Hello, everyone! Welcome to my first ever Kingdom Hearts story! I'm not really all that good at writing, and since this is my first KH story, it's bound to be really horrible... I still hope you enjoy, though! Now, my disclaimer will be preformed by Akana and Leiko, the names given to my two personalities. Akana is all happy and hyper, and Leiko is... not...

:Disclaimer:

Akana: Welcome, all! We're really really super excited to bring you this story!
Leiko: Speak for yourself.
Akana: Anyway, we thought this would be a really nice change of pace. We usually write Inuyasha fanfics only, but we've had a pretty weird and maybe kind of cool idea for a KH story, so we decided to write it. Isn't that so cool?
Leiko: Not really. Especially since we don't even own anyone in the game. All characters used in this story are copyrighted to their respectful owners.
Akana: Y'mean... We don't even own the hot and sexy Riku?
Leiko: Nope. But we do own one character who is only shown in this story.
Akana: Really? Who?
Leiko: ... 'rolls eyes'

:End Disclaimer:

WARNING: SPOILERS
This story takes place right as the first Kingdom Hearts game for PS2 ends. If you haven't beaten the game, then you really shouldn't read this. Also, I haven't played KH2 or KH: Chain of Memories, so nothing from either of those games will be in here.

Chapter 1: The Beginning

.:Traverse Town:.

She stuck her sword in the ground and leaned on it to catch her breath. The rain beat hard against her back and soaked her from head to toe; of course, it was impossible to tell whether it was truly the rain or just sweat. She closed her eyes and grimaced, for a wound in her side was causing her much pain. I should be more careful! she scolded herself. Her eyes flew open again and she forced herself to stand straight. She looked around, surveying her enemies who were gathering around her in a tight circle. One was daring and jumped at her. It tasted steel and disappeared in wispy black smoke. The others hesitated before advancing again, more cautious now. The fourteen year old girl's face was set in grim determination as she watched them. Soon they would all pounce. She got ready.

It was only a minute later. She whirled around, the chains on her pants clinking and jingling as she did so. She held her sword high with one hand and shot a fireball out of the other. All the Shadows saw was a tornado of gleaming steel and raging fire. After that, their world went black.

Her shoulder-length black hair stuck to the back of her neck as she fought. Her red eyes shone with a rage that burned brighter than the fire she threw. She was only about four feet and ten inches tall, but she was lethal when given a cause. Her pants were plain and black, and her short-sleeved shirt was the same. She wore chains on her pants, as said before, but that was about all. Except for her sheaths and necklace, that is.

Her sheaths were on her back. They were crossed, and each was designed for their specific sword and could hold no other. The sheaths were one of a kind, though they didn't look it: plain, black, seemingly normal. They were only curved slightly. One of the swords that went in one of the sheaths was being waved around in the girl's right hand; the other was lying broken a few feet away. A Defender had caught her off guard earlier, and that was the result of it. The Defender had also given her that nasty wound in her side. She decided that she'd have to take the sword to Merlin to get it repaired.

Her necklace was the only thing she was wearing that was light. It wasn't just light, it was very light. It was a white pendant on a silver necklace, and it seemed to glow. It was a very special trinket, but only so to her. Anyone else would've considered it just a fine piece of jewelry that didn't seem to really belong on this tom-boy. They would've traded it in for a few hundred munny pieces and completely missed the sentimental value of it.

Of course, her thoughts weren't on any of this at the moment. They were on the fight at hand and on, specifically, surviving it.

Something odd chose that moment to happen. The girl was becoming overwhelmed, and she'd gained quite a few cuts and marks where the Shadows had broken through her defenses and had been able to get to her. They were breaking through more and more often now, and that was a problem. She was truly getting tired and weak; the Shadows knew this. So, of course, it was to her great surprise to find that they had suddenly stopped attacking her. They backed off in a jerky, slinky sort of way, then disappeared into the ground as they did when they were scared.

Scared of what? Of her?

She straightened a bit and watched with confusion as the last one disappeared into the darkness of the night. She looked up into the sky, wondering if it held any answers for her. She let the rain wash over her weary body and wished it were a nice hot bath in her home rather than a freezing cold shower many worlds away from it.

