"And the winner is Roxas!" The announcer roared as Axel conceded the fight with a smile.

"So Roxas, I let you win, want to make it up to me."

Roxas eyed Axel dubiously. "How about I refrain from hitting you?"

Axel's smile broadened, "but I like when you hit me."

"Axel, get off the floor and let someone who actually wants to fight on."

Axel shrugged and strode off the arena with a wink at Roxas as Seifer came on, Struggle Bat in hand.

"Ready for a pounding Rucksack, you know you can't win."

"Keep dreaming Seifer."

They went at it, both exchanging blows as they swung with their bats. The goal of the game was to get a hundred hits on your opponent. Of course no one could keep a completely accurate tally, hence the referee. It was his score that mattered, at every tenth hit that he counted he called it out to let the cheering crowd know where the match stood.

Five minutes later the score stood at forty-seven hits for Seifer, and fifty-one hits for Roxas. They squared off against each other, Seifer smiled smugly.

"Think you can keep this up?"

"Stop talking, start fighting." Roxas panted.

Seifer started in on another attack when someone in the crowd screamed. Both turned to see what had caused the scream and Roxas froze in terror as a familiar chill entered his body and one of the shadow beings from that night at the trolley stop loomed out of the bleachers. The crowd scattered to escape as it chattered and hissed angrily, snapping at anyone that got too close. Another appeared, and another, this time there was no darkness to obscure their forms and Roxas saw the myriad of forms the creatures could take. The small antennae bearing ones were tiny next to the larger humanoid creatures that loomed before him, something swooped down and a creature that looked like a dragon or something similar slashed at him, he felt someone push him over and turned to see Seifer crouching next him, his hand on Roxas' shoulder.

"Thanks."

"What the hell is going on?"

"I don't know."

Sora jumped up onto the platform, his keyblade popping into existence in his hand. "Come on Roxas!"

Roxas nodded standing and summoning his own weapons. He turned to face three of the large humanoid shadows as they advanced on him. Besides him Seifer rushed past, bat in hand as he yelled at the monsters.

"No wait!" Roxas tried to grab him but he missed Seifer's arm.

Seifer continued to rush at the trio; they regarded him with their cold golden eyes. One of them hissed loudly and raised a clawed hand, swiping at Seifer as he drew near. There was a splash of blood and Seifer was sent flying, he hit the ground and skidded off the arena. Roxas rushed towards him as several smaller shadows advanced on the fallen boy, shattering them with wide strokes from his blade. Back in the arena Sora was fighting with several shadows.

"I've got Seifer."

Roxas turned to see Axel picking up Seifer; the latter had blood dripping from a deep slash across his face.

Roxas nodded, "get out of here Axel."

Axel nodded with a smile. "At least you care."

The older boy ran, carrying Seifer in his arms as he joined the rushing crowd. The shadows seemed intent solely on Roxas and Sora, with the exception of those people that got in their way it seemed. Roxas retreated as fresh creatures scampered towards him, and another of the winged ones dove at him. He swung and clipped its wing, sending it to the ground in a fluttering, shrieking black mass.

He and Sora found one another in the center of the arena, back to back with the shadows closing in around them in an ever tightening circle. The flyers hovered just beyond, like hungry vultures waiting for the kill to be made so they could pick up the scraps. There was a sudden chorus of chirps and shouts, Roxas pulled Sora down as a bright red Chocobo surged into the mass of creatures, its rider hacking and slashing at the shadows on either side of him as the bird lashed out with beak and claws.

Neither boy quite knew where the soldiers came from, just that one moment the single red Chocobo had been surrounded by the shadows and the next the shadows were running, jumping, and flying in every direction shrieking in fear as they were cut to ribbons by a rainbow of Chocobos and their mounted riders

"Are you boys alright?"

The rider of the red Chocobo had stopped besides them and had dismounted to check on them. His Chocobo chirped and reached its neck out, its beak clamping down on a squirming shadow beneath its feet and crushing the monster's head in its powerful jaw. Its deed done it looked back at the boys and chirped at them proudly.

Another soldier rode up and saluted, his spear had what looked like shredded black fabric dangling from its tip.

"Sir, we've driven them from the square and into the market, they seem to be milling about there."

The captain nodded. "See to the injured, make sure all the civilians are accounted for. Then smash those things make sure none of them are left in the town by nightfall or we'll really have our hands full."

To Sora and Roxas he said. "You boys get home, everything will be fine."

The entire skirmish had barely lasted two minutes.

"There is still no news on just what the animals that attacked the annual Struggle Competition are, in light of the disruption of the event, and the fact that several attendees and participants were injured it has been decided that this year's Struggle matches will be cancelled until Twilight Town's safety is assured."

Roxas reached out and twisted the flipped the radio off, leaning forwards on his desk with a quiet sigh.

Sora put his hand on Roxas' shoulder. "Hey, it'll be alright, you can compete again next year."

Roxas glared at him. "Sora, I'm not worried about the Struggle Battle, I'm worried about those things. We got lucky this time, what happens next time?"

Sora shifted uneasily. "What do you mean next time?"

"This is twice now Sora, you really think there won't be a third time? Something is happening and we need to find out what it is."

Sora nodded, "okay, but what can we do about it? I mean the soldiers seem able to deal with them."

"Yeah but I think they're drawn to us."

"What? You're crazy."

"No, didn't you see how they came directly at us? They wanted us; they only paid attention to anyone else because they were in the way."

Sora thought for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, I guess you're right, they did seem to concentrate on us."

Roxas nodded, taking a deep breath. "I think we need to leave Twilight Town

"You're kidding right? Leave Twilight and do what? We can't just wander around the kingdom hiding from these things…besides they seem to be able to appear at will wherever they want anyways!"

