The Deal

"Is she that important to you?"

"Yeah. More than anything."

He had answered without even a pause. No thought, just action.

"Show me how important."

The request hung in the cold air of the dying day; long and heavy. Longer and heavier still, due to the fatigue that coursed through Sora's body. Through everything that had happened today – the world hidden in the computer, the revelations about their old enemy "Ansem", the onslaught of Heartless, more and more encounters and battles with the sinister and wicked Organization XIII – the young and heroic bearer of the Keyblade, as well as his companions Goofy of the Disney Royal Knights and the Disney Court Magician Donald Duck, were at their limit, both physically and mentally. Now, facing the imposing, scarred Saix – Number VII of the Organization XIII – they most certainly didn't have the strength left to face him; at least, face him and win with a comfortable margin. And now, even more to weigh down on their weary hearts and bodies. Was it just a request, or more? A taunt? A treatise? A way out of another inevitable fight? He didn't know, but he wanted to believe it was more, that showing him would lead to something.

Swallowing his pride, and to the audible shock of his companions, Sora slowly fell to his hands and knees, face down in the dirt, prostrating himself shamelessly to his enemy.

"Please." Sora begged. It was loud and audible, but he felt like he was choking on his own breath. It was hard to get out, and not because he was humiliating himself. "Please, take me to her. Let her go. I'll do anything, just for that."

Saix glared down at the boy with fierce and corrupt golden eyes, a smirk slowly oozing across his face. "Would you exchange your freedom for her own?" Came his abrupt reply, causing Sora to rise – still on his knees – and look hopefully at the enemy. "We will give her her release, and in exchange you will become our captive and assist in slaying Heartless and forging Kingdom Hearts. Do we have a deal?"

Another heavy, leaden statement by the scarred man, but once more, Sora had no time for thought. Just action. Heck, just one year ago, on this very world of Hollow Bastion, he had given up his life for hers, plunging a Keyblade into his heart to free hers. He would be gone for good if it weren't for her, too. She had pull him out from the darkness. Sora would gladly do it again. Easy choice.

For Kairi.

"I'll do it." Came the response, causing Saix's smirk to grow all the wider. Sora rose back to a standing base. "Promise to let Kairi go, and I'll do it." Saix smirk had grown to the point that pointed canines were visible.

"You have my word." Saix said, offering a gloved hand to the boy.

Within that moment, Sora hesitated. He saw the gravity of his decision laid out before him in that hand and Saix's predatory grin. If he agreed, that was most likely the end of it. There was no one else left to oppose the Organization, and he would become complicit in their plot, which would lead to... Well, he wasn't entirely sure what the end result of the Nobodies crafting a false Kingdom Hearts would be. Most likely something bad.

But, this was Kairi. Kairi, the sweet and cheerful girl who always stuck by his side, from the day they met. The one who always tagged along with him and Riku one whatever harebrained scheme they could conjure and stood by them when they were dismayed or injured after said scheme blew up in their face. The girl who showed up out of the blue from a distant star, further spurring the curiosity of the two boys on the topic of a greater world beyond their islands and oceans. Intelligent, athletic, kind, gracious, pretty; she was... Kairi. She was Kairi, and she was his world.

I meant it. I really did. You're the most important thing in my life. I love you, Kairi.

"Deal."

Sora reached out and shook hands with the devil.

"Sora don't do this!" Goofy pleaded to his longtime companion. "There's another way to rescue her!" Donald likewise broke his silence.

"We're not gonna let him take you. Deal or not!" The feathered mage brought out his staff, signaling Goofy to arm himself with his shield, and the two of them charged forward, leaping into the air ready to strike Saix.

"This matter no longer concerns you!" For a brief moment, Saix's face turned into something feral and bestial. Thick cords of knotted muscles and tendons contorting his face into that of a savage monster, adding to his narrow slit pupils and bared fangs. With an outstretch arm, a blast of wind launched forth, picking up the airborne knight and mage and sending them hurtling backwards and into the open maw of a corridor of darkness, which promptly shut and swallowed them whole.

