~ In dreams you will lose your heartaches ~

~ Whatever you wish for, you keep ~


Of course Sora looked familiar, how couldn't he?

He reminds her so much of him.


When her world fell to ruin due to it coming under fire from a horned witch and her army of Heartless, she called out to him in a flashing moment of weakness. She had lost her Prince to the deluge of darkness, her husband who was soon to be named King, and her rather horrid family along with it. They were caught in the wave and bowled out for mercy from the depths of the pitch and found there to be none. A piece of her was horrified by the sight and felt sorrow for their possible demise. Another part of her recalled they summoned a frightful carriage to try and kill her, so there was definitely some conflict in her heart.

She could still feel the fear she had experienced as she traversed the halls of her castle in a sprint while being chased by Heartless just before the world itself fell apart. Even a decade later, she called out to him in a moment of true terror just before the pitch drowned her.

Her imposing, kind hearted, blue eyed beau. Who danced with her in the light of a beautiful moon and reminded her the importance of having strength in one's heart. Who tenderly cradled her cheek and kissed her with the gentleness that she never experienced again. She cried for him to save her from her impending doom, not her prince, and yet he didn't come to save her.

A part of her was truly disappointed, imagining him rising out from the depths or striking across the dark skies like a lightning bolt upon a valiant steed to crush the encroaching darkness and save her. Keeping his promise to her.

Another had hoped that if he was still alive out there, then she hoped that the destruction stopped with her and rebuked his home world. Sparing him from the fate she herself had endured.

Cinderella had wished with all her heart for his safety, and prayed still that he was safe somewhere out in the realm. Although, a lingering fear in her heart and logical mind dictated that if one so strong never returned to her, then perhaps be truly did perish out there in the dark. In the name of honor and the pursuit of protecting those he loved. Because if he had survived his mission, he would have returned to her. She believed in her heart of hearts that he would.

When she awoke finally, after what felt like an eternal slumber in a strange and foreign world, she was being broken out of a glass-faced coffin by the Princesses named Aurora and Jasmine. Who both had grabbed one of the large brass candle stick holders and began to break the fellow princesses free from their cells as one would handle a spear with measured strikes. Cinderella being third to be broken free after Alice and Snow White. The youngest of the ladies in the room who were extracted first.

And when they had gathered together in the chapel hall in their huddled group after exiting their cells, that's when he approached them with his legendary weapon in hand and a smile on his face. The Keyblade Wielder who had slain monsters and fought a literal dragon all in the efforts to save their lives. The boy is named Sora.

The boy looked remarkably familiar, with his spiky brown hair, bright blue eyes, and sun kissed skin. The resemblance was uncanny. Even that adolescent stoic gaze of his when he wasn't grinning ear to ear reminded her of him.

Reminding her of Terra from so long ago. At a quick glance, her heart sank at the sight of the boy for a moment.

The reasoning being that she had a passing thought that Terra must've fathered a son, to have a boy who resembled him so with the same fabled weapon in hand. Upon closer inspection, the boy was simply too old to be his son.

A realization that eased her unsteady and aching heart. The boy was no older than fourteen, which means Terra would have had to have sired him a few years before the two of them had even met. That wasn't possible.

Snow White cleared her throat, the other five princesses approached the Keyblade Wielder, ready to update him on the recent events. When they each stumbled over one another to begin, each not knowing where to begin, the Glass Slipper Princess found her voice and decided to engage first.

"We've been waiting for you, Keyblade master." Cinderella spoke to the room with reverence, bowing her head towards the brave young man. Goofy and Donald removed their hats, giving their own courteous bows to the royalty before them. Each of the other Princesses bowing or curtseying towards the Captain of the Guard and the Royal Wizard. Sora, however, didn't reciprocate the respect out of ignorance. Choosing to stay on point and get to his question as soon as possible.