She had no idea of what was going on behind her. Had she known, she would've become scared and fled the area. Had she known, she would've remembered the scar that ran along her back that she'd gotten from this powerful Heartless. Had she known, she would've remembered how very close to death she'd come, and how the only thing that stopped this beast was when Leon stepped in and helped. Had she known, she also would've remembered that she'd encountered only one other of this type of Heartless in her life and that she'd run from it. Had she known, she would've remembered the assassin clearly in her mind, and she would've realized why the Shadows had run.

The Invisible is feared by all Heartless except, perhaps, the Angels. They are a ruthless breed that delights in killing anything, whether it be a human, an animal, or even another Heartless. They are merciless, a fact only made worse when coupled with their ability to turn invisible, as their name suggests. They know no fear and have a stubborn determination to kill their prey.

This one was no different. Silently, it flew in the air behind the girl. It waited in its invisible form until she finished staring at the sky. She dropped her head and continued looking around in bewilderment for any Heartless. The one behind her became visible again; even it couldn't stay invisible forever. The clouds blocked out the moonlight, and so the Invisible had no shadow to tell of its presence. It raised its sword high, and if you looked carefully into its black eyes, you could see the slightest gleam of excitement as it went in for the kill.

Lightening lit up the sky.

The girl stared with wide eyes at the shadow at her feet. She knew what it was: the shadow of an Invisible. Everything seemed to be in slow motion as she turned around. She saw the sword, glistening with a wicked light, coming down and had only just enough time to bring up her own sword in a block. She was surprised that her reflexes had told her to do this, and even more surprised that it was actually holding off the Heartless. The Invisible was strong, though, and she was forced to use both hands to hold her sword. One hand, her right, pushed against the handle, and the other's palm was pushed into the flat of the blade near the tip. The Invisible's sword connected to hers in the middle, and the girl felt hers start to crack. She knew that her trusted sword wouldn't be able to keep it up much longer. She knew this was it. She knew that she'd die there, in the Second District of Traverse Town, far far away from her home. She closed her eyes and prepared herself. She would accept her fate, even if it meant death.

Her blade gave way. She heard and felt it shatter and prepared for the pain she knew she'd feel momentarily, but nothing happened.

The pieces of her sword clattered to the ground. Slowly, timidly, she opened her eyes. She wondered why the Heartless had stopped its attack. She gasped and stepped backwards so fast that she fell. Its sword was inches from her face. However, she realized with confusion a moment later that it wasn't moving at all. It seemed to be completely frozen in time, and she wondered whether she had unknowingly cast a stop spell, but she ruled that out as impossible. She had yet to learn that spell from Merlin. Also, it didn't seem to be stopped. When a creature is stopped, it is consciously aware of the fact, and anyone can notice its struggles as it tries to break free from the spell.

Also, black smoke doesn't appear at the feet of anything that's been stopped.

The smoke was thin and wispy, just as it is when a Heartless is defeated. The smoke rose and engulfed the Invisible, then it disappeared in a bright flash of light. This is the part that was unusual. She'd never seen a Heartless die with light in its wake. They were demons of the shadows, and only darkness accompanied the death of one.

The girl got an odd urge to look up.

The pounding rain had become only a sprinkle, and the moon and stars shone through the dissipating clouds. She watched the sky, and her eyes followed a single shooting star as it flashed across. One turned to two, two to four, and soon there were many more illuminating the sky with their brilliance. The odd thing about these shooting stars was that they came from somewhere over the horizon and picked a place in the sky to stay and sparkle on. With growing excitement, the girl realized that she was watching the worlds get reborn, and her feet pounded against the ground as she ran for the Third District.

When she got there, she threw open the door to the small house where her friends lived only to find that it was empty and dark. The light hanging from the ceiling was off, and it swayed slightly from the breeze that blew in behind the girl. She felt an odd sort of emptiness in her, but pushed it away as she left and pulled the door shut. She turned and leapt off the edge of the level, not even bothering to use the stairs but still landing deftly on her feet. She ran to check the Alley. She knew that Leon or perhaps Kairi would be in the secret underground cavern, at least.

When she arrived there, however, she found no one. She looked around at the damp, dark, and now empty underground chamber. She used to love coming here, but only because it seemed warm and friendly with everyone here. Now they were gone, and they'd taken the life from the place with them. Gone was Leon with his silent presence; gone was Yuffie with her bubbling cheerfulness; gone was Aerith with her delightful company; gone was Kairi with her wonderful stories. This place now felt as lonely and empty as the house had. What's going on? Where is everyone? she wondered. She stiffly went up the stone stairs at the end opposite the alley, her footsteps echoing around the chamber. She was almost scared of what she'd find in Merlin's home.

