Bariss: "DarthKingdom would like to apologize for not replying to your reviews as he usually does. He's suffered a personal tragedy lately with the passing of his grandmother. We'd like to open this up with about ten seconds of internet silence, if we may."

-10 seconds-

Bariss: "Thank you. But now, we can move on. Smile! DarthKingdom doesn't own Kingdom Hearts, Disney, Square Enix, or anything else."

!

Chapter 105: Oracle

As the last of the pillars (and about half of what was left of the ceiling) in the pavilion collapsed, Genie announced to the room, "This is not my fault! This was not built to code!"

The building was a complete mess. The pillars had all been toppled, and there were chunks of the walls and ceiling strewn all across the room. The colorful banners that had been hanging proudly were in shreds, and lying on the floor in a pathetic mess. Fortunately, apart from a few Nobodies, there seemed to have been no casualties as a result of the attack. The guests and all of the elephants were gone.

Yuffie was tending to Riku's wounds as best she could. Since she couldn't subtly carry a pack of potions to a wedding, she only had one of the magic little parcels on her. She'd used it on his legs, staunching the bleeding, but leaving the scars.

She gently tried to nurse the bleeding injury on his shoulder, and it seemed that she had at least stopped the pain with some old technique. His bleeding was very slow, but she called over Donald as soon as she saw him, anyway.

"Curaga." He said, waving his staff. Green light seeped into the wound, closing it.

Stretching out his arm to test it, Riku said, "Thanks, Donald."

Yuffie ran a finger across the thin scar that was left, making him shiver a bit. "Are you alright?"

"Fine, just keep doing what you're doing." Riku said, grinning slightly.

She laughed, and wrapped her arms around him from behind. She kissed the nape of his neck, making him shiver again. "You had me worried for a minute. Don't do that again."

"Next time a Nobody is running at me with a blade, I'll get out of the way... Or maybe I could push Nehrut into him."

"I heard that."

The Sultan walked past them, Jasmine was following him, and Iago was perched on his shoulder.

"Good luck getting back the catering deposit." The bird muttered, irritated.

"Oh dear, oh dear." The old man was repeating to himself over and over.

"Fear not, O father of the bride," Genie said, appearing out of nowhere again, "We can rebuild!"

"Oh please Genie, whatever it takes. We can't have a wedding without a pavilion." He wiped away the sweat from his brow. "I am sorry about all this."

"You have nothing to apologize for, sir." Nehrut interjected, walking back into the pavilion after the failed attempt to follow the thieves. "It was the Brotherhood and the Forty Thieves that did this."

"What were they after...?" Jasmine wondered, walking toward the side room where Sora and Aladdin still stood. "The gifts?"

"Not all of them." Sora picked up the golden rod from where it had fallen when the fight with Cassim was interrupted. "This was what the King of Thieves wanted."

Donald snatched it from his hand, and Iago landed on it. The duck asked, "Who was he?"

"And with all the other great stuff, why go for this thing?" Iago added.

One second later, when all of the group had entered the side room, the emerald on the rod broke out into a blinding silver light. It floated from Donald's feathery grasp, and into the center of the room. Several of them drew their weapons.

A woman's soft voice emerged from the glowing jewel. "Your questions are mine to answer."

The glowing, semi-transparent form of a woman burst from the rod, which was hovering a few inches off the ground. She towered over them all, and appeared not to have legs. She wore robes, and a headdress that looked Egyptian. Her eyes were blank, with no pupils or irises.

"His name is Cassim." She said. "And he sought my sight to find the ultimate treasure."

"Did someone say 'treasure?'" Iago suddenly asked, eyes gleaming with greed. Sora was slightly uncomfortable –but not totally surprised- to see the same gleam in Donald's.

"Genie?" Aladdin began.

"Looks like an oracle..." He said, answering his unspoken question.

"I see all that has been, and all that will be." The woman said.

"Yep." Nehrut said, deadpan. "Oracle. Tells the future."

"How do you know tha-" Axel began, but cut himself off. "You know what? I'm just not gonna ask anymore."

"Where were you registered, Jasmine?" Kairi asked, about to laugh.

Donald and Iago didn't care. "Okay, you know all so tell all! Where's the treasure?"

"You know, the ultimate one?"

"I am bound by the rule of one." The oracle replied calmly. "One question, one answer."

"We only want one answer!" Donald quacked indignantly. "Where is the ultimate treasure?"

"You two have already asked your questions."

Donald's face fell, but Iago would not be deterred. "You mean before? That wasn't a question, that was uh... Thinking out loud!"

"Very loud." Sora plucked Iago from midair, and dragged Donald off to the side of the room.

Now that the surprise had worn off, Jasmine was very excited. "Aladdin, we could learn anything! About our lives and our future!"

"You have but to ask."

Aladdin gazed up at the oracle for a moment, before he replied, "I know what my future is Jasmine: You." He tenderly linked his hand with hers. "But my past... It's a big blank."

He seemed to step out of himself for a moment, and talked more to himself. He took the dagger he had taken from his home, and looked at it. "My mother died when I was just a kid. I never even knew my father or his name. I have no idea where I come from."