The whole turn of events happened so fast that Sora couldn't react quick enough with his weary body. "Donald! Goofy!" He turned back to Saix, hopeful submission replaced by indignant anger. "Hey, why did you do that!? They aren't a part of this!"

"Exactly." Saix replied coldly, his face and demeanor having returned to their normal stony stoic state. The change was so fast it was unsettling. "They were not a part of this, as such, they had no place here." The scarred Nobody roughly placed a hand on Sora's shoulder, gripping it with iron hard fingers. Another corridor of darkness sprung up behind the two. "Now, will you come long like a good little hostage, or... will you selfishly leave Kairi at our mercy?"

"I'll give up anything for her. I'll keep my promise." Sora replied, glaring venomously at Saix. "But I also promise that I'll get even with you for this. That this isn't the end."

"Whatever you say." Saix returned, disinterested and clearly thinking nothing of the threat. The inky black portal behind them grew even larger, large enough for it's frame to tower over both of them, before it closed down and covered the two in blackness, whisking them away to parts unknown.

-O-SWLTW-O-

Kairi sighed for what must had been the hundredth time in the hour. Of course, when trapped in a sparsely furnished jail cell, your only real options to while away the time were to sit and wait or pace about the tiny cell, and she felt that she needed to conserve her energy and eliminate unnecessary movement, regardless of her degrading patience.

I really messed up this time. She was captive, stuck in a passive role, waiting to be saved once again, and all that came about because she was trying to avoid being that again. Being the damsel. She had left the safety of her home, blindly charging into the unknown, for the sole purpose of trying to find her friends, Sora and Riku. Why she had left... well, in hindsight, it seemed rather foolish of her. She couldn't fight in any capacity, she doubt she'd be anything but a distraction and a burden, but she also didn't want to be stuck on the island that they all called home. Maybe all she wanted was just to see them again, tell them she was safe, make sure that they were safe. It wasn't much but it was better than waiting and praying and hoping and doing nothing and being useless all over again. Like last year when all this started. She never wanted to be useless again.

And you're doing a great job of that, genius. Now, she was worse than useless. She was in the clutches of the enemy, serving as leverage against her friends. Even though her guards had assured her that she would be kept safe and humanely – bed, toiletries, three meals a day – she didn't hold her breath. The moment that Sora stormed the Organization's castle, she would trotted out with a gun to her head, and then it would be over, all because of her. They were gonna lose because of her.

Idly thinking of her captors and the guards caused her to look up, through the bars of her cell. The castle was still and quiet, eerily so, and the only thing in her vision were the ceilings, floors, and walls of the castle, all made of the same cold, bright, white metal. Normally her three guards would rotate between themselves every few hours, each keeping an eye on her in turn, but she hadn't seen any of them all day. Come to think of it, there had been some sort of commotion earlier on, muffled voices, heavy, booted footfalls echoing across the halls, even hearing the lesser Nobodies, the Dusks and Creepers, slithering and sliding in their unnatural gait. But for the past few hours, nothing.

Of her three guards – apparently the low-ranking members of Organization XIII, she had yet to see the top three – they all had different approaches to handling her. The mullet and flattop wearing youth, Demyx, was probably the most personal of the three. Very chatty, mostly small talk, mostly about himself, though he would occasionally ask her questions too, every now and then. He would also bring along his sitar and play a handful of songs in between lulls in conversation, which was rather enjoyable. He was a skilled player and had a good enough singing voice.

Luxord, the blond man with the goatee, wasn't too terrible a guard either. While he was distant and impersonal compared to Demyx, he still treated her well enough. His verbose and obtuse vocabulary was rather obnoxious, but Kairi was a good student, so she understood ninety-nine percent of what he said. Most of the time though, he kept to himself and would invite along several of his lesser Nobodies and the group of them would play card games through the bars of her cell. Luxord always won, but it wasn't sighing or pacing, so Kairi felt it a good way to pass the time.

