Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Welcome to our gummi Ship!” Donald announced proudly, arms spread wide.

It was considerably larger than she’d thought it would be, filled with whirring gears and humming pipes leading into large tanks that she could only assume held the actual engines.  From the ceiling hung a number of articulate mechanical hands, each wearing the classic Disney gloves, presumably to help maintain the equipment.

“Wow…” Sable breathed, looking around with wide eyes.

Meandering across the engine room, Sora grinned back at her. “Yeah, that was pretty much my response the first time I came aboard.  Neat, isn’t it?”

Nodding, Sable drifted over to the wall.  Reaching out, she prodded lightly against it.  The substance that made it up felt cool to the touch and gave, ever so slightly, under her fingers.  Kind of like Jell-O.  So, the moniker of ‘gummi’ was actually quite fitting. 

Sticking her hands in her pocket, Sable poked around curiously.  She had no idea what most of the equipment was called or what it did, but it was still impressive.

“Welp.” Sable jumped a little at the high-pitched voice sounding somewhere at ankle level.  “At least you’ve got better manners than Sora did!”

“Hey!  I wasn’t that bad!”

“You tracked in a bunch’a mud and smeared all the windows right after we just got done cleaning!”

Sheepish, Sora scratched the back of his head.  “I did apologize and haven’t done that since.”

“Sable.” Goofy smiled at her. “These here are our navigators and gummi engineers, Chip and his brother Dale.”

Fascinated, Sable knelt down by the two tiny chipmunks wrapped in miniature denim aprons.  One was still staring hard at Sora while the other, with a Rudolph-bright nose, turned to smile up at her.  He jumped lightly up on her knee.

“Howdy, Sable!” Dale greeted with a wave. “How ya doin’?”

“To be honest, you’ve just made my day.” Sable returned honestly, brutally stomping the impulse to reach out and pet the soft-looking brown fur.

In another blur of motion, Dale’s brother—Chip—turned away from Sora and leapt up onto her other knee. 

“Pleasure ta meet’cha!” The black-nosed chipmunk told her. “If you need anything, just give us a holler!”

Then the pair spun around to salute Sora and the others.  “Ready for duty!” Then they sprang off Sable’s knees and went scampering across the floor to the other side of the engine room where, Sable presumed, their workstations were located.

“Happy flying!” The brothers called back as they vanished from sight.

Sora tugged her by the elbow as she straightened up. “C’mon, Sable. The cockpit’s this way.”

Up a ladder right next to a hand written sign taped to the wall displaying ‘COCKPIT’, complete with a big fat arrow pointing up.  Sable waited until the others ascended first, then followed up into the glass-domed cockpit of the gummi ship.

The dark blue sky hung above them while the red and gold hues of early evening painted the surrounding horizons.  Peering down towards the edge of Yen Sid’s private island, Sable still couldn’t tell if it was sitting on a sea of water or of clouds.

It was still beautiful regardless.

“Smile~”

At Dale’s sing-song tone, Sable turned to see a video feed pop up over the main console.

“Yeah!” Chip chimed in. “Don’t let me see the corners of your mouth droop!  This gummi ship runs off happy faces!”  Then the video screen shrank down to a much smaller size and slipped down to a less obtrusive side of the console.

Sable blinked at that.  Once, twice, then a third time. 

What? 

How would that even work…?  Actually.  They were all Disney characters.  It absolutely made sense when considered from that perspective.

With the original heroic trio claiming the three available seats, Sable settled herself by the window behind Goofy, watching the world fly by as Donald pulled the ship away from the Sorcerer’s Loft.  In moments, the world that was home to Twilight Town shrank beneath them as they shot up into the dark sky overhead.

The dark blue didn’t linger long, Sable watched as the ship passed through the vast empty sea as a colorful nebula swirled around them, broken up only by the monstrous meteors that drifted aimlessly through the in-between space.  Like when they’d been on the Ghost Train, the lights reminded her of an aurora borealis, rippling through the space around them like massive curtains in a light breeze.

Entranced, Sable didn’t know how much time had passed before a laugh drew her attention back to the others.

“Donald,” Goofy was chuckling heartily, “this story is funny!  Wanna read it?”

“Can’t you see I’m trying to fly this ship?” Donald snapped without looking back.  Then he yelped as Sora shoved him out of the seat.

“Take a break, Donald!” Sora chirped, squeezing into the now vacated pilot’s seat.

“What?!”  Horrified, Donald leapt back to his feet, eyes wide. “I don’t think that’s such a-”

“Oh, don’t worry!” Grinning, the Keybearer eagerly grasped the control stick with both hands.

“Sora!  The last time I let you fly you crashed the ship!”

Well…that would be a valid cause for concern then, wouldn’t it?  That didn’t stop Sable from snickering behind a politely raised hand, or note Goofy doing the same thing behind his book.

“Which way are we headed?”

Sable smacked into the wall as the ship banked sharply.  As she was blinking back stars, she heard several yelps.

“Stop!  We’re gonna hit that meteor!”

The ship spun in a tight barrel roll.  Centripetal force for the win, Sable actually managed to stay on her feet and not get tossed around the cockpit.  Didn’t help the resulting dizziness, though.  Ugh…

“That’s enough!” Another indignant squawk sounded as Donald manhandled the teenager out of his seat. “Give me back the control stick!”

“Aw…” Sora slunk back to his original seat. “C’mon, I was just getting warmed up!”

“No means NO!”

“Are you even qualified to pilot a ship like this?” Sable quipped as the dizzy spell passed.

Chip and Dale, she noted, seemed to be enjoying the whole thing and…were they eating popcorn?  Was their microwave just that fast or were spats like this between Sora and Donald a regular thing?

(Probably the latter, now that she thought about it.)

A groan from Goofy made her look away from the miniaturized screen.  He was still swaying in his seat, his book forgotten on the floor by his feet.  Reaching out, Sable patted him sympathetically on the shoulder.

“Don’t be such a spoilsport!” Sora was hollering.

“Navigator!” Donald roared above him, looking about ready to pop a vein.

“Killjoy!  Stick in the mud!”

“Shut up!” The magician wheeled on him before jerking back towards the screen. “Navigator!”

“What’s up, captain?” Dale asked innocently from around a piece of popcorn.

“Which way should we be heading?”

A thoughtful hum answered him as Chip tapped at his keyboard.  In the cockpit, another screen popped up with what was apparently supposed to be a map of their location.  It was rather sparse, mostly obscured by the aurora nebula like so many clouds, so only two potential destinations were visible.  One Sable recognized as Twilight Town, while the other…

“Let’s see…this is the only gate that’s open right now.” The furry navigator informed as the image zoomed in. 

“Only one?” Sora leaned forward in his seat, disappointed.

“That’s no good!” Donald agreed, frowning at the screen.

“Wait!” Goofy piped up, pointing at the map. “I think it’s a world we know!”

Perking up, the trio all crowded around the map until Sable couldn’t see it any more.

Sable watched Sora cock his head skeptically. “I dunno…”

“Look, there’s a castle in the middle of it.” Goofy pointed at something on the screen.  Then grunted as Donald clambered over him like a monkey.

 “It’s Hollow Bastion!” The duck quacked.

“That’s where Leon lives!”  Grinning brightly, Sora turned back to Sable. “He’s one of the friends we met on our last adventure!”

“I see.” Sable smiled. “Then why don’t we go visit them?”

              ———

It was quite interesting, watching Donald maneuver the ship to Hollow Bastion with the practiced ease of an experienced pilot.  Unlike what Sable had somewhat expected, they did not park the gummi ship in orbit and teleport down to a convenient save point.  Instead, he activated some kind of stealth setting and flew right down towards a city that had, quite simply, looked to have had better days.

“Here we are!” He announced as the ship powered down.

Sable trailed behind as they slid down the ladder and made for the exit of the ship.

“Now Sable.” Donald was saying as they crossed the engine room. “It’s important that you don’t just jump out of the ship!  You have to look around first and make sure no one’s watching!  We have to protect the World Order!”

“Just make sure to look down, too.” Sora added, elbowing the magician. “Someone forgets to actually land the gummi ship, sometimes.”

“I didn’t forget!  The ground just fell away after I parked!”

“If saying that makes you feel better…”

Ignoring the bickering pair, Goofy looked at Sable. “Donald gave Sora the same warning back when we first met.  Then he and I walked right out, not realizin' there was no ground beneath our feet.”

Sable blinked. “Let me guess, you didn’t fall until you actually looked down?”

“Yup!” The guard grinned sheepishly. “Sora noticed the problem before we did.  He’d’a been fine if I hadn’t, uh, accidentally dragged him out of the ship with us.”

“So, look before I leap, got it.”

Fortunately, Donald had landed professionally and they left the ship without any issue, stepping out onto a granite block road.  Grinning, Sora ran ahead to a gray flagstone wall overlooking the rest of the town.

“It is Hollow Bastion!” He was practically vibrating as they caught up with him.

“Gawrsh, it’s been a while.” Goofy mused as he looked around. “Things look quite different.”

Sable wasn’t sure what specifically Goofy was referring to, but what drew her attention was the large castle looming over the town.  Drawing attention like a sore thumb, it was clearly in the middle of some pretty hefty renovations.  Scaffolding was matched by heavy-duty construction cranes tipped in claws that wouldn’t have been out of place in a claw-machines, if at an obscene scale.  Some of the claws were actually holding several towers suspended in the air.

“I hope Leon and the others are alright.” Donald murmured as he surveyed the area.

Glancing around at the buildings around them, all dwarfed by the towering castle, Sable saw them first. “Looks like we’re in for a fight.”

When they all looked at her, she pointed up at one of the roofs.  They turned to look just in time to see a couple of prancing Soldier Heartless vanish from sight.  As one, the trio exchanged exasperated looks and sighed. 

They turned away from the wall and descended the adjoining stone steps.

“Last time, this place was so infested with Heartless, nobody could live anywhere.” Donald noted, looking around at the various people milling about the square.

“Look!” Goofy pointed. “They even have shops now!” He paused by a stall, studying the merchandise on display. “But they’re sellin’ some pretty scary stuff.” The guard captain hefted up a particularly spiny morning-star mace.

Donald advanced on the booth with a gleam in his eye.

Sable blinked as she saw what he had homed in on.  Watched incredulously as he took off his cloth cap to try on an equally spiny helmet.  It looked like something you’d see in a Super Mario game.  What were those enemies called…Spinys?

“How do I look?” The mage struck a pose, which was unfortunately ruined when the shell-helmet flopped down over his eyes.

