HI READERS!

It's been a while since I last updated so if you have to reread the past chapters do so. I've been busy with everything in between leaving me with little to no time to write. And when I do, I can't get the ball rolling so I sit there staring at my screen. -.-

If the chapter feels choppy, I'm sorry, it's probably from all the inconsistent writing I did.

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters used in this story nor do I own the franchises Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy. I also don't own anything that I may have referenced to.


Chapter 12 - In the Brush

The Ferris wheel ride lasted a surprising ten minutes. I'll have to thank Lightning later. We were the last ones to get on and the last ones to get off the Ferris wheel. Everyone was doing something random and inconspicuous like whistling and texting. Roxas fell in step beside me leaned down to my ear.

"Why are they all standing around like that?"

"I don't know. Do you think…" I started

"…Maybe they saw us?" He finished. That would ruin my day completely. To think that I just shared a private, romantic moment with my crush only to realize that everyone single one of my friends present was watching. Suddenly, our group of friends dispersed into multiple directions.

"I thought no one would see us," he groaned. That had me thinking: did he plan on taking me in the first place?

I stopped walking and pulled his shirt sleeve. He stopped mid step and turned around. "Roxas, I have a question for you."

He looked at me quizzically. "What is it?"

I didn't want to ruin the rest of the night by asking this question, but it was already ruined once I stepped out of the Ferris wheel car so I might as well. I took a deep breath in and asked him as quick as possible.

"Did you plan on asking me out beforehand?"

He blushed furiously and cleared his throat. "Yeah, I did plan on asking you out. But it turned out that we were going to be there together anyways. It saved me the need to ask you out."

I continued with another question. "Did you also plan on taking me on the Ferris wheel?"

He rubbed his neck and smiled sheepishly. "Yeah. I was trying to think of some place that was away from all the Halloween stuff. I ended up thinking about the Ferris wheel, but I didn't like since it's so cliché."

"Cliché or not, it worked." I looped my arm through his. "And I didn't know you could be so romantic."

"I'm not; I just did what felt right."

"Well you were lucky because you were spot on." I pecked him on the cheek.

We walked around the boardwalk a bit, holding hands and sharing cotton candy. It was starting to get really late and I needed to find Kairi so we could go home. I stopped by the Destiny's Blend shack and tugged Roxas' hand.

"Where do you think the others went?"

Before he could even answer, Pence tumbled out clumsily from behind the shack with the others following suit. He was at the bottom of the pile and adjusted his headband.

"Guys get off of me!"

While they gathered themselves together, I waited patiently with my arms crossed.

"Were you guys following us?" I questioned.

Selphie held her arms behind her back and smiled innocently. "I don't know what you're talking about. We just so happened to be at the back of this shack."

Riku gave her a look. "She found us out, alright? The least we can do is come clean."

I nodded at Riku. "Thank you for being honest. Now I know who to count on."

Pence threw his head back in exasperation. "My shots came back all blurry," he grumbled.

Roxas snatched the camera out of his hands. He was mashing the right button furiously. "Huh, you're right. Looks like your efforts were fruitless."

I poked his cheek and pouted. "That's not very nice Roxas. Then again they did spy on us so it serves them right."

Kairi's hand shot up. "Nami, it's getting pretty late so if you still want to do something, you better act quickly."

I personally wanted to go home, but before I voiced my opinion I turned to Roxas to see what was on his mind. "Do you still want to do something?"

He handed the camera back to Pence and tapped his chin thoughtfully. He snapped his fingers after a few seconds. "Let's go through the corn maze!"

Hayner scratched the top of his head. "Cornfield? How do they even get corn on the boardwalk in the first place?"

Olette flicked his forehead lightly. "You dummy, it's artificial."

I didn't really like the sound of that. The reason why was because of the local stories of people being jumped in the maze, but the people that enter it always exit as if there was nothing interesting there.

I scrunched my eyebrows in disapproval. "That thing gives me the creeps."

"There's nothing to be afraid of! It's just corn after all," he teased.

"Ha ha, real funny," I said sarcastically.

"I'll be there with you so there's nothing to worry about."

A part of me didn't want to go, but the other part of me wants to go solely on the fact that Roxas is going. I gave in.

"Alright, let's go."

He grabbed my hand and pulled me along like a little kid. How about that? Turns out that he's a little like his brother after all. I played along let myself be dragged by the blonde. We stopped by the cornfield in time for the last round of people to enter. The clerk took our tickets and ushered us inside the maze.

"Have fun!"

The cornstalks casted long, dark shadows across the dimly lit ground. Roxas pulled us deeper into the labyrinth, letting the darkness envelop us until the setting sun was almost gone.

"Roxas? Do you know where we're going?"

"Well I saw the exit on the south side of the cornfield and if the sun is over there," he turned towards the diminishing light, "then the exit must be over in that direction." He pointed towards his left, which led to another path.

"I guess we're going that way?" I wasn't completely sure about his deduction, but it was better than me and I have no clue where to go.

"Yeah. You got any better ideas?"

