Chapter 2
The Beginning of Another Adventure
Upon finding out who the mysterious boy really was, Molly and Libby silently tried to process what they just heard. The boy who had saved them from the Heartless just happened to be the same evil old man who caused trouble for them in their last journey. They knew that there was something suspicious about him, and now they understood why.
It wasn't long before Xehanort noticed the girls' fearful expressions. They both seemed normal a second ago, but now they seemed terrified of him all of a sudden.
"Uh, are you two okay?" Xehanort raised a confused eyebrow.
Once she found heard voice, Molly gave a nervous smile. "Uh, sure! Xehanort, can you please excuse us for just one minute?"
With that, Molly, Libby, and Chirithy huddled together so Xehanort wouldn't hear what they were saying.
"I don't like this! How is it that Xehanort was able to come back in a younger state?" Libby whispered.
"I don't know. He does seem to be as confused as we are with what is going on." Molly commented.
"That is what he does! He's only trying to trick you, like he had always done." Chirithy pointed out.
"Yeah, but why would he protect us from the Heartless?" Molly asked.
"You have a point, Molly. Maybe we should at least ask him how he got here." Libby suggested.
In response, Chirithy gave a sigh as they reluctantly agree. "I know I'm going to regret this."
With that, the group of friends brought their attention back to Xehanort.
"So, Xehanort! Can you please tell us how you ended up in Brighton?" Molly asked.
"I'm just as confused about this as you are. One moment I was back home, playing a game of chess with my best friend, Eraqus. The next, I found myself in this strange town." Xehanort recalled.
It was at this point when Libby started to think that this version of Xehanort was different from the evil old man who tormented her and Molly, but she wanted to ask one last question just in case.
"So, you don't have any sort of fascination with the darkness, do you?"
Instead of answering immediately, Xehanort had a look of hesitation on his face as he remained silent. He opened his mouth to answer, only for the sky to suddenly turn dark.
At that moment, Molly and the others looked up and were all shocked to see more Heartless falling from the sky. This time, so many Heartless surrounded them, Molly and Libby didn't think they could take them on, even with Xehanort's help.
"We have to get out of here!" Chirithy yelled.
"But, what about Brighton?" Molly asked, worried for her friends and family.
"I understand your concerns, Molly, but if we stay any longer, we will all get consumed by the darkness." Chirithy explained before summoning a portal.
"Wait, what about our loved ones here in Brighton! We can just leave them behind!" Libby yelled.
Soon, Chirithy started to panic as the Heartless got ready to attack. "There is no time to argue!"
It was at that point when Chirithy pushed Molly and Libby through the portal. The next thing they knew, Molly and Libby fell on the grass of a random world. Once she recovered, Molly looked over towards Libby, who was laying down right next to her.
"Libby, are you okay?" Molly asked before helping her girlfriend back up.
"I-I think so." Libby replied before looking behind her. "Hey, where did Xehanort go? He must have decided not to follow us through the portal."
"Well, with any luck, he might have escaped to a new world too. The good news is that we couldn't have ended up in a better world. Look where we are!" Chirithy pointed up.
The girls looked up to see that they were standing in front of a familiar tower.
"Hey, it's Yen Sid's tower!" Molly exclaimed.
"This is perfect! If we can ask him why the Heartless are back, we might be able to find a way to stop them! Let's go, Molly!" Libby said.
It was at that moment when Molly and Libby began their long climb of the tower. Throughout their seemingly endless climb, Molly and Libby silently wondered what happened to Brighton. Even though they were able to save Brighton during their last adventure, they got the feeling that their home is in much more danger this time. They thankfully didn't have to wait too much longer to ask questions since they were nearly at the top of the tower.
Soon, Molly and Libby opened the door to Yen Sid's room. Just like last time, they found the wise wizard, clothed in blue robes sitting behind his desk.