“Ridiculous.” Sable answered honestly, rolling her eyes as he puffed up indignantly.

“Over there!”  They all jumped at Sora’s yell. “Heartless!”

Following his gaze, Sable blinked.  She wouldn’t have thought a Heartless could pull off a frozen deer-in-the-headlights response, but that little Shadow certainly proved her wrong…

Sable was moving before she consciously realized Sora had moved, flanking him as he shimmied up and over first one wall, then another wall, finally leaping atop the roof where they saw the Shadows.  He wasn’t a traceur, not by a long shot, but what he lacked in proper form he made up for with sheer enthusiasm. 

From below, Sable heard Donald grouse, “They’re like ninjas!”

The Kingdom Key sent one hapless Shadow flying as Gluttony skewered another.  Then, as one, they both turned to the last- Yowch!

Rearing back, Sable blinked back stars after a sudden burst of light erupted from beneath the Heartless.  Blind, she felt the prickly burn of…whatever that had just been loop around her once before vanishing.

“You okay, Sable?” Sora’s steadying hand caught her elbow.

“I need sunglasses.” Sable grumbled, squinting watery eyes at him. “Or tinted goggles.  I keep getting flashed.”

(And not by anything as cute as a pikachu, darn it.)

“C’mon, lets get back to Donald and Goofy.” Sora hesitated. “You good to get down?”

Rubbing a sleeve across her eyes, Sable checked again.  Still a little fuzzy but she’d manage.

“Should be, just a couple of short jumps.”

They got down to find Donald and Goofy conversing with one of the stall keepers.  Beside her, Sora perked up and grinned.

“So, you’re still running a store, huh?” He called as they approached.

“Sadly, yes.” The green-clad duckling sitting on a stool behind the table looked annoyed by the fact before he grinned at the teenager. “Good to see you, Sora!”

Louie, Sable thought that particular triplet was named.

“Unca Scrooge is here, too!”  Another duckling called from the other side of the market.  That one wore blue, marking him as Dewey.

Donald spun around, wide-eyed. “He is?!”

Sora leaned closer to Goofy to whisper, “Who’s that?”

“Donald’s uncle.  He’s a business typhoon!” Goofy answered. “Before the Heartless showed up, he was travelin’ on the gummi Ship with the king.  He was gonna help set up a traffic system.”

““That’s business tycoon and transit system!” Donald corrected sharply.

“He’s not technically wrong, though.” Sable couldn’t resist saying and got a glare for her efforts, to which she just smiled.

The third triplet waved from another stall, wearing a red shirt. “Unca Scrooge is right over thataway!”

Donald was bolting across the market and up the stone steps on the far side before anyone else could respond.  Sora and Goofy took off after him with matching cries.  Sable ambled along behind at a more sedate pace.  She found them standing next to an oversized freezer with yet another duck, this one wearing a blue suit with a distinguished specs on his bill and top hat on his head.

One Scrooge McDuck.

“I’ve been trying to re-create my favorite old-time ice cream.” The distinguished pekin was saying. “Thought I’d make a pretty penny…”

“Ice cream?!” Sora blurted, his entire frame lighting up at the thought as he shoved past Donald and Goofy.

Scrooge blinked up at him. “Who’s this now?”

“I’m Sora!” Almost belatedly, he pointed back towards Sable. “And that’s Sable!”

“They’re our friends.” Donald explained.

“Ah.  Do you like ice cream, lad?”

“Yeah!” Sora nodded so vigorously that Sable worried for his neck.

“What’s wrong, Sora?” Goofy asked when Sora trailed off with a confused expression.

“Oh,” Sora blinked and shook his head. “It’s nothing.  Um, Mr. Scrooge, could I have one?” The brunette offered a hopeful grin.

A heavy sigh answered him. “Well, you can have this one, but…you see…”

“Really?” The Keybearer snatched a disturbingly pavement-colored ice cream bar from the pekin’s hand. “Thanks, Mr. Scrooge!”

“Oh no, I should warn you-!”

Too late.

Sable winced sympathetically as a full body shudder ran through Sora.  Yanking the bar from his mouth, he held it at arm’s length with a deeply aggrieved and disgusted expression.

Curious, Donald pried it from his fingers, sniffed it, then took a bite for himself.  His response was almost as bad as Sora’s. 

Not to be left out, Goofy took it next.  He winced at the taste.

“Gee, that’s pretty bad…” He said mournfully, looking the bar over.  Then he offered it to Sable, who responded by taking a pointed step back.

“What is that?” Sora sputtered. “It doesn’t taste like ice cream!  It’s bitter!”

Oh, that explained the various hilarious expressions.

“I did try to warn you…” Scrooge sighed again as his whole frame slumped. “I haven’t been able to get it right.”

“What kind of ice cream is it supposed to be?” Donald asked, still shuddering slightly.

“I don’t quite remember, myself.” The older duck admitted.

“A vague memory with a strong emotional impression?” Sable guessed.  At his nod she gave him a sympathetic look. “Yeah, that makes it really hard identify it later.”  Considering it, she cocked her head. “You don’t have a name or anything?”

“Fraid not, lass, or I wouldn’t be havin’ this much trouble.”

“Aww man.” Sora actually stamped his foot before throwing his head back. “I want ice cream!”

Wincing at the yell, Sable gingerly rubbed her poor ear as everyone else stared at the teenager in surprise.  The outburst had been completely left field.

“Well, do ye mind waiting a bit?” Scrooge asked. “I think I can—no, I’m sure I can—re-create that flavor properly!”

“I guess we gotta wait.” Goofy mused.

Donald waved at his uncle. “See you later, Uncle Scrooge.”

Nodding absently, Scrooge turned back to his giant freezer.

As the trio headed down another long set of stone steps, Sora kept squirming.  “I want ice cream!  C’mon!  Ice cream!”

“You really like ice cream that much?” Goofy asked, cocking his head at him.

“Everyone likes ice cream!”

Donald squawked at that. “Ain’t that the truth!”

“See?  It’s sweet and cold and…huh?” Sora trailed off, looking bewildered.

“What?  That’s ice cream, alright.” Donald agreed.

“Hmm… Yeah, sweet and cold and…I dunno.” Sora frowned, then he shook his head. “Oh well.  That’s what makes ice cream great!”

Oh.

And then Sable understood.  While Sora may indeed enjoy ice cream, that hadn’t been Sora acting out at all.  That had been Roxas calling out.  His favorite ice cream was sea-salt which was, coincidentally, the same flavor that Scrooge was trying to recreate.

She hadn’t expected the bleed over to be quite so…blatant, though.  It was a little concerning.

They reached the bottom of the steps, Sable side-eyeing Sora and trying to figure out what, if anything, she should do.  Odds were she’d have to sit back and wait until a more opportune time showed itself-

“Gah!  My eyes!” 

Goofy caught her as Sable toppled back, eyes tearing up again.  Rubbing at her face, she felt the uncomfortable moving-burn sense that was the whatever-it-was zipped around them, several more popping up a short distance away.

“Hey, what’s going on?!” Donald demanded.

“This happened before, when Sable and I went after those Shadows.  You okay, Sable?”

The dark adept grumbled inarticulately, rubbing at her eyes as Goofy leveraged her back upright.

“We’ll get you some sunglasses when we head back to the marketplace!”

“Please.”

“Sora!” The shout came from one of the walls high above.

“Yuffie?”

There was a soft thump as something landed nearby.

“It is you!  Hey, Sora, did you get a little taller?” Sable’s vision cleared enough to see a girl her own age standing next to the younger brunette, visibly comparing their heights.  After a moment she turned to the others.  “Hi Ronald!  Hi Zoofy!”

Donald’s feathers foofed. “That’s Donald and Goofy!”

Behind her, Sable heard Goofy snickering and saw Sora doing the same.

Violet met violet as Yuffie noticed the fourth edition to the group.  “Who’re you?”

“Sable, I’m new.” Sable dipped her head politely as the other teen cocked her head at her curiously.

Flipped her a cheery thumbs up. “Nice to meet you!  I’m Yuffie, the world’s greatest ninja!”  That done, she looked them all over fondly.  “Man, I can’t believe it’s been a whole year…” The urban ninja marveled, grinning at them as she lazily spun her fuuma shuriken by her side.

“What?!”

Sable winced at the three-part shout.

“A year?” Sora echoed, wide-eyed. “We’ve been gone a whole year?”

Ah.  Right.  That hadn’t been brought up, had it?  They’d known they’d been asleep for a while, but no dates or timelines had been given.  Even Yen Sid hadn’t so much as hinted at the time lost.

Oops.

“Yup!” Yuffie answered, oblivious to the actual reason behind the outburst.  “Time sure does fly, doesn’t it?” She looked up at the castle looming overhead. “We’re fixing up the castle, too.”

“Yeah,” Donald followed her gaze, “I almost didn’t recognize it.” 

“We’ve still got a lot of patching up to do.” Yuffie murmured wistfully. “But this is our home.”  Smiling, she looked back at Sora. “And I want to make it peaceful, no matter how long it takes.”

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Sora asked, returning the smile.

“Yeah!  Thanks!” The teenage ninja bobbed her head. “Leon’ll be happy to hear that!”  Her expression darkened as she turned away. “We’ve been having a lot of trouble lately.”

“Hey.” Sora pointed up at the wall the other teenager had originally come from. “It’s a Nobody!”

Indeed, there was.  A Dusk was literally prancing across the gray stone.

“Yeah, that’s one of the problems.” Yuffie sighed.

Sable noted that Sora didn’t go after it like he had the Shadows earlier, looking back at Yuffie while the Dusk kept dancing atop the wall.

“Oh, right!” Sora looked hopeful. “Have you seen Riku or the King?”

(Ah, that explained it.)

“Nope.  You haven’t found them yet?”

Sagging, the Keybearer shook his head. “Nuh-uh.”

“Look!”  Donald pointed back up at the Dusk.

The rest of them looked up in time to see the unfortunate Nobody go flying as a familiar flash of light shot up from under it.  Sable winced sympathetically as it landed a few feet away with a dull splat.

More light flashed around on the group’s level and, because they weren’t popping up right in her face, Sable could actually recognize them from the game.  The Hollow Bastion security system.  How had she not noticed that high-pitched whoop that sounded whenever one shot up?

“Hey, what’s that?” Sora asked, pointing at the lights now bouncing the hapless Dusk around like a rubber ball.

“Claymore.” Was the unhelpful response. “The town’s defense mechanism, we use it to chase off Heartless, ‘cos we’re still a long way from having a peaceful town.”

