In which Snow White is told a tale at the Mysterious Tower.
The word 'fantasy' appeared to be the word most recurring for this new world Snow White found herself in; or rather, an abundance of worlds, from what little she had the opportunity to gather before she had been thrown back into another battle. After her agreement to go with King Mickey and the others in order to learn more about this enigmatic Xehanort individual, the scenery of the fairy-tale esc castle she had visited shifted to one of another tale instead. Her white boots landed gently on a plain of green grass, her gold eyes observing the scenery that surrounded her now.
Where she stood didn't seem to go on for very long, with it being less of a plain and more of a patch of land, with nothing but a void of gold with the same promises as twilight stretching out for eternity down below them. She couldn't tell where you'd end up if you fell down there, but she wasn't in much of a rush to try and find that out. Indeed, it would appear that this bit of land existed here for only one purpose, and that was to facilitate the lanky tower that shot high above the group as they arrived, a sight that seemed decidedly familiar to Mickey, Donald and Goofy, though the redheaded Lea didn't seem as such. He seemed to glance at her, as if wondering what she would say about the sight of the tower of beige stone and its peculiar green pointed tops; all except one, which looked far more like a wizard's hat than a regular peak. Yet, Snow White said next to nothing, and Lea sighed a little to himself, as if having already figured out she wasn't the chatty type.
Maybe if she'd had a mission like this years ago, before the Raising Project and before everything changed irreversibly, she might have had more to say, even some wide-eyed wonder. But for now, she just couldn't find herself offering anything like that, even if she felt some deep down.
"You don't talk much, do ya, Snow?" Lea remarked.
"If I don't need to, no." Snow White answered, keeping up with Mickey's slow yet steady pace.
"So, before we go in there..." Goofy spoke up, coming to a stop, scratching his head slightly. "Gawrsh, I'm just realisin' we never asked what it was that brought'cha here!"
"Goofy! Don't you remember what the Queen told you?" Donald rebutted, shaking his staff at him scoldingly.
"It's fine." Snow White assured, bluntly.
"Minnie said that you had been lookin' for me, right...?" Mickey asked, and he was met with a nod. "And I know that you're from the Magical Kingdom-"
That wasn't a statement Snow White liked, even if she could see how he would make that assumption. "Not quite."
Upon spotting the subtle shift in her otherwise neutral expression, Mickey's expression faltered, as he corrected himself. "Oh, right...! Sorry, that one just kinda slipped out..."
She shook her head as they reached a set of double doors, which Mickey pushed open. "Don't worry about it."
Unsurprisingly, the inside of the mysterious tower was not larger than what was presented to those who looked upon it from the outside. The room was decidedly circular, and there was only one other thing in the empty chamber, a spiral staircase, circling up like a snake along the walls, and together their party of five (technically six, given Jiminy had stuck with them, and sat in Snow White's pocket) made their way up until they came across a wooden door, awaiting someone to open it.
Once again, Mickey took the lead. As he opened the door, the image of an office revealed itself to them, one mystical enough that Snow White wouldn't have been surprised if she saw a similar one being used by another Magical Girl. There were three windows - two were stars, and surrounded the third of the moon. Not far from the window was a desk and tall seat, which itself was fairly empty, with only an open book around the centre and a white, waxy candle positioned at the upper corner populating it. Seated before them now was the one Snow White presumed to be Yen Sid, and...she would admit, he was certainly the very image of a classic wizard. He had a long beard of grey, and wore dark blue robes which reached the floor, as well as a pointed hat like that which was on the roof of his tower, and bore an expression of perpetual severity, albeit of a more stoic sort.
"Mickey, I see you have returned - and not alone." Yen Sid spoke at last, watching as they entered one by one. It was upon seeing Lea however that his eyes narrowed ever slightly, before easing somewhat, and she couldn't help but guess from that and the reactions of everyone else that this was not the first time they had dealt with Lea...or Axel, as they had previously referred to him.
"We managed to get rid of Maleficent, Minnie and the others weren't hurt." the mouse king explained, only to look towards where Snow White stood, a small yet still notable distance from the rest of them, with Lea standing not far off from herself. "But...we mighta' been in big trouble, if it hadn't been for these two."
"If I recall...you are the one known as Axel, originally a member of Organisation XIII," Yen Sid stated. "But I might also recall that you did ultimately come to the aid of Sora and the others, and that was what led to the end of you,"
"Pretty much, though it's not Axel anymore." Lea answered, his tone lax. "It's Lea - got it memorised? Anyway, I...woke up in Radiant Garden, with some of the others - we're...people again, to put it that way." he said - though at the latter part, there was a flicker of something else in his expression.
'With the others...except for Isa...' Lea's thoughts voiced to her, in a tone of uncertainty that he didn't seem the type to let slip out in front of them. She gazed at him silently for a moment - wondering just who this 'Isa' was, though she had an inkling he must have at least been important to Lea, if no one else.
"Actually...there was a little something I wanted to ask." the redhead started.
"...Proceed,"
For a moment, it felt as though you could hear a pin drop. And then...
"WHAT!?" Mickey, Donald and Goofy cried in shared shock.
