It had been a long day. Kairi had just come back from the Savannah with Donald to help seal the Keyhole there. The Heartless and Nobodies were starting to get out of control. If that Keyblade Master was in the Pride Lands, she certainly didn't make herself known. Being a lioness cub didn't help much either. Kairi wasn't really even sure who she was supposed to be looking for. Mickey gave her a description of a girl form more than ten years ago. It was most certainly outdated. She probably didn't look like that anymore.

Kairi really needed a shower. But she promised to talk to some refugees from a world she was sure she secured. She had to apologize for the millionth time. It hurt each and every time it happened. She'd meet people and make friends, save their world, only for it to fall a few months later. It was starting to wear on her.

As she passed the Moogle shop, her heard a commotion. It was usually noisy, but not quiet that obnoxious.

"OW! HEY! OKAY! WE'LL GO!" came a voice as the door opened. A girl with long blue hair was dragging a boy out by the back of his tattered shirt. Tools were flying out after them. He was the one yelling.

"Paying customers only!" yelled the disgruntled Moogle as he slammed the door behind them.

"What the heck was their problem?" The boy asked.

"Usually shops don't take kindly to people who refuse to pay." The girl explained. "Especially Moogles." She smiled, covering her mouth as she laughed. "Also, they don't like you touching their pom."

The boy pouted. They were obviously new here. Their clothes were dirty, tattered, torn, like they'd been in a million battles before finally being sent to Traverse Town. They didn't have Munny, so they probably only had their world's currency. Kairi wondered briefly how those exchange rates worked before approaching them.

"Hi," she smiled brightly at them. "You guys must be new here, right?"

The girl looked relieved. "Yes," she nodded. "Could you tell us where we are?"

"This is Traverse Town." Kairi explained, putting on her best welcome face. Which also meant a tone of sympathy. "This is where you are sent when your world has been taken by the darkness. We are well equipped to handle your needs and we'll try and help you transition as best we can. Hopefully, this won't be a permanent thing. We're trying to put the worlds back exactly as they were."

She expected an onslaught of questions. There are other worlds? How do you expect to fix what's been broken? How long will it take? She's heard it all. She's helped people through anger, sorrow, anxiety, denial. All of it. Except for these two.

"Oh. Uh, neat!" the boy grinned. "At least there's a place for people to go, right? Where would they all go? Would they just vanish?"

How was she supposed to respond to… that? He was… happy his world was gone? The boy with brown spiky hair must have been in the worst kind of denial. The girl next to him seemed more concerned. Worry lined her brow.

"So… uh, I'm going to the refugee center. If you guys want to tag along." She offered. "Where are you two from?"

The girl chewed her lip before answering. "Land of Departure."

"Destiny Island."

Kairi froze. How was he from the island? That world had been destroyed over a year ago. He was just arriving now? Where had he been? Had he landed somewhere else first and that world was taken over? She shook her head. She could ask questions later.

"So… the center?" the girl reminded Kairi.

"Right! This way." Kairi turned towards the Second District. "My name's Kairi by the way."

"Kairi?!" the boy grabbed her arm, turning her to face him. "You're Kairi?!" She was in a whirl and he was in a flurry. He was really, really excited to see her. What even was going on?

"Er… yeah." She furrowed her brows. "Do I know you?"

"It's me!" He backed up, patting his chest. "It's Sora! Do you remember?" She barely had time to register what he was talking about. His blue eyes shone with excitement. "Wow. Kairi. You got big, too." He grabbed her face. She was too stunned to pull away. "Wow. You're really pretty."

Her face burned as she finally snapped out of it, shoving him back. "What? What are you—"

The boy suddenly sobered. It completely threw her for a loop. He turned to his companion, frowning. His blue eyes widened. "Aqua." She seemed used to his mood swings. She took it in stride as she tilted her head, a cue for him to continue. "It's here. It followed us."

The girl's eyes narrowed. The boy seemed terrified. What had gotten him in a panic? What exactly followed them?

"Sora," she placed her hands on his shoulders. "What have we told you?"

The boy took a deep breath. Then, gave her a determined smirk. "If you can't run, fight without fear."

"Good. Let's go."

They turned to run for the giant doors that led to the third district. Wait? What just happened? Where were they going? "H-Hey! Wait!" Kairi shouted.