The Dusk finally burst and Sable winced again.

“Wow…” Sora breathed.

Then Yuffie was jogging away from them. “Our Secret Hideout’s right around the corner.  C’mon!”

“Secret Hideout?!” And there went Sora.

“Some things never change.” Donald sighed, moving to follow.

Frowning, Sable lingered.  Looked around.  Wasn’t there supposed to be an ambush at this point?  One with Samurai Nobodies supporting the Dusks?  She’d kind of wanted to see how Sora responded to one after he’d had such a visceral reaction to the prospect of ice cream.

“C’mon Sable!”  Goofy called back to her.

Blinking, Sable moved to follow. “Coming!”

              ———

The ‘Secret Hideout’ was, of course, located inside Merlin’s house.  Sable could recognize the umbrellas sticking out of the roof from a block away.  Yuffie marched right in without any hesitation.

“Hey, everyone!” She greeted at high volume as the door banged off the wall, visibly startling the occupants. “Sora and his friends are here!”  Skipping in a few steps, Yuffie pivoted back around to face the quartet following her. “Meet the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee!”

“Hey everyone!” Sora waved. “Did you miss us?”

“Looks like we found our ‘bomb’.” Came the gravely tone of a blonde man sitting at a massive, super-computer set up.  Cid the techno-wiz of the committee.

“We missed you.” Came the much gentler voice of a young woman holding a tray of drinks.  Aerith smiled at them in a way that just set anyone on the receiving end at ease.

Sable felt a layer of tension just melt from her own shoulders.  It reminded her of Elmyra, just with less ‘everyone’s-an-idiot’ severity.

(Wait a minute…)

Goggles glinted in the artificial light as Cid pulled his ever-present pick from his mouth as he studied them. “Well, ain’t you in top shape.”

“I knew it.” Murmured the final occupant of the room.

Sora cocked his head at the older man. “Knew what?”

“A while back,” Leon gestured to his fellow committee members, “everyone suddenly remembered you guys, all at the same time.”

The trio all jerked at that.

“You…remembered?  Wait!” Sora swelled up with outrage. “Does that mean you forgot about us?”

“Gee, thanks.” Donald sulked, arms crossed over his chest.

“So, where’ve you guys been all this time?” Yuffie queried curiously, grey eyes bright.

“We were sleepin’.” Goofy answered honestly.

“Where?  In cold storage?”

Though Cid obviously meant it as a joke, Sora, Donald, and Goofy all fidgeted and exchanged awkward glances.  Sable noticed several sets of eyes sharpen at that.

“Somethin’ like that.” She spoke up, drawing attention to her.

“Sable!” Sora yelped, blushing.

“What?  He’s not wrong.” Sable shrugged before gesturing at Sora. “You three lost a year and have no idea how that happened to begin with.  Is it so surprising that people connected to you might have been affected by that?”

Sora held up a finger as if to refute that but paused mid-motion, visibly mulling it over.  Then he drooped, hand falling back to his side.

“I can’t actually argue with that…”

Snickering at his expense, Sable looked up again as movement caught her eye.  Leon was staring at her, partially curious but mostly suspicious by the set of his brow and the slight tension in his stance.

“Who are you?” He demanded.

“Sable.” She didn’t bother volunteering further information.

“She’s the one that found us sleepin’.” Goofy offered.  “And she helped us when them Nobodies ambushed us.”

 “Yeah, she’s great!” Sable felt her face burn at Sora’s grinning declaration. “She’s got a sword and this really cool whip that lets her swing around like Tarzan!  Also, she’s really smart, too.  She’s the one that explained what the Nobodies were and what they’re after.”

Was it possible to spontaneously combust from sheer embarrassment?

“Then it’s very nice to meet you, Sable.” Aerith, having set down the tray of cups at some point, smiled directly at the younger woman.  “This is great.  Everyone’s together again!”

Sora bobbed his head in clear agreement.  Then he paused. “So, um…we’re trying to find Riku and the King.  Have you seen ‘em?” Sky-blue eyes shone hopefully, before he wilted as his question was answered by a series of shaking heads. “Right…”

Stepping over, Sable patted his shoulder. “We’ll find ‘em eventually.  They’re probably going to make us work for it, though.”

That seemed to encourage Sora.

“Right, it’s like they’re playing hide-n-seek with us.” Expression resolute, Sora clenched a fist. “They can’t hide forever!”

“Let us know if there’s anything we can do to help.” Aerith told him.  “Okay?”

“At this point, just keeping a watch out would be helpful.” Sable answered. “Let us know if you see anything, or hear any rumors that could match.”

“We can do that.”

Sora perked up. “Thanks-” He stumbled back as Cid suddenly loomed over him.

“Don’t go thankin’ us just yet.” The technician warned, wagging a finger at him.

“Hollow Bastion’s got a problem.” Leon continued, expression growing even more solemn. “A big problem.”

Sora peeked over Cid’s shoulder. “You mean, like Nobodies?” He asked. “And Heartless?”

“That’s right!” Yuffie chirped.

“Then let’s cut to the chase.” The older brunette approached them “Sora, Donald, Goofy…and Sable.  We were hoping you might give us a hand around here.”

Sora’s response was a cheeky grin as he bumped a fist over his Heart in a salute. “Like we’re gonna say no?”

That actually got a chuckle out of the dour man. “I forgot who I was dealing with.

Donald squinted up at him. “Hey… What do ya mean by that?”

“Just think of it as a sort of…’Leon compliment’.” Aerith suggested from by Leon’s shoulder.

Smirking, Leon walked past them. “Follow me to the Bailey.” He called over his shoulder. “There’s something you need to see.”

Sable was half a step behind him.  She thought she heard a poof somewhere behind her but ignored it.  As she and Leon crossed over the flagstone street, with her walking more-or-less by his side, she noticed Leon shooting her sideways glances.  Curious, clearly, but unless he actually asked, Sable wasn’t going to say anything.

“I take it you’re not another Keyblade Master.” Leon eventually said as they walked. “Sora would have mentioned it if you were.”

Sable shook her head. “Nope, just a teenager with a couple magic weapons lending a hand.”

“How’d you end up caught up with them?”

“Someone I was looking after asked me to help them out.  They knew Sora and worried that he’d need extra backup.  The Organization is not kid-friendly.”

“What organization-?”

The back of Sable’s neck prickled and she ducked as something went flying overhead.  A snap of her wrist had Alacrity skewering the opportunistic Shadow.  It dispersed a moment later.

Movement in the corner of her eye had her pivoting sharply around, Gluttony crackling into her hand as the bat-wing blade deflected the flailing claws of a Soldier Heartless.  Stepping in, she caught it with a forehand swing and it burst at the end of the following combo.

Her neck prickled again, stronger this time.

More Heartless.  Considerably more.  Mostly Soldiers rather than the simpler Shadows and thus a bit hardier.  But between Gluttony, Alacrity, and backup in the form of Leon and his gunblade (which wasn’t actually a gun) and the town security system, all that difference meant was a little more time spent.

Violet eyes glinted and a predatory grin worked its way across Sable’s face as she brandished Gluttony.  This would be fun.

It may as well have been an ambushed ambush for how long the Heartless lasted.  It was almost disappointing, really.  Sable had hoped for a bit more oomph.  The last Shadow spasmed on the end of Alacrity before dispersing

“You,” Leon began, shouldering his weapon, “are almost as much of a Heartless magnet as Sora is with his Keyblade.”

She blinked at him. “Ah, so I wasn’t just imagining it.”

Blue eyes squinted at her. “Not the first time?”

“Had a few of Soldiers flat out ignore Sora to charge me.” Sable admitted. “Thought it was weird at the time, so it’s nice to have someone else confirm it.”

After one last glance around to make sure there weren’t any stray Heartless, the duo continued on their way.

“You’re…a Seeker of Darkness.” Leon stated more than asked a moment later.  Interestingly, he seemed more neutral than suspicious or, worse, hostile.

“You’re the second person to call me that.” Sable responded mildly. “I object to being called a ‘Seeker’.  About a week ago I got attacked and darkness responded in my defense.  I really don’t know why.”

That got a blink. “You’ve only been fighting for a week?”

“Got combat instincts as a package deal with Gluttony.” She waggled her sword. “Which was really creepy when I started responding to movement with a cat’s own ‘Prey:POUNCE!’ reflex.”  Sighing, Sable glanced at the flagstone walls around them. “Before that I was just a traceur, a specialist at running away.  Had never been in a physical fight in my life.”

“Sounds like something, or someone is leading you on.”

“I’ve got proof of such, yeah.” Sable nodded. “Not a clue as for what reason, though.  Figured sticking with Sora was my safest bet on top of helping him out.  Poor kid…”

Leon shot her an incredulous look. “That ‘poor kid’ saved our world and crushed an army of Heartless.”

“That poor kid is also tripping over himself because his body grew while he was in cold storage.  That poor kid also really wants to go home and make sure his friends and family are alright but is instead being sent after more Heartless, and now Nobodies, like a convenient wind-up toy.  And everyone who should be getting him up to speed are actively denying him need-to-know information!”  Sable was growling by the time she finished, voice low and lips curled in a snarl.

The swordsman next to her looked more than a little taken aback by that.  Then he looked thoughtful.

“Put like that…yeah, I have to agree with you.” Leon frowned. “If we find anything, we’ll be sure to let him know.  Cid was saying how the city was part of a much larger grid, years ago, and that his computer is just tapping into the already existing infrastructure.  Maybe we’ll find the central computer as we keep clearing out the castle corridors…”

Now it was Sable’s turn to be taken aback. “Thanks, that’d be much appreciated.” She got a curt nod in return. “So…bet you ten munny that we’ll get ambushed again before even reaching the Bailey.”

“No bet.” Leon snorted, looking almost amused.

With the air mostly cleared between them, they picked up their pace and continued on their way.

For the record: Yes, they were ambushed. 

Constantly. 

From behind bends in the road.  Out of shadowed corners.  Even dropping down from the support beams of overhead bridges once or twice.  Sometimes there’d be a second ambush trying to creep in while they were dealing with the first one.  It made it really hard to remember that Heartless were not actually coordinating together and it was more coincidental than anything else. 

It did highlight something Sable had noticed back in Yen Sid’s tower, though.

“These Heartless definitely have it out for me.” Sable mused as she deflected overhead claws before bodily jerking away from a low sweep. “Why, though?  I don’t have a Heartless-lure that is a Keyblade.”

Being only slightly harassed by the pop-up Heartless, Leon chuckled as he moved to offer support. 