"Molly McGee and Libby Stein-Torres. I have been expecting you. It is good to see you again, and you as well, Chirithy!" Yen Sid said, sensing Charity's presence.
At that moment, Chirithy appeared in front of Yen Sid before bowing in respect. "It is an honor, Master Yen Sid."
"Master Yen Sid, we really need to tell you what has been happening lately." Libby explained.
"Yes, I am well aware of what has happened to Brighton, along with your encounter with the younger Xehanort. It would appear that the darkness has returned." Yen Sid noticed.
"Libby and I can fix this like last time, right? We can't just leave our friends and family behind like last time and-"
Before Molly could finish, Yen Sid raised up a hand, silencing her. "In time I will tell you everything, but first there is someone who I would like you to meet. He is an old apprentice of mine and should be here any moment."
The moment Yen Sid said that, the door to the room suddenly opened. Molly and Libby turned around and were surprised to be face to face with an anthropomorphic mouse. The mouse had two big round ears on his head and was garbed in red and yellow armor.
"Sorry I'm late, Master Yen Sid. I hope you don't mind that I brought Donald and Goofy along too." The mouse said before a duck in wizard's clothing and a tall dog in knight armor entered the room as well.
"Never mind, Mickey. I would like you to meet the two new keyblade wielders that I have been writing to you about." Yen Sid gestured towards Molly and Libby.
This left the mouse named, Mickey surprised. From all of the letters Yen Sid sent him recently, Mickey has heard of two girlfriends who had recently became keyblade wielders. They both traveled through various worlds and faced many challenges, but always stood by each others side no matter what. Mickey was touched from what he read in the letters and hoped to meet those keyblade wielders someday. He never would have guess that the day would be today.
Happy to finally meet them, Mickey decided to introduce himself as he held out his hand in a handshake. "Hiya! My name is Mickey Mouse! It's nice to finally meet you, Molly and Libby!"
"You know our names?" Molly asked as she and Libby shook Mickey's hand.
"That's right! Master Yen Sid told me about all of your adventures together in his letters. He said that you two have always been by each others side no matter what. You know, reading about you two kind of reminds me of me and Minnie." Mickey admitted with a slight blush.
"Well, it's nice to meet you too, Mickey." Molly smiled.
"By the way, who are you two?" Libby asked as she brought her attention to the duck and dog.
"I am Donald Duck, King Mickey's royal mage!" the duck introduced, raising his magic staff in the air.
This time, the dog stepped forward to introduce himself. "Name's Goofy! I'm the captain of the royal guard! No matter what danger His Majesty is in, he can always count on me to protect him."
"That is, if you are not sleeping on the job." Donald retorted.
Soon, Yen Sid cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. "Now that you have all been acquainted with one another, it is time to get to the matter at hand. As you are all aware, darkness has spread to countless worlds once more including Brighton."
"It is Xehanort who is causing all this trouble, isn't it? It can't be a coincidence that he showed up shortly after the Heartless arrived." Libby explained.
Yen Sid shook his head. "No. As strange as it sounds, Xehanort has nothing to do with this. It would appear that the one responsible for this is an evil witch known as Maleficent."
"Maleficent? I should have known that she would be behind this!" Mickey said, seeming to know who this Maleficent person was.
Almost afraid to ask, Molly spoke up, desperate to know what happened to her home. "Is Brighton in danger again? Libby and I can defeat the Heartless like last time and save our home."
"I'm afraid that this is much worse than what has occurred last time. It seems that Brighton has been completely consumed by the darkness." Yen Sid explained, much to the horror of Molly and Libby.
They couldn't believe what they were hearing. Brighton and everyone and everything that they had ever loved were now gone.
"No! It can't be true! What about Scratch, Darryl, my parents, and everyone else in Brighton!" Molly yelled.
"And what about my mom and my pet turtles? Are you saying that they are all gone forever?" Libby asked, tears in her eyes.
