Disclaimer: Yup. I don't own KH.
Wow. I've been going back and reading old chapters from Shattered Hearts and am cringing. God, everything was so cheesy and cliché. I may honestly go back and rewrite the whole thing…. If only I had the time for that, haha. Why didn't any of you tell me how terrible it was?
Anyways, thank you for the feedback last chapter – especially from Tiffany. I guess El is a pretty likeable character…?
Here's chapter 5!
Chapter 5:
"So, we've got everything?" Sora yawned, leaning back against the wall. He was exhausted from running around the districts and was looking forward to taking a nap.
Donald peered into his rucksack. "Ten potions, four ethers, and one megapotion. I think we're covered."
El smirked. "Sure you've got enough, there, bird brain? It's not like we're facing an army out there."
"Well, we have to expect the unexpected." Donald retorted, yanking the bag shut. "We don't know what's out there."
El had to give him that. She hadn't left Traverse Town – hadn't been able to leave – since she had crash-landed there years ago. She blew a strand of hair out of her eyes. Honestly, El just wanted to hurry up and leave. The hope that had been so cruelly taken from her was now being dangled in front of her like some kind of treat, and it was all she could do to resist its allure.
Lea, Isa, Mai, and Ventus. El winced as she thought the names. No, she had to be strong. She was exploring the worlds to find answers, and she couldn't risk feeling the hurt that had been squeezing her heart. They were alive. They had to be.
Dayna tilted her head worriedly as she noticed that El's eyes had become glassed over. Were those… tears? "El, are you okay?"
The older brunette snapped out of her reverie, horrified to realize that that tears had welled up in her eyes. She hurriedly rubbed them out, taking note that no one else besides Dayna had seen her little episode. "I'm fine." She said shortly. "It was just a yawn."
No, it wasn't. Dayna thought, but she wasn't dumb. She knew that El wanted it to be left alone, so she did just that. She turned around, faking a stretch.
"Okay, let's go, a-hyuck!" Goofy clapped his gloved hands together, instantly lightening the atmosphere. "To the gummi ship!"
Sora and Dayna trotted after the dog, Donald having gone ahead already. El dragged behind them, still embarrassed from her display. Dayna peered at her from the corner of her eye and dropped back to walk with her. Heh, so much for leaving her alone.
Even if El felt surprised, she didn't show it. "What do you want, kid?"
Dayna shrunk in on herself slightly. "Nothing."
El sighed. "Don't lie, it's unbecoming."
"Fine." Dayna straightened up, gaining a sudden surge of confidence. "Why are you so closed-off all the time?"
The older girl tensed at the unexpected question. "You can't honestly expect me to answer that when we've only met a couple of hours ago, kid."
"Well, how do you expect us to trust you when you're acting so sketchy?" Dayna blurted out, feeling satisfied when she saw a flash of shock run through El's face before it quickly became the stoic expression she was used to seeing. However, her words instantly caught up with her and she felt a bit ashamed. She softened her voice. "Look, I know you can't tell us everything right away, but you can start with the easy things. Like, why do you always call me, 'kid' when we're the same age?"
El winced. That definitely wasn't an easy one. "Let's just say that I'm older than I look." She said rather ambiguously.
Dayna opened her mouth to reply but closed it when she realized that they had arrived at the gummi ship. Though she didn't say anything, they both knew that their discussion wasn't over.
"Welcome to our ship!" Donald quacked proudly. Behind him rested a space ship that looked deceptively small, and the three newcomers found themselves wondering how they could all possibly fit on it.
Goofy seemed to read their minds. "Don't worry! It has two bedrooms, uh, a kitchen, a living room, and a, uh, control room."
El cocked her eyebrow at one very important room he had missed. "And a bathroom too, I hope."
"Oh, a-hyuck, that too." Goofy giggled as Donald cursed under his breath. He seemed to be having some difficulty remembering the code to the door.
"Ah! There we go." The duck stepped back, allowing a ramp to extend from the door. "Follow me."
"Well, where else could we possibly go?" El muttered, cynical as always. But, she followed Donald anyways and cast a final glance back at the world she had spent so long on. Hopefully, she would never have to be there for so long again.