"Nope. The soon we get started the sooner we get out of here." I grabbed his hand and guided us in the direction he indicated earlier. After twenty minutes of wandering around aimlessly, we gave up and took a rest in who knows where in the maze. Roxas was scratching the top of his head, a look a worry was plastered across face.

"You have no idea where we are, don't we?"

He laughed sheepishly and bright scarlet coloured his face. "Heh, guess we got nowhere fast right?"

I punched his arm lightly. "I was counting on you to get us out of here. Now we're stuck in this cold, creepy cornfield."

His bright expression turned into a concerned one. "Are you cold? If you are I can lend you my jacket."

"Wearing a jacket over a coat? I don't think it works like that Roxas." I poked his nose.

He sighed and sat on the dark ground. "Well I hope someone finds us. I wouldn't mind sacrificing a little bit of my dignity just so we can go home."

I crossed my arms and looked at him sideways. "Your dignity?"

"Yeah. It wouldn't be yours since I'm the boyfriend here."

I dropped my arms to my sides. "Oh, so we're like a thing now?"

His eyes widened and he stood up quickly. "I didn't mean to say-."

"No it's alright," I waved the comment aside. "I was just caught off guard. I didn't think that you would say something like that so early."

"So you don't mind us being…"

"No, I… I can't wrap my head around this right now."

His gaze dropped to the floor. "I'm sorry..."

"Sorry about what?"

He rubbed the back of his neck slightly. "I didn't mean to rush things so quickly." His voice faltered a little bit as if he wasn't sure of himself.

I held his hand and gave a light squeeze. "It's alright. I didn't mind that at all."

"I, uh-," he started. A voice cut through the still air.

"Naminé! Roxas!"

Roxas and I turned towards the sound's direction.

"Huh, that sounded like Lightning." Roxas attempted to peer over the towering cornstalks. "It's time for us to leave this maze."

He pulled us around corner after corner, but the exit was nowhere to be seen. "Damn it! Why do labyrinths have to be so difficult?"

A soft rustling came from the tall grass behind us and in front of us. Hell, it was everywhere. I clung on Roxas' arm tightly. I knew the maze was a bad idea. Why did I have to be right?

Roxas pivoted on the spot and looked left and right anxiously. "Whoever you are, show yourself!"

"I don't think that's a good idea…"

A snickering erupted from the grass around us and a single voice silenced the laughter. "What makes you think that there's only one person?"

One by one, five guys emerged from the shroud of darkness, all of them wearing a mask of some sort.

"Not just one, but five."

Roxas wrapped a protective arm around my shoulder. "Who the hell are you what the do you think you're doing?"

The one guy who appeared in the middle seemed to be in charge of everyone else. He wore a Jigsaw mask and the others wore Scream costumes. He took a step forward and tilted his head slightly. "We're only here to have some fun, right boys?" He looked left and right at his posse, none of which gave a reaction.

"It's all part of the Halloween spirit," he said menacingly. He inched closer, the gap between us diminishing.

"Just let us play and everything will be just fine…"

"Roxas, where the hell are you…" a mumbling voice came from behind the masked group.

Sora's head popped out of the cornstalks and gave a nonchalant wave towards us. I gave a little motion with my hand to tell him to leave and get help, but he didn't stop waving in time. Jigsaw took notice and turned around. Luckily, Sora ducked back into the maze quickly enough, evading the masked man.

"Who was that? I know you saw someone."

"No one important," Roxas replied confidently.

The man and his followers circled around us, slowly. "We don't have much time left, so we're going to take what we came for."

One of the men lunged at me from behind, grabbing my right leg and pulled me to the ground.

"Roxas!" I tried to call for help, but my captor clamped my mouth shut. "Hush, we don't want to make a scene now, do we?" he whispered.

Roxas' eyes flared in anger. The cool blue darkened into a stormy sea, reflecting his current state. He twirled around and swung a right hook at Jigsaw, catching him off guard. "You bastard!"

The guy that was holding me down had slackened his grip on me while he took a glance at his boss getting beat up by Jigsaw. Bad choice. I squirmed out of his grasp and scrambled backwards, away from them. Jigsaw, who was recovering from Roxas' punch, pointed at me.

"Get her!"

Roxas swiveled around and attempted to make a break for me, but the one of the remaining three goons blocked his path and punched him right in the abdomen. He let out a grunt of pain and stumbled back. Another goon followed up by giving kicking him at the back of his legs, making him fall to the ground. Roxas didn't have time to react to the crushing elbow that was about to be delivered to the back of his neck, but luckily someone deflected the final blow with a swift kick to the lackey's head.

"Riku!" I cried. He saw me and gave me the motion to leave.

"Go! I'll take care of him!"

I nodded and scrambled away from the skirmish. The sky was almost completely black and I couldn't navigate the maze. I kept wandering around aimlessly, hoping that someone would find me soon. A hand grabbed my shoulder and I attempted to shake it off, but a submissive hand clasped over my mouth.

"Shhhhhhh, it's okay. It's me, Sora," a soft, whisper came from behind. "Don't make too much noise or else they'll find us."

