It was perhaps a half hour before sunset when I dismissed the fairies for the day. My body ached all over as I flew up to the small house that Queen Clarion had provided for Chise and I.

Tinker Bell and her friends were quick learners and pretty decent fighters. They came up with some rather impressive strategies that I made sure to take note of later on and had me on my toes when we had battle practice. I had only used my magic so they would have a better understanding of their strengths and weaknesses, but it had worn me out rather quickly with my shoulder still healing. Still, the practice had been good for me.

I landed on the porch and opened the door to find Chise on the bed, Fairy Mary tending to the injury on her wing. "How's it looking?" I asked, walking in and closing the door behind me.

Without looking away form her work, fairy Mary replied "Whatever magic you used on her, it's clearly working. she'll most likely be able to fly again on her own within the next few days."

"Then you can teach me how to fight the bad guys," Chise added in a cheery tone.

I silently laughed at her enthusiasm ; she always wanted to do her best. You see, she was born very sick and fragile, and had to spend the first 5 years of her life staying inside and having weekly trips to the hospital. It was on her 5th birthday when things had changed, and the memory of that day remains in my mind even now.

The night before, Chise had developed a terrible fever, but the roads had been blocked by a snowstorm, leaving my family and I unable to drive her to the hospital. Our mom had tried her best, but nothing had worked. The only thing we could do for her was keep her warm and hope she would seat off the fever.

It was close to midnight when a noise coming from Chise's room had woken me up. I went against my mom's orders and crept into my little sister's room across the hall from where my room was; What I had discovered was beyond belief.

A little girl -probably no older than Chise at the time- stood at my sister's bedside, a sad look on her face. she had curly blonde hair that draped over her shoulders and glowed even in the dim light offered by the full moon that came through the window. Her eyes were a gorgeous baby-blue, with not a speck of haze in them. But I knew right away that she was not of that world; she appeared transparent in the weak light and she wore a white sundress as though it were mid-summer.

She must have sensed my presence, for she looked at me with her solemn expression and said in a low voice "She's dying."

My attention instantly shifted to Chise; I had felt an invisible force clench my heart when I saw that her breaths were shallow and raspy, the time between each one growing in length. "I'll go get my mom and dad." I started to rush out the door.

"No," the ghost girl insisted sternly, stopping me in my tracks. "Nothing they try to do will make a difference."

I turned back to her. "But what can be done to help her?" I desperately asked. She was my baby sister and I wasn't about to lose her.

"Will you be willing to do whatever necessary to save her life?"

"I'll do anything if it means keeping her alive."

The girl nodded. "Alright. Come over here." She beckoned with her hand.

Reluctantly, I walked over to her and Chise's side. My sister's face was beginning to turn pale. "What do I need to do?"

The ghost looked at me. "You sure you're willing to do this?"

I clenched my hands into fists. "No matter the cost, I won't let my sister die."

"Very well. Then what you must first do is place your hand on her chest."

I didn't ask questions and did as I was told.

"Next, take my hand." She held out her transparent.

I blinked at her, very confused. How can I touch her if she doesn't have a solid form? I thought to myself.

She smiled. "Trust me."

Going against my better judgement, I reached out, and my heart raced when I felt her cold hand. It was like holding a bag of freezing ice, unable to put it down.

"Good; now close your eyes, and concentrate."

I took a deep breath, then closed my eyes. When nothing seemed to happen after several heartbeats, I opened my eyes, only to find that I was no longer standing in my sister's bedroom. I was instead standing on some sort of large platform of red, orange, yellow, blue, and indigo painted glass, kinda like what you might see at a church. Nothing but blackness was in the distance.

I looked down and saw that I was standing on a glass head portrait of me. It was the same around me, but of the rest of my family, a full-body portrait of Chise with her hands together in prayer and her eyes closed in the center of the circle of her family.

And there, curled up in a ball and rocking back and forth was the real Chise, Darkness surrounding her and seeming to creep onto her body.

"It's no use. No one is coming to save me. I should just give in and let the darkness take me in," Chise was saying to herself, her pine-green eyes blank.

This seemed to encourage the darkness around her and it began to further climb onto her.

My heart clenched and I rushed towards my sister. "Chise!" I cried.

"There's no point in me continuing to live; I'd only hold everyone back," she kept saying.