"Absolutely not!" Donald protested.
"Well...why not?" Snow White interjected. "If he's helped you before, and can fight even without one of these...Keyblades you've talked about, then what's wrong with him learning to use one?"
Lea glanced at her, trying to mask the surprise he felt upon hearing her previously stoic self back him up. Yen Sid's head hung as he thought, his eyes closed, before looking at the man with the flame-coloured hair once again. "I see no reason as to why I should reject your request. It is true that you ultimately aided us in a time of great need, now on more occasions than one."
"So that settles it? That aside...it wasn't just me back there at the castle. Snow over here did a pretty good job of stealing the show too actually," Lea gestured to her, grinning a little, as if silently thanking her.
Upon turning his attention to Snow White, Yen Sid offered a sagely nod. "I see. It has been some time since I have met with an agent of the Magical Kingdom so directly. We have much to discuss,"
"Yes." the Magical Girl confirmed. "How exactly do you know of them? The Magical Kingdom?" she wondered.
"It...is a detailed matter. But given you were chosen specifically, and you are tangled quite thoroughly into our affairs as a result...I will share with you the connection between this universe and the one from which you came." Yen Sid told them. "It survives only as a story in this age, and one known by very few. A Master of the Keyblade, who lived in the Age of Fairytales, when light reigned over all and darkness was a fleeting nightmare, knew the one who the Magical Kingdom would dub as the First Sage, as well as their trio of disciples. When darkness overtook that age...the connection that bound our two worlds was lost, and then found, albeit in limited number."
Mulling over the words that had been shared with her, the girl in white was quiet; crazy to some it might have sounded, but the magic she had seen during her time as a Magical Girl and the countless instances she had encountered made it feel far more plausible...and it lent an explanation as to just how they were able to transfer her to this world so easily, if they held a connection to it all along. Though...one they seemed to hope to keep as under wraps as they could manage.
As the thoughts still turned and turned like a wheel in her mind, she responded, "I'm guessing that means you've also been in contact with them recently,"
"As of late...yes." the wizard confirmed. "I have reason to suspect those who gave you this assignment have not fully informed you of their suspicions as to who's involved."
"The Magical Kingdom aren't talkative." Snow White said, her tone possessing a cold derisiveness, albeit a temporary one. For what it was worth, she could appreciate the fact that Yen Sid didn't appear to be withholding anything, with not a trace of contrast to what he expressed outwardly to be found in his thoughts. "Are you thinking that the person you seek to deal with is the same one responsible for the theft of Mana?"
"I am." Yen Sid confirmed. "Pertaining to the circumstances surrounding Maleficent...I find the timing of it all to be too calculated, too perfect. I believe Maleficent has sensed a change in the forces of darkness - a change...like Xehanort. What Mickey and those around you were gathered here for was a Mark of Mastery test, an exam performed for Keyblade wielders in order for them to become Masters. I sense the return of a threat to the worlds, one known as Master Xehanort, and thus, Sora and Riku, whom have helped protect these worlds on numerous occasions, seek to perform the Mark of Mastery in order to be as prepared for the dark tidings ahead as possible. Nonetheless...I intend on offering Mana of my own to the Magical Kingdom, so as to avoid crisis there, in case of a change of fortunes."
"Thank you," she said, her expression difficult to read. "I'll stay here. People such as Xehanort and Maleficent...I can't tolerate them."
Make no mistake, Snow White had little interest in following up on grudges held by the Magical Kingdom, those that had little to do with her; but her opinion of Maleficent had been set into stone, and if Xehanort was the type to work with her, or worse, even be the mastermind behind her deeds one way or another, then she had little intention of walking away without doing something to deal with him. And that was without the other considerations - namely that while Snow White trusted herself for a mission like this, of going into the unknown...but she didn't trust the 'higher-ups', who could send someone wet behind the ears and as wide-eyed as she had once been into something they weren't prepared for. She wasn't willing to do that, to sacrifice someone else for her own convenience.
Her words seemed to please the aged wizard, for his expression seemed to soften ever so slightly, even if he didn't quite smile. "I see. We are grateful for your aid, Snow White. However...there is something else that I believe must be voiced, namely that...something has struck me as amiss right from the beginning of the Mark of Mastery. Xehanort has likely known from the beginning what we were attempting before we even began."
"But...you do know where Sora and Riku are, right?" Donald piped up, his voice less assertive now.
"And are they safe right now...?"
"Sora and Riku are of exceptionally high ability; and thus, I would like to believe they are...but my attempts to locate them end...questionably. There is little we can do that he would not, at least in some part, be able to predict."
Silence.
"...Do you think Xehanort would be able to predict me?"
All the others' heads snapped to look at Snow White, with Donald and Goofy in particular looking at her as if she had asked the world's most insane question, their eyes wide as saucers. Mickey's brow slanted in uncertainty, and even Lea's eyebrows raised, yet his smile seemed almost impressed by her bold words. Despite his best efforts to maintain the calm demeanour he had upheld since she had first laid eyes on him, Yen Sid's expression appeared shaken by her question, clearly having expected anything but that particular reply.
'Is she crazy!?' Donald's thoughts expressed, though she wouldn't deny the tinge of worry she could hear at the tips of his words.