I relaxed a little bit and he turned me around so I could see his worried face.

"Don't worry I get us out of here," he reassured.

I looked behind me, seeing only a field of corn. Worry wrought my senses and I couldn't stop thinking about Roxas. I left him back there to fend for himself. Then again he does have Riku there by his side. No! It's not right to think like that. Whether he has help or not, I shouldn't have left him regardless. I turned around and started back in the direction I came from. I know it sounds ridiculous, but I have to help him! I ran past Sora as quick as I could because I know that he would try to stop me.

"Naminé! Where are you going?" Sora called out in the distance.

I ignored his pleas and attempted to retrace my steps. The more turns I took, the more disoriented I became. Soon enough, I found myself slumping to the ground and heard tired footsteps approaching. Sora managed to catch up to me, but it was clear that he was exhausted.

"Naminé, please stop," he paused to slow his breathing. "There's nothing else that was can do to help him. I don't expect you to help him, but I do expect you to keep yourself safe."

"But that's where you're wrong! I can do something and you can too!" I brushed past him once more and I continued to my endless search for Roxas. I turned corners, hoping to bump into him. I picked up a distant scuffle in brush. Hopes renewed, I followed the noise to a small clearing where I found a beat up Roxas lying on the ground. Riku was holding the four guys at bay, but just barely. Jigsaw flicked out a switchblade and slashed the air menacingly. Riku's face showed determination, but also fatigue. If something wasn't done soon, someone could wind up seriously hurt. Or even worse. Dead. Without a second thought I leaped in between the two with my arms spread wide open.

"Stop!" I yelled with all the might I could muster. I know it sounds stupid, but it was the best I could do.

The man gave a look of surprise. "So the girl came back for more, huh?"

Riku took the opportunity to spin to my left where the man was wielding the knife. He grabbed his wrist in attempt to disarm the masked man, but he resisted. The three lackeys took a few hesitant steps back. They may be his goons, but they certainly aren't stupid. Jigsaw pushed the knife towards Riku, but Riku pushed back and twisted his arm outward in one swift motion causing the man's grasp to loosen. The knife fell to the ground, sinking in the dirt, handle end up. Jigsaw shoved Riku to the ground and dove for the knife. The three guys that were hovering in the background joined their leader and slowly closed the gap on Riku.

"I had enough of you kid. It's time for you to go."

"I completely agree," a voice came out of nowhere. Lightning strawberry blonde hair appeared from the tall grass. She kicked down two of the goons and the last one crashed down on the others. She faced Jigsaw with a determined stare.

"I don't know who you are, but you better step away before you get hurt."

Jigsaw was clearly becoming irritated. "There seems to be no end to you brats! You've wasted too much of my time children. It's time for me to leave."

He dove into the cornfield and Lightning started to give chase.

I tapped her shoulder lightly. "Lightning, it's not worth it. We need to get these two to safety. Plus, we got more than enough people to prove our case."

I gestured to the three guys slumped over each other, arguing how it could have gone better.

Lightning clenched her fists tightly. "Fine, but if that bastard shows up again, he won't live to see another day."

"Help me with Riku-,"

He slowly pushed himself off the ground. "That won't be necessary. Besides, Roxas is the one that needs help your most."

His face was a bit swollen and the bruises were black and blue. I gave his shoulder a slight shake and he let out a low groan. Is it that bad?

"Don't touch there…"

I slowly retracted my hand. "Does it hurt a lot?"

He grunted as he tried to roll over on to his back. I helped him over and brushed the grass off his face. Even with the cuts and bruises, he's still manages to look good half-decent.

"Open your eyes for a second, Roxas. I need to see if they're okay."

His eyes opened a little bit, but not so much. The area around it was a bit bruised, but other than that it was fine. His eyes were as blue as ever, but the shine that was normally there was replaced with a dark gradient.

"Are you feeling okay Roxas?"

He pushed himself to a sitting position so we were face to face. "I'm sorry I couldn't protect you. I'm sorry I couldn't make them go away. I'm sorry for everything horrible that happened tonight."

I placed my hands over his. "Don't be sorry. You did your best and that's what counts. It's not your fault that those guys decided to show up when they did. There was nothing you could have done to prevent them from appearing." I wrapped my arms around him and held him close.

"Don't tell me that you forgot about what you did earlier tonight. You made it the most wonderful Halloween I ever had," I let go of him so I could see his face. "So don't you dare blame yourself for something that you didn't do."

"You really like what I did for you huh?"

I ruffled his messy blonde hair. "You bet!"

He smiled through all the cuts and bruises. Despite his current state, his personality was still bright as usual. It must run in the family. I got up and offered a hand to him. He gladly took it and pulled himself up. He winced once I let go, shifting his weight to one leg.

"I think I twisted my ankle," he said, resting an arm around my shoulder.

I held his draped arm and wrapped the other one around his waist. "Let's get out of here."


Wasn't exactly the best chapter that I wrote, but I had make closure for this arc.

The next chapter may take a while (SORRY) so bear with me.

Remember to R&R and favourite and follow!

And as always; until next time,

-Icey