12. We Are Lightning
"You are not serious," Jaune said in disbelief. "If we couldn't stop that thing before, what makes you think we can stop it now?"
"But you did stop it," Kairi pointed out.
"I don't know how I did it," Ruby moaned. "And I don't think I could do it again!"
"You don't have to do whatever you did that froze it," Sora told her. "I fight things that big all the time. All you really need to do is band together! We've all got powerful weapons and a lot of talent! I bet if we all charged that thing at once, we could bring it down!"
"But we'd better hurry," Riku urged. "Otherwise, a lot of people are going to get hurt while we make up our minds."
"There's no way," Jaune moaned. "It's impossible!"
"It doesn't seem very plausible," Ren added.
"As much as I wanna say we could…" Nora shifted her weight from one foot to the other.
Glynda shook her head. "It's too dangerous."
"Maybe with that attitude," Qrow replied. "Or maybe it's just dangerous enough." He hoisted his scythe up behind his shoulder.
"Qrow," Glynda scolded, "now is not the time for reckless endangerment of children – "
"We're more than children," Riku told her. "Sora's right. If we all work together, we stand a chance at making sure that creature falls and never comes back."
"And if Sora and Riku say they can do it," Kairi insisted, "then I know we can!"
Jaune, Nora, and Ren all looked to Ruby. Ruby's eyes were fixed on Sora. She gave him a decisive nod, hoisting her red rifle up behind her shoulders; it unfurled into a scythe similar to Qrow's. "Let's do it."
She turned and ran after the beast, scythe held high. Sora, Riku, Kairi, and Qrow wasted no time following her.
"I can't believe him," Glynda huffed, staring after Qrow. "He's going to let all four of them get killed!"
Jaune bit his lip. He'd only known Sora, Riku, and Kairi for a short time, but already they'd made a big impression on him. He dared, at this moment, to call them friends. Ruby, on the other hand, had been close to him ever since he'd first arrived at Beacon, and while he hardly knew Qrow in person, he knew him from the many stories Ruby had told of him. They'd all made their choice to go after the Grimm. Just like a young woman named Pyrrha Nikos had once made a choice to get Jaune to safety before taking Cinder Fall on alone. That was the last time Jaune had seen Pyrrha, and it would be that way forevermore. He couldn't bring himself to believe he would survive against the behemoth of a Grimm. However, he knew he wasn't about to let any more friends, new or old, run toward death with open arms while he stood back and let it happen.
He gritted his teeth and ran after them.
"Well?" Nora gripped Ren's shoulder, jolting him. "If Jaune of all people thinks we can make it, then we can MAKE it!"
"Can't argue with that," Ren told her as they took off together.
Glynda was close behind. She knew she couldn't stop them. All she could do was protect them the best she could. And she intended to do exactly that.
Ruby led the charge, her Semblance allowing her to speed ahead; she had to make a conscious effort to run slowly enough for the others to catch up. "It's going to be a lot harder to fight that thing if the streets are boxing it in," she told Sora. "We need to lure it into an open square somehow!"
"I can act as bait for it!" Sora cried enthusiastically.
"That's too dangerous!" another voice called down from the rooftops, its owner running parallel to the heroic crowd from above. "Let me do it. My Semblance will keep me safe. Trust me."
Ruby was almost stopped completely in her tracks when she heard who had spoken. "BLAKE!" she cried, looking up above.
Blake took a moment to hop from one roof to another before glaring down at Ruby and Sora. "Just this once," she seethed.
"Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!" Ruby squealed.
Without a word, Blake took off on a more direct course toward the Grimm.
"Why will she be safe?" Sora asked.
"You'll see!" Ruby told him gleefully.
...
The Grimm lumbered through the streets, stopping every once in a while to give a halfhearted beat of its wounded wings. It was only able to get a short distance off the ground before crashing back down again. The Huntsman and Mozenrath had dealt it some grievous damage in that area, though they'd only really managed to give it flesh wounds everywhere else.
As it stalked on foot, it felt hunger, and sought out flesh to sate that hunger. The people remaining in the district had seen it coming from a long ways off and fled, creating an impromptu evacuation, but it still clawed open each building it passed, coming up empty each time but hoping for succulent fear to dine upon. Perhaps it would find something juicy in the next house.
But there! Right out in front of it! A young Faunus with black hair, standing in the middle of the road! With a squall of triumph, it struck quickly to swallow her up…and its jaws closed on nothing.
