You all have dirty, dirty minds! LOL, nah I'm joking. I intentionally made the first few paragraphs sound dirty. I'm such a perverted nerd~

In addition, from what I have learned and read, Tidus is 13 in KH1 and 14 in KH2. Because of this, I have written him as such. Wakka and Ryan are Riku's age.

Marie's casual wear:

www[dot]swirl3y[dot]deviantart[dot]com/art/I-bring-you-peace-214094964?q=gallery%3Aswirl3y%2F29599925&qo=5

Chapter Fifteen
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Ryan's somewhat resolve and a brute appears

"Dude, come on. I'm sure they had a reason to cover her story up," said a very concerned Tidus. He and his friend Wakka watched as Ryan walked back and forth in his room. His parents had gone on a business trip, and wouldn't be home until later on today. Ryan was furious that his parents kept his aunt, uncle and cousin from him. Were they not important enough for him to know? Were they ashamed for some reason? Whatever it was, Ryan was angry.

"They knew all along, and that's wrong!" he shouted, coughing a bit due to his illness. Wakka got up in a bit of a panic, but Ryan raised his hand in front of him, signalling that he was all right. "I can't believe they were hiding my cousin from me while I was practically living in the hospital. Geez, I wonder what they told her to hide me from her!"

He couldn't control his anger, and he didn't like that. His doctor had told him that if he were to over-exert himself he would be in trouble, so he took a couple of breaths to calm down. When he took a huge breath, he placed his hands on his hips. He looked over to his friends, and smirked. "I should find her. She's still on the island, right?"

Tidus sighed, and couldn't believe how stubborn his friends were. He was two years younger than Wakka and Ryan, and he was surprisingly normal compared to the two. He was also the most level headed, which was another thing that surprised most people. Well, compared to his friends that is.

"If she was still on the island, wouldn't they have found her by now or something?" he said, looking at the two while scratching his head. Ryan grunted, thinking that maybe Tidus was right. What if the kidnapper took her too far away? It was his job to find out, and he was going to do it. He was going to find Marie.

"I should pack, so I'm prepared to sleep in the wild if necessary." Wakka slapped his forehead when he heard his best friend say this; it was obvious that Ryan would not stop until he found his long-lost cousin. He did not want to stop him though, since his friend worried about it. Maybe he would have to learn the hard way. Ryan packed some clothing into his duffle bag, and let it lump over his shoulder. He checked it again, and made sure he had his essentials: first-aid kit, clothes, water and food. Oh, and he couldn't forget his lucky hat. He ran to his room, and quickly spotted the hat. He placed it on his head, and positioned it to how he liked it. He came back into the living room, and stared at his friends as they gave him an odd look. "Well, I'll be seeing you," he said as he waved.

Tidus sighed, and Wakka shook his head in disappointment. There really was no way of stopping Ryan, and all they could do was to go along with it for now. Tidus had been sitting down, and got up to pat his friend on the shoulder. "You're crazy, you know that?"

Ryan laughed, and Wakka softly punched his arm. "Just don't go doing anything that's gonna hurt you, ya?"

Ryan nodded in agreement, and they all left the house. He locked the door, and placed the key in his bag. The boys took one last look at him before he walked off into wherever he needed to go. They both looked at each other, and sighed as they hoped Ryan came to his sense soon. His search was ridiculous, they thought; Ryan was just upset. Ryan set forth in his adventure, and made sure that every nook and cranny was left untouched. He didn't feel bad about leaving his parents, since they didn't bother to tell him about Marie. He was going to bring her home, and then everyone would be happy, right?

Well, at least he hoped so.

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Marie

I wasn't fighting a lot in this battle, but I guess that was alright. I mainly supported everyone with my healing spells, so Donald was given a break for once. It actually balanced our combative system, since we had someone on the front lines, someone defending, someone dealing spells, and of course the healer. I feel important now, and it was good feeling like that after having my powers taken away. Shan-Yu attacked Sora, and I healed him quickly. Mulan dealt a blow from behind, and I smiled when Donald fired a spell. Despite the awkwardness and everything, I was glad that it didn't disrupt our ability to work together.

I did notice that Sora was fighting more aggressively than usual, and I had to wonder why. Hmm, maybe it was the fact that he burnt down the village. Sora is so driven by justice that he has to do the right thing, and it was an admirable quality. Then again, Sora just usually dives into trouble, so it was hard to tell.