The final guard, was far and away the worse of the lot. Saix, the towering and scarred Nobody who had taken her away from her first captor, the renegade Nobody Axel (remembering that she had been kidnapped by two different parties in the span of less than an hour caused her to curse her uselessness once again). Saix said and did nothing, other than to tell her to shut up if she made a noise, or to glare at her from across the room with an unerring, hateful gaze. Everything about him caused Kairi's skin to crawl in fear and revulsion.

Footfalls began to echo off of the walls of the hallway outside the cell, breaking Kairi from her recollection, as well as her day of solitude and near perfect silence. Furthermore, as the footfalls grew louder, Kairi was surprised to see the disturbance was not one of her three regular guards, but a different Nobody all together. This one a slightly older man with long black hair, streaked with grey, pulled into a ponytail. Several scars covered his face, and an eye patch covering his right eye.

"Up and at 'em, little bird." Eye Patch called out, as he entered into Kairi's line of sight. He turned to face her, bearing a easy going but cocky grin. "Aren't you in for a treat today. Superior's called a big powwow and you're to be the guest of honour." Eye Patch placed his hand on the wall just outside the cell door, apparently touching some sort of panel or control console, as the bars that imprisoned her retracted into the floor.

"W-what's going on?" Kairi said, trying to sound courageous. But the break in her voice ruined any brave front she would have put up. Instead, she pressed herself up against the far wall of the cell, away from the Nobody.

"Oh, don't you worry, little bird." The Nobody grinned even further, walking towards her in the back of the tiny cell. "You'll find out soon enough." Eye Patch reached out and seized the redheaded girl by the wrist, dragging her out into the hall. "And don't try anything stupid or brave. Or both." He let out a bark of laughter, as he roughly shoved her ahead of him. Kairi turned her head about to spare her captor a glance, seeing that in his right hand was some sort of futuristic handgun with needle-shaped barrel aimed directly at the small of her back. "Yeah. That's right. So, like I said, just stay nice and cool and it'll be all okay. 'Sides, I'd hate to mess up that pretty little face of yours."

Kairi gulped, her heart racing faster than she thought possible, but she began to stiffly move forward, Eye Patch right on her heels. Her feet felt like lead and her limbs and joints were stiff and ungainly. Something bad was about to happen, she could feel it, and he fear-addled mind was playing dozens of horrible of scenarios in her head.

Eye Patch stayed quiet for the most part, save for a few chuckles at her expense and telling her where they had to go, but he did make one audible comment which she caught. "Jeez, I can't believe that little punk gave up everything just for you. What an absolute joke."

"What?" She choked out in response. "Who are you talking about?"

"Like I said, you'll see soon enough." The Nobody punctuated the statement with a jab from his gun barrel, causing Kairi to yelp and skitter ahead, which only earned another chuckle from Eye Patch.

Eventually, Kairi was led to what looked like a boardroom. It was actually a little jarring that this nebulous group of sociopaths would have a boardroom that would not look out of place in almost any office building (all white colour scheme not withstanding) complete with a long table and several plush looking office chairs.

The members of Organization were all gathered within. Of the one's she recognized, Saix was skulking around in the back of the room, and Luxord was sitting at the table, playing solitaire, though Demyx was oddly absent. However, their were two more Nobodies that she'd never seen before in addition to Eye Patch. One with long jet-black hair that was bound up in elaborate braids and dreadlocks, his fearsome face framed in between two impeccably shaven muttonchops. The other new person sat at the head of the table, with skin the colour of teak and long grey-white hair. His golden eyes surveyed the scene before him, watching intently with his fingers tented. Judging by his position at the table, Kairi assumed that this was the so-called "Superior" of Organization XIII.