As they fought, Sable considered the situation.  Maybe her dark affinity was playing into it?  She wondered if the Heartless were targeting her because she wanted a fight and her own power was adjusting to oblige.  It was the only thing she could think of that really made sense.  A variation of how Heartless responded to the darkness in people’s hearts, only rather than falling in line with her orders they were offering combat instead. 

Actually, that would still fall under ‘obeying her orders’, wouldn’t it?  Regardless of whether it was deliberate or not.  In any case, Sable got the adrenaline rush she’d been hoping for.  Rather than leaving her worked up, all the fighting actually left her in a fairly calm, if calculating, state of mind. 

By the time they reached their destination, across several streets and up several sets of stairs until they were right up against Hollow Bastion’s wall, Sable was pleasantly warmed up.  All that was left was to wait for Sora and the others.

“The security system seemed a little slow off the block.” She observed, as they ducked into what she thought was probably the gatehouse.  “And maybe a little confused.”

They’d both seen the little ball-of-light that marked an active claymore spiraling in little circles when a Heartless pranced just a pace or so away as they fought.  More than once, even.

Moving up some stone steps to a parapet showing the desolate land outside the town proper, Leon sighed. “They’re a work in progress.  At least they’re not hitting us instead of the Heartless.”

“Wait, seriously?”

“The friend-foe algorithm was a bit…glitchy to start off with.  Homed in on anyone who used magic.  Threw me off a wall a few times, Yuffie got bounced off her bike...and Merlin was basically locked in his house after, uh... Well, Cid fixed it eventually but, yeah…” He looked over at her. “He said he’d be uploading a new patch sometime today, taking the data he’d gained so far to make them more effective.”

“Should I ask Sora to stick around a bit, then?  So, you could stress-test security and work out kinks?” Sable asked.  “I realize the Heartless seem to pop up more when we’re around, but…there were a lot of people down in the market.  You and Yuffie can’t be everywhere at once, and then there’s all your other responsibilities...”

Leon looked thoughtful. “I’ll run it by Cid.  That might be just what we need to get the claymore system up to the level we need it working at.” He gave Sable a curious look. “Will he stick around that long, though?  I remember he was always on the go when we were in Traverse Town.”

Sable shrugged. “It’s not like we have a set schedule to follow.” She frowned. “Besides, he needs more time to re-adapt to fighting again so he doesn’t hurt himself.”

“He really was tripping over himself, then?  Like you mentioned earlier?”

“At least he has clothes that actually fit now, so he doesn’t have to worry about popping more seams when he moves.”

“Wait, what…”

“Hey!” They both turned as Sora, Donald, and Goofy ran up, their steps echoing loudly off the stone walls and ceilings around them. “Sorry we’re late!  Got a little distracted…”

“Sora had to stop and investigate every chest he found.” Donald groused, shooting the teen a grumpy look, which Sora ignored.

“We also had a talk with Merlin.” Goofy added.

“Oh, that’s right!” Sora walked up to Sable and held out a hand. “Here, hold this a moment.”

On reflex, Sable reached out to accept the little blue bobble Sora was holding out.  She froze, wide-eyed as a jolt of something surged through her upon contact, sending shivers up and down her spine and sprouting goosebumps across her arms. 

Then came the cold.  In the form of an icy knot that settled behind her sternum like she’d swallowed too much ice cream at once.

“Sora.” She began carefully, not daring to move. “What was that?”

The Keybearer grinned up at her. “A magic spell!  Merlin gave it to me to help jumpstart my magic again and said you could use it, too.”

So, that must have been a blizzard spell.  Well, that explained the sudden cold…

“Awesome.”  Violet eyes blinked once, then twice as she handed the now colorless bobble back. “No clue how to use it.”

“It’s easy!” Sora flipped her a double thumb’s up. “We’ll show you, and Donald’s a great magic tutor!  He taught me all my spells last time.” As the pekin magician fidgeted awkwardly at the praise, Sora turned to look at Leon. “So, how can I help out?”  

“We’re trying to put Hollow Bastion back together...” Leon shook his head, expression wistful. “Who knows, maybe even something better.” He paused with a grimace. “But we have some…problems…” He took a steadying breath before continuing. “There’s still a lot to do, but I’m sure we can handle everything.  Except…” Grimacing again, he turned towards the stone wall beside him, “for that…”

“What?” Blue eyes followed direction Leon was pointing at.  Squinted. “Is that a fort?” 

Donald, short as he was, had to jump and heave himself up to see over the parapet while Goofy just shielded his eyes and stared off into the distance.  Despite knowing what was coming, Sable looked as well.

Waaaaaay off in the distance was indeed the shape of a fort.  A series of ramshackle towers built close together.  The Villain’s Vale, Sable thought it was called, home base of Maleficent during the first Kingdom Hearts game, though the actual fighting had taken place in Hollow Bastion’s own castle.

Sable sneezed, sinuses suddenly on fire from the sudden familiar burn of antiseptic and bleach.

“Bless you.” Several distracted voices chimed out.

“Thanks.” Was Sable’s equally automatic response, feeling a little baffled as she tried to rub the smell away from her nose.

No such luck, her sinuses were still screaming their protest.  Had a tanker of cleaning products ruptured somewhere upwind?  Was Pete trying to disinfect the entire Villian’s Vale?  Seriously, that was painfully strong.

…except no one was responding to it except her.  And Donald would complain if he smelled it, too.

Was it just her, then? 

Was she about to have a heart attack- no, wait, the sign for that was a burnt toast smell.  Whew.  At least she was safe on that front.  But why was she smelling it at all?

(Why bleach?)

Resolving to ignore it, Sable returned her attention to the far away fort and the desolate expanse between it and Hollow Bastion.  There was a great expanse of ravines and plateaus of blue-gray stone and dirt between the town and the fort, making the shadows cast by the falling dusk seem to move and sway like the waves of the ocean.

Sable squinted. 

No, she wasn’t imagining it, there was actual movement around the fort.  The distance and angle made it hard to pin down, but-

Oh.

She knew what that was.  Had already known what to expect, only…

“Sora.” Sable breathed. “Look at the base, in the ravine around the fort.  See those lights?”

The game hadn’t even begun to do it justice, didn’t come close to the sheer scale of just what they were looking at.  That was way more than a measly thousand!  More like ten thousand and even that was probably being optimistic. How the heck were they supposed to fight numbers like that with (at best) nine combatants on their side?

“Are those all Heartless?!” Sora yelped, flopping against the wall and sliding down as Goofy outright toppled down the short steps behind them. “How can there be so many of them?”

“I don’t know.” Leon stared back out over the fort. “Most likely, there’s something in that fort.”

Sable frowned.  If that really was Maleficent’s old base, did that mean it was the dark fairy that was drawing in all the Heartless?  Wait…Pete had said, word-for-word, that he was gathering an army of Heartless for his patron.  Had he brought in all those Heartless? 

If so, she had to re-evaluate his prospective competence levels.  Stars above…

“I’m getting goosebumps.” Donald shivered as he helped Goofy back up.

“I hate to ask this…” Leon hesitated as he looked them over, gaze lingering on Sora. “But… I want you to help us get rid of them.” He shot Sable an apologetic look. “I realize you need to-”

“Of course!” Sora answered immediately, much to Donald and Goofy’s dismay.

“Sora!  You’re crazy!” Donald squawked. “There are too many of them!”

Goofy floundered in place. “We’re talkin’ millions!”

“We beat Ansem!” Sora returned. “The leader of the Heartless!”

“W-well, yeah, but…”

“Besides…” Light flashed as Sora brandished his Kingdom Key.  “One sweep of this Keyblade and they’ll all be history!”  He struck a pose.

Leon, Sable noted, looked a little overwhelmed.

Sora flopped over the stone parapet, still pointing his Keyblade at the distant swarm. “They’re just a bunch of boiled seaweed!”

Violet eyes blinked.  They…kind of did look something like that, didn’t they?  At least under current lighting.

“Easy to say from back here!” Donald barked, scowling up at the teen with reproach.

“Where do you get that boundless optimism?” A deep voice resonated off the stone around them, sending a shiver up Sable’s spine.

Xemnas.

“You’re doing well.” Came another, softer man’s voice.

Sable went cold as she recognized it.

Saïx. 

“Who’s there?” Light flashed as Sora spun around, Keyblade now in hand.

“It’s a reunion.” Xemnas was speaking again. “We should celebrate.”

Sora led the charge out the other exit of the gatehouse, head snapping around for the source of the voice.  Wincing as the antiseptic smell somehow got stronger, Sable tapped his shoulder and pointed up.

Standing on a ledge well above them stood six figures in almost identical black coats.  Xemnas’ silhouette was distinct and Sable remembered it from Yen Sid’s projection.  She noted the one with the mantled shoulders and the other with the wide sleeves that may have been Luxord.  Sable also spotted the shoulder padding she’d noticed on Saïx’s coat and barely managed to suppress another shiver.

“Organization Thirteen!” Goofy shouted as he also spotted them.

“Perhaps it’s to be expected of the Keyblade’s Chosen One.” The voice of the Nobody’s Superior echoed a bit less now that they were in the open air. 

Leon caught Sable’s eye, shooting her a questioning look.  When she gave a small nod back his expression hardened.

“But many have lost their lives through overconfidence in their abilities.” Xemnas went on, then he held up a gloved hand.

SNAP

Sora cut the Dusk down before it could finish its lunge.

“Our hero grows arrogant.  We will have to teach him a little lesson.”

Gluttony cut through another Dusk as it tried to flank Sora.  Then Sable pivoted around sharply to cut a sweep through several more as Sora charged another group.  More fighting sounded off as Leon, Goofy, and Donald joined in.

“Not bad.”

Sable tentatively identified that raspy murmur as Xaldin, the words being carried down clearly on the wind despite the low volume.  That same wind also brought with it a hint of lavender, only just noticeable above the overbearing chemical burn of the antiseptic. 

(Not that it brought any relief, lavender stunk.)

Twisting after a sweeping finisher, Sable watched literal light flicker under Sora’s heels as he skated around a cluster of Dusks at high speeds.  As they were twitching around in confusion, he cut them down with a well-placed combo while Sable gaped at him.

How had…

Was that how reversal was supposed to work?

Could she do that?  Sora made it look easy so, theoretically, it couldn’t be too hard.  Now that Sable knew that it involved the actual use of their favored element…

Spotting a Dusk not already committed to an attack, Sable advanced on it with intent and felt that familiar cold burn lance down her legs and into her heels.  She lunged-

Stars.