As I concentrated on the fight, I noticed Shan-Yu running towards me. My eyes widened a bit, and I held my keyblade in front of me. If it was one thing I was good at, it was healing, defending with my keyblade, and hand-to-hand combat. Although I did fight, I wasn't exactly comfortable with it. The fighting stance always made me feel awkward secretly. I shook my head; this is no time to be distracted!

Shan-Yu started running faster, and I heard Sora call out my name. I held my keyblade up, and I was able to block his first and second attack. This person was ten times stronger than me, so the third attack made me stagger a bit. I tried to see if I could defend it again, but when I started feeling weak, I decided to dodge. I evaded his attack, and he was still trying to get me.

…Come on, I just want a break from this loser!

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Sora

Sora noticed that Marie was struggling with Shan-Yu, and it made him irritated. He already bruised her neck, he wasn't going to let him hurt her more. A stinging power revealed itself inside of Sora, and he looked down at his chest. There was a red glow, and Sora quickly recognized it as the power of the valor form. If he really wanted to get Shan-Yu away from Marie, he needed to dive into the new power of his. He ran over to Goofy and Donald, and spoke quickly. "Goofy, I need your power!"

Goofy immediately understood, and stood near Sora as he summoned the power of valor. Goofy disappeared, and Donald watched in awe as his clothes started to change. Shan-Yu stopped tracking Marie, and looked behind him as Sora changed. Mulan helped Marie up, and they both watched as Sora's clothes started changing colours. It was the same style, but the colour turned red. He donned two keyblades, and Marie smiled. She had almost forgotten about his special power, and although she was jealous, she really liked the whole concept of his powers.

As a red light sparkled, Sora was fully in control of the power. He looked at Shan-Yu, who merely looked at him with a challenging smirk. He pointed his blade at Sora and started to run, hoping for a better challenge than what was at hand. Sora threw his first keyblade at him, but it was blocked. He then ran towards Shan-Yu, and attacked him with the other keyblade he had in his hand. The other keyblade returned and Sora hacked away at the brute effortlessly. Shan-Yu attacked Sora, but Marie was able to heal him quickly. Mulan and the rest stared as Sora delivered fast and well-timed attacks, with every strike stronger than the last.

As he fought, Sora could feel the power in him. It was prideful, and very confident. He didn't realize just how strong these clothes of his could be, but he was grateful that the three fairies were able to give it to him. As he attacked again, he glanced over to Marie and the others. Donald was firing spells, and Mulan was doing her best to attack. What really caught his attention, if only for a while, was Marie. She was standing there smiling at Sora; a first for him. He hadn't seen her smile so genuinely since their last adventure. He figured she was smiling because of his power, but he didn't care. She was smiling the way he loved her smile.

Returning to the battle, Sora spun both his keyblades and they touched Shan-Yu, effectively hurting him. When the brute was able to land an attack, Sora felt the power of his slowly drive down, eventually making it disappear. When it did, Goofy appeared, and the power was gone for the time being.

Mulan continued attacking the evil man, and Sora took a few breaths while recovering from the use of his power. It was incredible, but it was also tiring. As he bent down to catch his breath, he felt a small hand pat his back, and he looked behind him; it was Marie.

"That was awesome!" she gleefully said. She scrunched up her hands into fists, and giggled as she smiled at the young brown-haired boy. "Man, I wish I could do that."

Sora smiled innocently; he was so happy to know Marie was showing some signs of being her old self. She extended her hand for him to grab onto, to which he did. He stood straight, and he lightly caressed her hand. Her eyes began to shift, and pulled her hand away. "Well, then, let's fight."

He was happy to see her smile, however short the sweet moment.

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Marie

I thought Sora was done with these awkward moments, but I guess not. As soon as I let go of his hand, he went straight to battle. I hadn't even realized that we were still in battle…

I shook my head, time to get serious! I looked over to Shan-Yu, and I noticed that he was struggling hard against the combined forces of Mulan and Sora. Donald shooting some spells made it even harder for him to take control. I figured I should do something; like attack or fire a spell. I still remembered the spells that had from our last adventure.