"Where's Ansem?" His voice was a high pitched tone, although it sounded as though it were hoarse and scratched with the amount of shouting and battle grunts he had howled throughout his journey. Cinderella huffed, brushing one thumb over the other anxiously. That was a good question.

"Gone." Was all she could say to answer that question of his. No matter how poor of an answer it was.

"When the Keyhole appeared, darkness poured out of it." Aurora said with a vindictive and harsh tone to her voice. She felt a shiver run through her body as she prepared herself to mention his name. "It swallowed Ansem, and he disappeared."

"Though Ansem is gone, the flood of darkness hasn't stopped." Cinderella gestured to the cavernous hall that they all marched through to get to this chapel. Images of the brass piped room where they all were stationed. The constant flow of the darkness rushed like a river, and the Princesses felt each slam of it in waves. "We're working together to hold it back."

"I cannot forget the look on his face." Aurora's voice was withdrawn and cold, her hands rubbed along her shoulders. Wincing at the recollection of that damned man's face. "As the darkness engulfed him, he was smiling."

That revelation chilled the air around the room, made hairs stand on end with goosebumps tickling up arms and shoulders. A true destroyer, in all senses of the word.

"Sora, please hurry! Darkness is pouring from the Keyhole." Jasmine said in a stern yet scared tone, crossing her arms and nodding towards the Keyblade wielder. Her eyes glancing over toward the youngest Princess, who nodded as well.

"It's all we can do just to hold back the darkness." Alice said with a bow of her head and a squint of her eyes. She flashed Sora a soft grin, when he turned to her and looked relieved. It eased his heart to see that she was safe and sound after her disappearance from her home world.

"I don't even know how long we can manage even that." Snow White sheepishly admitted, biting her lip nervously and ducking her head down. Her shoulders tucked and her eyes closed. "It's like a waterfall, it continues to flow."

"All right, I'm on my way." Sora stated with a determined glare into the darkness ahead. Tightening the hold of his sacred weapon.

"We're counting on you, Keyblade master." Snow White gestured to the group, who all nodded and agreed with the Fair Princess. "In the meantime, we'll do what we can, too."

Sora nodded and turned towards the open corridor of the hall. His jaw clenched and his breath drew sharp. His blue eyes peered into the dark with a hesitation to his stance. Cinderella slowly moved alongside him, her fingers intertwined with one another as she peered down at the boy with such a heavy responsibility.

"I can see that you're thinking." She stated, seeing his breath suddenly get caught in his throat when he is caught. He turned towards the powder blue dressed Princess with a weak smile. He glanced at the shadowed hall out of his peripherals, licking his dry lips anxiously. "What are you thinking?"

"I just…" Sora's eyes darted down to his massive red shoes, finding the courage to speak, and then back to the princess. "I had to fight my best friend who wanted to kill me in there, even though he was possessed by this Ansem guy. I then had to pierce my heart to save Kairi's. You know… My princess."

She felt a twinge in her heart as she heard his words, and watched as Sora's hand pressed over and rubbed against his quick beating heart. The pain of his sacrifice is still fresh in his mind. She saw his blue eyes shift and glisten in the light of the flickered torch nearby. She recalled the look in a similar Keyblade wielder's eyes, and the words he shared when he needed to find the strength to press on. Cinderella recalled them as a reverent prayer, always etched into the heart of the Princess.

"Strength of heart will carry you through the hardest of trials." Cinderella spoke surely to the Keyblade wielder, his eyes meeting her as he gave her a wide grin and a hopeful look in his eyes.

"Where did you hear that?" Sora inquired, his mouth mumbling the quote quickly under his breath to burn it into his memory. A smile breaking across his face as he finished the repeated phrase. "Thank you for that. That's… that is really nice to hear right about now."

"That's something a friend of mine said once… it always warms my spirits and I feel better when I recall it. It helps ease the storm of my heart when I try to remember him." Cinderella said with a grand beaming smile and lingering sorrow in her eye. Sora reflected the grin, even if he couldn't pick up on the sadness that was held in her stare. She glanced over his features, and an aside glance at his Key. "He was a lot like you, Sora."

