Hey guys! Here's an update! I know this is way past overdue, but I do have a life, and most of it involves school. That's my excuse of the update XD. But as my New Year's resolution, I want to get better about it. Updating, I mean. It's not really fair to you guys. So I hereby apologize. On the bright side, the next two chapters are already written, so expect those really really soon. I want to span it out, of course, but it sure isn't going to be four months again. I'd expect the next update in a week or two.
Reviewers (as if you guys remember what you wrote :P):
Chronos mephistopheles- Plushie! ^^ Maybe you shouldn't have told me to slack off, since it looks like I did XD. Thank you!
RecklessxDreamer- Of course it wouldn't bore me! I wrote it, didn't I? But no, I LOVE long reviews. So thank you so much!
hanakitsunechan7- Good question...muhahahaha, and I'm sorry but you can't know that answer until two more chapters! :D Suspense! Thanks for your comments!
SuperFriendlySoraFan203- Why thank you! Unfortunately this chapter doesn't really make up for the wait, but its necessary, I guess :( On a brighter note, thanks for your review! I think I shall dedicate my next update/one-shot/story/whateverIcomplete to you for the holidays because you always review! Thanks so much!
Maiami- No prob, it took me a loooong time to review too. But I don't mind because I think its great that someone can take the time out of their day in another part of the world to review my story, no matter how constructive or unconstructive it is! Thanks for doing so!
midnightvisions- Lol, thank you, I'm glad you liked it so much! Yeah, I think the last chapter was definitely one of my favorite to write. Second to Chappie 9, of course XD! Thanks!
Scootkadoot- Thank you! I'm glad you felt that way!
L'uke-chan- Thanks so much! Yeah, I have a hard time choosing too! Which...is weird...since...I wrote it...:) Anyway, thanks for the review!
Okay, I know this isn't the kind of chapter you want, or the kind you were expecting after such a long time. But this is one of the most crucial chapters of the entire story. This chapter takes place during the party, and explains the reason why everything happened. I don't expect you readers to be amazed like the others, however...I hope you can appreciate the explainations? And don't worry...all will be explained in Riku's POV, which will be the chapter after next.
Maleficent watched interestedly at the young clumsy keyblade master and the princess through the Waterfall of Truth. The water came down in a mist so strong that it could reveal the whereabouts of any human in any world. And the added perk? Only those who carried the golden blood of the original Guardians could wield it. Yes…this was an outstanding perquisite…she was the only original Guardian left alive.
Klutz, as she liked to deem him, was freaking out over the Dark One's visit to the Princess's home, something that she was a little unsure as to why it held importance where that silver haired one (the Dark One) decided to visit. However, she had come to the conclusion that Klutz and the Dark One had an affair or tryst carrying on, or perhaps in the past, and that was where his insecurities lay.
"Pete…" She purred in the deeply seductive tone her voice naturally carried. Pete, her number one accomplice, blinked hazily with a goofy smile, an effect of her unintentional seduction, before quickly clearing his throat and making his way over to where she sat in her throne of heartless.
"Your highness?" He asked respectfully, bowing slightly. Maleficent smiled, extended one slender arm towards him, and gently rested her left hand on his heart. She felt it speed up at her light touch.
"Klutz's heart," she began, considerably darker than she had been previously, however her voice did not lose any of its appeal; "I want it in my palm."
Pete sputtered almost instantly, the spell that her dark charm had on him broken at the impossible and psychotic request. "Your highness, that's ridiculous! Not only is that a feet damn near crazy impossible considering the countless Guardians, Mercenaries and soon Organization members near him, and not only would the Dark One never allow that, but come on. Do you really think his heart is even worthy to beat in your palm?"
Maleficent, still with a firm and determined grasp on her facial composure, suddenly squeezed Pete's heart through the fabric with her long, extremely sharp nails. Did he really just tell her what she could and could not do? Did he have any idea how many hearts she had eaten?
"Maleficent!" Pete cried, his hands flailing around, unsure whether grabbing at her hand to try to pull it away would make things worse for him or if not doing it would allow for her to kill him. "Please, I meant no harm! I was only explaining the situation to you is all!"
Maleficent stood up, letting go of her hold on his chest, only to claw itself on his neck. A deep satisfaction stirred in her at how purple he began to turn.
"You, along with every powerful demon I can conjure and discover, will assist me in not only retrieving Demyx for my retrieval of the Triton, but will also bring Klutz's beating heart into my hand!"
And with that, she swirled herself into a black butterfly and flew away, leaving Pete lying on the floor, attempting to catch his stolen breath.