"Don't you dare say that!" I screamed.

Chise looked up at me with her blank eyes and expression, stopping in mid-rock.

When I finally reached her, I got to my knees and quickly wrapped my arms around her. "I won't let you die; you're too important to me to lose!"

Chise let out a gasp, just as a golden light suddenly surrounded us. I closed my eyes, blinded by the intensity, tears welling down my cheeks.

I was awakened by Chise several hours later, finding myself lying on her bedroom floor and a hallow feeling in my chest. From then on, Chise didn't recall that night in the strange world, and I had not discovered what I had done that saved her. But one thing was certain, whatever had happened, it had completely cured Chise of her illness and started her life anew.

"Oneesan?"

I blinked in surprise and looked to Chise, who was studying me curiously.

"Are you alright? You seemed like you were thinking hard about something."

I shook my head and smiled. "Don't worry about it, my little star. I promise you that I'm totally fine." I looked around to find that Fairy Mary had disappeared.

"She left while you were daydreaming," Chise explained.

"Oh, sorry, Chise. A lot is just on my mind," I apologized.

Chise got off the bed and hugged me. "I understand, Oneesan. You're worried that Mommy and Daddy and Arashi are still missing."

For the second time that day, I noticed something odd about what she said. "Chise; Why do you mention Mom, Dad and Arashi, but not Genji?"

Chise looked up at me and smiled. "Because Nii-san is safe," she simply stated.

My heart skipped a beat. "What?"

Chise nodded. "Yeah; it was Nii-san that saved me from those meanies and brought me here."

I took hold of her shoulders. "Why didn't you tell me this earlier?"

"I-I thought Queen Clarion told you. P-Please, Oneesan, you're scaring me."

I took in a breath of surprise and let go of her. "Sorry, Chise." I turned around and headed towards the door.

"Where are you going?" She asked me.

I looked over my shoulder and smiled. "I'll be back; I just need to give Queen Clarion a report on the training today." And ask her about Genji.

XXXXX

"I'm glad to hear that things went well today."

I bowed my head. "Things went smoothly with the girls. I think they'll have an easy time preparing the other fairies."

Queen Clarion nodded. "Good. If it's not too much trouble, I would like you to supervise them tomorrow and assist in any way you can."

"Of course, Your Highness. I'd be happy to." I looked down, the question I was meaning to ask her stuck in my throat.

She seemed to notice this and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Is there something wrong?"

I returned my eyes to her and shook my head. "No, Your Highness, it's just that, well, I have a question concerning the conditions of Chise's arrival."

"Oh, well, there's not much I can tell you, but you'll more than likely have better luck with Terence; He's the one that found your sister," she replied.

"Alright, thank you so much." I bowed respectfully, then left the chamber and headed down to the pool of Pixie Dust that the fairy Terence watched over. When I landed in the clearing, it only took a moment for me to find him distributing Pixie Dust to a Garden fairy. I waited patiently for the female fairy to leave, them walked up to Terence when she had bowed her head in thanks and took off. "Terence."

He turned around and smiled warmly. I had spoken with him earlier that day when Tink and the others needed to get Pixie Dust for training. Turns out that that's what gave them ability to fly, but when Terence had tired to sprinkle some on me, the necklace Ansem the Wise had given me began to glow a strong gold and outlined my body, completely deflecting the magic powder. It had baffled the others at first, but I quickly went into explaining that outside that world, I could fly without Pixie Dust, so it made sense that I didn't need it. I was worried that I had offended them when they hadn't responded at first, but they simply all smiled and joked how it would be much easier if they didn't have to constantly come get more Pixie Dust. But then again, Terence would be out of a job.

Terence reminded me greatly of my youngest brother, Arashi; They both have dishwater-blonde hair, a small yet agile body, and the sweetest smile and laugh. Though both of them cared deeply for their friends, the one thing that Arashi held over Terence was the ability to seclude himself. In other words, Terence was an open book, leaving his true feelings exposed for the whole world to see; especially his not-so-secret crush on Tinker Bell.

"You caught me just in time," he stated, dusting the excess Pixie Dust off his hands. "I was just about to head out for the night."

"I'll try not to keep you long," I replied. "I just wanted to ask you something."

"Okay. Shoot."