The boy turned, holding a hand out to stop her. "Get somewhere safe, okay? We have to take care of something." He shouted over his shoulder as he began running. "We'll catch up, okay? I wanna hear all about what happened while I was gone! Oh, is Riku here, too? Nevermind! Tell me later!"

And they were gone.

It took her a moment to realize what just happened. There was Sora. Or, at least someone claiming to be him. And that girl. She fit Mickey's description to a T. Her name was Aqua. Aqua. That was Master Aqua! Kairi ran after them. What did they bring here to this already saturated world? Whatever it was, it was big. She saw the shadow tower over the wall of the Third District, almost stopping her in her tracks.

What stopped her wasn't the giant Heartless. She'd seen more than enough of those (though, this one was particularly big). It wasn't the woman with her Keyblade in hand, masterfully throwing magic attacks and cleaning up the small fry around the bottom (though, watching her was like watching an artful dance). It wasn't her friend that caught up to her, tall and silver-haired muscle staring up at the creature (he had to have sense the darkness, she wasn't surprised he was there).

What stopped her in her tracks was the boy flying around the Heartless holding two Keyblades in his hands. He backed away from the Heartless, letting go of the blades. Five more appeared in a line and were quickly shot towards its face. Two more appeared in his hands as he rushed at its eyes.

"Uh." Riku was speechless.

"So, um, that's Master Aqua," Kairi pointed to the girl.

"Stop fooling around!" Aqua cupped her hands and yelled towards the boy. "This is an actual town with actual people! The faster, the better! With minimal damage!"

"Oh," Riku said. Not more than one syllable? Really?

"And, uh, I think that's Sora." Kairi pointed to the boy that blasted a thunder attack from his place.

"I'm trying Master Aqua!" he grunted, his voice echoing around the district. There was their confirmation on the girl's identity. "Do you want to be up here? Because apparently his eyes aren't his weak spot."

"Watch your tone!" she stopped and warned him. "This is why you aren't a master yet!"

"Sora?" Riku repeated. Oh, look! Two syllables!

"Yeah," Kairi nodded. "Like, ninety-nine percent sure."

"Should we help?" Riku asked, noting how the boy was doing particularly well on his own with what seems like an endless arsenal of Keyblades.

"Yeaaaaah, let's give them a hand."

Kairi went to help Aqua with the small fry. The Keyblade Master tried to tell her to run, but Kairi was made of more stuff than that. She smiled, summoning her Keyblade. This was what they were here for. She'd had more than enough practice to take these guys on. She knew what it was like when fighting the big baddies. It was super annoying when they were nipping at you and you were just trying to get rid of the source.

That's what Riku aimed for. Riku jumped from streetlamps and walls, slashing at the creature. Kairi caught Riku slashing at the back of its neck. How he got up there amazed Kairi. He was really good at the whole climbing thing.

"Hey!" Riku got Sora's attention. "Here!"

"Sweet!" the boy flew at him, grabbing his arm and pulling him away as an assault of Keyblade embedded themselves into the back of the neck. Then, they exploded.

The Heartless stumbled, swatting at Sora and Riku. Beams of dark energy chased them. The boy laughed, holding out his hand and blocking it with a sphere of light. Riku was yelling at him to let him down.

A lull in the lesser waved allowed Kairi and Aqua to back up and watch. The girl sighed, shaking her head.

"I said not to be afraid, not to act recklessly."

"Maybe he acts that way because he is afraid?" Kairi offered. "Though, I'm not sure why."

Kairi eyed Aqua as she looked her up and down, her eyes resting on the Keyblade. Kairi offered her a smile. She shouldn't try and scare her away. Not right now. They'd need her. And they'd need this boy. His power seemed exactly like what they needed to defeat the darkness once and for all.

Darkness pooled around their feet. Kairi pulled Aqua away as darkness burst forth from the ground. They ran from the bursts, slicing at the Heartless's feet as they did so. Riku was set down among them as Sora rose back into the air to attack the neck. Man, this Heartless had a lot of stamina.

"Never. Again." Riku stated as Kairi snickered. "Don't laugh! That was terrifying! He just stood in the way of attacks! Just to show he could block them!"

"He is a bit of a show off," Aqua rolled her eyes. "Always has been. He's going to run out of magic soon. He'll be grounded at this rate."

"Grounded, like…?" Kairi asked. She was a Keyblade Master. She could seriously prevent him from watching television if she wanted. The image almost made Kairi laugh out loud.

