, and he could see boats cruising up and down them. Large buildings were interspersed with the smaller ones, and everywhere he looked he could see people bustling about. The picture slowly focused in on a large domed building in the center of the city. It kept closing the distance to the building until suddenly the scene changed and Riku assumed they must be inside of the building. In reality the building was actually a huge stadium, and thousands upon thousands of people were in it. Even though the room was completely silent, aside from occasional crinkling of plastic from behind them, Riku could tell they were cheering at something on the stadium floor. The picture zoomed in until it was on the lowest level of seating, and Riku could make out that two people were fighting each other.
"Wha-?" he began as he looked towards the lady, before she cut him off.
"Watch," she again commanded. Riku sighed, and turned his attention back to the window. Now the window was focusing the picture even more until Riku could see the fighters clearly. He could see that one was a man at least a half a foot or more taller than the other, with a fair complexion and raven black hair. The other was turned away from him, but Riku immediately recognized who it was once their weapon came into view after their current grappling session: a long black staff etched with runes.
Geni?! But who is she fighting? Riku wondered as he watched two of them battle. He also quickly realized that Geni was wearing an outfit similar to what Little Geni was wearing right now.
If she's not at the castle, then where is she? Also, if this was recent, how is she fighting with that kind of strength? he wondered. Riku was witnessing devastating attacks, physical, magical, and elemental, that were wreaking havoc upon each other and the arena. After a moment, the battle came to an end when Geni put the last of her power into one final attack and the man flew across the ground and slammed into the wall. He did not get up, and after a moment Geni too swayed and fell to the ground unconscious. At this point the window darkened, and went back to showing random blurred images.
"What…was that?" Riku asked slowly. "Why was Geni fighting that person?"
"You must understand, Riku. First of all, it is not my place to say anything. Secondly, you will forget everything you saw here once Geni awakens."
"But why? Isn't what you showed me supposed to be important?"
"It is, yes. That battle decided a certain path Geni's life might take. To take that path, she needs the support of her family and friends because on that path she just might have to leave them behind."
"And just what does that mean?" Riku demanded. "'Leave us behind'?"
"That is all you need to know, or not know in any case. Since you will be forgetting, you will only have a feeling, a vague memory when this comes to be. For now, though, you must continue on." The lady turned around and headed back to Little Geni. The little girl looked at her and stood up, taking the lady's hand in her own little sticky one. They both turned to look at Riku.
"Good luck," Little Geni said. "We have to go now. Bye!"
"Wait! What about –?" But it was too late. Little Geni and the strange woman had already disappeared, and along with them the bright room full of windows. Riku found himself once again in the hallway, but without a guide this time – even if they really didn't know where they were going the first time. However, Riku found that they had given him a small clue. The hallway he was in went only two ways, forward and back. He tried turning around and took only a step before he collided with an invisible wall.
"Okay, forward it is," he said as he rubbed his sore nose. Riku walked, and walked, and walked. It seemed as if the hallways never ended; none of the doors had any peculiar markings on them so he couldn't tell if he was walking in circles or not. After a while, however, Riku noticed that the doors were all beginning to be decorated with bright colors, not like some of the more somber tones he had seen earlier. Also, the hallways themselves seemed to be illuminated with some kind of invisible light. They were brighter, but no lanterns or light bulbs were to be seen. The cheery attitude this particular area radiated seemed to give Riku hope that he was almost to his destination. For once, he was right. Not five minutes later he entered another domed room, this one quite different from the others. All over the walls were pictures of people: King Mickey, Queen Minnie, Daisy, Donald, Goofy, Sora, Riku (as he looked before), Kairi, Naminé, Roxas, Leon, Cloud, Tifa, Aerith, Yuffie, Cid, Merlin, Axel (for some odd reason) and hundreds of others. And in the center of the room was a small bed with no headboard or footboard. And upon this bed Geni slept.