However, there was one more occupant in the room, standing in front of the table and away from the Nobodies. It was someone that Kairi recognized immediately, even with the year of separation and growth. He was slightly taller, with longer hair, thicker muscles along his arms and legs, and a rather sharp new set of clothing. But it was him without a doubt. Kairi would never forgot those deep, soulful ocean blue eyes, no matter how long they had been apart.

"Sora!" Kairi rushed forward to her longtime friend, briefly forgetting the gun aimed at her back, forgetting about the horrid situation of being kidnapped and held against her will, as bait, as leverage. They had finally found one another, the one thing she had wanted more than anything else.

She wrapped her arms around him as tight as possible, pressing up against him in a loving hug, cherishing the moment. But she soon realized that something was wrong. Very wrong. Sora wasn't returning the hug, and in fact seemed to be trying to inch away from her.

"Sora? What's wrong?" The redhead looked up at her wayward friend, seeing that he was averting his eyes from her. A chill ran up her spine. Why was Sora here? In the heart of the enemy fortress, standing before his enemies and not fighting them with everything she had. All of her elation had quickly evaporated, deep dread returning home once again. "What's going on...?"

"Yeah, kiddo." Eye Patch walked around and behind them, ruffling Sora's spiky hair in mock affection. "Why don't you explain to red just why you're here." Another bark of laughter, though he seemed to be the only Nobody drawing amusement from the situation. The others watched on with steely stoicism.

Gently, Sora broke Kairi's grip on him and pushed her away, still averting eye contact. "I... I gave myself up..." He explained in a quiet, shame-filled voice. "My freedom in exchange for yours. That was the deal... I'm their prisoner, that's why I'm here."

"No, Sora... you didn't!" Kairi's mouth hung open, uselessly, as she tried to express her shock. Her legs felt like they were going to give out on her, Sora had given himself up for her? She knew the depths of his devotion to his friends, the lengths that he would go, but... She placed both hands on his cheeks and made him look at her. "Please... please don't. I'm not worth this. You can't give yourself up." Kairi could feel tears welling in her eyes as she pleaded to the Keyblade bearer.

"I'm afraid that he already has." All present in the room turned to the head of the table, as it was The Superior Nobody who had spoke in a deep, rumbling bass-filled voice, the kind that demanded silence and authority. "Our young Keyblade Warrior will now work in service of us, striking down Heartless after Heartless, to free the hearts they hold captive. One by one, they will be released from their dark prison and be used to weave our glory and our victory. Together, they will craft... Kingdom Hearts."

The air froze in Kairi's lungs and she struggled for breath. This had to have been a nightmare, some terrible, dark dream that she would soon wake up, being greeted by the light of day in her own bed. Sora and Riku would be there and all be there and they would go one some kind of lighthearted, childish adventure and it would all be okay. It would all be okay...

Before her entire body gave out on her, Sora placed both hands on her shoulder, firm but gentle. The redhead looked up to see a pair of reassuring blue eyes, vast and calm as the ocean on a lazy afternoon. "You are worth it, Kairi. I would do this a hundred times over. All for you." The words from Sora finally allowed Kairi to find purchase in reality, breath returning to her and she slowly inhaled and exhaled, her legs no longer trembling under the pressure of the situation.

Sora then turned to the Superior, glaring hard at him. "I'll work for you guys. I know that's the deal. But you have to live up to your end of the bargain. Let Kairi go free to someplace safe. Take her home."

"Oh, we certainly will live up to the deal." Saix spoke up in his low, cold voice. The scarred Nobody began to make long strides towards the front of the room. "The girl will be set free, but I recall no mention of having to take her home, or anywhere safe for that matter." With that, his hand shot out and snatched Kairi by the end of her hair. She cried out in pain, as Saix dragged her away, a corridor of darkness materializing in the direction they were heading.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Sora tried to move to intercept, but Eye Patch snagged the hood on his jacket and yanked backwards, Sora's head slamming hard on the floor.