She turned back around as the door closed behind her with a thud, and walked quietly beside the others, taking note of where everything was located.
"… and this is Dayna and El's room!" Donald announced. Dayna peeked inside excitedly, only to recoil seconds later.
"Um... it's rather…"
"Pink." El finished disgustedly. "It's nauseating."
"Don't all girls like pink?" Sora asked cluelessly, Donald and Goofy nodding rapidly in agreement.
"Don't all boys like blue?" El countered, shutting the door to the room.
"Well… yeah." Sora shrugged.
She exhaled deeply, her point lost amid the idiocy of the opposite gender. "I guess we'll just have to redecorate."
"Yeah." Dayna couldn't agree more. "Now, can we keep going on with the tour?"
El eyed her approvingly, once again seeing her hidden boldness. "Yeah, I second that."
The boys found themselves teamed up against, and though they outnumbered the girls, they found it easier to give in to their commands. "There's one room left." Donald grumbled, continuing down the hallway. He opened the door at the end, revealing the control room. "This is where we fly the ship. This is the steering mechanism, and this joystick is what we use to attack the Heartless ships. Over here is – "
"Hold on," El held a hand up, "Heartless ships?"
"Yes." Donald looked annoyed. "We'll face a lot of them on our journey, so I'll make sure to teach you all how to use the blasters."
"Blasters?" Dayna gulped. Keyblades were one thing, but flying a ship was another.
"Don't worry, Day-ah-nah, I'll teach ya!" Goofy threw an arm around her shoulders comfortingly. She nodded uneasily, still not entirely comfortable with the idea.
"So, that covers everything!" The duck proclaimed, ignoring the atmosphere that had descended upon the group. "Any questions?"
"Yeah! Why didn't you mention us?" Two high-pitched voices screeched angrily from the speakers. An image of them was soon projected onto the window, revealing two chipmunks.
"Oh, and these are Chip and Dale." Donald added begrudgingly. It seemed as if he had a history with them. "They're the ship operators, but they help us out from Disney Castle."
"You wouldn't be able to go anywhere without us!" The one with the black nose shouted, jumping up and down.
"Yeah, that's right!" The red-nosed one added. "We'll be checking in from time to time to make sure you're doing all right."
"So make sure to keep us updated!" They said in unison.
"Buh-bye, now!" Dale waved as Chip pushed a button. The window went dark.
For some reason, it kind of felt like a whirlwind went through here. Dayna sweatdropped, still staring at the window.
"Anything else you've forgotten, duck boy?" El crossed her arms.
"As a matter of fact, yes. Thank you for reminding me." Donald dug in his pockets as El looked scandalized that she had unintentionally helped him. "These are fire orbs. With them, you can attempt to learn fire magic."
He handed one out to each of the members. Dayna and Sora letting out gasps of surprise as their orbs went inside their chests.
"We'll practice it later, but some of you look like you need some sleep first."
"Do we have enough time to rest before the next world?" Sora asked, hiding a yawn. "How far is it?"
Goofy turned on the monitor. "It's gonna be another two hours, a-hyuck. Donald and I can take the first shift."
"What's the world called?" Dayna asked tentatively.
"Wonderland." Goofy read.
"Sounds… wonderful." El smirked, already turning around to go to their room, ponytail swishing behind her. "Wake me up when we get there."
"I'll be taking a nap too." Dayna quickly added before darting after El. This could be the perfect opportunity to continue their conversation.
But, when she got to the room, El was already curled up on the bed farthest from the door, her chest rising and falling slowly.
"El?" The younger girl whispered. "Are you awake?"
She received no reply. With a sigh, Dayna closed the door and collapsed onto her own sickeningly fuchsia bed. But as her eyes closed, she heard a mumble from the other side of the room.
"I'm 25."
All sleepiness gone, Dayna sat bolt upright in bed. "What? You look ten years younger than that!"
"Exactly ten years younger." El spoke into her pillow, hating the feelings rising up in her. "I don't age anymore."
Dayna slowly lowered herself back onto the mattress, still trying to get over her shock. "Why not?"
"…"
"El?"
