Set Me Free

L.A.: Yay! Finally summer is here. I can finally focus on these stories again. In celebration and as an apology for making you wait so long, here is an extra long chapter. Enjoy!

The Cave of Wonders was just as ominous as it was before. Its eyes glowed red. It opened its mouth as they approached it. Rin was pretty sure she could hear screams coming from inside.

"Do we really have to go in there?" Rin asked as she gripped the Heartstaff tightly. "It's creepy."

"It's just a cave," Donald said. "It's no big deal."

"Yeah, but I feel like it's going to eat me," Rin said.

"We should be fine," Aladdin said. "Just remember, don't touch the gold. Bad things happen if you touch it."

With that warning in mind, they entered the cave.

Genie was not happy. He had been forced to betray Al and now was helpless to a power hungry vizer.

He glanced down at Jasmine who was unconscious. She had been that way since Jafar had ordered him to kidnap her. He was worried. What if she didn't wake up?

"Genie!" Jafar said snapping him from his daze. "My first wish! Show me the Keyhole!"

Genie tried to resist. Tried to ignore the burning fire that spread through his body whenever he tried not to grant a wish.

It was killing him. He could feel his body shaking from the stress. Even though only a few seconds had past, it felt like hours for him.

He finally relented. Snapping his fingers, the keyhole appeared and the pain disappeared.

"Excellent," Jafar said.

A rustling behind him caught Jafar's attention. He turned around and saw Maleficent standing before him.

"Something the matter?" Jafar asked.

"That boy and his companions are almost here," Malificent said. "I thought you took care of him."

"He's more persistant than I expected," Jafar said as he stroked his chin. "Why not explain the situation to that boy Riku? Doing so may actually prove useful to our…"

He was cut off by a growl.

Wolf appeared beside Maleficent, looking displeased.

"Problems?" Maleficent asked with a raised eyebrow.

"They're almost here," Wolf said. "We should take our leave."

As they rounded the corner, Rin knew they were closing in on Jafar. The rooms had become more grand with gold and decadent ornaments everywhere.

They rushed to the next room and were surprised by what they saw.

Not only were Genie, Jafar, and an unconscious Jasmine there but also Wolf and a green witch like person.

Sora frowned as he pointed to the witch. "Wait a second…are you Maleficent?"

Maleficent smirked as she disappeared into a dark portal.

Wolf stared at Rin for a moment before following Maleficent. His tail was between his legs.

That heartless works for Maleficent? Rin thought. But that doesn't feel right.

"Let Jasmine go, Jafar," Aladdin said, breaking Rin from her thoughts.

Jafar laughed. "Not a chance. You see, she's a princess…one of seven who somehow hold the key to opening the door."

"Open…" Goofy said with confusion.

"The door?" Donald said finishing Goofy's thought.

"Why not use a key instead," Rin asked.

Sora snorted as he attempted to cover up his laughter.

Jafar's eyes narrowed. "You fools won't live to see what lies beyond it." He motioned to Genie. "Genie, my second wish. Crush them!"

Genie writhed and twisted in place.

"Genie, please, don't," Aladdin said.

Genie winced. "Sorry Al," he grounded out. "The one with the lamp calls the shots. I don't have a choice."

Genie grew big and hovered behind Jafar.

Jafar sent an electrical blast from his staff toward the group. They split up before it hit them.

"Look out!" Genie said as he swiped at Aladdin. Aladdin barely dodged in time.

Sora rolled over to Rin.

"What do we do?" Rin asked. "I don't want to hurt Genie."

Sora gritted his teeth. His eyes darted from Genie to Jafar. "We'll have to focus on Jafar for now and hopefully steal the lamp back before Genie squashes us."

Genie let out a shout and Sora and Rin dodged at the last second as Genie's hand slammed into the ground leaving a dent.

Rin sent a fire spell at Jafar. Jafar deflected it then sent a spell quickly back. It hit her and she suddenly found herself being squeezed by a giant snake.

"Get it off! Get it off! Get it off!" She yelled as started to feel pressure around her ribs.

"Hold on!" Goofy said as he and Donald raced toward her. Suddenly they were scooped up by Genie.

"Let us go!" Donald yelled.