Cackling laughter drifted down from the upper levels, from several sources, as Sable tried to blink her vision clear, crumpled in a heap by the wall.

(Let it be confirmed: granite flagstones were very solid.  And hard.  Ow.)

The Dusk she had been targeting was peering down at her, clearly baffled.

“Don’t you look at me like that.” Sable groused blearily.

It cocked its head at her, then it burst as the Kingdom Key cleaved through it.

“Sable, are you alright?” Sora asked, blue eyes wide.

“That hurt.” She deadpanned, prying herself up as Sora guarded her. 

There was a shattering of glass and the scent of menthol burned her nose, fortunately overriding the antiseptic burn.  Coupled with that, the pain of her sudden headache faded to nonexistence.  A win all around.

“Thanks.”

With a curt nod in response, Sora dove after another cluster of Dusks. 

Sable resummoned Gluttony and did the same.  A few more combos and the Lesser Nobodies were gone and she watched as Sora swung around to glare defiantly at the black-clad men above. 

“Well?” He jeered. “How’s that for ability?”

In response, that gloved hand came up again.

SNAP

Donald squawked in alarm. “There’s more!”

“Sable!” Goofy called over as he smacked away a Dusk. “Are those them Greater Nobodies you mentioned?”

“Yeah, Samurai!  Watch out if they kneel, they’ll catch you in a time stop and-”

There was a reed whistle shriek and then a squawk as Donald went flying.

“-basically that.” Sable finished as Goofy scrambled after the tumbling pekin, potion already in hand. 

Offhand snapping out, Sable sent Alacrity shooting out to skewer a pair of Dusks trying to intercept the guard captain.  Then she spun around to block a Samurai’s blade, then jerk away to avoid it’s second blade.

“C’mon kid, you can do it!” Sable recognized Demyx’s voice.

“Two can play at that game!” Sora barked, sending a glance in Goofy and Donald’s direction.  He waited a heartbeat longer until the potion had been successfully applied, then shouted:

“GIVE ME STRENGTH!”

His arms snapped out, the defensive Shell that appeared deflecting a couple of Dusks and a Samurai’s sweep.  Goofy vanished as Sora’s clothing bled into the red of Valor Form, Starseeker materializing in his offhand.  Sable let out a whistle as he sent two Samurai flying with one quick combo.

“Cheer him on like you mean it.” Yet another voice chuckled out, speaking with a distinct surfer’s lilt. 

Then Sable ducked another Samurai sword, spinning around to find it…kneeling. 

Oh shoot...

Another harsh note of a reed whistle sounded and the world faded black.  Sable couldn’t move, frozen in place.  Bound in place.  She could hear her racing pulse roaring in her ears as she strained against whatever held her.  Strained for the Dual Stance Reaction Command.

The Samurai twitched.

Sparks flew as Gluttony scraped under the two katana as Sable ducked, just barely managing to tear free of the paralysis.  She lunged, landed a harsh two-handed sweep to the Nobody’s torso.

The world faded back into focus as the Samurai slid to stop, one hand coming up to where the blow had been struck.  That visored face tilted slightly to one side as it studied her with an almost curious air.  Then it just…dipped its head and vanished.

What had just-?

Then a spear-mode Creeper tried to skewer her and Sable couldn’t afford to mull over it.  After a quick check of the walls, parapets, and otherwise hard vertical objects, she zeroed in on the nearest Dusk and took off, leaving the Creeper behind.  Again, the cold burn shot down to her heels and, as if she were on wheels, shot around the Nobody in a tight arc that baffled all the Dusks, and Creepers, unfortunate enough have been watching.  Easy prey for Gluttony as Sable pounced with a toothy grin.

Being able to use reversal—a proper reversal—made things so much easier.  Especially once Sable figured out how to chain them.  As she’d once seen in the game from Roxas, she could also use it to skate on air.  At least briefly.

The baffled Nobodies didn’t stand a chance.

There were only a few Dusks left—the Samurais all having vanished at some point—when Sora’s Drive Form ran out.  Goofy stumbled out of thin air like he had back in Yen Sid’s tower.

“That was kinda fun.” He commented, sounding a little dazed.

“The Keyblade…a truly marvelous weapon.” Xemnas’ smooth baritone sounded out again. “Were it only in more…capable hands…”

SNAP

More Dusks and Creepers. 

(Yet no more Samurai, why?)

Sable took a moment to shoot the Organization’s No. 1 the deepest, most unimpressed look she could possibly project before diving back in.  Sora was panting now, she noticed.  His sweat-painted face smeared by dust and grit.  Still, he kept swinging, his combos just as clean and brutal as before, but perhaps a touch slower now.  He was still far from being in top form and was not ready for prolonged fights.

Darn it, they had to wrap this up!

Even as she was thinking that, Leon stepped in to guard her back.  She hadn’t been paying as much attention to the gunblade-user, though she’d definitely heard the roar from both his shock-inducing weapon and his own distinctive special attacks.

“We can’t keep this up.” He murmured to her.

“Noticed.” Sable responded back just as quietly. “Sora’s about done.  The others aren’t much better.”

“I’m going to try and get some back up.”

Sable jerked her head back towards the gatehouse behind them. “Hurry, before he calls in more Nobodies.”

“I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Shouldering his gunblade, Leon took off running and vanished around the stone wall as Sable reversaled around another cluster of too-slow Nobodies.  Then, as she was bursting another Dusk, Sable heard Sora’s startled yelp from somewhere behind her.

“Sable, heads-!”

THOK

“Shostakovich!” Reeling from impact, Sable tried blinking back the resulting stars as raucous laughter, worse than after her own mishap with the wall, rang out in stereo from overhead.

What had just-?

A flicker of movement had her stepping back just in time to avoid the Kingdom Key as it clattered to the cobblestones at her feet.

Rubbing her abused skull, Sable stared at it before whipping her head around to glare at a mortified, key-less Keybearer. 

“Darn it, Sora!”

“I’m sorry it got knocked out of my hand!” Said hand stretched out and Sable twitched as the Keyblade flashed away to rematerialize back in the younger teen’s hand.

Reflex had Sable sliding back to avoid an opportunistic Dusk, which she then cut in twain with barely a thought. 

“Does the phrase friendly fire mean anything to you?”

The laughter overhead intensified and someone (probably Demyx) hiccupped.

Sable just refrained from flashing them a rude hand gesture, but only because more Lesser Nobodies were trying to converge and she was a little too busy to spare the effort.

By the time the onslaught ended, Donald and Goofy were visibly tapped out.  Sable thought she heard the magician squawk out a quiet ‘Uncle’ before flopping across the gray flagstones.

“So?!”

In contrast, Sora seemed ready for another round or two, if only due to sheer frustration.

“Who’s next?”

“Sora, don’t.” Sable warned in a low tone, stepping up to guard the younger teen’s flank. “Now’s not the time.” 

While not entirely tapped out, she didn’t fancy their odds against the physically stronger Nobodies…. And of course he didn’t seem to hear her.  Still glaring up at the cluster of six cowled figures, Sora bristled with all the fury of a foofed, back-arched alley cat.

“What a shame.” The centermost figure—Xemnas—lamented with an almost melancholy sigh. “And here I thought we could be friends.”

On cue, the rest of the Nobodies snickered.

Xemnas raised his hand for a fourth time, only to pause as the hooded figure with the cape-cut to his shoulders stepped up next to him.

“Kid.  Who taught you to use a Keyblade?” He began with a laid-back drawl one would expect from a Californian surfer. “I feel sorry for it, bein’ used like that.”

“Huh?” Sora bristled. “Shut up and get down here!  You’re next!”

“Me?  As if.”

Well, if Sable had had any doubts as to who was speaking, they were gone now. 

(Hello, Xigbar.)

“Let me give you a tip.” The Freeshooter went on. “The Keyblade has far more potential than you’re capable of drawing out as you are now.”

That startled Sora out of his bristling. “WHAT?!”

“You-”

Light flashed.

Everyone present recoiled in alarm, momentarily blinded.  As Sable blinked her eyes clear, she thought she heard to muffled thump somewhere below them.

“What’s this?”  Xemnas sounded almost affronted, going by that hiss.  Of course, he still jerked back as another, less blinding, flash went off next to him and narrowly missed the arm he’d just yanked away.  “Impudent little-!” 

More lights.  Moving.  Cowled figures flailed around to avoid them. 

All five of them. 

(Oh dear…)

“Clear out!”

A surge of darkness and they were gone.  Cid’s latest patch on the claymore security system had been ludicrously effective, if it chased them off that easily. 

“Hey, wait!” Spinning around, Sora bolted towards the ramp leading down.

“Sora!” Sable darted after him, passing Donald and Goofy where they were picking themselves back up. “Hang on a-”

Heels skidding hard across flagstone, she almost crashed into the younger teen.  Sora having frozen at the sharp turn of the ramp. 

“What…” She followed his gaze and blinked at the figure sprawled at the bottom of the ramp.

“Didn’t see that one coming.” The black cowled Nobody groaned as he gingerly picked himself up.  The gaze of his cowl tipped up towards the higher ledge. “Hey!  They left without me!” Xigbar sounded just a little bit offended by that. 

In the middle of brushing dirt off his coat, the Freeshooter finally noticed the two teenagers just as Donald and Goofy finally caught up.

“Oh, ‘sup?”

“What’s the big idea?” Sora demanded, brandishing his Keyblade.

The man cackled, the sound echoing off the masonry around them.

“That’s right!” Leather-clad shoulders visibly shaking with mirth, he pointed a gloved finger at Sora. “He used to give me that same exact look!  You’d better get better with that Keyblade.  Or else he’ll have disappeared for nothing.”

“You-” Sora’s offhand knifed through the air. “Move!”

“Now do you think that’s polite?” The tone was mocking as Xigbar gestured to himself. “Shutting me down like that?”

“Then we’ll just have to make you move!” Donald snapped, staff swinging out. “Fire!” 

The spell shot towards the Nobody, only to fizzle out before it could even singe the black leather coat.  As Donald squawked in outrage, Sable could all but feel the emoted amusement emanating from the motionless Freeshooter.

“Oopsie-daisy!” A finger waggled in their direction. “Sure, that would work, if I were just any old dude.  ‘Cept I’m not.” There was a dramatic pause. “I’m with the Organization.  Nothing ‘any old’ about me.” Then the dark cowl focused on Sable. “Haven’t you told him all about it, lil’ marten?”

“Huh?” Sky-blue eyes fell on Sable. “Sable, do you know him?”