8:45 P.M. Saturday
Pete sighed, officially frustrated, as he circled the Princess' house for what had to be the eleventh time, trying to find an opening besides the obvious door. And it wasn't easy trying to do it while fitting in the invisible cloak she had made for him. It was three sizes too small!
"Damn Maleficent with her confounded cloak!" Pete grumbled loudly as his eyes finally landed on a small window leading to the basement. Well, it was true! She was always giving him the most impossible situations she could find, just so he could screw up and end up in her wrath! "Damn her!"
"I would watch what you say, chap." An arrogant-sounding, annoyingly and rightfully conceded voice said, causing Pete to lose his footing and go tumbling face first in the window. The glass shattered under his weight, not only giving away his position, but also landing him completely and utterly stuck. Damn!
"Oh, and why is that?" Pete demanded with as much authority he could muster as he was stuck mid-body in a window. "Please, Balthier, enlighten me."
"Maleficent has eyes everywhere. I would watch your back." Balthier sang, pointing up in the sky with his Capella gun at a black bird. It crowed scornfully at them. "Diablo has been watching you circle that house like a lunatic for an hour."
What? How did he not notice that himself? And why was Maleficent sending Diablo, her entrusted crow, to watch him? Did she expect him to betray her?
"She is not afraid of where your loyalties lay. She only distrusts your ability to carry out the mission." Fran, the stunningly beautiful vierra who traveled with Balthier everywhere commented sagely, reading his emotions easily. Pete frowned. These people made it impossible to even breathe without them knowing about it.
"Shall we assist him?" Fran asked Balthier, turning to him with regality. Balthier glanced at the sky, weighing his advantages and disadvantages. If they helped old Pete-y get himself out of the mess he rightfully started, they could carry out the mission was no hitch. But if they left him there, the two of them could take over and get the Pete's share of the money pot. Decisions.
"Isn't anyone gonna help him?" Vaan, some kid who had started following Balthier and Fran, for some reason that none of them really understood, asked, his attitude seeping into his voice. Pete humphed indignantly; he didn't need some punk to help him.
"You have arms." Balthier commented lightly, nodding towards Pete. "No one's stopping you."
Vaan gave Balthier a look before glancing back at the giant idiot who had gotten himself stuck in the window. On the one hand, if he helped him out here, Pete would be eternally in his debt for not having to get Maleficent to pull him out herself. But then again, having this fool alongside with them was ridiculously costly to their time, and their patience. Decisions.
"Nah, let's go. It's not like he was ever nice to us or anything." Vaan reasoned after a second, putting his hands behind his head and stepping over Pete, letting his foot stay in his back for longer than necessary. "Besides, he'll only slow us down."
Fran and Balthier exchanged shrugs before following him, leaving Pete rooted to the spot. Vaan was right; he was never anything but rude to them. And it was true.
Pete roared angrily. Fine. He didn't need those damn idiots to help him anyway. He'd get out of this mess himself!
9:30 P.M. Saturday
Pete was still stuck.
Damn it.
10:25 P.M. Saturday
Fran and Balthier walked together towards the Princess's front door quietly, both unconsciously keeping one eye on Vaan at all times and the other on each other as they held an important conversation.
"I sense your feelings. They're very strong." Fran sighed, letting her eyebrows droop slightly to let him know how serious she was being right now. "I sense they're directed towards me."
Yes, romance was very important.
Balthier rolled his eyes but gave her a fond look. "That's always been my favorite attribute about you. You can always tell how a man is feeling."
"You guys aren't going to start going all mushy on me, are you?" Vaan groaned from in front of them. "I can still hear you, you know."
Balthier cocked his head and prepared to say something- probably witty and sarcastic, no doubt- but Fran suddenly stopped, glancing up at the balcony of the house with perfectly graceful sharpness.
"I sense her. She's up on the balcony." Fran announced, and she and Balthier went striding up towards the entrance.
"Is Klutz with her?" Balthier asked urgently. Fran shook her head but did not stop walking.
"I do not sense him with her, but she should know where we can locate him."
Balthier nodded and shrugged. Ah well, it was all routine to him.
Vaan, however, was a little more accustomed to how teenagers thought. And he was pretty sure that all the teenagers inside would think this was kind of weird for them to be there.
"Wait! You can't just go in there!" Vaan insisted, stepping in the shadows so no one could see him. "I mean, we need to hide, or find a disguise or something."
Fran tilted her head at him in confusion. "We would not need to disguise ourselves. If violence was to occur, we would still use our weapons, would we not? Then there are no advantages to disguises." She reasoned.
Balthier raised an eyebrow at Vaan. "And besides that, do you happen to have some disguises with you? Somehow I didn't remember seeing you stuff three burglar outfits inside of your pockets while we were in Bhujerba."