"Sorry, kiddo, can't let that happen." The Nobody cackled, putting the teen in a headlock and then propping him up into a sitting position, forcing him to watch as Saix continued to slowly drag Kairi to the swirling black portal. "Seriously though, I can't believe you fell for the oldest trick in the book. Poor choice of words, buddy. And now you gotta watch!"

And watch he did. Every agonizing moment of it. It seemed Saix was purposefully dragging out every second of this, relishing in the fear and desperation of the two teens. With his inhuman strength, he certainly good have finished this in a hurry, but instead took slow, mechanical steps to the portal, Kairi futilely struggling with every step, trying to pull her head out of his grip vice grip or find her footing on the smooth, metallic floor. Realizing that the gateway was her inevitable fate, Kairi turned back to Sora, terror and tears featured prominently in her purple-blue eyes.

Sora continued to struggle in Eye Patch's grip – who now was weaved a leg around Sora's right arm and was holding down his left with a free hand – but even renewed by a desire to wipe away the fear in his friend's eyes, it was pointless. With Kairi now only five-feet away from the corridor, defeatism had set in. He racked his brain furiously to try and think of something inspiring or comforting, something that may be his very last words to her, but all he could manage was to croak out a very weak, "I'm sorry..."

"No..." Kairi shook her head, voice thick with emotion. "I'm sorry... this is my fault, Sora. I just wish I was stronger. For both of us..."

"What a ludicrous fantasy." Saix sneered, his voice still not raising above a monotone. "A weak person like you could never hope to be anything else. That is the nature of the world and you've wasted your life trying to fight against that truth. You truly are useless."

That one crushing and precise word crushed any resistance left in Kairi, as she would have collapsed to her knees if she weren't being propped up by Saix. All fight gone, Saix heaved her as if she weighed nothing, the redhead hurtling helplessly through the air and into the swirling black mass that he had summoned.

Before she entered the corridor, Kairi – eyes still locked on Sora – reached her arm out, fingers spread wide in an open gesture, as if her hero would miraculously save her one more time. It had happened before. Sora always defied the odds and saved the useless damsel who couldn't do anything for herself. That's how it went. It could happen again.

But it didn't.

Kairi vanished into the black hole

She was gone.

-O-SWLTW-O-

Despite being hurled with such force and contempt, Kairi found herself falling at a rather gentle pace. It almost felt like moving through water, with each movement hampered and slowed down, but possessing a calming and graceful flow to it. Specifically, it was like swimming downwards into deep ocean waters, looking downwards past forty-feet only to be greeted by a black abyss, as her vision was currently clouded by a similarly impenetrable abyss.

If only... If only I were strong, like Sora or Riku. None of this would happen.

As she slowly descended to wherever Saix had condemned her to, she replayed the last ten minutes over in head on a constant loop, mostly cursing herself for being so worthless. If she could do...something, use a weapon or magic... fight off Axel instead of running into the corridor, stop Axel or Saix from taking her, break out of her prison in the castle... If only she were actual strong, competent, and capable, Sora...

That's what I want to be. I want power. I don't want to be a burden to anyone anymore.

Eventually, something other than all consuming blackness entered her vision. Strange, grey stone that formed a crooked, impossible landmass appeared below her... very close below her. It might have only been twenty or thirty-feet, proving just how limiting to eyesight the darkness was. Closer and closer she fell and she could see the grey land formed several snaking and overlapping pathways, stone walkways floating in nothing and stretching endlessly through the expanse...what little she could see.

Manoeuvring her body about so that her feet made contact first and as soon as her shoes touched ground the sound echoed loudly through the space, despite the fact that she appeared to be completely outdoors. Wherever she was, it all felt so unnatural and wrong.

Wherever I am... I have no clue where I am. If I can get home from here. If I could even find someone friendly or helpful. Doesn't matter... the Organization has won. Sora can't oppose them anymore. I might as well just give up here.