"Like, now." Aqua pointed as the boy began to fall from the air. He struggled for a grip, catching on to the Heartless's hide to slow his descent. "Don't worry. He's fine. This is a good lesson for him."

The Heartless grabbed the boy in its large hand and smashed him to the ground. Kairi gasped. That had to hurt. He gritted his teeth, trying to pull himself from the monster's grip. It lifted its hand again thrusting down smashing with an open palm.

Kairi ran over, pulling Sora out from under the hand. He huffed, rubbing his ribs and thanking her. He groaned. "Man, I got too cocky again." He looked up at her. "I told you to hide!"

"I can handle myself," she scowled at him. She pulled him away from the hand that tried to snatch him back up. "Unlike you, clearly."

"Hey!"

Her expression softened. "You know, it's okay to be scared. Don't hide your fear, okay? Face it head on. In the end, you'll realize the darkness isn't so scary."

He bit his lip uncertainly. Kairi pulled him into an alcove to cast Cura on him and handed him an ether. He took the bottle, turning it over in his hands. Did he not know what it was?

"That's an ether," she explained.

"What do I do with it?"

Oh boy. "Drink it. It'll restore your magic. It won't do much, but that's all I've got."

The boy pulled open the bottle and guzzled it. He grinned. "Thanks! I feel much better now." As he lifted from the ground, Kairi grabbed his ankle. He turned to face her.

"Listen to Master Aqua, okay? Finish it fast. We're all right here with you." She smiled encouragingly. "And do it before you might run out of magic again."

"Will do!" Sora saluted as Kairi released him. She ran back into the fray. The battle was grueling. It was one of the stronger Heartless they had to fight. Twice as tall as a Darkside and twice as mean, it meant her using a lot of magic and Riku fighting with all he had. He did his best to reach the neck. Sora actually began to take this seriously even with that smile still hanging so naturally on his face. Aqua expertly finished off the little guys as Riku and Sora landed a finishing blow to the Heartless.

The four of them reconvened as District fell quiet. The sounds of battle echoing off until the sound vanished. Kairi wasn't sure where to start. Riku looked from her, to the newcomers. This wasn't anything they expected. The boy grinned at the girl, pumping his fist.

"We did it, Aqua!"

"You need more control." She said, folding her arms.

"Aw, come on. I know what I'm doing. I got a good handle on this."

"It's not your power that needs controlling, it's your attitude." The boy slumped. He'd heard it before, it seemed. He clearly didn't have any control over that. The girl sighed, smiling as she ruffled his hair. "Don't worry. I know you have potential. You'll make a powerful Master someday. Until then, learn to keep a level head."

"Okaaaay."

They turned back to Riku and Kairi. Kairi chewed her lip. She usually knew what to do and say when backed into a corner, but this was beyond what they were expecting with the return of Master Aqua. Sure, a powerful almost-thirty year old Keyblade Master, maybe hiding out and keeping low somewhere. Not a girl only a few years older than them. Not this boy with a crazy amount of power.

"You're… So you're Master Aqua?" Kairi started uncertainly. The girl raised her eyes in shock. She probably wasn't expecting Kairi to know about her. "We were looking for you. King Mickey told us about you. We could use your help."

"Mickey?" Aqua smiled. "Well, if Mickey asked, then I'd be glad to. But, there's something I need to do first, if you don't mind. There's someone I need to check on."

"Sure," Riku agreed. "Anything you need, we can help out with."

"Thank you."

Then, Kairi turned uncertainly to Sora. "And you were… Sora, right?"

"Right," Sora's widening grin was infectious. She felt a small smile crossing her own face. "Oh! I got your letter!" he pulled a rolled up and crumpled piece of paper from his back pocket, handing it to her. "It helped us get here, so… thanks."

Kairi opened the paper, scanning it. Oh. It was the poem she wrote when she was twelve. She had thrown it into the ocean, making her own farewell ceremony for the lost boy. How did it find him? After almost three years, it made it's way to him. The power of a goodbye, she figured. Kairi had almost forgotten about it… She handed it back to him. "You keep it. It was for you."

His face tinged pink with happiness as he shoved it back into his pocket. "So, where's Riku?" Kairi jabbed her thumb at the boy standing next to her. Sora stumbled back as if the shock had physically shoved him. "Riku!" Sora leapt at the boy to embrace him.