I suddenly felt uneasy and hesitated, just I had with Queen Clarion, not quite sure how to question him about Genji. But slowly, the words began to come out. "W-When you found Chise… was there a boy with her? Similar brown hair and green eyes, wearing dark clothes?"

Terence sighed. "Guess I will be held up." He sat on the ledge of the pool.

"You saw him!?" My hopes suddenly rose and my heart -as well as my wings- fluttered with excitement.

The male fairy nodded. "You figure out he's the reason the Heartless are here?"

I felt an ice pick pierce my chest at the words that had just left him. "What?" I said in hushed disbelief.

"I didn't see it at first, but when you arrived, it all became clear." Terence looked at me. "How do you know him?"

Once again, uneasiness clouded my mind. I couldn't tell him that the stranger was possibly my brother. Otherwise, the fairy would lose complete trust in me and most likely inform Queen Clarion. "I…I thought I knew him, but I guess I was wrong." It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the full truth. "Would it be too much for me to ask what happened?"

Terence shook his head. "Not at all, but you may want to sit down." He patted the spot next to him beside the pool. When I had settled, he continued. "I normally don't stray from my position here, but on the day your sister arrived, I had gone off to look for Tink… and Clank and Bobble," he quickly added, his face slightly red with embarrassment.

I laughed a little, but allowed him to continue.

"They've lately been going to that clearing near the beach to find parts for their inventions, and I've always seen them carrying a bunch of things. So I decided to head out and help them out. But when I got there, they had already left… As I doubled back, I heard something strange below me in a clump of sage. When I landed to investigate, there was this strange black blob. I started to approach it, but then I began to see someone coming out of it, so I hid. That's when… he appeared; He just stepped out of that thing as though it were some sort of door, Chise unconscious in his arms. All of the sudden he looked directly at my hiding spot and called out to me, saying he knew I was there… I was hesitant at first, but eventually revealed myself to him. Something about him didn't seem right; I mean, along the fact that he wore this black coat-"

"Black coat?" I interrupted. Maybe it wasn't him after all, and just an Organization XIII member. But then, why would they have Chise and bring her here of all places?

"Yeah, but there was something else that didn't feel right. I could feel this weird negative energy coming off of him, making the hair on the back of my neck creep. But he just held this neutral gaze the entire time, as if there was amount of emotion within in. He held Chise out and told me to take good care of her. I didn't know what to do, so for a while I just looked down at her. He obviously wasn't going to take no for an answer, because he groaned and shoved Chise into my arms, then turned around without another word and went back inside the doorway. I was still trying to process the whole event… when those Heartless things started to creep out of the portal thing. My senses immediately told me to run, and that's just what I did. Thankfully they didn't follow us, and when I returned here, I brought her to Fairy Mary and Queen Clarion. Chise was comatosed for about a day and a half, but when she woke up, she became isolated, often crying out several names in her sleep… including yours."

My heart wrenched at the information and for a while I said nothing. Why would the Organization have Chise, only to bring her here? Did they hold my other loved ones captive? And if that really was Genji, what's he doing with a group like Organization XIII? "Do… do you remember the other names… that she had said?" I eventually managed to ask.

Terence put his hand to his chin in thought. "She would cry out 'Mother' and 'Father,' but the other two were kind of confusing," he answered.

"Was it 'Arashi' and 'Genji'? I offered.

"That's it, although she call out 'Genji' almost as much as yours. Who are they?"

"Arashi and Genji are me and Chise's brothers. Chise holds a real close bond with Genji, so I'm not surprised she called out for him." But it looks like that mysterious figure was Genji. So then, why is he working with the Organization!?

XXXXX

Listen to this for the song Hikari sings watch?v=wvsvzy8E1K4&list=UUw0bBEbwF0nTU3wEhAmfl3Q

"Will you sing me that song, oneesan?"

I smiled at the request as I tucked my baby sister in. "Of course, Chise." I sat on the edge of her bed, then cleared my throat and started to sing the melody our late grandmother had taught me.

See all the stars in the sky,
You are not alone.
For every star there is
You'll find someone's home,
You'll find someone's home.

And how true that song was, though it took having my family captured by the Heartless, my world swallowed by Darkness, and me to gain a magic weapon and angel wings to figure that out. Irony wasn't the word I was looking for, but there was some term that seemed to fit this predicament perfectly.