Kairi sighed, falling to her knees and hanging her head in despair.

"This is it!? After all we went through, this is how it ends!?" She cried out to the blackness in a tired voice. "The Keyblade and the Heartless, the Princesses of Heart, being separated for a year... all for this?" The redhead didn't even know what she was doing, why she was screaming her frustrations out to nothing. Maybe she was just exhausted after today and couldn't do anything else.

Maybe because if I don't scream at the darkness, I'd have to take it out on myself instead.

And even if she did have the will and strength to go on and find a way out, she had no means to do so. No Keyblade, no magic, an apparently powerful and sacred light that she couldn't activate except by a total fluke. She had nothing and she was all alone, left to die.

No... she wasn't alone. There was something else here... but nothing she wanted to see.

Piercing the veil of endless darkness were a pair of bright yellow eyes. Perfectly round and lacking pupil or iris, they shone clearly through the haze like lantern lights. And then another pair appeared. And another, and another, and another... And soon dozens upon dozens of yellow eyes were lighting up the darkness, all in front of her and slowly massing on her location.

The Heartless.

Panicked, Kairi instantly got up to her feet, staring in disbelief at the horde of monsters crawling out of the blackness, all coming for her. This is how it ends. Against all rational thought – there's no way she could outrun all of these Heartless, especially considering the fatigue she was experiencing – Kairi turned about and ran.

When she craned her head over her shoulder, she saw that the horde had stopped slowly advancing and had bolted to match her pace.

No. No. No! I didn't mean this... I didn't want to give up and end up like this. Adrenaline surged through her body, emotional and physical exhaustion were an afterthought. She had to run, she had to fight, she had to survive. Somehow. Please... I didn't mean it! I have to keep going. For Sora's sake. He gave up everything, I have to do something with that sacrifice or else I'm wasting both my life and Sora's!

Running blindly through the alien world, across the grey stone, even with her vision limited by the darkness. Every step she took, it revealed more of the path, growing narrower and narrower, but still allowing her enough room. Every step, every bit of stone revealed, it meant another second of life. So long as there was a road in front of her, she would keep running. She didn't want to give up. She didn't want to be useless.

The path suddenly came to an end, finishing in a sudden drop-off into the infinite abyss.

With her limited field of vision, it came out of nowhere and she almost ended up running off the road, barely managing to skid to a stop. She looked behind her, praying that the Heartless had, for some reason, given up on chasing her, but of course they hadn't. In fact, now there were so close to her, she could fully see them in all their monstrous glory. A mass of sleek, ink black bodies dotted by countless razor-sharp claws and horns.

And now, Kairi found herself in between a rock and a hard place. Either stay and be torn to shreds by the marauding horde of demons or plummet into the blackness, possibly falling forever, possibly to her death. Most likely to her death.

Slowly, the Heartless still gaining on her, closer and closer still, Kairi took shaky steps back. Adrenaline and courage and survival instinct had failed her and she was now reduced to the feeble, self-hating wreck she was. Her heels were hanging over the edge of the path.

Mom, dad, Riku... Sora... I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. I... I'll miss all of you...

One of the Heartless lunged into the air, talons reared back and ready to cleave right through her. At that moment, Kairi's heart caught in her throat and her whole body was paralysed. She couldn't move, she couldn't fall, just stand there stupidly and wait to die. The Heartless was an arm's length away from her, clawed hands inches away from ripping her to bits.

In a flash of light and a streak of blue, the Heartless was launched backwards in pain, it's body split in two before bursting into motes of darkness.

Once more, Kairi fell to her knees, breathing heavily and stunned. Every five minutes it seemed, she went from an emotional high to a low and then back up to a high. It was taking it's toll more on her than anything else. Still, she looked back up at the Heartless, knowing that one suddenly dieing wasn't her salvation, only to see another person standing where the Heartless had just died.