"Fire!" I shouted. The stars on my keyblade lit up, and they turned red. Three fireballs shot out from them, and headed towards Shan-Yu. I watched as they successfully hit the giant, and then Mulan came in dealing a hefty blow. Shan-Yu shouted and grumbled some intangible words, fell down to the floor, and the impact of it was huge!

Mulan sighed, and Sora laughed proudly. Mushu walked around gloating how no one should mess with Mulan. I laughed along, until Mushu started gloating about himself.

I sighed.

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Aura

She stood in the middle of the sandlot, and closed her eyes. How many memories, moments, and feelings has she experienced in this place? No matter how hard she tried to push it all away, they came back. Roxas…the boy's name popped up a lot in her head, and she was wondering why. Aside from the fact that she missed and loved him, he hadn't appeared a lot in her head.

Was that Riku's doing?

She spent a lot of time with him, and he often made her forget a lot about her problems. She didn't know whether to address him as a good friend or just a partner, since they were almost always together when they had something to do for DiZ. Placing her arms around her as she walked, Aura began to think about something that she tried to avoid. That thought was Axel.

What was he doing? Was he well? Did he have someone by his side? No, of course not, since the only friends he had had either disappeared or left him. She really wanted to march back into the castle, take him and leave so they could spend eternity together. Would he want that? Possibly, but Axel was fair, and wanted all of his close friends together. That included Roxas. Was there anyone else?

She had so many questions stuck in her head, and she was having trouble where to start in order to answer them. She sighed, and figured her first step would be to approach the fiery redhead. That would be hard, since the last time they saw each other Axel nearly had her captured. She was surprised…surprised at how scared she could be of him. As she walked closer and closer towards the mansion, she started breathing deeply. Yes, her first step was seeing Axel again. She looked forward, and saw Riku leaning against the walls as he kicked nearby rocks. He lifted his head, and looked up at her. She couldn't see it, but he smiled every time he saw her. She approached slowly, and then stopped with a solemn expression.

"I want to talk to Axel," she said as she looked at Riku. He was shocked by what she said, and he was confused as to why she would request such a thing. He silently shook his head though, since she was going through something difficult. He stopped leaning on the wall, and walked closer to Aura. He placed his hands on her shoulder, and for the first time she allowed it. Was she all right? Maybe she was serious about all of this. He sighed, and looked straight into her eyes.

"If you really want to…" he was cut off when Aura placed her hands together and gave a pleading look to him. He gaped his mouth open, and was surprised at how similar that action looked compared with Marie. It was nice though, since he was able to tell that Aura was starting to develop the softer side of her. It seemed that all the hateful feelings were finally tiring her out. Maybe she wanted to try letting people into her space. He hoped so. "Let's try to think of something."

As much as he didn't want to, he thought this would probably ease Aura a bit. That's all that mattered, right?

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Marie

This was so nerve wrecking. Sora, Donald, Goofy, Mulan and I stood before the people on this world, and before the emperor. Behind him was Shang, the captain that was rude to Mulan for being a woman. I was scared of what would happen to her, and I would willingly suffer the punishment with her, since I acted along with it. I would never leave a friend with punishment that I was involved with, too.

"I've heard a lot about you, Fa Mulan," stated the emperor. Mulan walked ahead of us, and bowed to him. He smiled a bit, and nodded his head. "You stole your father's armour, ran away from home, and impersonated an imperial soldier. You deceived your commanding officer, shamed the entire Chinese army, and dishonoured your family name."

"We get the picture…" complained Sora. I tugged on his glove, and he looked at me with an apologetic expression. We both looked at the emperor, and he closed his eyes for a moment.

"You're a young woman, and in the end…" he said as we all sighed sadly. This was it; our punishment was going to be handed to us on a silver platter. "…You have saved us all."

The emperor bowed to Mulan, and when she noticed, she started to panic. Well, that was something. We heard the whole crowd behind us clapping, and we turned to watch. We all gasped, and both Donald and Goofy jumped up and down for joy. Sora raised his fist in the air, and when he did, I noticed my hand was still clinging onto his other hand's glove. I let go immediately, and smiled at them as they were patting themselves. Mulan turned around, and faced the emperor. "Your Excellency!" she exclaimed seriously.