"Over here!" Blake yelled, and the Grimm's eyes flicked to the left. She stood upon one of the rooftops now, making no move to escape. It struck again, but once more was met with a clever illusion: a shadow copy that Blake had made of her image to fool it.
"Come and get me!" Now she was running down the road ahead. She chose an erratic path, zigging and zagging, making sure to leave a copy behind every few minutes; the Grimm snapped at each and every false Blake. She vaulted up onto a roof only to forge a copy and jump right back down; she doubled back on herself after placing a fake. In this pattern, she led the hungry Grimm all the way to the nearest square, a battlefield just big enough to contain its massive body.
As Blake and the Grimm burst into the square from one street, Ruby, Sora, Riku, Kairi, Qrow, Jaune, Nora, Ren, and Glynda rushed in from across the way. "Everybody ready?" Ruby asked.
"Now or never!" Sora confirmed.
"Lead the way," Qrow beckoned.
Blake was now running in glorified circles, keeping all her copies within the confines of the square so as not to lose the Grimm's attention. "HURRY!" she yelled, fearing it was now only a matter of time before the Grimm seized upon the real thing now that it was fenced in.
Glynda's eyes flicked around the square. Other, smaller Grimm had done a lot of damage, wrecking storefronts all around. Glynda had tried to repair many of them herself, but it was a futile effort; they just kept breaking again, either by more Grimm or by Glynda's waning energy being unable to hold the repairs in place. Their employees and customers had emptied out a while ago, seeking safer ground. As much as she wanted to be able to put everything back in place, Glynda had to admit that now, the shops were a lost cause, and the rubble had a better use. She picked up the fallen pillars and archways with her telekinetic power, forging a cuff around the Grimm's tail that bound it to the ground. As soon as it realized it was pinned, the Grimm twisted its head back to gnaw at the stone cuff.
"GO!" Ruby yelled, and the others charged en masse.
"Ready?" Sora called out to Riku.
"You know it!" Riku laughed. "Think you can keep up?"
"I should be asking YOU that question!"
They positioned themselves on either side of the Grimm's head; they knew the routine. The pair entered a flow of synchronized acrobatics as they slashed and swiped out at the sides face of the creature, giving "Ha"s and "Huh"s in unison.
"It looks like its wings are damaged!" Ruby called out to Qrow. "I don't think it can fly!"
"Well, let's keep it that way!" Qrow called back.
Uncle and niece split up, running to either side of the monstrosity and leaping almost impossibly high onto its back. In one swift movement, Qrow chopped at the base of the right wing while Ruby chopped at the base of the left. With some effort, they severed both wings, and the membranes flopped uselessly down onto the ground.
Sora and Riku went back to back. "Let's hit him hard!" Sora encouraged. "Last Saber style!" They both turned to face the Grimm head-on, punching into the front of its skull-like face repeatedly with their blades.
Ren ran along the creature's neck, and the second Sora and Riku backed off, he jabbed the twin blades of his pistols down into the Grimm's eyes, darting from one side of the head to the other to ensure all six were punctured and the Grimm effectively blinded. He jumped down from his place atop the Grimm to give Sora and Riku room to prepare the next phase of their attack.
The two boys split to either side of the Grimm's head again; it was thrashing, agonized that it had been blinded by Ren. Sora and Riku let loose beams of white-hot energy that sparked from all angles, colliding with the moving target.
While the duo kept the head busy with their Dark Cannon, Blake, Jaune, and Kairi rushed beneath the belly of the beast. Blake plunged her blade right up into the Grimm's stomach as soon as it lowered enough for her to do so. Kairi cast a Firaga spell on one of the creature's claws while Jaune raised his shield to block a scraping talon.
With the Dark Cannon finished, Sora and Riku went back-to-back again. Riku placed his blade over Sora's, and they swung as one, constructs of pure energy extending their Keyblades into incredibly long broadswords that cut across the air and into the Grimm's head.
Glynda had found even more rubble on the edges of the square, and she had spent the duration of the others' attacks forging it into a great spike of stone in midair, trying to position it over the Grimm's shoulder blades. Once it was assembled and sharp, Glynda drove the spike directly down into the Grimm, puncturing it and driving deep. All the while, Nora ran along the length of its back, ramming her hammer into its spine with several loud cracks. The Grimm, surprised by the pain of Glynda's attack, reared up onto its hind legs, sending Nora on a quick slide down. By coincidence, Ren ended up charging behind to where Nora was flying off the Grimm, and before he knew it, she'd landed in his arms bridal-style. "Thanks a million!" Nora chirped before hopping out of Ren's grasp and onto the ground.