"Your question is your choice." The oracle said. "But remember the rule of one. Choose carefully."

He was silent for a few moments, and then looked down. "I don't think you can help me. My past isn't just one question, it's a million."

That was when the oracle calmly dropped the bombshell. "Ah, but mere questions about your past can be answered by your father."

Aladdin's head shot back up. The oracle spread her arms out. Directly in front of her appeared the image of a man's face. He had long, slightly shaggy black hair that was turning grey around the temples. He had a well-trimmed graying beard and moustache, and familiar dark eyes.

"My father is alive?"

!

Several hours had passed since the Forty Thieves had escaped, and the oracle had been discovered. The sun was setting on Agrabah, and the sky was completely orange and yellow. The cleanup of the pavilion was underway, with the off-worlders working alongside Genie.

"Has anybody seen Aladdin?" Goofy asked.

"Not since the whole oracle thing." Nehrut replied, telekinetically sweeping large chunks of rubble into a pile they had set up outside the pavilion.

"Well, it's not every day that you learn your long-since-thought dead dad is actually alive and never tried to contact you." Axel said.

Nehrut threw a smaller piece of rubble into his chest. "What was that f-"

"Hush." Nehrut growled, nodding silently toward Bariss, who was cleaning not ten feet away from them; Someone who had lost her father before really getting to know him, just like Aladdin.

"Thanks for the consideration, Nehrut," She said, having heard everything already, "But actually my situation is much different."

"Just trying to be sensitive." He shrugged. His sensitivity was rewarded with a quick peck on the cheek.

As she walked into the other room, Axel rolled his eyes. When she was out of earshot, he looked the telepath dead in the eye. "When are you going to fess up, already?"

"To what?"

"Oh, don't give me that." He countered. "Everyone here can see that you two have something going on."

"I have no idea-"

"What I'm talking about, yeah yeah. Dude, stop lying to yourself, we all know."

"You're exaggerating."

"Am I?" He looked across the room. "Hey Riku?"

"Yeah?"

"Nehrut has fallen for who, now?"

"Bariss." He replied, deadpan. He went back to his work.

"And now, Riku's Guardian." Axel said. The creature was hovering over its master, lifting some of the larger chunks of rubble. "Who is Nehrut crazy for?"

To Nehrut's embarrassment, and great surprise, the Guardian nodded silently toward Bariss, who had just reentered the room.

Axel grinned while Nehrut slapped his palm to his face. "And there you go."

!

Sora was sitting on a bench, in a small back street like many of the others in Agrabah. This one happened to be across the street from Aladdin's little home. He, Abu, and Carpet had left the palace moments ago to find the former street rat.

He could see him from where he sat. He was sitting at his gigantic hole of a window, looking out at the palace. Sora could make out the shape of his father's dagger in his hand, and also saw the oracle's rod leaning by the wall next to him.

The Keybearer was debating on whether or not he should go up there to talk to him. It seemed necessary, and he had done well enough with Beast and Quasimodo, so why not Aladdin, whom he was closer to? All that was stopping him was the fact that he didn't know quite what to say. At least he had gotten to know his father before his death when he was eight.

He was on the verge of walking up there, when two figures appeared on the end of the street. He recognized them right away. "Where's Aladdin?" Jasmine asked.

"Up there." Sora said, inclining his head to the window. "He's just been sitting there for who knows how long."

"Should we go up there?" Kairi wondered out loud.

"Leave it to us." Jasmine said. She walked toward the door at ground level, and was soon out of sight. Abu and Carpet followed.

Sora scooted over on the bench, and patted the empty spot next to him. Kairi sat down. Out of habit, they held hands.

"It makes you think, doesn't it?" She asked, gazing up at the window. Aladdin had turned his head, meaning that Jasmine had entered the room.

"About what?"

"Well, Aladdin never knew his parents." She elaborated, sounding embarrassed. "And I've barely even thought of mine back on the islands."

"You know, neither have I... There's just been so much else happening." Sora pictured his mother –all five feet of her- crushing him in a hug the instant he had walked through the door after he got home.

And you left three months later, leaving nothing but a sticky note on the fridge.

"We're dead when we get home, aren't we?" Kairi asked, giving word to his own thoughts.

Sora chuckled. "Well, we probably could have given them a little more notice." A look of pure horror crossed his face. "Oh my God, we shared a bed. Your dad is going to murder me."

Now she laughed. She wrapped her arms around him, and leaned into his shoulder. "Well, he'll have to go through me first. Besides, he's the mayor. Murder is frowned upon for somebody in his position."

"I still don't think he'd think twice about the murder thing."

"He's not that serious, Sora. But if it helps you sleep at night, then I'll break it to him." She replied, grinning. "It was my idea, we haven't done anything that would get us on Santa's naughty list, and he won't kill his sweet little girl."

"That could work." Sora admitted. "Still, if I go missing after you tell him, then either I'm dead, or I've gone into hiding."