"I don't know." God, she hated not knowing. "That's why I need to travel with these idiots. I hate being in the dark." Dayna remained silent, letting her speak her troubles. "But, you're not an idiot. At least, I don't think you are."
"… Thank you?"
"Anyone who Mai would give her scarf to is worth something." El reflected, remembering how the blonde had clutched onto it as if it were a lifeline. Ventus had made it for her, Mai had told her, all googly-eyed and crap. Honestly, it looked like a miserable pile of yarn, but El could tell that Dayna treasured it nearly as much as Mai had. Did, she corrected herself.
"El, how do you know Mai?" Dayna cautiously asked, sensing that she was treading in a risky area. El stiffened, but forced herself to relax.
"… Go to sleep, Dayna." She said finally.
The younger girl knew that the opportunity was gone and shut her eyes tightly. But, she wouldn't give up. She would find out what had happened to El to make her so defensive.
Similarly, El was thinking the same thing. The girl was persistent – she gave her that. But, was it really such a bad thing to open up to somebody else, for once?
El stared at the ceiling, hating that she was legitimately considering telling Dayna everything. She pummeled her pillow and flopped on it facedown.
… I'm an idiot.
"WAKE UP!" Three voices screeched loudly into the girls' room.
"Gah!" Dayna tumbled out of bed as El leaped to her feet, wooden staff in hand and eyes darting around crazily. Both relaxed when they realized that it had only been the boys, with Dayna wheezing awkwardly on the ground and El setting down her staff with a glare of disapproval.
Sora was doubled over and laughing madly. His face had turned an impressive shade of maroon. "T-that was too funny!"
"And just when I thought you couldn't get any more idiotic." El groaned, immediately shutting up the boy. "So, do you have a particular reason as to why you're waking us up?"
"Um… we're here." Sora pointed to the window of their room meekly. El followed his finger with her eyes and noted that there was a rather pink and green world bobbing in the atmosphere. Dayna got to her feet clumsily, still half-asleep, and stumbled over to the window. She pressed her hands against the cool glass, and the sight of the new world immediately woke the other half of her up.
"Woah! How do we get down there?"
"Well, we usually descend to the world…" Donald started, only to be cut off by El.
"But?"
Donald coughed irritably. "This world is a bit different. We're supposed to, erm, jump out the hatch."
Everyone stared at the duck incredulously.
"You've got to be joking." Sora said point blank. "There's no way I'm jumping a thousand feet out of a space ship to splat on the ground. Nuh-uh."
"It's a gummi ship." Was all Donald could say in his defense. "But the King has done some research on this world. Jumping out is what he's always done for Wonderland."
"Yeah? And where's your king now?" El demanded, feeling a ball of uneasiness in her stomach. She really didn't like heights.
"Saving the worlds, that's where!" Donald snapped back. "If you're really that scared of jumping, then by all means, feel free to stay here!"
El bit her tongue in a vain attempt to refrain from verbally ripping the duck's head off. "Please, spare me the lecture. Not wanting to jump out of a ship thousands of miles away from the ground is not a sign of fear – it's a sign of common sense, a quality that both you and your king seem to be lacking." She squared her shoulders. "But if you insist on this stupidity, then I suppose there's nothing I can do about it."
Dayna noticed that Goofy hadn't said anything about the matter. "Goofy, what do you think?"
"Gawrsh, well it's gotta be safe if that there rabbit is floating in it." He pointed out the window. Indeed, there was a rabbit. He looked to be in quite a hurry, frantically trying to hasten his drifting speed by doggy paddling.
"Point taken." El saw that gravity had somehow slowed on this world. Strange…
"Well, let's go, then!" Sora bounced in place, seemingly forgetting his previous fear. "C'mon, before we lose him!" He dashed out the door to the control room.
Donald and Goofy nodded and went after him, Dayna heading out as well. She stopped, however, when she saw that El hadn't moved.
"You coming?"
El moaned inwardly, hating that she couldn't say 'no' without seeming like a coward – something that she certainly wasn't. "Yeah, I'm coming."