"'Was'? What happened to him?" Sora said before he could think, only for Donald to smack him against his hip and chastise him with his quacks about such an indecent question. Sora groans as he feels the wing's sting.

"She said, 'was'! Sora! Was! That means she probably doesn't want to be reminded of what happened to him!" Donald straightens his cap and turns to face the Princess. He quacks bashfully, eyes half lidded and his arms folding behind his back. "I'm awfully sorry for my friend here. He's a bit of a numbskull-"

"Hey!" Sora stomps his foot and postures at Donald with closed fists. Donald raises his chin and puffs out his chest. Not willing to back down. "I'm not a numbskull!"

Cinderella mentally blocks out his juvenile voice, and the Duck's indecipherable rebuttal. Her eyes linger on the boyish face of the young warrior, his spiky hair and his cerulean eyes. Whose aggressive stance gave way to a relaxed lean on his back leg, and a quick grin and chuckle that he shared with Donald. The two shared a short laugh amongst each other that warmed their spirits and eased the tension in their hearts.

Her cheeks bled a rosy red when she imagined for a brief moment if Terra and her had a son, if he would be anything like Sora? Look like him? Act like him? Take up the blade and be a defender of the Realm like him?

Just as rambunctious with a strong zest for adventure? Or would he have been reserved and sullen, bogged down by the weight of his responsibility and his duty? Much like his father was that night they shared together?

Cinderella imagined Terra out in the backyard of their simple home back on her home world, A toy blade in hand playing Pirates with a boy or attending imaginary tea parties with a little girl whilst sitting a tiny child sized chair that would be threatening to shatter underneath his weight.

How he'd be so serious when discussing the kinds of teas he would like to drink with his daughter or his uproarious laughter when his son slipped with a sword and knocked his father across the knuckles in what would be called a, 'swell swing.' She imagined him reading them bedtime stories in the late evening, and feeding logs to the fire on cold winter nights. Swimming in the summers and dancing amongst the leaves in fall.

"His name is Terra." Her voice uttered out his name aloud. For the first time in what felt like a lifetime. It sounded so natural and familiar to let loose from her lips. Sora's attention returned to the Princess with full attention. "He has a Keyblade as well."

"Terra?" Sora cocked his head and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. As if he were rolling back through his memories and trying to connect a piece or two. His eyes glancing down to the weapon in his hand. The bright steel barrel of the key reflects the dim light of the room. "And he had a Keyblade too?"

"Yes." She nodded, a little echo of sadness painted that simple word. And the ping of pain it struck her heart with in its implication. "He had a Keyblade too."

Cinderella and the others watched as the Keyblade wielder marched with his party towards the darkness of the hall. Leading to the room where the Princess' had awoken, and where he had made the ultimate sacrifice. All in the name of love.

"Cinderella," Aurora approached with Belle and Alice by her side. The young blonde girl's hands intertwined with the once Sleeping Beauty. Alice gave a short wave, before remembering to curtsy when in front of royalty. The sight of her one handedly taking the hem of her skirt and lifting it slightly with a short bend of the knee made the Glass Slipper Princess smile. "Belle has found a way into the lord of this world's library. We all agreed that the well lit library would be preferable to this dank and dark stone hall."

Cinderella quickly glanced around, and nodded in agreement. She had grown tired of the dimly lit chapel and wouldn't mind a more relaxing environment. She followed them forward.


The Library of the Castle's Lord harbored works of unparalleled knowledge and years of research. Tomes relating to research of the Hearts and the nature of other worlds. Documents organized into booklets of research related to the Gummi Objects and their ability to travel between worlds.