As the Grimm rose up, Sora and Riku knew they could match its height. They'd charged up enough energy between them to summon thirteen swords of energy that twirled around them, acting as a propeller to thrust them up into the air. There, they spun the blades into the Grimm's chest, cutting deep and drawing out a waterfall of blood.
The Grimm, on its last legs, stumbled back down to all fours. Sora and Riku danced out of the way; however, Jaune realized a little too late that he was directly beneath where one of the front claws would land; he was about to be crushed.
"FREEZE!" Kairi screamed, putting herself in between Jaune and the talon. Jaune was shot through with pure terror for Kairi until he saw the great cluster of ice she'd summoned up with her Keyblade, forming a wall that curved up above them and ended in a shield of spikes that stuck upward. The Grimm brought its claw right down upon these spikes, staining the ice red; Kairi pulled Jaune out of the way right before the humongous foot crashed down through the icy shelter.
"Thanks!" Jaune gasped.
"No problem!" Kairi replied gladly, giving Jaune's upper arm one last squeeze before she let him go. Both hands now pressed to the Keyblade's hilt, she swung the weapon around in a circle; "THUNDER!" A bolt of lightning struck the Grimm's other front talon.
Nora's jaw dropped as she watched. As the electricity sparked, so did something in her eye. Kairi and Jaune's escape route took them right past her, and she grabbed hold of Kairi's arm as the redhead passed, practically screaming, "YOU CAN MAKE LIGHTNING OUT OF NOWHERE?"
"Yes?" Kairi was confused as to why Nora was so interested in this over the Fire and Blizzard spells. "Sora and Riku can do it too."
"Can you do it again?" Nora asked eagerly.
"Why?" Kairi asked.
Nora began with a grin.
Sora and Riku entered the final phase of their attack; Riku bellowed, "YOU'RE GONNA LOSE IT ALL!" and the pair levitated to either side of the Grimm, blasting out pure energy, light and dark, battering the beast and draining its energy. By the time All's End was finished, the Grimm collapsed, lying on the ground, unable to move after all the damage it had taken. However, it still drew breath, its chest heaving.
"SORA!" Kairi waved the other two Keybearers down. "RIKU! OVER HERE!"
Sora and Riku ran to where she stood with Jaune and Nora. "What's going on?" Sora asked.
"Nora has an idea," Kairi informed them.
Nora puffed out her chest, hands on her hips. "I need you to hit me with lightning as hard as you can!" she announced.
"Wha…?" Sora tilted his head.
"That could kill you," Riku informed her.
"Nuh-uh!" Nora shook her head. "Because I've got…THE POWER OF SEMBLANCE!" Her teeth sparkled as she smiled.
"Guess we should just trust her on this one," Sora resolved.
All three Keybearers pointed their weapons at Nora, calling out the command as one: "THUNDER!"
The triple bolts hit Nora without shaking her a millimeter, absorbing into her skin. In fact, Nora's exterior seemed to crackle with lines of electricity. "Again!" Nora demanded.
"THUNDER!"
Now Nora was very obviously shimmering with lightning. "AGAIN!"
"THUNDER!"
Radiating electricity, Nora began to laugh sinisterly, her cackle growing ever louder. She threw back her head, letting the energy wash over her. "I AM AAAAAALL POWERFUUUUUUUUL!" she screamed.
"Uh…should we be worried?" Riku asked.
Ren shook his head. "This is pretty usual for her. Though I don't know if she's ever had access to that much electricity before."
Hammer in hand, Nora made a mad dash for the struggling Grimm. Her Semblance allowed her to channel electric energy through her body, and the lightning that the Keybearing trio had fed her was coursing through her muscles, empowering them so that she could run faster, leap higher – hit harder. She launched into the air with a wild yell, raising her weapon Magnhild high. When Magnhild was brought down onto the Grimm's head, in the center of the scalp, the shockwave was tremendous, even jolting the other warriors a little. The Grimm's head split completely apart, and after a final twitch, it moved no more.