She grabbed her trustworthy staff, put on her dark green army jacket and leather holster, and secured the weapon across her back. While she was getting everything in place, Dayna took the time to inspect the girl's clothing. Her jacket was rather ragged, with dirt encrusted all over the creases. From what she could tell, the tank top underneath was supposed to be cream colored, but this, too, was tinged grey and brown. Her eyes followed the rest of El's body, from the light army green capris, to the rusty brown sneakers, and then back up to the black choker that hung around her neck. The pendant that rested on her collarbones was an orange iridescent flame, causing Dayna to wonder where it had come from. Last but not least were El's curiously colored eyes, which were currently fixed on Dayna herself.
"Are you done judging my choice of apparel?" El asked stonily, rolling her shoulders.
"I-I'm not judging it!" Dayna gasped defensively. "I was just thinking that, maybe, there was a laundry machine on the space ship. That's all."
El rolled her eyes. "I think you mean gummi ship." She mocked, instantly causing Dayna to feel relieved. "Now, scoot your boot and let's get going."
"O-okay." The ponytailed girl stepped out of the room and headed over to the control panel, where the other three were impatiently waiting.
"I think we're ready to go." Dayna offered quietly, receiving nods of confirmation from the others. "So, how do we get – "
A screech tore from her mouth as the floor disappeared from under them. To their surprise, gravity was still very much in effect. Dayna could feel her heart thundering in her throat as she frantically tried to grab onto something – anything – to stop her fall.
El's instincts told her the same thing. Somehow, she ended up clinging to Goofy, who was chuckling at the situation.
"Is this funny to you?" She cried uncharacteristically, clutching onto the dog's face with her hands. "Who the hell opened the hatch?"
"Wasn't me!" Donald quacked, tumbling head over heels.
"Not me!" Dayna and Sora announced, the former squeezing her eyes shut, and the latter grasping his torso for security.
"Goofy?!" El screamed over the wind rushing past her ears.
"Uh-uh." He winced and rubbed his ears; the girl was still hanging on to him, and had yelled right into them.
"Must be Chip and Dale." Dayna denounced, daring to peek an eye open. Below them, the surface of the world had gotten much closer, and she could just make out the rabbit a few hundred feet away. So, that meant that they would be slowing down just about now.
The five jerked as gravity lessened its hold. Now, they were floating at a more leisurely pace, and El's heart began to calm down. She slowly let go of Goofy and drifted away, grimacing as she saw a handprint on his face. Oops.
Soon enough, the group found themselves in a dark tunnel leading down to an amber colored floor. The rabbit had just landed and was scurrying around frantically, holding on to what looked like a pocket watch in his paw. His cries echoed up from the ground: "Oh, my fur and whiskers - I'm late! I'm late! The queen will have my head for sure!" Dayna watched curiously as he circled the room twice before disappearing into a corridor.
"Well, that was strange." Sora stated, gently touching down on the floor.
"Yeah." Dayna stumbled as her feet contacted the ground and she grabbed onto the boy's shoulder to steady herself. A light blush dotted her cheeks. "S-sorry about that, Sora."
He shrugged it off, wondering why it was such a big deal to her. "Don't worry about it."
The two of them looked up to see Goofy lying down with his arms behind his head. "Goofy, watch– " A loud thud echoed around the room, causing the other four to cringe.
"Out." Sora finished belatedly. He and Dayna caught eyes and snickered.
El landed, walking forward as if she had fallen down the rabbit hole many times. In her arms was Donald, who had been panicking until she had grabbed him.
"Thanks." He said gruffly as she set him back on solid ground. "Now, where did that rabbit go?"
Dayna twisted to face the warped hallway that he had gone down. "That way." She pointed. "Wonder why he was in such a hurry…"
"Who knows." El scrutinized the passage warily. "I guess we'll just have to find out."
She set off, not even waiting for a response. The others hastened after her and left the strange room behind them without a second thought.
But, little did they know that their arrival had only been the tip of the metaphorical 'strange' iceberg in Wonderland.
You guys like? It's a bit of a filler… Well, more than a bit. Here, El revealed a tiny bit of her past to Dayna. Not a lot, because she's not gonna drop her guard right away, obviously.
Also, once again, Sora and Dayna will NOT have any romantic relations. At all. I have a different guy in mind for her ;)
Review, please! It really does make my day :)
- SoraMaiDay