She shook her head. "Relax, he's not that serious Sora. That thing back on the islands was just to scare you, and keep you from-"

It was at that moment that Carpet flew out of the window above them. Aladdin, Jasmine, and Abu were riding on it.

"That didn't take long." Kairi noted, lifting into the air.

Sora summoned the Keyboard, and the two took off after Carpet. They followed it back to the palace, where it touched down on a large balcony built into the side of the central tower.

Aladdin looked much better than he had when Sora had seen him in the window. Whatever Jasmine had said to him had obviously helped. "Done moping?" Sora asked, grinning.

"Yeah." Aladdin was clutching the oracle's artifact in his hands. "I know my question now."

The rod floated out of his hands, the head of it glowing again. It migrated over the edge of the balcony, and stopped several feet away. The oracle burst into being again, much larger this time.

She was silent for a moment, and gazed down at them with a slightly unsettling gaze. "Have you chosen your question?"

"I have."

"Then ask."

Aladdin took a deep breath as if steeling himself. "Where is my father?"

She stretched out her hand, and pointed out into the desert. "Follow the trail of the Forty Thieves. Your father is trapped within their world."

"What!" This clearly wasn't what he had prepared for. "Is he hurt? How long has he been their prisoner?"

"I am sorry. I can only answer one question." She vanished, and the rod floated into Aladdin's outstretched hand.

He looked at it for a moment, and then at Sora. "I'm going after him. I could use some help..."

"You don't even have to ask." Sora said.

He looked at Jasmine. "I'll be back in time for our wedding. I promise."

She looked at him with infinite understanding, and pulled him into an embrace. She looked over his shoulder at Sora. "You bring my fiance back in good condition Sora, or the universe won't be big enough to hide from me."

He bowed, grinning.

It took a bit of debate to decide who would accompany Aladdin to the thieves' lair. Eventually, everybody settled on Sora, Nehrut, and Bariss. Nehrut would be able to sense the thieves if they managed to lose their physical trail, and Bariss had skill in tracking, as well as dealing with underworld characters. The rest would stay behind to continue the cleanup of the palace.

Before he left, Kairi caught Sora in a final embrace. "Come back in one piece. Otherwise that bed is going to feel very lonely."

!

The sun had set just over an hour ago, and the countless stars were shimmering like so many diamonds. Aladdin, Abu, and (for some reason nobody could comprehend) Iago, were sitting on Carpet, riding south after the Forty Thieves. To their right, Sora rode the Keyboard. Nehrut flew to the left, Bariss floating above him.

"I should have stayed with the genie." Iago was complaining. "Manual labor beats danger any day."

"Maybe in your book." Sora said.

"I agree with Sora." Nehrut added. "Now hush, we're getting close."

They were following the trail of the thieves via Nehrut's telepathic abilities. They had been able to confirm that all forty of them were still alive, and that Klaxam and Zexion were with them.

They had gone several miles –all the way across the desert- to a mountainous area. Sora soon glimpsed something that he thought he'd never see in Agrabah: an ocean. Moments later, they could hear the sound of voices, and the distinctive sound of several galloping horses.

Soon, they were within sight of a small mass of bodies moving rapidly across the beach along the side of a sheer cliff face. Ahead of them, the beach ended.

"Well," Aladdin said, grinning, "They have nowhere to go. We've got 'em trapped."

Bariss quietly interrupted. "We can't attack yet. If we strike now, they won't be a threat anymore, but we'll be right back where we started. We'll have no idea where to find your father."

"So, I'm getting the feeling you've done this before?" Sora said, half-smiling.

"I picked up a few things over the years." She replied, the corners of her mouth twitching.

They landed behind the thieves, and hid on the other side of a large, wet boulder, out of their sight. Peeking his head out, Sora could see that the thieves were all sitting astride horses, and were staring out at a very tall rock formation jutting out from the water, around a hundred feet away from the shore.

He saw the King of Thieves at the front, on his own horse. Sa'luk was on his own, next to him. Klaxam and Zexion were on foot.

"They're just standing there." Sora said.

"Why?" Aladdin wondered. He had changed from his robes into more appropriate traveling clothes of blue and deep red, with a beige cape. He'd traded in his familiar fez for a light-blue turban.

Cassim rode up to the front of the thieves, to the point where his horse's hooves were in the shallow water. He raised his hand, and called out two words, "Open sesame!"

For about three frozen seconds, nothing happened. But then, the sea started churning, starting at the point where the ocean water met the rocky island. The earth trembled underfoot, and a high crack appeared in the side of the island. The waters split apart at this crack, and separated.

In seconds, there was a path of sea bed leading to the very base of the island, with high walls of salt water on either side.

Wasting no time staring, Klaxam, Zexion, and the Forty Thieves rushed down the path toward the new opening in the rock. It seemed to be glowing. The moment the last one entered, the walls of water began to fall into the opening that they had formed.

"Move!" Sora shouted, taking off on the Keyboard again. Aladdin and the rest were right behind him.

They made it inside half a second before the opening in the rock slammed shut.

!

So, the Aladdin storyline continues. I read that some of you haven't actually seen this movie. Hope this does it justice!

Leave a review, please!