Riku quickly ran to the center of the room. Geni looked just as she had when Riku saw her outside; however, this Geni looked perfectly fine and was breathing deeply, practically comatose.
"Geni! Wake up!" he said as he gently shook her shoulders. Nothing – not even a twitch. "Come on, wake up sleepyhead!" Riku tried shaking her and calling her name several more times before he stopped, realizing that wasn't going to wake her up.
"Okay, think, think," Riku muttered to himself as he sat down with his back leaning on the edge of the bed. "Geni needs a key to wake up; that key is me. So what am I supposed to do?" Riku thought for a moment, and then stood up. He released his Keyblade, and pointed it at Geni. Nothing happened. "Well, that should have been obvious. Now what?" he said as he reabsorbed his Keyblade.
I'm the key, but that key is not my Keyblade. Locks are opened by keys, and Geni's heart is locked. So I have the key to her heart, to her. Geni must have thought that she would never see any of us again, or survive after her heart was taken from her. She was sad…depressed…without hope…does that mean I just have to tell her that she and everyone else are okay? Not knowing what else to do, he knelt down next to Geni. Hesitantly, he put one of his hands over one of hers.
"Geni? I...don't know if you can hear me or not, but you don't have to worry anymore. Everyone is okay: King Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Sora, Kairi, and me. We defeated Xemnas, so the Organization is gone for good. And your Nobody, Cirèna? I don't know if you ever realized you had one, but she came back and gave you your half a heart and combined her half a heart with yours when everyone thought you had died. You're alive, Geni. So please, please, just wake up," Riku pleaded with her. Geni slept on, oblivious to his words. Riku tightened his grip on her hand. His other hand slowly curled into a fist as Geni continued to sleep. "Why!" he finally yelled out. "What am I supposed to do? I don't know how to wake her up!" He pounded his fist on the bed. "I'm the key, right? Then how do I unlock someone's heart!"
And then it hit him. Riku was the key; Riku was his own Keyblade. He and his Keyblade are one being, as is Sora, King Mickey, and Kairi with theirs. Without a word, Riku released Geni's hand and cautiously leaned over her. He placed both hands – carefully – on her chest, where her heart was. He closed his eyes, imagining the lock opening in his mind. At the moment Riku thought he had released the lock, Geni's eyes fluttered open.
"Riku! Riku! Hey man, snap out of it!" Sora was shouting into his ear. Riku jumped, dropping Geni's hand in the process.
"Sora, don't do that!" he snapped as he turned to face him. However, he suddenly realized he was back on top of the castle. "What happened?" he suddenly said. "I was just –"
"Riku, are you okay?" King Mickey asked. He was standing next to Riku, his hand on his shoulder. "We saw you go and check on her, then you suddenly, well..."
"You were sleeping on your feet, is a good way to put it," Goofy supplied.
"How long?" Riku asked, confused.
"Only a couple of minutes," Sora answered. His eyes still radiated concern. "What happened?"
"I'm...not sure," he replied. "I was in Geni's heart, somehow. All I remember is something about a key..." Riku said hesitantly.
"Well, you must have done something...look..." Kairi said, awe apparent in her voice. She was pointing to Geni. She now looked as Riku had seen her in her heart. Her face was a pleasant pink color, and her chest was slowly rising and falling.
"She's alive..." Sora said quietly. "Riku...you did it!" He slapped his friend on the back. All of the others gave him congratulations as well. All the while, they hadn't noticed that Geni was beginning to stir, her breathing quickening, and her eyelids opening just a crack. It was not until her eyes were halfway open that Donald happened to look down and see it.
"Geni!" he warbled out happily. The others quickly looked down to see their friend awake, staring at them quietly. Sora quickly swiveled back to her, putting his head near her face.
"Hey, are you okay?" he asked nervously. Geni blinked several more times before her eyes opened completely. They were strangely empty and blank. After a moment she tried sitting up, and Sora put his hand on her back to steady her. "Geni?" he asked again, hoping for some sign of recognition.