The emperor called for the captain, and he walked towards Mulan with a sword, the same sword that Shan-Yu held. The emperor told her that the sword was symbol to show what she did for China. We all bowed, as Mulan thanked him. As we stood up straight, the captain called Mulan, along with Sora, Donald, and Goofy's name. He looked towards me, and tilted his head in confusion. Right, he didn't know my girl name.

"Oh, it's Marie." He nodded, and bowed to us as he said his thanks. The emperor laughed, and the captain stood up straight as he questioned him.

"Thank you?" he asked, looking at the young captain. "Is that all there is to say, captain? If you wish to win the heart of Fa Mulan, China's bravest woman, you'll have to be a bit more eloquent than that!"

The captain looked mighty flustered after that, and I giggled along with the emperor. Mulan laughed along with us, and Sora asked her for autograph as a joke. Mulan turned to us, and she smiled genuinely at us. "Thank you for everything, guys."

Mushu popped out of nowhere, and started talking about guardians. Goofy talked with him, and soon enough Sora entered the conversation. I wasn't paying attention to it, and all I saw was Sora running after Mushu. I started giggling along with Mulan, and then we calmed down. "I have to thank you the most, Marie. You dressed up as a man even though you didn't have to, and you almost got hurt because of Shan-Yu."

I smiled at her, and giggled. "I was just doing what was right, but I am glad we got to meet you." As we laughed, the sword that Mulan received started glowing, and I knew it was a sign for Sora to unlock the gate to the next world. He turned around when it shine brightly, and he took out his keyblade. The same thing that happened with the committee card he got happened with the sword. A new world was unlocked, and it was time to say goodbye to this one.

"Looks like we gotta get movin'," stated Goofy. Donald quacked along with him, and Sora turned around to look at Mulan and Shang. He smiled, and rubbed his nose.

"We can always visit you guys, right?" he asked. Mulan agreed instantly, and the captain formally invited us to come back whenever we wanted to. I smiled, wishing that we could come back whenever we wanted to. However, didn't the king say last year that once the worlds were disconnected, we would no longer be able to visit?

"Play nice, you two," teased Sora. I looked up, and noticed that Shang and Mulan started blushing. Shang told him to watch it, although shyly. I giggled a bit, but then I remembered my own predicament with Sora; how everyone thought we're an item or something. We all said our goodbyes, and Sora was the first to run towards the gummi ship. Donald and Goofy ran along with him, and I walked behind them. As I did, the sudden thought of Stella popped into my head. I wonder how she's doing, and how everything is going. Although I got a glimpse of the power that was my own, I still didn't understand it. I just wish that Stella could explain it a bit before she went M.I.A on me.

As we reached the ship, I saw the guys waiting. Oh right, I had the keys. I hurried towards them, and opened the door. I was the first to enter, and as I did I stretched for a while. I was sore, not to mention tired, from that world. A lot happened, and I just wanted to fall over my bed and sleep. Actually, I was starting to feel my eyes getting heavy. I walked over to the dormitory section of the ship, but I was walking slowly as well as groggily.

The next thing I knew, I fell to the floor, and just started sleeping.

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Sora

Sora gasped when he saw Marie fall to the floor, and flood of panic washed over him. He instantly ran towards her, and he bent down to her side. Goofy and Donald ran along, and they examined her. When they found a slight smile on her face, and deep breathing, they were sighed. She was breathing.

"Gwarsh, she must be tired," guessed Goofy. Sora nodded, and stared at the blonde-haired girl. She did a lot during the visit to Mulan's world, to the point of facing Shan-Yu alone. This reminded him of something, and looked at Marie as he pushed her hair away from her neck, exposing the slightly coloured bruise. Goofy and Donald noticed, and they cringed at the sight.

"You should put her to bed," suggested Donald. He looked at Sora, and he blushed. He carefully placed his hands around Marie, picking her up slowly bride style, and stood straight. Donald and Goofy walked towards the centre of the ship, while Sora walked towards Marie's room. As he did, he kept looking at Marie. She had bags underneath her eyes, and she didn't really look all that peaceful in her sleep. Was there something bothering her besides the whole being mad at him thing? He sighed, and wished he understood her more. It was easy last year, since all they had to do was look at each other to understand. Now, everything about her was clouded, like there was something missing about her.