"WE DID IT!" Ruby cried, thrusting a fist into the air, and Nora, Jaune, Sora, Kairi, and Qrow whooped with joy. Riku, Ren, and Glynda smiled proudly at their handiwork, knowing the Grimm would not destroy anything further. Ruby turned to address one in particular: "WE DID IT, BLAKE! …Blake?"
Blake had taken off, and all that was visible of her was her rapidly retreating back down an alley. Ruby considered following, but thought better of it this time, solemnly turning away.
Sora had noticed. "Don't worry," he told Ruby. "She's your friend. She'll find her way back to you. Just like Riku did to me."
"Wait." Ruby was taken aback. "Riku was the one who left you because he thought you were better off without him?" She looked over Sora's shoulder to where Riku was laughingly receiving a congratulatory hug from a slightly bloodied Nora. "But he seems so confident."
"He is," Sora told her. "Riku can do anything. But sometimes, even the best of us get lost. And it can take a long time before we find the right path. It took Riku a year."
"A whole year?" Ruby groaned.
"It'll be worth it at the end," Sora promised. "I think someday, you, Blake, Weiss, and Yang will all fight together again as an unstoppable team!"
"I think you're right," Ruby agreed.
...
Cinder stood in the center of the meeting chamber in Villain's Vale, letting the eyes of Pete, Ursula, Hades, and Jafar survey her as she faced down Maleficent herself.
"How intriguing," the faery observed. "A counterpart of one of the Princesses of Heart…but instead of a heart filled with pure light, yours is black as night. Tell me, Cinder Fall. What is it you most desire?"
She'd known this answer for a long time, and stated it to many. "I want to be strong," Cinder told Maleficent. "I want to be feared. I want to be powerful. And it seems that's what I am."
"Maybe on that wasteland of a world of yours," Jafar taunted, "but what power have you outside of it?"
"I suppose that's something I'll have to find out," Cinder replied coolly, turning to him. "My employer taught me a lot, but she never spoke of other worlds."
"Y'know what other worlds mean, babe?" Hades told her. "MORE power. Like you've never dreamed."
"Why do you all have this interest in me?" Cinder asked. "Is it just because we have a common enemy?" Her gaze was fixed once more on Maleficent.
"That and more," Maleficent replied. "Your powers are impressive indeed, and the Darkness in your heart is strong. If you were to work with us, perhaps we could achieve our ultimate goal that much sooner."
"And what is that goal?" Cinder inquired, her tone even.
"Domination," Maleficent replied. "To lay the worlds out at our feet, to rule or destroy as we choose. Tell me, Cinder Fall…is this not what you have wanted?"
"It sounds exactly like something I want," Cinder replied. "Where I came from, we were going to change the world."
"And with Maleficent, WE'RE gonna change 'em ALL!" Pete laughed.
"Perhaps my employer will just have to deal with the fact that I'm going to take a leave of absence," Cinder decided. "At least until I know where this road leads."
"After all, we were brought together by quite unique circumstances," Maleficent remarked. "I had only meant to discover the whereabouts of that fool Mozenrath, and I found you on the way. Tell me, Cinder Fall: do you believe in destiny?"
The question hit hard. It always had. It always would. Staring Maleficent right in the eye, Cinder replied wholeheartedly, "I do."
...
A firm knock came at the door to Archibald Snatcher's quarters; Snatcher was perched on the edge of his bed at the time, sewing shut all the tears that the last onslaught had left in his crimson coat. He'd always been proud of that jacket, despite its color and the way it denoted him as a lowly exterminator. He'd sewn it himself, and there was a lot of him in each of its swirling stitches.
Roman Torchwick didn't wait for an answer after he knocked, simply entering the room with his jacket draped over one arm, revealing the plain black tank he wore beneath it. He discarded the jacket on the bed next to Snatcher. "Mind doing mine when you're done with that?" he asked.
"Only because it's you," Snatcher replied without looking up from his work.
"Aw, I'm flattered." Roman settled himself in backward on a desk chair, crossing his arms over the chair's back and resting his chin on them. "I am going to kill those kids, though. And Scare-Qrow with 'em."
"Just so long as you don't shoot me again in the process," Snatcher responded.
It took Roman a minute to realize that was a tease. "I don't plan to make a habit out of it! By the way, did I really try to shoot you during the whole hallucination thing?"
"Yes."