I looked at my sister and saw she was fast asleep, her face like that of a cherub. Once again, my heart wrenched in agony. Why did someone as innocent as her have to get involved in something such as this? I couldn't help but feel that it was my fault; My gift had brought the Heartless to my home, and I couldn't do a thing to protect those I loved. My body began to tremble as I was overcome with deep despair. I put my face in my cupped hands and sobbed pitifully. I was the cause of so much pain without knowing of it; Realization of this only caused me to cry more, but I left the small cottage before I could wake up Chise. On the porch, I sat there with my knees to my chest and my tears soaking my dress.

"It's my fault. It's all my fault," I cried.

"Please, don't think that, Hikari," Master Aqua tried to reassure. "None of this is your fault and don't you dare think otherwise."

I saw a golden light appear just below my eyesight, telling me that my necklace was reacting. I looked up and wiped away my tears as a transparent vision of Master Aqua appeared before me.

I had thought it before, but the light of the full Moon only furthered my belief of how beautiful Master Aqua was. She had a wonderful figure, silky blue hair, a warm and comforting smile that could melt even the most frozen heart, and those mesmerizing blue eyes that resembled beautiful sapphires, my favorite jewel.

"You must never give up on yourself, Hikari," she stated. She surprised me further when she kneeled down and wrapped her arms around my neck. Though she wasn't physically there, I could feel the faintest touch, and that in itself was comforting enough. "You have done so much good for those you have met. You have a gift; a gift that lets you touch people's hearts in ways no one else can. Do you know that?"

I simply nodded, the tears returning.

"Just promise me you won't give up on yourself?" Master Aqua asked me, stroking my hair.

I sniffled, then managed a weak "Yes."

"That's all I ask," my master replied, then slowly faded away.

I touched my necklace and smiled. "Thank you, Master Aqua."

XXXXX

The next morning, I was supervising the fairies' training. The Water and Light fairies were practicing techniques with controlling the water and sunlight, the Fast-flying fairies trying to increase their speeds by circling the Pixie Dust tree, the Garden fairies viewing over several types of plants that would be effective in battle, the Animal fairies speaking with several animals on how to protect themselves, and Tinker fairies creating several contraptions to protect their home. From time to time, some of them would call me over to help them with a technique or get a second opinion on something they had built.

The events of the previous night were behind me, my promise to Master Aqua holding firm. It was a new day, opening my eyes to the reality of things; nothing I could have done when Darkness invaded my world and the Heartless took those I held dear to me would have prevented any of it. In a sense, I was glad I had been given this chance, otherwise I never would have met Ansem the Wise, the gang at Radiant Garden, Master Aqua, the King, and Master Yen Sid.

I was overjoyed when Chise joined me around noon to learn some basics in self-defense, but not as much as she was. She had always tried to prove she wasn't as weak as she appeared, for which I couldn't help but smile at. That night when she was near death had forever changed her, sparking something inside her that I would never truly understand.

Her wing was still in the process of healing, so I only gave her lessons that she could practice on her own without having to hurt herself. It was difficult to hide the fact that I was hiding much more knowledge that she could use, but where I was going to take her once that mess was all over, hopefully she wouldn't have a need to use them.

Close to around sunset, I left Chise with Fairy Mary to check on the location where Terence had met Genji. I could sense the Darkness getting stronger the closer I got to my destination.

"Best be on your guard," Master Aqua warned me. "We don't know what you might find once you get there."

"I will," I promised, then descended to the earth when I could see the clump of sage Terence had told me of. What I found perhaps created permanent goosebumps all over my body.

Within a ten yard radius (fairy-wise,) all of the greenery had been sapped dry, leaving a completely dead clearing. There wasn't a single living thing; the animals seemed to have steered far clear of that place, and I couldn't blame them. I could feel my necklace shifting in balance, for it felt cold against my chest.

I wrapped my arms around my body, shivering. "How could this have happened?" The sun that shined down offered little warmth, but it did cause something to catch my attention. On the ground, something shimmered dimly, and when I got to my knees and brushed away the dirt on top of it, my heart dropped down to my stomach.

"What is that?" Master Aqua inquired.

My eyes filled with tears as I picked up the small, silver hoop earring. I looked on the inner part of it and found the familiar carved-in initials 'GJH.' "Chise was right, Master Aqua. Genji was the one that brought her here… as well as the Heartless."