“As if!” Sora’s head snapped back around to Xigbar, who continued with a dismissive wave of his hand. “Never met her before in my life.” He paused deliberately. “But she seems to know more than a little about us, though.  Isn’t that right?”

Sable stayed silent, violet eyes narrowed.

“Heh.” The dark cowl tilted to one side. “Boss-man was right about you.”

Brow quirking up, Sable cocked her head in kind. “How so?”

Still talking with his hands as much as his voice, index fingers flicking around like maestro’s batons, the Freeshooter explained.

“See, got a rumor of a new dark adept showing up right out of the blue.  Strong one.  Maybe strong enough to be worth lookin’ into.” A half shrug. “So, our leader sent No. 7 to bring you in for a little chat and boy was that a flop.  The ol’ werewolf came back empty handed, with only a busted jaw for his effort.”

He flashed her a cheery double-thumbs up and she could hear the grin in his voice as he continued.

“Very nice, by the way.  Haven’t seen a bruise that colorful since the last time No. 9 tried body building.” His hands dropped again. “But imagine how much more surprised we were when No. 7 mentioned that you addressed him by name.”

Oops.

Sable couldn’t quite suppress her wince.  In hindsight, that had been a serious tactical error. 

“See, the Organization’s been operating on the Down Low for years.” Xigbar went on with an exaggerated shrug as he took half a step closer.  “So, I’m wondering, just how did you know one of our names?  And what else do you know, that you really, really shouldn’t?”

Barely perceptible, the posture of the Organization’s No. 2’s posture flipped from at-ease to serious.  Like a static charge had suddenly filled the air, it set the hairs of her neck on end.  Oh, that was bad.  So, very, very bad.  Sable was tired from the earlier fight, but even if she was fully refreshed there was no way she could take him on yet.  She’d barely warded off Saϊx!  When the berserker hadn’t even been trying!

With a quick side-step and Sora was standing directly between Sable and the Nobody, Kingdom Key raised up defensively.  To either side, Donald and Goofy also stepped up, wary and tired but ready to defend one of their own.  A sudden warmth flooded Sable’s chest as she blinked at them. 

(No, those weren’t tears trying to form.  They weren’t.)

“Aww, you’re gonna give me the warm and fuzzies.” Xigbar crooned as his posture relaxed again.  “Anyway, it doesn’t actually matter.” He pointed at them. “You just-”

Light flashed, and the Nobody yanked his arm back with a yelp of, “Hey!”  There was a second flash and he cringed away, now gripping a singed shoulder. “What the-?”

By the time a third light flashed the man was ready and he leapt nimbly back out of range.

Sable wasn’t the only one snickering at the cowled Nobody’s misfortune.

“Be a good boy now!” With a friendly, if rushed, wave Xigbar ducked through a hastily raised Dark Corridor.

“Wait!” Donald lunged, but the man was already gone. “Nuts.” The grumble was partially muffled by the flagstones. “He got away.”

“That was weird.” Sky-blue eyes stared at the now vacant spot before Sora turned to blink up at Sable. “Do you know what he was going on about?”

Sable thought it was interesting that all that frustration and anger from moments before was just gone.  As in the moment the Freeshooter had vanished. 

Now that she thought about it, Sora didn’t actually have a legit, personal reason to be so hostile towards the Organization, yet.  He also wasn’t prone to being angry...  Wait.  Hadn’t Ansem the Wise said something about anger?  In the game right before Roxas found Sora’s pod? 

What had he said again?

-“You should share some of that anger with Sora.  He is far too nice for his own good.”-

Oh, shoot. 

Was all that anger from Roxas? 

That made far too much sense.  Especially when taking the earlier response to the prospect of ice cream into account.  Hadn’t Sable herself been concerned about how he’d react to the Samurais?  Seeing the remaining members of Organization Thirteen would have been so much worse…

“Sable?”

Right, Sora was still waiting for a response.  Sable opened her mouth to answer, paused, then glanced at the brick and mason levels around them.

“Ask me later.” She told him in a low tone. “On the gummi ship.”

He blinked at her once.  Also glanced around them.  Then nodded.  “Alright.  We need to get back to Leon and the others anyway.  C’mon!”

They all turned to head back up through the gatehouse as a breeze swept up the ramp behind them.  Sable paused as an out of place earthy herb scent came along with it. 

The hint of lavender earlier could have just been someone’s cologne, but there weren’t any plants to be found in Hollow Bastion!  Also…

Why did that earthy herb scent seem familiar?

Frowning, Sable looked back at where Xigbar had been standing.  Where the breeze had just swept through.  Then she filed it away for later consideration and turned to continue up to the gatehouse.

              ———

 “Man, how long’s it been since we all sat around the table like this?” Laughing, Cid ladled out another portion of stew into Donald’s bowl. “Now eat up and build your strength!”

“Might I ask…what this is?” Merlin asked, using his chopsticks to poke dubiously at the contents of his own bowl.

Not quite across from them, Sable did the same.  Eyeing the probable Deadly Soup of the Day, she identified dumplings of indiscernible type, noodles, and…it looked like Leon’s bowl had a crab leg.  Sora’s had a suspicious set of fins, which Sable resolved not to look at too closely but they didn’t seem to bother Sora in the least.

Actually, he didn’t seem to be paying too much attention to anything going on around him.  Too lost in thought.

Keeping a partial eye on him, Sable tentatively tried her own mystery soup.  Hm…that wasn’t too bad, actually.  She’d just have to be careful in case any unwanted fish bits had found their way into it.

“So…” Leon began around a mouthful of crab meat. “Organization Thirteen.  You’re gonna have a hard time with them.” Swallowing, he panned his gaze from Sable to Donald and Goofy. “You’d better be careful.”

All three offered solemn nods in return.

“Are they, like, unionizing the Nobodies?” Yuffie asked suddenly.  “They’re up to something, I just know it!”  She swallowed a spoonful of rice. “I mean, those Nobodies are big trouble!”

(Unionizing the Nobodies, that was a hilarious mental image.)

“Yeah!” Cid agreed from where he was carting away the bowl that had originally had the soup. “Just the other day, they stole the seat off my bicycle!”

Nibbling on noodles, Sable blinked at him.  Wasn’t it Yuffie that had a bike…?

“It’d be so cute if it didn’t get worse than that.” Yuffie sighed. “But we don’t know what their plans are.”

“What?” Bristling, Cid spun on her. “You sayin’ you want me to ride a seat-less bicycle?  I almost got stabbed in the behind!”

“I never said that!”

Apparently used to the pair’s bickering, everyone else at the table calmly ignored them and continued digging into their own meals.  Following their lead, Sable did the same, still keeping an eye on the distracted Sora. 

She wasn’t the only one.

“Are you okay, Sora?” Aerith asked gently, pale green eyes concerned.

“He’s probably down on himself ‘cos Organization Thirteen beat the tar out of us.” Leon theorized, sipping his drink.

“That’s not it.” Sable disagreed. “One of them thought it’d be funny to drop a bunch of really cryptic hints based on inside jokes Sora doesn’t have the context for.”

Leon made a face. “Oh, one of those.”

“Yup.”

“We’re all staring at him, and he’s completely oblivious!” Cid noted, peering around and waving a hand in Sora’s face.  “He is depressed, isn’t he?”

“I only hope that this will make him a little more careful in the future.”

Blinking at the voice, Sable belatedly registered the presence of Jiminy Cricket at the table, casually nibbling on a slice of cucumber almost as long as he was tall.  His usual top hat was nowhere to be seen, probably for manners’ sake, the little chronicler was a bit old fashioned, that way.

“I can feel it in my antennae.” Jiminy went on, flicking the aforementioned antennae. “I think our journey is going to be another long one.”

“I GOT IT!”

Everyone present jumped as Sora shot out of his seat.

“MAYBE THE ‘HE’ HE WAS TALKING ABOUT IS RIKU!”

Silence fell as everyone stared at the teen.

“Uh, ‘he’?” Donald tried, looking lost.

Goofy, on the other hand, looked thoughtful. “Now that ya mention it, that Organization fella did say somethin’ about you gettin’ better with the Keyblade or ‘he’ disappeared for nothin’.  A-hyuck.”

Watching the color start to flee from Sora’s face, Sable reached over to tap a knuckle against his head.

“Not Riku.” She promised as Sora flinched back.

Cerulean blue eyes blinked at her. “But…Riku’s the only he that I know.”

“What, they’re not ‘hes’?” Sable pointed a chopstick at Donald and Goofy. “Leon’s not a ‘he’?  King Mickey isn’t a ‘he’?”

“Uh, well…” Now Sora blushed, shrinking back down on his seat and poking at his soup.  Then he blinked and looked at Sable again. “Do you know who that guy was talking about, then?”

Sable nodded. “Organization Thirteen had a Keyblade wielder of their own.”

“WHAT?!”

Wincing as she rubbed at her poor ears, Sable continued. “No. 13, their Key of Destiny.  Only they lost him a little before you three woke up again.  Now they’re focusing on you as the only other accessible Keyblade Wielder around.” She snickered. “Not like they can catch up to Mickey, after all.”

Weak though it was, the joke did get a quiet snicker from Sora.

“Because they’re after Kingdom Hearts, right?” He asked after a moment.  “Then…Riku’s alright?”

“Didn’t you say he’d probably be in contact with the King?” Sable returned, looking between the three of them.  When they nodded, she continued. “That’s why you’re looking for Mickey first, right?  If Riku had disappeared, like was specified, then the King would have told you even if he was in a rush.  Or he’d have asked Yen Sid to tell you.” She hesitated and glanced at Donald and Goofy.  “I mean…he would, right?”

They both nodded.  Vigorously in Donald’s case.

Sora sagged in his seat, relieved.

“You know more than you’re saying.” Leon pointed out, staring at Sable.

“I do, yes.” Sable admitted. “No, I’m not sharing much more now.”

“Why not?” Sora asked.

“Because Dusks are sneaky little spies and I don’t want to clue the Organization in.  Bad enough they already set Saïx after me once, I do not need a repeat of that!”

“What?” Yuffie gasped. “But the white guys don’t talk!  They don’t make any sounds at all, except hissing sometimes…or that zipping sound from the slinky-ones.”

Sable shook her head. “Nobodies have a language all their own, one the Organization knows as well despite looking human.  Yes, they would hear every detail of whatever a Dusk reported in.  Same for the rest of the rank-n-file Nobodies.”

Silence fell as everyone chewed on that little tidbit.  Only the sounds of eating, with various levels of decorum, could be heard.