She was a breathtakingly gorgeous woman, tall and slender, with shortly cropped sapphire blue hair. Clad in a high-collared halter top and a corset wrapping around her lower torso – navy blue and black in colour – and twin belts crisscrossing over her chest, with black bike shorts and tall black stocking covering all most her entire leg, with only a little bit of skin left bare. Off-white bell sleeve detached from the rest of her clothing covered her arms, with blue and white cloth wrapped about her waist, and pointed and armoured boots covering her feet, she stood between the horde of Heartless and Kairi, her stance belying both raw power and undeniable grace and elegance.

But, most importantly, in her hand was a weapon shaped like a very plain and ordinary skeleton key: a Keyblade.

"Whoever you are, please stay back. I'll handle this." The female Keyblade warrior advised Kairi, authoritative by gentle. She turned back to nod at the redhead, who could only stare blankly and stupidly. However, now that she could see the woman's face, Kairi had a ping of familiarity hit her. She could have sworn that she'd seen this woman before...

The Heartless did not take the fact that their prey had been denied from them, or that one of their mortal enemies had appeared. They continued their advanced, but the blue-haired woman was not to be stopped so easily. Holding her Keyblade out, she launched a flurry of attacks: balls of fire, shards of ice, rays of lightning, they all darted across the field, striking their targets with perfect accuracy. Each magic strike didn't just eliminate one Heartless, but multiple ones in a single burst; icy, fiery, and electrical explosions ripping through the hordes at a frightening pace.

Still, however, the Heartless continued to assail the two, pouring through the veil of darkness that obscured their vision. To her credit, the woman was not to be daunted either, as she switched her tactics, charging headlong into the horde. In a display of grace and acrobatic ability the Keyblade bearer began to leap and dart and cartwheel through the army, cutting a swath of destruction through the dark demons. Annihilating one after another with lightning quick, brutal sword strokes.

Her blinding agility made it next to impossible to keep track of, as she was never in the same spot for longer than a second or two. Sliding to the left, Keyblade stretched out and laying waste to what must of been eight of the creatures during the move alone. Cartwheeling forward to avoid being surrounded, ending the dodge with a spinning attack so powerful it produced an actual whirlwind, hurtling the Heartless around her in every which direction. She then did a high backflip through the air, raining down more magic spells to devastate the enemy, before touching down near Kairi again. She then rose up onto the ball of her right foot, kicking out with her left leg to build momentum, slowly building into a fast spinning pirouette – wielding the Keyblade with both hands, stretched high in the air. As the pirouette began to build to an inhuman speed, a bright aura of light shone about the woman, brighter and bright as she span faster and faster. Not before long, spheres of light began to launch off her spinning body, each orb arcing through the air towards the Heartless, striking them and erupting into a massive explosion that tore through the mob with alarming speed.

As the blue-haired woman began to slowly wind down from the pirouette, most of the Heartless had been destroyed, with only a few remaining, and those were clearly smart enough to not approach her with such low numbers. The mysterious woman kept her eyes trained on where the Heartless would be coming from, steely gaze seeming to pierce the blackness.

"Miss!" Kairi chose now to run up to the Keyblade bearer during the lull in the action, approaching her from the right side.

"Please, stay back!" The woman pleaded, shooting out her to prevent Kairi from passing any further. She turned to face Kairi. "There's still more of them, and I can't protect you if you get ahead of me."

Kairi gently place her hand on the guard of the woman's Keyblade. "No... I mean, I know... it's just... Have we ever met before, miss?" Kairi looked up hopefully at the woman, the sensation she was feeling was too strong to be a coincidence. She must have met this woman at sometime in the past.