He stopped in front of her room, and leaned against the door as it opened. He walked over to her bed, and placed her on it. He pulled the covers underneath her, and placed it over her body. He leaned in a bit closer and looked at her neck, and touched it slightly. She twitched in response, and stopped for fear of hurting her. He sighed and cupped her cheek, hoping she would return to what he called normal. He let go, and walked out of the room to let Marie sleep.

Yay.

As you can see, Marie gets fatigued more than usual. The power that she had last year actually improved her stamina, but since it was taken away, that stamina left to. Now, she has to work her way to not being fatigued quickly.

A lot of other things happened, too. Ryan is getting serious about looking for Marie, maybe he might find his way to her? Maybe during the next chapter…? =D

Also, Aura wants to see Axel. Will she? I think she might.

I also would like to add that somewhere in the near future chapters, a kiss shall appear! Though, it won't be involving Sora or Marie. Heck, I'll just tell you: It involves Aura. Tis shocking, but reasonable. Bad girls always kiss a guy before innocent ones.

Shadow 1n2:
LOL, Sora jealous is a funny sight. Yeah, I read about that. It sucks, but I'm sure they have their reasons. And thanks, I hope you liked this chapter!

grapejuice101:
Thanks, and she is little by little. LOL, you might actually see him jealous later on. The necklace is important to her, and it is important to her memories. Let's hope she remembers when she gets it back!

SisterOfScarletDevil:
Dirty minded! Haha, I actually made it out like that, so don't worry. I'm very perverted when I can be.

DaniPotterLovesGod:
Haha, thanks! I glad you like it, and I hope you like this chapter.

Lvl-ZeR0:
Thank you! I can't love food as much as I love video games, which reminds me, I'm getting a new XBOX soon. I'm super excited! Thank you so much, that means a lot to me. Ah, yes. The beginning. Almost everyone is dirty-minded here, cause they all thought of something dirty~

Dracula X:
LOL. Yeah, right? I would give up then and there if I saw a thousand heartless.

XxKeyOfHeartxX:
Haha, yes! It was meant to sound dirty, but they were just training and fighting. And thank you, I tried very hard on it, since it was suppose to sound intentional.
And yes, actually, you'll see some of Rira. I'm actually confused who Aura should be with, since some people have told me that Roxas is too much of a "light" character for her.

TheEpicBlueNinja:
LOL, it's okay! I wanted everyone to think dirty. :3 and you might be right! Marie could be falling in love all over again! And thank you, I really appreciate that. I try to be strong, but it's hard sometimes.

dracula-key:
Thank you! And yes, Sora will care for Marie no matter what!

InuyaKoneko:
LOL, thanks! Oh, I look forward to seeing that! Unfortunately, Marie doesn't and will not be seen in a uniform. I have other plans for her instead.

starlightmint72:
Thanks! I try to make this story original. Yes, I've been trying to make more, but time is very hard to keep up with. And cool! I would love to be of help if you decide to go with it. XD

Yes, Axel is very troubled with everything involving Aura and Roxas. Though I think that will somewhat addressed in the next chapter or so.

Hmm, well I don't think there is. Part of the power she received from KH was the ability to seal and open doors willingly. Now that she doesn't have that ability, she's completely useless unless someone controls her.
Oh, sorry about the link. I'll make sure that I re-check the links before I post them, so that they're working. Haha, and true, it is a weird name. But I looked it up, and Mario is the male name for Maria or Marie. I just went with it.

Yeah, Ryan is never introduced mainly because I had to tweak him in so that he was added. So, maybe your ideas woud've been right if I hadn't added him in. He's not important just yet, but he will be in later chapters, since he is the vital link for Stella and Dante's awareness to everyone.

You're right, dressing as a guy is annoying, and it's too much of a hassle. I wanted Marie to do that, but I feared her being too mary-sueish if she was let in when Mulan had to dress up as a guy. The necklace T_T it is forgotten in the land of dragons. But I think having it be left behind will trigger something for Marie.

Yeah, you're right. Kingdom Hearts is very confusing, and it's not a cake-walk. Stella has some difficulty handling it, and it's taken her 15 years to figuring out the basics.

Marie was never one to swear, but also, I don't like using swear words in my stories. I might use them on msn or replies, but not profusely. Plus, it makes it safe for everyone to read, and gives Marie a boost in her personality. You can tell she's a very well-mannered girl.