Alice had secured the table near the windows and beside the staircase with Princess Snow White as the two swapped stories of the fun characters they met over their numerous adventures. Alice recalled a White Rabbit who was constantly late for a very important date and a cat that grinned from ear to ear. Snow White recalling each of her short and beloved friends along with the reasonings for their appropriate names. How they mined for jewels and lived in a cottage in the woods.

Jasmine and Belle were on the upper level of the library that overlooked the massive bookshelves and pillars at a table of their own. Each talking about their respective unconventional significant others.

Jasmine recalled her diamond in the rough Aladdin, who was once a common thief in the streets of her father's city who had managed to steal her heart through his kindness and quick wit.

Belle recounted her rather beastly admirer, whose gruff exterior and intimidating presence faded to reveal the depth of his convictions towards those he loved and his readiness to defend her from anything and anyone that would do her harm.

Cinderella saw Aurora in her own corner of the room, her fingers tracing the edges of a bookcase away from the others, looking at not a single book in particular. Away from the others and their own personal conversations. Cinderella approached with a gentle sway, as to not startle the once Sleeping Beauty.

"Aurora," Cinderella spoke, her eyes meeting the purple hued stare of the princess. Her lips curled to a soft smile. They bowed to one another. "Are you alright?"

"It's nothing of concern." Aurora shook her head, her hands folded together at her waist as she began to walk. Cinderella walked alongside her. Walking between the towering book shelves as one would traverse down a city street. At one side, with courtesy to not lean into the next lane over. Aurora, feeling the presence of the other Princess lingering around her, expanded upon her 'nothing of concern'. "It is just the presence of this Ansem… it's troubling."

"It is rather startling. The whole thing." Cinderella stated, a hand reaching up to tuck loose blonde hair behind her ear. "A man so determined to bring devastation to all these worlds and to steal our hearts-"

"I felt his presence once before. That is what is troubling me." Aurora's feet pulled to a stop, eyes squinted in a vague remembrance as she cocks her head towards Cinderella. "Like a horrid dream, or a memory ignited by a crass smell or a harsh sound. It irked me when I saw it. There was something about that awful man that felt… familiar. Eerily familiar."

Aurora's hand rested over her beating heart, fingers curling slightly against her skin as though someone was going to rip it right out of her chest.

She shook her head, huffing slowly. Trying to steady her breath.

"Like a ghost?" Cinderella asked, seeing the purple eyed woman shrug with uncertainty. Aurora stopped, turning to the blonde beauty and biting the inside of her cheek in thought.

"Do you feel as though a shadow looms over you? A figment of the past? And it won't leave you be?" Sleeping Beauty asked with a squint of her eye. Cinderella thought of her own shadowed figment, although unlike a shadowed presence of menace, hers was silhouetted by light and harbored well intentions and had a tender touch.

"In my own way, I suppose." Cinderella said longingly, her lips graced in a soft and loving smile.

That's when the doors burst open and the sound of rampaging scampering of paws clapping against the floorboards is heard.

"Belle!" The voice thundered out, shaking the very windows in their sills with his powerful voice. The Beauty, dressed in a golden hued gown, dropped the books that were in her arms and came rushing down the stairs to the sound of this mighty voice. "Belle!"

Just as Belle turned the corner to see Aurora and Cinderella, that's when he turned the corner. Towering over the two princesses with his eyes wide and his claws drawn.

He was monstrous in height, easily towering even the most powerful beasts of their collective worlds. He was broad and wide in shape and knowing and intimidating in his look. Covered in brown fur like a bear, with hooking tusks of a boar protruding out of his maw and ram horns that curled around his crown. A cape of crimson draped around his shoulders that would blanket these women twice over in its size and just barely hung up above his hind legs.

He shudders at the sight of Belle, her eyes swelling with tears and his quadrupedal bolting ceased as he rested back on his haunches and bellowed out a sigh of relief. Rocking in his spot as she rushed towards him with her arms wide spread.

She threw herself into his arms, his breathing growing rapidly and his snout huffing in bursts of hot breath. His forehead tucking into her shoulder and nuzzling her.