“Oh, Leon!” Merlin spoke up suddenly. “Did you give them the cards, yet?”

The man in question twitched. “Not yet.” Setting his utensils down, he started looking through his pockets. “Here.”

“What’s this?” Sora asked, accepting the card as Leon handed out the other three. “Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee, Honorary Member.”

“A-hyuck!  Membership cards!” Goofy grinned.

“Cool!” Donald agreed.

Leon chuckled softly. “Use that in the Marketplace, and you’ll get 5% off all purchases.”

That- what a lousy…

“What a deal!”

Sable palmed her face at Sora’s delighted tone.  Looked up as he suddenly yelped.  Glowing like a nightlight, the card in his hand plucked itself free and sailed towards the open window.

“Hey, come back!  My 5% off!” 

He dove out right after it, Donald and Goofy a step behind him.  Sable followed at a more sedate pace, arriving in time to hear Sora yelp again.

“A keyhole?”

A flicker of movement had Sable glancing at her shoulder.

“That keyhole…” Jiminy Cricket pointed out the window. “I’ll bet it opens a gate!”

“A gate?” Goofy repeated.

“Remember?  We have to open gates or we can’t go anywhere.”

A flash of light signaled the Kingdom Key appearing in Sora’s hand.

“Sora!” Donald barked. “Use the Keyblade!”

“Already on it!”

Sable ducked back inside to avoid getting flashed again.  That didn’t stop the sudden surge of ambient light energy from sending uncomfortable prickles up and down her arms even through her long sleeves.  Brr.

“Alright!” There was a tiny flutter of paper, probably the membership card coming down again. “We’re going to find Riku and the King!”

Sable poked her head out the window. “Sora, hang on a sec.”

Four sets of eyes turned to look at her.  Jiminy being on her shoulder made that a touch awkward strictly from proximity.

“Why don’t we stay here a bit?” She continued. “It’s not like we actually have a schedule to keep.”

“But…” Sora visibly hesitated, glancing up at where the keyhole had been.

“Why don’t we stick around long enough to help them stress-test the claymore system?” Sable suggested.  “They get to accelerate the next patch, and you get more live experience in a relatively safe environment with allies to support you if something goes wrong.”

“Actually…”

Sable glanced back as Leon approached the window.

“That’s not so necessary, now.” The former mercenary admitted. “The last patch pushed the system above what we were expecting by quite a bit.  It should be enough to protect the people living here from what Heartless show up from here on out.  Nobodies, too.” Leon looked at Sora, a sympathetic look in his eyes. “Go, find your friend.”

“What about all the Heartless at the fort?” Sora asked, visibly torn as he fidgeted in place.

Leon shrugged and waved him off. “We have to get everything ready before we’ll need you.  There’s no rush.” A pause. “Right, Cid?”

“Right.” Came the somewhat forced response.

“We’ll be waiting.” Leon told Sora.

“Leon…” Looking back in through the window, the Keybearer looked at everyone in turn with bright, watery blue eyes. “Thank you, everyone.  We’ll be back!”

Sable had to scramble out the window to keep up as he took off back towards the Marketplace, Goofy and Donald in hot pursuit.  Through the Borough, up the stone steps leading past Scrooge’s giant freezer.  Towards the smaller set of stairs leading down into the Marketplace proper…

“Is that- ohmygosh, Sora! Over here!”

Sora skidded to an abrupt halt.  Not expecting it, Sable slammed full-speed into his back.  Then Donald and Goofy slammed into her and they all went down in a groaning heap.

“Oh, uh…oops?”

“I know that voice.” Sora’s voice was muffled by the granite flagstone he was pinned to, buried at the bottom of their impromptu pile as he was.

Wriggling, Sable managed to leverage herself and Donald, who was flopped across her back, off the younger teen.  Sora pushed himself up on his arms, wriggling out from under the dazed Goofy, and was back on his feet to face the speaker.

Sable cocked her head at the red pompom.  It was practically vibrating on the tip of the…antenna thing it was attached to.  Otherwise, the moogle hovering by the wall seemed fairly unmoved.

Sora squinted at the moogle.  “You’re…Mog, right?”

The pompom whipped around in a pleased circle. “I am indeed!  It’s great to see you again, Sora.  Me and the others started getting’ worried when you stopped showing up!  And Stiltzkin passed along some really weird rumors this past year about…anyway, none of that matters, you’re here!”

The moogle did a little twirl, tiny wings beating furiously.

“How’s it goin’ on your quest?” Mog asked. “Any luck finishing the recipe?”

“Ah…no.” Sora wilted where he stood. “Some of the ingredients are really hard to find.” 

Mog hovered up to pat him consolingly on the shoulder.  Then retreated back to his original spot.

“Uh…Sora?” Sable asked, a little uncertainly.

“Oh, right.” The younger teen snapped back up and offered her a sheepish grin. “Sable, this is Mog, he’s part of the Moogle Synthesis Guild.  We met him back in Traverse Town during our last adventure.”

Eyeing the soft, creamy fur, Sable pointedly kept her hands to herself and instead offered a polite bow. “Pleasure to meet you.”

“Never seen a moogle before?” Mog asked, cocking his head.

“Only from a distance.” Sable admitted. “Back in Twilight Town, though I didn’t get a chance to say hi.”

“Twilight Town?  Oh!  That would have been Elmina.”

Sable mentally filed the name away for later use should the situation arise.  Then she waved at Donald and Goofy as they passed by to continue on to the gummi ship but stayed where she was.  She was curious to see what business Sora had with the moogle. 

What recipe?

Mog turned back to Sora.  “So, any new synthesis material you wanna drop off?  We can see if there’s any more we can put towards that recipe of yours.”

“Recipe?” Sable echoed as Sora started digging through his pockets.

“Yeah, there’s this really neat enhancement for my Keyblade.” Sora explained.  “Called the Ultima Recipe, so I’ve been saving up materials to use it!”

“He came to us so often he earned access to the recipe on general principle.” Mog admitted as he sorted through a number of stones Sora had handed him.

Sable considered that.  It made sense that Sora would keep the good relationship he’d developed with the moogles, rather than having to start from scratch again. 

(At least that worked out better for him than his hard-earned combat abilities had.)

Mog pulled a very old and tattered looking piece of paper out from…somewhere.  Probably the same place where he was putting all those stone pieces.  In any case he seemed to squint at the paper and then checked a notebook he’d also pulled out.

“Right,” The moogle murmured, “Forgot about that.  Okay!” Mog looked up at Sora. “So, the union re-did all the materials lists, translating the old recipes into the new format.  Also, some of the materials we used to synthesize we just don’t use anymore.  It’s alright!” He added quickly as Sora looked about ready to panic. “I kept you in mind after the revamp went through.  Let’s see, where’d I put it…”

Fishing through his apparent subspace pocket, Mog rifled around.  He pulled out a few notebooks, checked them, then shoved them back in.  Eventually he pulled out one with a bunch of post-it tags sticking out from between the pages.

“Here it is!”

Curious, Sable peered over to a look as he opened up the pages and…ow.  A mistake was made.  Those were worse than physics equations.  She didn’t recognize even half those symbols!  Blinking back a headache, she leaned away again as Mog settled on a page near the end and turned it around for Sora to see. 

“There, see?  We can still use what you’ve found so far and…here are the rough conversions…there, the basic equivalents of what you have left to bring in.”

Nodding along, a thoughtful expression had settled on Sora’s face. “Huh, they’re all gems and crystals, now.”

“Yeah, pretty much.  The oozes, matters and the like weren’t all, shall we say, proving very cost efficient with our Synthesis?  So, we cut them from the list and re-catalogued everything else.  Lemme tell you, it’s saved a bunch of time.  Though Stiltzkin’s been doing tests on gears and ores.  The results so far have been promising, so those might be added into the main materials list in the relatively near future…”

“Gears?”  Sora sounded as baffled as Sable felt. 

How were gears a synthesis item?

Mog waved them off. “Not important right now.” Flipping to the very back of his notebook, Mog tore out a sheet and handed it to Sora. “Here, you can keep this copy.”

“Thanks!  This’ll help me keep track of everything.”

“Anything for my favorite customer!”

Sora put the list away and then put in a bunch of orders for other basic supplies.  Potions, ethers, and a few accessories for Donald and Goofy to go with their new weapons.  Sable didn’t see just what the moogle did, only that he moved the materials from one bag to another and then she and Sora left with all the new supplies.  It was almost instantaneous.

She wondered if Mog had just made them, or if he’d had the items in stock and just set Sora’s materials aside to make more later.

Sable was just cresting the top of the steps leading to where Donald had parked the still camo’d gummi ship when she paused.  The vantage point where they’d parked was high enough to let her see pretty much all of Hollow Bastion, save for the bits directly behind the castle itself. 

It also let her see over most of the walls.  She could pinpoint the gatehouse part of the Bailey where they’d seen the Organization, and bits of the dark mountains beyond it, but that wasn’t what caught her attention.  The water, was. 

Beyond the wall not-quite-opposite the gatehouse, Sable could see an ocean, stretching as far out as the eye could see.

(Well, that explained all the seafood…)

But Hollow Bastion, and Radiant Garden before it, was a seaside city?  Sable hadn’t realized that.  Had it been a major trading port before the World fell?  Was that where all its wealth had originally come from?  Ansem the Wise may not have been particularly wise, but if he’d been a canny businessman then that would make a whole lot more sense…

It registered then that she was alone, which snapped Sable out of her musings.  Where had Sora gone?  Not to the gummi ship, she thought he’d slipped away before that.

Where’d he go?  Wait, there he was, jogging up to meet her then.  What had he…

“Here Sable.” Sora held out a pair of goggle-glasses. “Saw these on a display and I remembered how much you tend to rub your eyes, so…”

Feeling rather touched, she’d actually forgotten her earlier comment about getting shades, Sable looked them over.  They were padded goggles disguised as a pair of sunglasses.  Very sleek and impressive, if she said so herself.  After adjusting the strap a bit, she slipped them on, letting the goggles rest further up on her head until she needed them.

Heh.

Sable was now, officially, a gogglehead.  Now she just needed a symbiotic, shapeshifting psychovore to attack enemies on her behalf and eat all her junk food and the picture would be complete.

She kept grinning even after the gummi ship had taken off.

              ———

Donald parked the gummi ship safely in orbit above Hollow Bastion before Sora tugged Sable’s sleeve as she dozed against the wall and led her back down to the engine room.  Claiming bits of open floor, they all sat down and Sable twitched slightly as three sets of expectant eyes fixed on her.