Riku was faster than him. Riku held him at arm's length, shaking his head. "Whoah, whoah, wait. That's not possible. You can't be Sora. She said you were dead."

Sora quirked his head in confused. "Well, I probably would have been if I were alone. DiZ and Aqua helped me."

"Where exactly did you go?" Riku shot. He was clearly very skeptical. What would that help anyway? They didn't know where their friend had been sent.

"The Realm of Darkness." Sora said easily. "DiZ found me. And then, after a while, Aqua found us. I just found a letter and a door opened and here we are. We weren't exactly sure where it would take us. But, it led us right to you." Sora frowned. "After we got here, DiZ kind of… disappeared. He has his own things to do and, well, we can't really stop him."

Aqua put a hand on Sora's shoulder. The smile was put right back on his face as he glanced at her. Kairi would tell Sora admired her. It was so easy to. She carried herself with confidence and poise. "Maybe we can go somewhere to explain things. Being out in the open isn't the best idea."

"Good idea," Riku agreed. "Our base is right up there," he pointed up the ramp. "Mickey isn't here at the moment, but we can tell you what's going on. And you can tell us what happened."

They regrouped in the tiny room that served as their base. The rest of the force was out carrying on other duties. They were crazy busy lately when it came to helping out new citizens. Before Kairi made a suggestion, there hadn't been any welcoming committees set up. Most people that arrived had to fend for themselves. Kairi helped set up and organize them within the midst of the Heartless invasion. Who else was going to do it?

Riku and Kairi explained what happened while Aqua was gone. She listened carefully; worry drawing deeper and deeper into her features. Kairi showed her the journals and showed her the data and helped her to catch up with the situation. She was eager to help and told them what she knew.

"First, his name isn't Ansem," Aqua pointed to the image of the man. "His name is Xehanort."

"Xehanort?" Riku's eyebrows shot up incredulously.

"Yes." She chewed her thumb. "This is worse than I predicted." Kairi watched her turn the page, her eyes lingering on the image of Xemnas. "Much worse."

Aqua went on to tell her story and how she knew of Xehanort. Mickey told a little bit of what he knew, but he was unclear about the whole situation. He told them of the pieces he put together, but it was still an incomplete story.

Sora listened, keeping rather quiet. Kairi noticed how he kept glancing at her. It sort of weirded her out. She understood he didn't have much social contact in the Realm of Darkness, but he should have a basic idea of how to be polite, right? Aqua was so... not like Sora. Complete opposite. How did he wind up like he did?

Kairi made notes in the journal. She was sure Jiminy wouldn't mind. They had to keep record of everything that could help them. Aqua's story was the catalyst that sent theirs into motion. And her friends… Aqua's friend was possessed by Xehanort. She wanted to return him to normal. But… was it even possible? Cloud was still possessed by Ansem. If they pulled Ansem from Cloud, destroyed him, then destroyed Xemnas, what would happen to Terra?

Finally… there was the question of what happened in the Realm of Darkness. It wasn't essential to their plans, but keen interest definitely fueled them. A Keyblade Master, a scientist, and a child all wound up there… How did they even manage to survive and keep their sanity?

Aqua told most of that story. She remembered most of the details from their meeting. Sora explained how it was pretty mundane and routine for a long time until he and DiZ met Aqua and they found out he had a Keyblade.

"We had no idea how it happened." Sora said, light sparkling in his eyes. "You have to have a Master pass them to you through an inheritance ceremony." He looked to Riku. "Aqua thinks Terra passed it to you. But," he turned to Kairi, "Who passed it to you?"

Aqua and Sora clearly knew more about the Keyblade than Kairi and Riku did. They had no idea about the inheritance ceremony. They just assumed they had been chosen. They were even called Masters themselves at one point. Clearly, after standing in the presence of one, they were not.

"I'm not sure."

Aqua chewed her thumbnail thoughtfully. "I think… I may have by accident." She said sheepishly.

Uh… what?

Thanks for all the feedback, guys! I really appreciate it! It'll really help me to be a better writer. I've seen your reviews and reflected back on those chapters and realize how very right you all all. Thanks for pointing it out!

I was trying not to rewrite Kingdom Hearts I with Kairi and Riku replacing Sora because that would have made for a boring read. I tried to summarize it and realized how bad an idea that kind of was. It didn't give me a chance to flesh out Kairi and Riku like I wanted to. I'll try and pick up the slack with later chapters.

Thanks everyone!