"I'm sorry," Genie said. "I'm not in control."

"Sorry I have to do this, Genie," Aladdin said as he jumped up and slashed his sword at Genie's hands.

Genie immediately dropped them. "Thanks," he said.

Rin was starting to have trouble breathing. Every time she took a breath, the snake would tighten its hold. Her ribs were voicing their opinon on the matter by aching badly.

She looked up just in time to see Sora slash the boa constrictor. The snake hissed before disappearing.

Sora offered his hand to her. She accepted it and stood up. "Thanks."

He smiled at her.

"Genie," Jafar yelled causing them to look at him. "My final wish! I want you to make me an all-powerful genie!"

Genie closed his eyes and pointed his finger at Jafar. Bluish energy left Genie's finger and wrapped itself around Jafar.

When the magic died down, Jafar had morphed into a giant red genie.

His laughter shook the room. "Now, let's see what you can do!"

The room jolted. Lava seeped from the wall and pooled at the edge of the room.

"This just went from bad to worse," Sora muttered.

Movement from the corner of her eye caught Rin's attention. Iago was hovering to the side with a black lamp in his claws.

"I think Iago has Jafar's lamp," Rin said.

"Try to get it," Aladdin said. Rin started. She hadn't realized he was nearby. "We'll keep him distracted."

Aladdin, Donald, Goofy, and Sora charged toward Jafar.

Rin cut to the right, her gaze focused on Iago. Iago was laughing and hovering in one spot. He hadn't even noticed her.

"Thunder!" Rin yelled as she aimed the Heartstaff at Iago. A lightning beam jumped from the Heartstaff and hit Iago.

Iago howled as he fell to the ground. The lamp let out a loud clang as it skidded across the floor. Rin quickly scooped it up.

"Hey Jafar!" She yelled as she held up the lamp. The others stopped fighting as Jafar's face paled. "Time to go back in your lamp."

The lamp glowed. A black wind seeped out of it and wrapped itself around Jafar. Jafar tried to escape it but the wind was too strong. It sucked him into the lamp.

They were silent for a moment.

"Do I still have to hold this?" Rin asked as she held the lamp several feet from her body.

"She's gone," Aladdin said causing everyone to look in his direction. He was standing in front of the keyhole looking at the spot where Jasmine had been. "Where did they take her?"

Genie sheepishly approached Aladdin. His lamp was in his hands. "Al? I'm so sorry." He held out his lamp to Aladdin. "You still have one more wish."

Aladdin took the lamp from him. He studied the lamp for a moment. "Genie, I made a deal," He looked up at Genie,"and I plan, to keep it. Genie, I wish for your freedom."

Genie's jaw dropped. "Wait, what?" He stared at his wrists. The cuffs disappeared. "I'm free?" The words were barely above a whisper as if he couldn't really believe it himself.

"Look," Donald said as he pointed to the Keyhole. "It's shining."

The Keyhole was indeed glowing. Sora felt the familiar tug from the Keyblade. He held it up toward the keyhole. A beam of light shot out of it and locked the Keyhole.

As soon as the lock clicked in place, the room began to shake.

"Whoa," Goofy said, "we'd better get out of here."

Carpet waved frantically to them before flattening himself to allow them to get on. Jiminy was perched on top of it.

"Come on," he said. "The cave's about to collapse."

Aladdin stayed behind, staring at the keyhole. "Jasmine."

"Come on," Sora said as he grabbed one of Aladdin's arms.

"We really need to get going," Rin added.

Reluctantly, Aladdin followed them.

As soon as Carpet was sure they were all on, it sped off into the Cave of Wonders.

The group watched in horror as the cave started to crumble around them. Lava was seeping from the walls. It hit the floor with a hiss, destroying everything around it.

Carpet deftly dodged falling debris as it moved closer and closer to the exit.

"We're not going to make it," Donald yelled.

From out of nowhere, a boulder came barreling toward them.

Carpet sharply turned to avoid it. Its passengers were jostled roughly as they tried to hang on. Unfortunately for Rin, her grip slipped.

Sora's eyes widened as Rin fell off of Carpet. Time seemed to slow down as he reached out for her.