"Yeah, but at least then we won't endanger anyone else."

They continued arguing for the rest of the afternoon, until Tara called them down for dinner where she fussed over them even though neither boy had been among the unfortunate attendees to be injured by the shadows.

"So we're decided?" Roxas asked.

Sora nodded quietly. "Yeah, I guess."

"You guess? Sora if you don't want to do this you'd better say something now."

Sora sighed. "Why are we sneaking away? Shouldn't we tell Aunt Tara?"

"Tell Mom that we're running away because we have magic swords that seem to draw the monsters that attacked the Struggle Battle to us?" Roxas snorted. "I'm sure she'd believe us."

Sora opened his mouth, Roxas cut him off. "If you even suggest that we show her the swords as proof I will knock you out and drag you with me."

Sora kept quiet and slung his backpack over his shoulder with a scowl as Roxas opened the window, holding out his hand for his cousin.

"Come on."

Reluctantly Sora followed Roxas out onto the sill as Roxas slid down the drainpipe with his own pack slung over one shoulder. With a last look at their room Sora slid down after Roxas.

"Alright, this was your idea, where are we going from here?"

Roxas thought a moment. "I don't want to take a train, and it isn't like there are any running right now anyways. You know the hole in the marketplace wall?"

Sora nodded, looking increasingly worried. "You want us to go out into the forest alone at night?"

"Well yeah, there isn't any other way out of the town this time of night."

Sora winced, shaking his head as they began to walk downhill. "Who was it that said it was too dangerous for us to stay here?"

"Too dangerous for everyone else, I'm not counting us."

Sora sighed. "You know I remember when I still lived on the islands, we were building a raft to sail to the mainland. We were so eager to get away from home."

Roxas looked over at Sora encouragingly. "Did you ever do it?"

"No…the storm came before we ever got the chance to even try…that's how," Sora paused, licking his lips as he continued; "Leon got his scar."

"He was trying to save the raft?"

Sora choked up as he spoke, wiping away tears. "No…I was trying to save the raft. He had to save me."

Roxas stopped and held Sora tightly. "Hey, it wasn't your fault."

Sora nodded, sniffling. "Leon said that too, I still don't think I believe him."

Roxas slapped him on the back. "I don't think he blames you, come on."

They crouched in the market as the patrol passed by them.

"I guess they're still worried about the monsters."

Roxas nodded, he wondered what the captain had meant earlier when he'd mentioned that they needed to get rid of the creatures before nightfall. Did they get stronger at night, and if so, by how much? Could he and Sora take them? They seemed pretty weak, especially against the keyblades, even the soldiers had been able to kill them with relative ease and they'd been using regular weapons hadn't they?

"Roxas do you think we shou—AAH!"

Roxas jumped and turned, one of his keyblades snapping into his hand at Sora's cry. He stopped in mid-turn as he saw what had startled Sora: a chocobo. The same one that had been in the sandlot earlier in the day, the red that had killed the creature right in front of them and then gone about like it had simple pecked at an insect.

It eyed them curiously, chirping quietly, as if it knew that silence was needed.

Roxas scowled. "Where did that thing come from?"

"I-I don't know, it just bit on my pack and scared me to death."

Roxas shook his head. "Okay, lets go, the guards are gone."

He stood and ran, Sora was right behind him, and then he heard it, the soft patter patter patter of the chocobo's taloned feet on the stone work.

He stopped and turned to look at it; the red stopped and looked around as well, as if it thought Roxas wasn't staring at it but for possible danger. He took a few careful steps towards the wall, and the chocobo followed after him and Sora. He tried sprinting again and again the pattering footstep could be heard. He stopped, turned to see the chocobo again right behind Sora eyeing them curiously. It gave a soft whistle and reached its head out to latch onto Sora's bag.

Roxas sighed, eying the massive bird. "Oookay, I think we have a problem."

"I think it's cute," Sora said, wrestling his bag out of the bird's beak.

"No, it isn't. It's a problem."

"It could help us."

"How," Roxas asked dubiously.

"Do you want to walk the entire time? Or carry your pack for that matter?"

Roxas gave another look at the red, it chirped quietly again, he waved his arms at it.

"Scram!"

The chocobo lifted its head and chirped curiously, canting to one side and staring at the boys out of one eye. Roxas pushed the bird's head away and it nipped at his fingers, he yelped and jerked his hand back.

Sora giggled. "I think we're stuck with it."

Roxas gave an exasperated and defeated sigh. "Fine, but you're taking care of it."

"No problem," Sora chimed as he reached up and rubbed the chocobo beneath its neck, it chirped fondly, nuzzling against Sora's palm.

Roxas led them the rest of the way across the market place to the side alley where the offending hole was. It had never been repaired, probably because it was in such an out of the way spot. Roxas and his friends had found it when they were little, and had immediately realized the utility of an easy out into the surrounding countryside. They'd spent the entire day of that first discovery covering the hole with various detritus and debris to keep it hidden. He and Sora pulled away the covering plants of wood and other bits of loose junk away from the hole.

When it was clear Roxas ducked through first, beyond was the Evening Forest, it was dark, forbidding, and a great place to escape to when you needed some quiet time. Behind him Sora was helping the red through the hole, the chocobo had managed to get its head and neck through, but its large shoulders and the rest of its body were proving difficult. Sora gripped the sides of its head and pulled, with a loud, indignant squawk it popped out into the open. Several feathers trailed in its wake and it gave an irate hiss at the offending opening they'd passed through.

Roxas burst out laughing as the bird seethed at the hole in the town wall like it was somehow at fault. He didn't like having the chocobo around, it was a hassle and he had no idea how they were going to feed it; but at least it could provide some amusement.