"Wow. Glad I missed. Otherwise, that would've really sucked." Roman shifted so that he could stretch out both arms in an upward direction. "Also, can I just go on record and say how glad I am that this mountain is jam-packed with healing stuff?"
"It's quite convenient," Snatcher agreed. "Can't even feel any pain in that shoulder. Worst it is, it's a bit stiff."
"You're telling me," Roman replied, now stretching out his right arm behind his back by gripping the elbow with his left hand. "Do you know how tense I am right now?"
"Really, Torchwick? You were hardly scraped at all."
"I took hits! Red got me hard at the end there."
"You seem to have some history with her," Snatcher pointed out.
"Did you ever know a kid that was a complete thorn in your side, turned up to ruin literally everything, and wouldn't go away no matter how many times you tried to kill her?" Roman asked.
"Make that 'her' a 'him,'" Snatcher replied, "and I'm quite familiar with the concept."
"Right. I remember now. Maybe we should trade," Roman offered. "Strangers on a Bullhead style. You can bash Red's head in for me, and I'll blast the box kid to kingdom come."
"You might just have yourself a deal, Mr. Torchwick!" Snatcher still didn't look up from the coat.
"By the way," Roman asked, switching out arms, "are you ever going to call me by my first name?"
"Perhaps," Snatcher told him dismissively.
"Where's that come from, anyway?" Roman wondered. "That whole last-name compulsion."
"Something my father drilled into me from a young age," Snatcher explained. "Men like us refer to others by their last names to show respect. Long, long after I lost respect for any of them, I had to keep up appearances. And nowadays, it's become a bit of a habit. Given names don't quite come naturally."
"All right, all right." Roman nodded. "Just so you know you really don't have to do that around here. That whole 'last names for respect' thing."
"Doesn't help that most of them don't have surnames to begin with," Snatcher pointed out. "But I'll have you know that the lot of you have earned more of my respect than anyone else I've come across." With perhaps one exception, he thought, but that was buried in the past, and certainly wouldn't be winning his respect back again.
"You are just full of flattery today!" Roman let his arms drop. "Okay, I cave. I'm not getting anywhere with this on my own. You've got those long fingers. You any good with back rubs?"
Snatcher briefly stabbed himself in the thumb with his sewing needle. After a pause, he looked up at Roman, who was calmly awaiting his answer. "…I suppose I could give it a try," he stated before reaching over to plant the needle in a pincushion on the nightstand and shoving the jacket over to lay on top of Roman's.
Roman quickly crossed to sit on the bed, turning the back of his shoulders to Snatcher. Snatcher willed his mind into thoughts of strict professionalism – and that was no small feat – as he gently placed his hands over Roman's shoulders and began digging into the skin with his fingertips.
Roman gave a light moan of approval; "Now THAT'S the stuff. Keep doing that, will ya?"
"You must be quite glad to have retrieved Miss Neopolitan," Snatcher commented. "Though I daresay she throws a bit of a wrench into your little acronym for us."
"Eh, I'm thinking we'll just not mention it to her," Roman suggested. "I just can't get an N in there! But you're right. It is good to have the dream team back together. She brings the sadism, and I bring a healthy dose of swag."
"I'm sure it will be only a matter of time before you two lovers are back to your old tricks."
"Yeah – wait, WHAT did you just call us?"
Snatcher was taken aback by Roman's outburst. "I'd gotten the sense the two of you were romantically involved," he pointed out.
"Y'know, normally, you're pretty good at reading me," Roman observed, "but you are SO off the mark here it's not funny. Neo's not my girlfriend. She's more like my overprotective big sister who thinks I'm going to explode if she doesn't keep a constant eye on me. And don't you dare point out that I died the last time she left me alone."
"I wasn't going to say anything."
"Good! Anyway, for the record, I'm on the market. In case you're interested."
Snatcher didn't know what to say to that, assuming it was one of Roman's little jokes. He didn't expect Roman to follow up by chancing it: "So…are you interested?"
Snatcher froze. He removed both hands from Roman in surprise. There was simply no way he could have heard Roman say what he thought he'd heard him say. It really must have been a joke, he realized. "Very amusing," he replied, "very hilarious. Having a little laugh at old Snatcher's expense, are we?"
"I'm serious." Roman twisted around to face Snatcher directly. "If you want me, you can totally have me."