'Gawrsh...maybe he wouldn't, but would it be safe for Snow White to do that?' Goofy's thoughts questioned.
'I know she can fight, and that the Magical Kingdom wouldn't have just sent anyone to do a job like this, but...aw, gosh, I don't know...!' Mickey's thoughts lamented in concern.
"There would be great risk, were I to involve you in the trial Sora and Riku undertake now." Yen Sid stated, not answering her words directly just yet. "It is within the Realm of Dreams, and involve a different threat from the Heartless summoned against you in Disney Castle. And that is without the likelihood of any interference on Xehanort's part,"
"Even so...if it is my best chance at stopping Xehanort, then I don't want to lose it, especially if he doesn't know of my presence here yet." Snow White countered. "And if Magical Girls haven't been much here...then he might not know what to expect with us,"
"I think Snow's got a point, actually," Lea chimed in.
"You would!" Donald barked, pointing a feathered finger at him.
Pushing himself off against the wall, Lea continued, "Still, she does. Say even if Xehanort does happen to know about Magical Girls already. He still shouldn't be able to know who Snow is right away, never mind stuff like whatever her special powers are. If she can handle a situation like Sora or Riku could, I don't see why it's a bad thing to think about,"
At that, Snow White couldn't help but glance at him again, her previous neutrality broken, her mouth forming a small 'o' now. Something about the way he acted, and backed her up...it reminded her a little of another friend of hers, just as fiery in nature as Lea was visibly.
Upon hearing Lea's defence of her suggestion, the blue-clad wizard thought, stroking his beard silently. Mickey turned to her from where he stood, his expression still obviously unsure about the idea. "Gosh, Snow White...are you really sure about this? You have no idea what might be waitin' if you go there,"
She could only give a small shrug. "I didn't know what was waiting much when I got given my assignment, so that won't be changing much. At worst, I'll have to come back as is and things will continue the way they are now. But that'll still happen if I don't, and the longer we wait the more likely Xehanort will catch onto the fact I'm here." she explained. "If not...then I could help Sora and Riku in passing this Mark of Mastery, and ensure they return here safely."
Donald and Goofy looked at each other, anxiety over the two friends they were missing still present and stark on their faces. "I suppose Sora and Riku having someone else there to keep 'em right wouldn't be that bad..."
"Right! Especially cause Sora usually has us...and Riku's had the King too!" Goofy added, brightening somewhat.
"It is indeed the only move we could make that Xehanort may be unable to completely plan for...and if you are volunteering to do so..." Yen Sid verified, slowly. "Then I suppose that it would be foolish to not take advantage of the opportunity, especially since we both face the same enemy, one way or another. Very well. Lea...your training will soon begin. I have someone in mind and a place that could service your request quite effectively. Snow White...I can transport you just as I have Sora and Riku, as long as the risks are ones you are willing to accept."
"Sounds great - besides, if anything goes sideways..." the black-coated male said, resting one of his chakrams over his shoulders again. "I always have these,"
"I am," the golden-eyed Magical Girl responded, lacking in hesitation.
"In that case...we should make no further delay." Yen Sid said.
"Good luck, Lea...and be safe, Snow White." Mickey spoke up, offering the pair a smile.
"Thanks,"
"Thank you,"
Their voices ended up, intentionally or not, sparking up in unison. Silently, the former Organisation member and the Magical Girl Hunter looked at one another.
"Ready to jump in, Snow?"
"Of course."
"...Thanks for backing me up. You might not say a lot, but you're not half-bad."
"...You too."
A/N: One month later...ah, well, I suppose it's not the worst schedule slip I've had. Things are beginning to get moving for Snow White's side of things, so I hope y'all enjoy that little surprise, along with the reveal from Yen Sid! On my end, I've finally completed all of my assessments, I'm just waiting for marks/feedback, though some are taking longer than I'd like, but hopefully that changes soon enough. Aside from that...well, uh...Heartstopper's consumed my entire soul? I've been watching it a lot lately and reading the comic and I'm in love with it, and it's kinda gotten my creative spark back, so hooray! Not really much else to say, except that I hope y'all enjoyed reading this chapter despite it being a bit shorter than my usual.
Time for reviews, namely Keijou Hikari's! Going off my guess, I'm not really sure what Keijou means, though I do know that Hikari means light? And yeah, Traverse Town's 2nd visit is pretty short, but I thought it'd be good to keep it in both as a bridge between the first and second halves of the game's worlds, and also because it allows someone else (i.e. Joshua) to see the rate of Nemurin's physical state getting worse and all that. I'm glad at least I got KH3D Joshua's personality right! That's as much as I was hoping for. Symphony of Sorcery is definitely a world I'm really looking forward to for a variety of reasons! Especially because it's my favourite world from the original game, I love the setpieces and the music, and just how they translated the world of Fantasia into KH. I hope you enjoy your summer classes, and that you do well! And if not I still believe in you and hope you enjoy your summer. ^^ Thanks as always for your support!
Lastly, as always, thanks to everyone for reading, and I'll see you when we finish up Traverse Town on Sora and Nemurin's half!