Vaan rolled his eyes, but that didn't do anything for the concern. He squinted as the moonlight hit Balthier and Fran's clothes, giving it almost green tint. Oh god, was that residue from when he gave them some magic to make them stronger?
"You guys! You're supposed to dust yourselves off after you use a magick!" He hissed. But neither of them stopped walking. Both nearly grunted in affirmation before dusting off the green magic as they walked. Vaan sighed. Ugh, way to be prepared.
Whatever. He had his own little side mission to attend to anyway. He had to find Penelo.
He sighed yearningly. Penelo. She had been there for him, emotionally and physically, since they were little kids. Both of them were orphans, so they had always been each other's parents. Well, Penelo was like his at least.
But then, just when they were both starting to get closer to having a real relationship, she just disappeared. He had come here to figure out what happened when he was introduced to Maleficent, and that's when he was told that she was kidnapped by the Guardians of Destiny Island.
He didn't really like Maleficent- she freaked him out- but Fran and Balthier, who were working for her for some reason he didn't understand, he had befriended instantly. Or, in better words, attached himself to.
Still. Sometimes they didn't think things through. And that's when he had to just separate from them for a while.
He waited until Fran and Balthier walked into the house before he slowly followed them inside, making sure to close the door quietly behind him. He looked at his surroundings. Huh. This sure as hell didn't look like a place that would kidnap someone. Well, whatever, you never knew these days with people.
Vaan could hear gasps and sighs presumably at Fran's beauty in the main room set aside for dancing, so he decided to go to the basement, where he figured he could search for Penelo easily without being spotted.
But when he got down there, for some reason it was empty. He turned around to go back upstairs, but the door suddenly shut and locked behind him. He instantly pulled out his sword, but it didn't matter. It looked like he was trapped all alone in this basement.
11:00 P.M.
Pete finally managed to wiggle himself inside the window, at last falling into the basement and straight into that brat Vaan. He grunted. Well. At least that little waste of flesh would suffer somehow. Vaan squirmed underneath him.
"Get off!" He shouted, finally just stabbing him in the butt with the tip of his sword. Pete shot up in the air.
"YOUCH!"
Vaan rolled his eyes and stood up, dusting himself off and glancing up at the window that Pete had already busted a little while ago. "You're gonna have to fix that, you know."
Pete laughed, and it was so roaring and annoying Vaan just outright covered his ears. "As if! That's what I have you for!"
Vaan sighed, irritated, and walked back over to where he had been reading some files on Guardians he found buried deep inside a dictionary in the bookshelf. Based on the information, it actually looked like the Guardians were the good guys. Whereas Maleficent…
Pete noticed what he was reading and his eyes, which were already beady enough, widened. Then they instantly narrowed. He took a couple of steps towards Vaan's back quietly.
"You, uh, might want to put that down." He murmured darkly, but the annoying young blonde didn't even notice he had just spoken. Humph. Figured. Well whatever, he was going to have to dispose of him now anyway now that he knew the truth.
"Maleficent killed all of these people just to have control of their souls? She attempted to kill a princess just because she wasn't invited to a party? What the hell kind of crazy woman am I working for?!" Vaan exclaimed, shutting the file shut and tucking it away in his knapsack. He whirled around to face Pete. "I've got to tell Balthier and Fran about this! Pete, did you kno-"
But as Vaan had whirled around, he had managed to dodge Pete's sword just in the nick of time, inevitably falling on his butt from the momentum. He stared up at him in shock. What? Sure, they weren't friends, but they still worked together. Why would he try to kill him?
"What are you doing?!" Vaan demanded, but even as the words came out of his mouth he had to flip backwards to avoid another attack. Pete snarled and made another wild attack, this time managing to hit him in the chest.
"Ah!" He gasped in pain, pulling out his sword with one hand and holding his stomach with the other. He smirked humorlessly.
"I should have just killed you when you were stuck in that stupid window." He spat, managing to recover from the attack. Above him, he could hear a couple of inquires about the noise they were making. Pete didn't even seem to notice.
"Maleficent gave me orders to dispose of you if you discovered too much about her, and now's the time to fulfill that request." Pete grinned evilly, clumsily circling him. Vaan watched his movements with narrowed eyes.
"Those are big words for you. What, you write that sentence on your hand?" He retorted, and that's when Pete summoned the heartless.
Vaan gulped. Crap. Maybe poking fun at Pete while he was trying to kill him wasn't the best idea.
11:08 P.M.