"I don't believe it for a second," Snatcher stated coldly. "Do you know how much of a joke it became around Cheesebridge, that anyone could fancy Archibald Snatcher? I've got no delusions. I'm well aware you're looking for someone much more attractive. Younger, to boot."
"Are you KIDDING ME?" Roman blurted. "You're an evil GENIUS. You can talk your way into ANYWHERE. You've got a voice like an angel, and for the record, you're hot as hell. And, here's the best part, you're as ruthless as me. Though given all that, by all rights, I should be asking what a guy like you would even see in me!"
"Well, ambition, for one!" Snatcher replied without missing a beat. "You take what you want from the moment you see it! There's a certain unquenchable fire in you that makes you an utter delight to work with. And, I might add, you're quite good looking indeed."
"Wait," Roman realized. "You ARE into me, aren't you?"
Snatcher found himself frozen again.
"Because I'm into you," Roman went on. "And if you want me, and I want you, then I think it's pretty obvious what we should be doing. Don't you?"
Snatcher, consumed by utter disbelief, didn't say a word.
"This isn't Jerktown, home of the jerks," Roman reminded him. "Nobody's gonna take away your hat for this."
"Quite right," Snatcher relented. "Very well. I fancy you quite a bit, Torchwick. Now, if I might ask, what is it you believe we should be doing in such a circumstance?"
"Well, first of all," Roman suggested, "I think you should kiss me as hard as you can. Second, you should have one hand on my ass while doing it."
"I'll take you up on that."
Still held back by old ties to conventions and taboos, Snatcher gingerly, cautiously leaned in to press his lips lightly to Roman's. Roman responded hungrily, wrapping both arms around Snatcher's chest as he leaned hard into the kiss; his fervor broke down the last of Snatcher's reservations, and soon they were at each other in equal measure, tongues and lips seeking the best position to savor each other. As Snatcher's left hand curled up around Roman's back to find a home in his fluffy red-orange hair, his right hand moved lower as he'd been invited; Roman signaled his approval with a brief "Mmh!"
"When you're done," Mozenrath broke in, "the rest of us are waiting in the hall, and it would be nice if you could spare two seconds to actually pay attention to the rest of us."
Startled, Roman and Snatcher broke away from each other to turn and face the doorway, where the smirking Mozenrath was framed, in shock. After a pause of indeterminable length, Snatcher barked, "HAVEN'T YOU EVER HEARD OF KNOCKING?"
"I've heard of it," Mozenrath replied tauntingly. "Not that I've ever felt a need to do it."
"Can I ask you to not be a killjoy about this?" Roman sighed. "I can just TELL you have some monologue locked and loaded about not wasting our time on – "
Mozenrath held up his right hand. "Whatever you two want to do in your spare time, I don't care. Just don't forget we have work to do."
"Right!" Snatcher replied, and as he stood up, Roman decided to do the same. "To the hall it is, then!"
Mozenrath turned and left with a sweep of his cape. Snatcher faced Roman to ask, "Shall we?", offering his arm.
Roman linked his own arm right through. "We shall."
They strode out of the room together.
...
Ruby, Nora, Jaune, and Ren watched as Sora, Riku, and Kairi held a three-person conference, whispering fervently about their next course of action. Once they reached a decision, they turned back to the four warriors of Remnant.
"You have to go, don't you?" Ruby asked, already feeling a little glum about losing her new friends.
"Not exactly." Riku shook his head. "This world is filled with Darkness. There's a lot here that needs to be fixed. We can't just turn our back on it."
"But we can't let those guys get away with wrecking everything, either," Sora added. "So we're gonna split up!"
"Riku and I are going to stay here in Remnant and help clean things up a bit," Kairi explained.
"That's great!" Jaune replied.
"And I'm going back out there to see what I can find out about Roman and his new pals!" Sora added. "Between Radiant Garden, Disney Castle, and here, I get the feeling I'm gonna cross paths with them again."
"You're going to take them on all by yourself?" Ruby asked worriedly.
Sora shrugged. "I'm pretty tough. I took on that guy with the black cape once already."
"There are still more of them than there is of you," Ruby pointed out.
"Hey…" Sora had a thought. "If any of you wanted to come with me, you sure could!"
"Really?" Ruby squealed. "Not that…I was wanting to go see other worlds or anything…" She rocked on her feet.
"You should TOTALLY come with me, then!" Sora emphasized. "I think you'd love it! It'll be an adventure!"