Geni continued to stare at him, occasionally blinking. Their staring contest continued for another moment until her eyes suddenly cleared, and the last of her missing mental pieces were restored to her. "Sora?" she said in a confused voice.
"You're back!" Sora shouted as he lunged for her and wrapped her in a large bear hug. Geni was quite taken aback, to say the least.
"Sora? What's wrong? Did I miss something?" Her arms were still at her sides, but she didn't struggle to release herself from his death grip.
Sora laughed, and withdrew his hug. Geni noticed a few tears in his eyes, and looked around to see the same expression on the rest of her friends faces. "I'll say you have," he said. However, his next sentence was put on hold as the three inhabitants of Disney Castle glomped her, knocking her back to the ground.
"Geni! We're so happy you're back!" Goofy said as he squished her.
"Me too!" Donald said, imitating him.
"All of us, I believe," King Mickey said as he ruffled her hair, "are quite relieved that you haven't left us permanently."
"What are you talking about?" Geni asked as she finally was able to sit up and push off Donald and Goofy. She loved them dearly, but sometimes they were just too emotional for their own good. "Did I go somewhere?"
"Don't you remember?" Kairi asked. Geni looked up to her.
"Hmm, let me think." She scrunched up her brow in thought. In a moment realization dawned on her, and she looked around in mortification. "Oh...oh dear. I guess I owe all of you an apology," she said quietly.
All of this time Riku had been behind her, so Geni hadn't gotten a good look at him yet. As he stood up, he backed up a few paces. She's okay, Riku thought happily to himself. So why is my heart still pounding?
"Don't worry about it," Sora said as he offered her a hand. She gratefully took it and stood up, only slightly wobbly. "We're just glad to have you back."
"I didn't mean to make you all worry!" she said earnestly. "But I thought that maybe if..."
"That's enough," King Mickey said sternly.
Geni looked down at him, fingering her skirt. Oh boy, I'm in trouble now...
King Mickey sighed before continuing. "You did what you thought would help and it did. Xemnas is gone, the Organization is gone, and the worlds are safe again. We all helped," he finished with a smile.
"Yeah!" Sora shouted happily. His glee lasted only for a moment, before he turned to his sister with a serious look on his face. "How are you feeling, by the way?" he asked with worry.
"Fine. Why do you ask?"
"You don't feel...different?" Sora asked, putting much emphasis on the last word.
"Not really. I feel absolutely fine." Geni suddenly paused, realization of what Sora was asking finally sinking in. She was immediately still, and brought her hand up to her chest. As she concentrated, she felt the wholeness in her heart, the completeness she had been searching so long for. She looked up at Sora, tears in her eyes. "How?" she finally whispered.
"Your Nobody," Sora said with a smile. "She had your other half, and when she combined the two, you came back."
"We owe much thanks to her," King Mickey said.
"And apologies to you," Goofy said uneasily. King Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Sora, and Riku looked down at their feet. "Sorry, for everything, you know."
"For what?" Geni asked, quite puzzled. "What did you guys do?"
"For not treating you like the great person that you really are," someone said from behind her. She blushed slightly, her cheeks flushing pink. Geni turned around, and noticed a young man with silvery hair standing behind her. She couldn't help but stare at him, thinking she had seen him somewhere before.
Why do I feel like my stomach is full of butterflies? she thought to herself. Who is this guy?
"He's right, you know," Sora added. "Most of us treated you like you were sick and weakly all the time, even though most of the time you weren't. Sorry," Sora said, still examining the ground below him.
"So? I was, wasn't I? But now I'm not, so don't worry about it," Geni said with a smile. She quickly walked over and shouldered Sora. "Besides, I bet I could easily beat you at sparring now."
"You want to test that theory?" Sora said mock-threateningly.
"Anytime, anywhere," she said as sparks flew between their eyes. "But before that, who's your new friend, Sora?"