"What does the boy even look like?" Balthier whined, not even noticing all of the pair of female eyes on him in yearning, and all of the same eyes on Fran in jealousy and awe. Fran led them through the dance floor which was covered with teenagers sitting in some kind of circle, bumping past a slender, slightly muscled spiky haired brunette who was exiting a closet. She nodded to him by way of apology.
And then she stopped.
Brunette…slender but muscled…spiky hair…blue eyes…
Balthier read Fran's face and understood. That was the one they needed to bring back to Maleficent.
But just as they turned to go get him, the circle dispersed, becoming a cluster of excited teenagers for the game they were about to play. Fran pulled Balthier behind a corner, pressing her back into it to shield herself from any bystander at the right angle. Balthier did the same before giving her a look.
"He seems to have a lot of friends. We'll have to lure him." He concluded, unloading his gun and placing it back in its holder. Fran similarly wrapped her bow back behind her, near her arrows.
"That sounds correct. We will have to convince him with wit, not strength or brute force." She agreed, and both walked back around casually, glancing around for him once more. They found him now sitting next to a brunette girl, gasping as a silver haired boy said something to him.
"I shall approach him first-" Fran began, but she stopped, and at the exact moment in which their target made a movement to kiss the silver haired boy, a hoard of heartless slithered up from the ground. Fran whipped out her bow and hit one of them just as it was about to attack Balthier. He gave her a sardonic half grin.
"Guess your bow was ready and fertile, eh?" He joked, but Fran shook her head as she sought out the boy through all the chaos and panic of the teenagers being attacked.
But Balthier, who had already disregarded their mission all together, had this bad feeling in his stomach. Where did Vaan wander off to? And why did he have this feeling that he needed their help?
"Fran…where is Vaan?" He asked, and that was all he needed to bring up before she took all of her senses and intuitions away from their target and to their newfound friend. Where was Vaan…?
11:15 P.M.
He had never asked for this.
Having to defend himself against someone he had considered an ally, he meant. All he wanted was to have Penelo back in his life. It had been three weeks since he last saw her, and everyone back in Rabanastre was incredibly worried about her. Especially himself.
But now, instead of looking for her some more, he was trying not to be killed by this giant oaf who was the accomplice of a psychotic bitter old wench who couldn't stand to be excluded from a baby shower.
So no, he had definitely never asked for this stupid bull. Besides that, now their entire mission (if there was even a mission now…there was no way he was going to let that poor boy get his heart eaten) was corrupted, because those heartless things were practically unmanageable by anyone but Maleficent, and had made their way upstairs!
Vaan threw up his sword at the exact same time Pete threw down his, struggling to avoid the other sword from splitting him in two. He rather liked both sides of his body, thanks.
"Everyone get downstairs!" A rather cute sounding girl cried, and the door from above them unlocked and opened. He and Pete exchanged panicked glances before both jumping away from each other. They would have to finish this later.
"The window!" Vaan hissed, and both jumped for it at the same time. Except Pete pushed him down. And used him to reach the window. And left him there! Crap!
In the back of his mind, he knew this was karma somehow. But he wasn't going to let the front part think about that right now. Right now he needed to hide! He managed to leap behind a long cement covered rail that was just wide enough to hide him as people started to step into view. He peaked around the rail.
"What do you think those things were Yunie?" A slim, green eyed blonde girl asked her beautiful brunette friend. The brunette merely shrugged and held up a gun with a gloomy expression on her face.
"I don't know, but I found this random gun in my pocket. I wonder if Kairi put it in there so I'd kill myself for being such a bad girlfriend." This so called "Yunie" sighed, plopping down against the rail. Vaan quickly ducked behind the railing again.
"Kairi is crazy about you, so I would not worry about her. What I am worried about is whether or not you are so ready to give up Tidus, the love of your life." Another girl responded, this one sounding slightly monotonic.
"Maybe your right. I mean…Tidus has always been a part of my life somehow. He helped me become the person I am today. He made me confident, made me feel beautiful, and showed me some of the greatest places in the world." Yunie explained. "But…there's something so…awesome about Kairi. She gets me so, so...so…"
"Turned on?" The blonde girl chirped, and the other two burst out laughing. Vaan sighed inwardly. Jeez, was this what he was going to have to listen to for the next couple of hours until everyone left?
"So are you still crushing on that Riku guy, Paine?" Yunie asked, and Vaan rolled his eyes, making a crushing movement with his hands. This…was…so…lame!
"No, I think that's a bad territory to go into. He seems to be like, in love with Klutz. Besides, every single girl in Destiny Island seems to have the hots for him. Even that cute new girl Penelo seems to think he's the cutest thing since poodles." The other girl, Paine, answered.