For her part, the blue-haired Key bearer looked down at Kairi, squinting at the girl, clearly trying to remember. "Wait..." Her eyes widened in realization. "You... are you that-"

Without warning, a bright light blinded the two girls, forcing both of them to step away from each other. As the blindness faded away, their seemed to be some sort of ray of solid light gripped in Kairi's right hand, and it seemed to have a mind of it's own, as it was tugging her away from the Keyblade warrior and towards the precipice.

"Wait! What's going on?" Kairi tugged hard on the ray of light, but it would not relent in dragging her to the edge of the stone path. She tried to open her hand to drop it, but it seemed her entire right arm had shut down and was no longer obeying her thoughts. The other woman looked to Kairi's struggle, seeming to realize what was happening.

"It'll be okay." She called out, reassuringly. The ray was now trying to lift Kairi upwards while also dragging her off the platform; standing on her tiptoes at the very edge of the abyss. The redhead looked back with a confused look. "I know it seems odd, but that will take you to safety. Just let it light your way. Trust me." More Heartless began to pour towards the two.

"B-but what about you?" Kairi was almost gone, just barely able to struggle to stay on the ground.

"Don't worry. I'll be okay." The woman turned back to her enemies, ready for another wave. "Also, my name is Aqua." Aqua turned back to smile at Kairi. "It was nice seeing you again."

"Aqua, we – WOAH!"

Finally, Kairi could hold on for no longer, as the ray lifted her off the ground, accelerating to fantastic speeds as she zoomed headlong into blackness for the second time today. This time, however, Kairi had a feeling deep down that wherever she ended up, she would be better off. She would be okay.

The light would show her the way.

And there we have it. After my long, uneventful absence, I am back with a very personal project of mine.

The general idea for this fic came from two sources: my intense dislike of Kingdom Hearts 2, and this sudden obsession of mine to see Kairi as the heroine. Not just an action heroine, but the star of the whole shebang. And I know me expressing my hatred - deep and frustrating hatred - of Kingdom Hearts 2 makes me a bit of a black sheep amongst the fanbase, but it is honestly how I feel. That game blows. It's the most disappointing piece of crap I've ever had the misfortune of being apart of. It (and Days) almost drove me out of the fandom before BBS saved me. So, as the fic progresses, I will explain my various points as to why I do hate the game and feel it is such an inferior follow up to the original and Chain of Memories and is one of the worst games in the franchise.

Point #1: The Deal. The scene where Sora begs Saix is a good scene. Never mind that Sora treats Kairi as an afterthought for most of the game, focusing more on Riku instead (more on that later), but it's pretty strong stuff regardless. However, it is ruined because Saix is an idiot. It's no hidden truth that I hate Saix. Not the good kind of hate, either. He's a terrible villain, and is far and away my least favourite Organization member (second least favourite is Axel, overall favourite is a three-way tie between Roxas, Larxene, and Marluxia). If he accepted Sora's offer, then that's it. They win. Sora is the linchpin of their plan with both Xion and Roxas gone. So... not only does he give up guaranteed victory, but he purposefully pisses Sora off (for no advantage) AND the Organization informs him of their plan and how to stop it (only if Sora was that careless and vindictive of a person). And unlike in Chain of Memories, when Larxene pisses Sora off by taunting him, it is to drive him further into the Castle, which is part of the plan, and it leads directly to her karmic death. When Saix dies, his taunting of Sora isn't brought. Not that it would have saved this plot point, but it would be nice for Sora to have personal impetus to take out a villain other than the top guy. So, Saix is a terrible villain (all of Org 13 in KH2 save Xigbar are, to be fair, particularly in contrast to the COM Nobodies who are brilliant villains) and almost botches the entire plan in one fell swoop, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Bravo, you moron.

Anyways, that's my spiel for now. I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter, and I just want to let everyone know that I am very proud of this. Proud of the concept and proud of this chapter. Also, good news, I have already finished Chapter 2, and have started on Chapter 3, so hopefully with this one I'll be more consistent in posts. Don't hold your breath, but we'll see.

Thank you, everyone.