"Umm…" Jaune pulled Ruby aside for a moment. "Just a minute." He whispered into Ruby's ear, "Do you really think that's safe? Just going off this world with him?"
"You think I can't take care of myself?" Ruby whispered back.
"Point," Jaune admitted.
"Anyway," Ruby teased, "you must be happy that Kairi's staying behind."
"Wha…why would I…that's silly!" Jaune sputtered.
"Don't think I didn't notice!" Ruby hissed.
Sora turned to Riku while Ruby and Jaune were occupied: "Don't forget about me while I'm out there, okay?"
"Like I could forget you even if I wanted to," Riku laughed. "Not even Naminé made me forget you, remember?"
"No matter what," Sora reminded him, "we'll be under the same sky."
He then surprised Riku by giving him a brief, tight hug. After a moment's hesitation, Riku returned the embrace. "Go show them why they don't mess with our friends," he told Sora.
"Oh, I will!" Sora promised.
Nora leaned in close to Kairi, asking softly, "Are those two…?" She formed both her hands into a heart shape.
"Not yet," Kairi replied with a grin. "But I'm sure it's just a matter of time."
As Sora broke away from Riku, Ruby skipped over to his side to join him. "Ready to go?" he asked.
"Am I ever!" Ruby replied. She looked back to the others; "Bye, everyone!"
"We'll be sure to come back and visit!" Sora promised.
"Be safe out there!" Nora called out.
As Sora and Ruby turned away, they found Qrow leaning against a nearby wall. "Y'know," he told Ruby, "your dad won't be happy about this."
"I know," Ruby replied solemnly.
"It's still your choice to make," Qrow reminded her.
"I just…I want to see what else is out there," Ruby told him. "And I get the feeling that there are people out there who might need me. Just like we needed Sora, Riku, and Kairi's help."
Qrow nodded. "Then do what you think is best. And as for you…" He turned his gaze to Sora. "You better make sure my niece doesn't get hurt out there. I don't care how many worlds away you go. I can find a way to get to you if something happens to her, and it won't be pretty for you."
"You have nothing to worry about, Qrow," Sora promised, flashing him a thumbs-up.
"You're a good kid," Qrow told Sora. "Now get the show on the road already, would ya?"
Sora and Ruby waved back over their shoulder at their friends until they had walked out of sight.
"Race you to the Gummi Ship?" Sora proposed.
"You're on!" Ruby laughed before taking off.
Too late, Sora remembered her speed Semblance. "Hey, no fair!" he laughed as he broke into a run, trying to keep up with the speeding red bullet.
...
The Huntsman, Yzma, Wuya, Mim, Aghoul, Neo, Roman, and Snatcher gathered around the diagram etched into the floor of Judgment Hall, watching Mozenrath in the center of it. The crates of Dust were piled around the hall haphazardly; with a flick of the wrist, Mozenrath removed the lid from one of them via magic. He repeated the process until each crate was open, then he raised his glowing hand. One crystal of each color floated gently up toward the gauntlet as though it were a magnet. When the crystals had settled into a gentle orbit around Mozenrath's raised hand, the sorcerer plucked a red one from the lineup, crushing it to powder and trickling it on the floor. He repeated the process with a yellow, a green, two shades of blue, an orange, and a white. Once the floor was coated in fine powder, Mozenrath knelt down to scoop up a handful, getting some of each color into his hand. He pressed his fist together hard, molding the powder into a new crystal, one that shimmered with all the colors of the rainbow. Transferring the multicolored Dust crystal into his left hand, Mozenrath conjured up a wind to blow all the excess Dust away. He then gently set the newly forged crystal on the adjacent line to the container that held the miniaturized Cornerstone of Light.
"Two down," he announced. "Ten to go."
"This calls for a celebration!" Yzma announced.
"Anyone else in the mood for karaoke?" Wuya suggested.
"Can Miss Neopolitan even sing?" Snatcher wondered out loud.
"She likes to watch people make fools out of themselves at the microphone," Roman explained. "Though that'll be in short supply in this group."
"You don't hear yourself when you sing, do you?" Aghoul commented, prompting Neo to silently snicker; she knew full well how little talent Roman had in the singing department.
"I'm in a good mood," Mozenrath remarked. "Karaoke it is. Drinks are on me." He paused to think it over. "…Decaf only."