He saw the fear in her eyes as she tried to reach back. Their hands missed. Time sped up abruptly and with a yell, Rin was sent plummeting to the lava pool below.

"We need to go back for Rin," Sora yelled.

"Rin fell off?" Donald quacked.

Carpet veered back but was blocked off by more flying debris.

"We can't," Aladdin said. "It's too late." He placed a hand on Sora's shoulder. "I'm sorry."

Sora lurched forward but Donald and Goofy caught him.

"What are you doing?" Goofy asked.

"I have to help her," Sora said.

"You can't." Donald said. "You're the Keyblade master. If you die, we're all doomed."

The exit was up ahead. Sora sat back on the Carpet. He felt numb. He had failed.

Rin coughed as she tried to figure out where she was. Luckily for her, she had landed on a cliff that hadn't fallen into the lava yet. She only had a few cuts and bruises.

Or maybe not so lucky, she thought as she coughed again.

She pulled the collar of her shirt up over her mouth. The smoke was making it difficult to breathe. Also, unless Carpet was able to make it back or she sprouted wings, she wasn't getting out.

Set me free.

Rin looked around. It was the voice. The one that had introduced her to the Heartstaff.

Set me free. Let me spread my wings.

The voice was gone but the message resonated with Rin. She remembered what Merlin had told her. The Heartstaff might have the capability of flying.

Rin held the Heartstaff in front of her. Here goes nothing and I mean nothing.

She could feel the words forming on her lips. It was as if someone were guiding her through the motions.

"Wingardum." The word was a barely above a whisper but it didn't seem to matter. The Heartstaff began to glow. The small wings flapped once and then began to grow.

They grew to several feet in length. The glow died down as the wings flapped and stretched as if they had been released from confinement.

"Cool," Rin croacked out. This was followed by more coughing. She needed to get out of there.

She straddled the staff as if it were a witch's broom. She bent her knees and pushed up. The wings flapped and suddenly she was in the air zooming toward the now crumbling path to the exit.

Even though she was still in danger, a sense of excitement ran through her. It was as if she was connected with the Heartstaff. As if she could feel its joy vibrating through her.

Her eyes narrowed a second later when she saw her escape dwindling away. It seemed the cave was determined to bury her her. She urged the Heartstaff forward. She had to make it.

Sora collapsed to his knees in front of the Cave of Wonders. He didn't care if he looked stupid. He had failed. He was the hero and he couldn't even safe his friend. Guilt raked him. Why was he chosen? He was so useless.

He could here sniffing behind him. Donald and Goofy were standing with their heads bowed. Goofy was bawling. Jiminy sat on top of Goofy's hat dabbing his eyes with a handkerchief. Aladdin and the others stood to the side, giving them space.

A crash signaled that the cave had finally collapsed.

Sora glanced up at the Cave and he froze. A shadow floated before them. As it got closer, he realized that it wasn't a shadow but Rin covered in soot and riding the Heartstaff.

She landed in front of him. She coughed and grinned sheepishly. "So, guess what? The Heartstaff can fly. Who knew?"

Sora's mouth opened and closed in disbelief. Relief rushed through him. He stood up and in one swift motion pulled her into a hug.

"Don't ever do that again," Sora muttered.

"Okay," Rin said.

Sora wasn't sure but he thought he felt her snuggle into his chest.

Then the moment of relief was over and they realized what they were doing. They quickly broke apart and grinned at each other sheepishly.

Still bawling, Goofy ran up to them and pulled them into a tight group hug. "I'm so glad you're okay."

Jiminy jumped onto Rin's shoulder and hugged her. "Me too."

"Thanks." Rin laughed as she glanced at Donald. He was quickly wiping his eyes. "Oh no, did Donald cry?"

"No," Donald said. "I just had something in my eye."

Goofy grabbed Donald and pulled him into the hug. "Come on, you need to join in the group hug."

After a moment, Rin said. "Uh guys? You're kind of squishing me."

L.A.: And we're finally done with Agrabah! And, yes, the word she used to make the Heartstaff fly is very similar to one of the spells in Harry Potter. I'm really hoping to finish the story by the end of the summer. Anyway you know what to do. READ and REVIEW!