Before they could ask another question, Yen Sid raised a hand in an effort to calm them down. "Do not be alarmed. There is a way for you to restore everything in Brighton back to normal. Eliminate the darkness in other worlds like you had done in your previous journey, and defeat Maleficent. Only then, would you be able to return home. Once you return, everyone would forget about what had happened recently. It would be as if you never left."
Hearing this helped calm Molly and Libby down. This was a lot for them to take in though. On one hand, they were both relieved that they don't have to fret about worrying their families like last time, but on the other, they knew that they were in for another tough adventure.
As if reading their minds, Yen Sid said, "Molly. Libby. You're next journey will be much more perilous than your last, which is why you need to be prepared. Walk through this door, and you will meet three good fairies, who will provide you both with more suitable attires."
"Thank you, Master Yen Sid! Let's go, Molly!" Libby replied before taking Molly's hand and leading her to the door.
As Molly and Libby walked through the door, they took notice of the three fairies, like Yen Sid said. There was a fairy in a red dress named, Flora, a fairy in a green dress named, Fauna, and a fairy in a blue dress named, Merryweather. All three of them soon brought their attention to Molly and Libby before greeting them with friendly smiles.
"Oh, look, girls! It's the new keyblade wielders Master Yen Sid mentioned." Flora smiled as she and the rest of the fairies approached Molly and Libby.
"You two must be here for your new attires." Merryweather guessed.
Libby nodded. "Yes, ma'am! Molly and I are going on a journey together to stop the darkness and save our home."
"Do you have any clothes that would be good for our long journey?" Molly asked.
"Why certainly, dears! We understand how tough your journey is going to be, and we want to do everything we can to help!" Fauna assured.
It was at that moment when the good fairies decided to give Molly and Libby more proper adventuring attires for their journey, using their magic. However, this only led to the good fairies arguing with each other over which of their ideas was the best as they used their magic to constantly switch between Molly and Libby's clothes being either red, blue, or green colors. As the good fairies continued to argue with each other, Molly and Libby shared a couple of awkward glances with one another before Molly decided to speak up.
"Um, not that we don't appreciate all that you are doing for us, but do you think we should try something else other than those three designs?"
"Oh, very well! Come on, girls! Let's stop squabbling and try to focus this time." Flora suggested.
With that, all three fairies casted their spells at once, hitting Molly and Libby with a flash of light. Once they were finally able to see, Molly and Libby were surprised to find out that their clothes had changed completely.
Molly looked down to see that she was wearing yellow armor with a pink cross in the center with a bright-red colored coat draped over the armor, along with a pendent of a heart around her neck. Her usual purple skirt was replaced with a dark-pink skirt and she wore a pair of purple boots, instead of her normal red shoes.
Just like Molly, Libby wore armor with a cross in the center, this one being light green with a darker green cross. Libby also wore a pendant in the shape of a turtle and had on a coat over her armor, a pair of jeans, and a pair of boots, all of which were dark-green in color.
The girls soon started to blush as they admired how beautiful they were in their new attires.
"Libby, you look amazing!" Molly complimented. "You look like some kind of brave warrior!"
"Me? What about you? You look so beautiful in your new attire, Molly!" Libby complimented her girlfriend back.
The two girlfriends were so distracted with complimenting each other that they briefly forgot about their journey. Seeing Molly and Libby compliment each other like this caused the good fairies to smile in unison as they now started to see why Molly and Libby became girlfriends in the first place. Once they realized that they were getting off track, Molly and Libby both brought their attentions back to the fairies.
"Oh, we're sorry!" Molly apologized.
"That's quite alright, dears!" Flora assured.
"With the love that you have for each other, we are certain that you two will keep each other safe!" said Fauna.
"Good luck, and be careful on your journey." Merryweather urged Molly and Libby to be careful.
"We will! Thank you for everything!" Libby replied as she and Molly waved goodbye.