She got to the top and looked at the floating platform. Even it seemed more desolate to her. She slowly climbed on and stood, almost losing her balance as it journeyed upwards. She closed her eyes as she let it take her up into the abandoned house that Merlin used. She waited for the light and the warmth of his one-room house to engulf her, but even when the platform stopped she didn't feel any kind of warmth. She only felt somehow colder.

She opened her eyes and almost cried out. Merlin was still there, but he was closing his magic, mystical bag. All of his things were gone. The walls were bare, and the furniture was all packed away. The room was empty save for the dank, dark, cold table which Merlin's bag was rested on. "W-What's going on?" the girl asked.

Merlin turned to her with weary eyes, wondering who his company was. He gave her a small, cheerful smile when he saw who it was. "Today is a happy occasion, Tara," he told her. "Sora defeated Ansem. The worlds have all returned to normal."

"Then, the others... They're at their home worlds?" Tara asked anxiously, wanting to make sure she knew exactly where her friends were. "And if all the worlds are back, then... That means that mine is, too, right?" Excitement showed clearly in her eyes at the thought of this. "I can go back home, right? I can see my family and my friends again, right?"

Merlin's smiled turned sad now. "It depends," he said, looking down at his bag and resting an old, worn hand on the handle. Tara eyed him with a look that asked "on what?", though she said nothing. "It depends," he continued, "on what you choose." He sucked in a deep breath and began. "The Heartless are gone for now, but not for good. Sora's friend, Riku, and King Mickey are deep inside the Heartless lair. It is Sora's mission to find and release them. When he gets close, the Heartless will become stronger and will come out to try again and kill the Key Blade Master. The Heartless will once again roam the worlds." He looked at her now, knowing that he had to tell her, even though he didn't want to.

"You, Tara, have a choice. You can either go back to your home where you can live with your family once more, or you can stay here and wait for the Heartless to come back. If you go, I will personally make sure the Heartless stay away from your world, and, in time, you will forget about everything that's happened since you left. You will see it all as a fleeting dream you had one night, as will everyone else. If you stay, however, tough times will be ahead, and it is possible that you will never again see your family or your home. The people of your world will even forget that you ever existed. I can guarantee only one thing, and that is this: you will not be alone." His smile wavered, for he did hate to see this child troubled in any way.

She stood there with her mouth agape. On her face she knew was a pained expression. How could she possibly choose? She knew it was selfish of her, but she couldn't help it. The only thing she ever truly wanted was to see her parents and her home again. She'd only been separated from them for a little more than two weeks, but it was torture just waiting that long. And besides, from what she'd heard, Sora could take care of himself, right? He had plenty of friends to help him along the way; what good could she do?

Somehow, though, she couldn't go back. She couldn't bear to face her parents again knowing that she'd returned to them because it was the easier choice. Even if she thought it was a dream, she would never be able to erase the guilt she'd feel. She knew she had only one choice, even if it would hurt her.

"I'll stay," she said determinedly. She put on a brave front, but the pain was evident in her eyes.

Merlin walked to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. She was dwarfed by him, but she didn't feel intimidated at all. "I'm so sorry, Tara," he whispered. "Just remember that you will not be alone. Always hold your family and friends close to your heart, and never forget them. When the Heartless come, I will return, and so will everyone else along with a few additions. You will even fight side by side with Sora."

Tara's eyes brightened. She'd never met Sora, but she'd heard the stories of him from Leon and Kairi. There had been few times when she'd gone looking for him on another world using a gummy ship Cid had made for her, but she'd always come back only to find that he'd just left Traverse Town. After a while of this world-hopping, she decided to wait for him to come back. He didn't, of course, for he was on his final mission then. Tara had always wanted to meet him, the Keyblade Master. Even this, though, couldn't erase her despair at the grim possibility that she'd never see her parents again.

"Take care," Merlin told her. He walked back over to his bag and grabbed it, then walked out the door and disappeared by some sort of ancient magic only he possessed.

"Take care," Tara repeated to the empty room. It seemed so cold in there at the moment that she didn't even realize she was crying.