Aurora and Cinderella cast glances at one another, before seeing Belle pull away and cup the massive head of this Beast and stare into his eyes.

Her tears streaming down her cheeks as she feels his massive paws tenderly rest along her ribs. Seeing him scan over her to find any bruises or signs of harm. She giggled through her tears as she pet his cheeks and brought her voice to a low cry.

"It's ok. It's ok. Look at me. Look at me." She whispered to him, combing through his tuft along his chin, her other hand reaching up to caress the edges of his horn protrusions and keep her eyes locked with his. Beast's shoulders slumped, his eyes half lidded and his breathing easing. "I'm still in one piece. I'm still here. I'm ok. I'm ok."

"Belle, I vowed I would find you again, no matter what the cost. Belle, if I had lost you… I believed I would find you. I really did. I fought scores of Heartless throughout this castle to find you and to keep you safe…" Beast assured her between his breaths, seeing her head nod in acknowledgement and with great joy. She never feared or doubted for a moment he would come for her.

"And here you are. See? We're together now. Everything's going to be fine." She whispered to him, slowly leaning forward and resting her forehead against his own. Her fingers curling into his beard and gripping him. She felt his breath heat her torso and the pads of his thumbs gently spread across her abdomen. "We're ok."

"Are you hurt?" He asked with a flinch, feeling her roll her forehead against his own. Answering the question with a head shake. "Good."

Cinderella watched with an aching heart, thankful someone's knight in shining armor braved the dark to save them. Even if he wore muscle and fur rather than leather and steel.

Aurora left the two lovers to their petting and their whispered assurances of gratitude for the other's safety. Cinderella's eyes lingered, grateful for Belle to have someone who loved her so much to bend the will of the Realm itself to reach her. What a blessing, Cinderella thought as she made her mindful and quiet exit from the book alley, to be loved like that.


When the keyhole was sealed, it was as though one was dunked under water and then pulled up for breath. A collective sigh of relief escaped from each of the princesses simultaneously once they felt it. Their breaths were replaced by a shared laughter, each of them expressing that sudden comfort each of them felt. Not long after, did the Keyblade wielder and the knight and wizard return to the library to regroup and touch base with the princesses.

"Thank you, Sora. I think the darkness has begun to weaken." Alice said from the larger of the cushioned chairs, a book of whimsical poems and haikus in hand as she takes in a deep breath and levels out her breathing. "It feels as though a weight has been lifted off of my shoulders."

"But I can feel a powerful darkness growing somewhere far away." Jasmine spoke aloud from the top of the stairwell, she winced as she tapped her fingers against her heart. Sora's eyes glanced from the seated princess to the one that lingered over the railing. "Out there somewhere."

"It's the heart of the darkness. It must be where Ansem went. I can feel him… like a presence or a shadow. Like a passing image of a nightmare." Aurora stated, glancing out the window of the library with a tentative stare. Her fingers tracing along her wedding ring as she squints her eyes. "I can still feel him out there… amongst the dark. Ready to steal hearts, once again."

"Then we'll take the gummi ship and deal with both Ansem and the Heartless once and for all." Sora stated, his arms crossed and his eyes fueled with determination. Cinderella smiled at the sight. Oh Light, he was brave to undertake such a vital and dangerous mission.

Just as Terra had been over a decade ago. Unafraid of the next obstacle in his path, just determined to do the next right thing. She knew, wherever Terra was, he would have been proud to see that the legacy of his craft was in the capable hands of such a courageous young man. Cinderella approached Sora before he made his plan to leave, her blue eyes fixed to the young man.

"A worthy answer, Keyblade master. What I would like to offer is this power to aid your battle against the dark." Cinderella has brought herself to her knee, getting eye level to the small Keyblade master. She withdrew a hand from her ivory glove and extended it out to him.