It took a second for Vaan to register what was said. Once he did though, all he could think about was Penelo. PENELO. PENELO!
"PENELO!" Vaan shouted, jumping out from the rail. The three girls shrieked and the brunette one shoved her gun in his face. But what did he care? Penelo was here!
Wait…who the hell was Riku?
"Who are you?! And why were you listening to our conversation?!" The blonde one demanded, crossing her arms. Vaan blinked down at her innocently.
"I was frightened by those creatures so I came down to hide. And I happened to hear you mention my darling friend Penelo, so I became excited…" He lied sincerely, widening his eyes at them. The brunette, Yunie, frowned sheepishly and pulled down her hand.
"Sorry. I'm just a little…you know…on edge. I'm Yuna." She introduced, smiling at him. Once more, up close, Vaan was struck with just how beautiful Yuna was. Still, she was definitely no Penelo.
"I'm Vaan." He offered up, completely losing the shy act. Please. As if…the last time he was shy he must have been three years old.
"I'm Rikku!" The blonde introduced, bouncing up in his space and pulling his face down to look at her. She gazed in his eyes intently. Uh…space? He widened his eyes over at Yuna, but she just shrugged and giggled.
"You, Vaan, are lying." She decided, stepping back. What? How did she know?! The other two girls were silent before the last one, a girl with cropped brown hair and violet red eyes, pushed Rikku out of the way.
"Please ignore her. Her skills at determining whether or not someone is lying are just as bad as her own skills at it. I'm Paine." Paine introduced, holding out an arm for him to shake. He smiled and took her hand. He was going to like her. She had sass.
Hmm…well, he supposed he could hang with them for a couple of hours. At least until he found Penelo…
But little did he know that the one he wanted closer to him was already closer than he thought.
11:25 P.M.
Balthier shoved past another screaming teenage cheerleader as he struggled to catch up to Fran, finally just rolling his eyes and standing completely still. Whatever, if she wanted to leave him, she could leave him.
Finally Fran paused, and without turning around commented, "If you cannot keep up, perhaps we should not bother to escape at all."
Balthier gave her a scornful look behind her back that he knew she could sense. "Quite frankly you're going too fast."
Fran sighed and strode back up to him, grabbing his hand and pulling him to the front door. She took a couple of steps back and kicked the door open, practically dragging Balthier outside.
"We're just going to leave Vaan?" Balthier wanted to know, cocking an eyebrow at her. She pushed her long silvery white ponytail behind her shoulders and peered at him.
"I believe he is the one that did not come with us. Besides, he knows his way to the ship. We will not depart from the area, only from this location. It is too dangerous."
"Oh."
"Balthier?"
"Yeah?"
"I realize the only reason you walked so slow was to get me to hold your hand."
"Ah, I like them sharp!"
11:25 P.M.
Maleficent leaned back in her chair, absorbing all of what Pete told her. So Vaan realized what she had done in the past…hmm, that did not mean he wasn't willing to do what she asked him. Everyone could be controlled with the right…persuasions…
"Pete, you can forget about Klutz for a while, my appetite has been quenched anyway. Let us return to our previous mission. Bring me Demyx…" Maleficent ordered, watching Pete with a squinted eye. He was puffing and breathing heavily, having just run all the way back to their lair. She would normally have been pissed that he risked compromising their location, but Pete was such an imbecile that she doubted deeply that anyone would follow him.
"But…your Highness…you no longer hunger for Klutz?" He asked in confusion. She smiled pleasantly.
"I do so dreadfully craze his heart; however it is as I said. My appetite has been quenched. All I need you to do is bring me Demyx." Maleficent raised her eyes to the ceiling in thought. "Perhaps that Zexion boy who has my book as well. He should be an easy conquest. I will find someone to give me Klutz."
Pete was indignant, an attitude he would not have gotten away with had it not been for her good and generous mood. "Your Highness, you mean to say that you want Vaan, Balthier and Fran to take Klutz?! I'm just as capable."
Maleficent rolled her eyes. "I know you are, Pete. This is why you are in charge of bringing me Demyx and Zexion. Oh, and don't involve those annoying Guardians again."
Pete blinked. "What about the Mercenaries?"
"Hmm, yes, yes, involve the Mercenaries. Inform the Mercenaries and the Organization…and watch the chicken run around with its head cut off."
And now you know your antagonists! Whoo! And see, everything was all just a misunderstanding! XD Yeah right.
Anyway, as I said, expect the next update quickly, as soon as I get access to my computer again. It should be next week or so.
So...um...review if you'd like. I would still like to know your thoughts, even if they're disappointed :)
Oh, and expect your holiday gift REALLY soon! Hint! XD