Once they were ready for their new adventure, Molly and Libby returned to Yen Sid's room. Here, Yen Sid took notice of them before motioning them towards the window he was standing in front of. Both, Molly and Libby stepped forward and were surprised to find a familiar ship flying out the window.
"Hey! It's Mollibby!" Molly exclaimed, happy to see the gummi ship again.
"Indeed. It is time for you to start your next journey, but before you do, there is something that I want to give you." Yen Sid explained before handing Molly a gem with the marking of a frog's foot on it.
Molly and Libby stared at the gem in confusion before Molly asked, "What is it?"
"That is a summon gem. Use it, and you shall summon someone from a world that has already been taken by the darkness."
Curious, Molly and Libby held the gem in their hands before raising it in the air, causing a bright light to fill the room. Once the light dimmed down, Molly and Libby were shocked to see that a familiar pink frog stood in front of them.
"Sprig!" Molly and Libby exclaimed in unison, happy to see their friend from Amphibia.
The frog turned towards the girls and smiled back. "Molly! Libby!" Sprig hopped forward and embraced Molly and Libby in a group hug. "It's so good to see you two again!"
"We're happy to see you too, Sprig!" Libby smiled.
"Yeah! It has been so long since we have last seen each other!" Molly realized.
Soon, Sprig's smile dropped as he looked around the room, confused. "So, where am I and how did I get here?"
As Sprig asked them that question, Molly and Libby suddenly remembered what happened to Amphibia. Neither of them knew how to explain that everything and everyone that Sprig ever loved was taken by the darkness.
"Uh, you see, Sprig, The Heartless are back and they kind of took over Amphibia." Libby said, not knowing how to put this delicately.
"But don't worry!" Molly chimed in. "Libby and I plan to save Amphibia from the darkness once more! You have nothing to worry about!"
At first, Sprig was worried about what would happen to Amphibia, along with his friends and family. All he knew was that Molly and Libby needed all the help they could get to stop the darkness. That was when, Sprig's fearful expression turn to a look of determination.
"If the Heartless are back, I really want to help you two out. I might not be that much of a fighter, but I'll help you in any way I can." Sprig promised.
"Thank you, Sprig! Libby and I appreciate the help!" Molly smiled before Sprig returned to his summon gem.
With Sprig now by their side, Molly and Libby felt a little more comfortable with their journey. They were about to enter the gummi ship before Mickey called out for them.
"Molly? Libby?"
"Yes, Mickey?" Molly and Libby asked as they turned to face Mickey.
"I know that you two haven't been on the best of terms with Xehanort when you first met him, but if you have encountered a younger version of him from the past, there might be a way to save his heart before it even becomes corrupted by the darkness." Mickey explained. "Maybe if you can find him and try to be his friend, he won't have to go down this dark path again."
After all that they went through in their previous journey, Xehanort was the last person Molly and Libby expected to be friends with. Even Molly, who usually loves to give others a second chance wasn't too comfortable about this, especially after how Xehanort once killed Libby.
"I can tell that you need time to think about it. I understand. But remember that there can be light in every heart if you search for it." Mickey explained.
"W-We'll think about it." Libby agreed, still not comfortable with being friends with Xehanort.
"What are you going to do now, Mickey?" Molly asked.
"I'll be leaving with Donald and Goofy to make sure the darkness doesn't spread to other worlds. Looks like this is where we say goodbye. I hope we get to see each other again real soon!" Mickey waved goodbye before he left with Donald and Goofy.
Once they were ready to leave, Molly and Libby brought their attention back to the gummi ship.
"Are you ready to go on another adventure, Libby?" Molly asked.
"As ready as I'll ever be, I suppose." Libby answered, still feeling a bit nervous about her new adventure.
With that, Molly and Libby entered the gummi ship. They pressed various buttons before the gummi ship activated and flew away. The girls didn't know what new worlds they would encounter this time, but were certain that they can get through anything as long as they have each other.