Sora took her bare hand into his own without an ounce of hesitation. The gloved hand gripping hers gently. An echo of tenderness pinging in her chest. Flashing her a smile, trusting her.

With a breath to ease herself before tapping her latent power, she engaged with the memory that she had locked within her heart and called upon the love she harbored for Terra, even now a decade later. Still just as strong. Still just as true. Still just as warm. That moment of raw, unforgettable and unexpected love that he held for her then and she held for him now became apparent in the apparition of this internal fire.

Manifesting that embrace. That unspoken desire to love and protect her from that day to his very last. She made it tangible, and in turn, brought forth this blistering and powerful flame from within her dormant love.

This harnessed power to call upon an inferno passed along from Cinderella's fingertips to Sora's palm as a wave would roll against the shore. This transfer then bolstered and improved his magic ability with the element of desire and of passion, fire.

Cinderella thanked Terra for his memory, his kindness, his continued presence in her heart and soul, and his fervid expression of love. It was within that lingering presence she felt of him that she was given the opportunity to pass along that strength to the Keyblade wielder now.

How grateful and honored she felt, to ensure a piece of Terra's legacy as an honorable man, a kind individual, and a powerful warrior would continue and go on to protect the worlds once more. Just as he had always intended and hopefully did do.

Sora thanked her with a dutiful nod and returned to his companions with a beaming proud grin.

The boy had a heart that was pure in intention, with a measured reserve in his blue eyes that spoke with a wisdom only gained through trial and combat. Of an emotional breadth only gained from handling loss and committing to sacrifice. But still he held onto his optimism and his hope.

Cinderella recalled Terra's own reservation within his icy glare and stoic expression. A stare that was humbled during a night of caressing her smooth skin, bringing his lips to hers and dancing with her well into the night.

Sora's hands that were once soft and gentle grew coarse and rough due to the stress and the expectations of his journey. She felt the rough digits rub against her hands.

She imagined Terra's own hands were once upon a time like that boy's own when he was that age. Yet she hoped Sora wouldn't forget how to be gentle with those very hands just as Terra had forgotten.

Only to be reminded of his gentleness when he held a piece of his beating heart in his hands in the form of his princess, and kissed her with a tenderness that he wished he always knew he was capable of.

She had grown to recall their night in earnestness and wistful remembrance as she returned to her seat and pondered. No longer feeling that echoing guilt of loving another man prior to her Prince, as she had found her prince long before she had been asked to marry one herself.

Sora's blue eyes held a love for Kairi that no other could ever replicate. A reflection of Terra's own passionate gaze that he once held for a Princess of Heart. It seems it is a tale as old as time. A Knight ever ready to fight for the life and love of their respective princess. Sora for Kairi. That Beast for Belle. And Terra for Cinderella, not so long ago.

Cinderella imagined if Terra hadn't fallen to darkness and simply resumed his duties as one of the realm's peacekeepers, then in turn he could have mentored a young warrior like Sora. She would imagine his jovial laughter echoing in the training yard and his sense of honor inspiring these heroes to victory.

A purposeful life for a man so deserving of such an end to his well fought journey. She took a lasting stare at the Keyblade Wielder and his two companions as they marched out of the library doors and headed toward their destiny.

Be it in the next room or a different world, he rose to the occasion and was ready to meet it without fear or hesitation. His shoulders squared and head held high. Ready to face any challenge that would dare to face him. In the name of the realm. In the name of the Light. In the name of Kairi.

She recalled Terra's own determination and longed to feel the warmth of his hands once again. If the worlds could be restored thanks to his efforts, maybe her knight in shining armor would return one day as well. She was hopeful, she had a dream.

That was the dream her heart made that day. If nothing else, just to bask in the warmth of his sought after smile just one more time. And to thank him for reminding her of the strength she carried, even now. She just prayed Sora's story wouldn't end as Terra's story possibly did.


Of course Sora looked familiar, how couldn't he?

He reminds her so much of him.