Just because she’d been expecting it didn’t mean it wasn’t still startling.

“So, what couldn’t you tell us in Hollow Bastion?” Sora asked.

“More than I can say in one sitting.” Sable answered honestly. “It’ll have to be done piecemeal so I don’t overwhelm you.  A lot of what I know is…mind screwy.  Enough so that some of what I’m holding off on for now is so I can try and verify whether it’s right or not.  I don’t want to give you misinformation.”

“Misinformation?” Sora cocked his head.

“She means something that’s not quite true.” Goofy answered for Sable.

Sora considered that, then nodded. “Okay, I think we can live with that.  You’ll tell us everything eventually though, right?”

Sable nodded. “That’s the plan.  I’m also hoping to get other people to back up what I say, but from their perspective.  So, they’re not just parroting me.”

Donald scowled at her. “How’re you gonna do that?”

“Not entirely sure, yet, but it’ll be obvious if I manage it.”

“So, we watch out for when ya get someone talkin’.” Goofy summarized. “Then we listen to what they say and compare it with what you’ve told us.”

“Trust but verify.” Sable nodded, looking at Sora. “I want to get you enough correct information, so you can make your own informed decisions.  The Organization is not going to want that, so I’ll save most of the info dumps for when we’re here, or when I can get someone else to share the information.”

They all nodded again.

“Now…I’m guessing you want me to start with the Key of Destiny?” Sable asked, looking mainly at Sora, who nodded again. “Alright, then.  About a year ago the leader of Organization Thirteen found a Nobody capable of using a Keyblade and inducted him into the Organization, giving him a name, number, and epithet.”

“No. 13, the Key of Destiny.” Goofy recited.  “And…you said they lost him a little before we woke up?  Was that when they lost the other six Nobodies they were missin’?”

“But…” Sora frowned. “Sable said they died about a year ago, right?”

“Yes and yes.” Sable nodded. “Numbers 4, 5, 6, 11, and 12 died a little after No. 13 joined the Organization.  No, he ran afoul of something else.”

“Why aren’t you saying his name?” Donald asked pointedly.

“Because I was waiting to see if any of you would actually ask for it.”

Sora and Goofy looked a little ashamed at that.

“So, what was his name, Sable?” Sora asked, rubbing the back of his head.

“His name is Roxas.”

Goofy perked up. “You mean he’s still alive?”

“What?” Sora looked at him, wide-eyed.

“Well, she said ‘is’, not ‘was’.  She also said that the Organization lost him.  Didn’t say anything about him, well… ya’know.” Goofy answered reasonably.

Sora’s head snapped back around so he could stare at Sable.

“He’s right.” She answered. “And this is where it starts getting complicated.” Sable held up a hand. “There’s what actually happened.” She held up the other hand. “And there’s what the Organization believes happened, or claim they believe.”

No one spoke as she dropped her hands again and she looked them over.

“I also know what other people claim happened, but what evidence I’ve found so far suggests that the reality is much more… ah, head screwy.”

“So, you’re not going to tell us, yet.” Goofy guessed.

“What actually happened to Roxas?” Sable shook her head. “No.  But I’m hoping to get some verification on that soon.  What I am going to share is what the Organization believes happened, because that’s what’s immediately relevant to Sora.” Here Sable paused in case any of them wanted to say something. 

Donald looked like he was about to, but Sora clapped a hand over his beak.  The Keybearer then shot her an encouraging, if slightly shaky, grin.

Taking a breath, Sable continued.

“So, far as they claim to know, Roxas left the Organization and then was dispersed shortly after.  You know what happens to Dusks when we fight them?  Same thing happens to Humanoid Nobodies.  However.  They’re also under the impression he pulled off a miracle in the process.  That he was reincarnated as a complete being at the cost of his memories as a Nobody.” Sable paused for a beat, then continued. “And they think that reincarnation…is you Sora.”

“Me?!”

“That’s ridiculous!” Donald burst out. “Sora is Sora!  He’s never been anyone else!”

“It kinda makes sense, though.” Goofy’s tone was thoughtful, if disturbed.  “Sable said they found him a year ago, right?  And we went ta sleep about the same time and everyone forgot about us.  Then Roxas disappeared and people suddenly remembered us again.”

“Then…” Sora swallowed.  “What that guy said, about someone fading away for nothing…”

“He was referring to Roxas, yes.  But.” Sable held up a finger. “I’m pretty sure he knows that’s not what happened.  Him and his boss.  The others, though?  They probably believe it.  Expect them to refer to you as Roxas and to not actually answer you when you ask about it.”

“Why do they even need me, anyway?” Sora demanded. “Ansem didn’t!  Well, except for the fact that I had Kairi’s Heart and she was the last Princess of Heart, but that was different.”

“Yeah, Ansem didn’t have a Keyblade but was able to make Kingdom Hearts and the Final Keyhole!” Donald agreed.

“How did he make Kingdom Hearts, then?” Sable asked.

“He used the Hearts of the Worlds the Heartless got to.” Sora answered. “When we stopped him, the Worlds were brought back and Kingdom Hearts disappeared.”

“That’s not the method the Organization is using.  They’re using the Hearts of people, rather than Hearts of Worlds.”

They all blanched at that, staring at Sable in horror.  Belatedly realizing her error, she held up both hands in a soothing gesture.

“Not like that!” She promised. “They’re targeting the Heartless.  The leader of Organization Thirteen figured out how to redirect Hearts freed by a Keyblade to the framework for Kingdom Hearts he built outside their base.”

They all relaxed at that.

“Oh, that’s not so bad…” Sora breathed in relief.  “So, most of them think I’m their missing friend?  Except for those two jerks you mentioned?”

“Basically.”

“And I’m guessing telling them I’m not won’t help.”

“Not if it’s just a straight denial, they’ll think you just forgot or something of that nature.” Sable agreed. “If you’re in a civil conversation, though, you might have better luck getting that point across.  Just don’t hold your breath.”

Silence fell then as they all mulled over it.  Sora seemed a little emboldened, Donald seemed frazzled, and Goofy was looking especially thoughtful.

 “Heya, Sora?” He began, looking at his younger friend. “Back in Hollow Bastion, didn’t the man on the wall sound familiar?”

“Huh?” Sora blinked at him. “What’d’ya mean?  The guy who got knocked off and postured at us?”

“No.” Goofy shook his head. “The first fella in the front.” He frowned a moment. “Didn’t we meet him right after rescuing the Princesses of Heart from Ansem?”

Frowning, Sora cocked his head.  Then he jerked upright, eyes wide. “The ghost guy!”

“The what?” Sable asked, baffled.

Sora turned to her. “It was right after Ansem possessed Riku!  We were gonna go after him, but the princesses said they sensed somebody really powerful in Hollow Bastion, so we went to check it out.”

“…and it was a ghost?” Sable hazarded.

“I mean, kinda?  He started off invisible and he walked right through me!” Sora shivered. “The whole thing was really weird.” He cocked his head again, frowning. “But…yeah, now that Goofy mentions it, he sounded just like the guy on the wall!”

“What was it he said?” Goofy spoke up again, “When we asked if he was Ansem?  He said the name sounded familiar but that he was just a shell.”

“The Nobody to Ansem’s Heartless.” Sable nodded. “So…you weren’t technically wrong?  They’d just been two separate beings for over a decade by that point.” She paused, considering that, then asked: “Did he say anything else?  Things that probably didn’t make sense then but might now that you have more information?”

All three of them thought about it.

“He said I reminded him of someone.” Sora said at last. “I thought he was talking about Ansem, it was right after we asked that, but then he said I was…incomplete?” He sent Goofy a questioning look.

Goofy nodded. “That’s right, first he said you weren’t whole, then he said you were incomplete.  Then he attacked us.”

Donald shivered. “That was an awful fight.”

“Yeah,” Sora nodded, rubbing his arms. “We didn’t even win.  He just backed off after a while, said more cryptic things, then turned invisible again.  He didn’t use those black portals at all…”  He looked at Sable. “He’s that strong?”

“Stronger.” Sable admitted. “It’s why I was trying to get you to stop heckling them.  You’re still tripping over yourself and all of you lost a lot of stamina after sleeping for so long.  We can’t face even one of them, yet.  Not seriously.  Not if we want to walk away afterwards.”

Donald grumbled under his breath, glaring at his staff like it had personally betrayed him.

“So…we need to get stronger before we try.” Sora mused, ignoring the magician’s antics.  “You think we can win?”

“Once you shake the dust off, absolutely.” Sable nodded, violet eyes fierce. “You’re a year older now, and that makes a big difference in a teenager.  You just need time and practice to hone what you’ve already got.”  She leaned back, smirking a bit. “The Organization knows that, too.  They’re going to give you that time.”

“Big mistake!” Sora grinned, visibly lighting up. “I’ll take ‘em all on!”

“An’ we’ll be right there with ya!” Goofy promised.

“Hey guys!’

Something light impacted Sable’s back and scrambled up her long hair with tiny little claws before perching atop her head.  Violet eyes wide, she sat perfectly still and didn’t dare move.

“Our scanners picked up a new route!”  Dale chirped from his perch.

“Coordinates are being added to the systems now.” Chip added by Sable’s knee.  Then he turned and glared up at his brother. “Dale, get down from there!  That’s rude!”

“Aw, Sable don’t mind.” A Rudolph-red nose came into view.  “Do ya?”

“A, uh…little warning would be preferred.” Sable managed. “Maybe not on my head?”

“Okay, then!”

He dropped down on her shoulder and sat there with a grin, his little legs hanging off.  Chip audibly slapped a hand over his face, grumbling in a teeny tiny voice.  Then he looked up, pointedly ignoring his brother, and turned to Sora again.

“Corresponding Keyhole has also been found.” He saluted. “We’re ready to head towards the next world whenever you are.”

Sora shot up to his feet, grinning brightly. “Alright, then, off I go!”

As Sable watched, he moved over to a hatch she hadn’t really noticed before, opened it, and drooped down with a whoop like a little kid going down a slide at McDonalds.  Dale sprang off her shoulder as he and Chip scrambled gleefully back to their stations.

“Uh, what’s going on?” She asked Donald and Goofy as they got up again. “Didn’t Sora already unlock the Keyhole down at Merlin’s house?”

“Well, Sable, ya see…” Goofy began.

“The pathway between Hollow Bastion and the next World hasn’t solidified, yet.” Donald picked up, tone matter-a-fact, he even held up a finger as he went on. “Right now, it’s still mixed up with the routes the Heartless use.  Sora has to clear the way before it can split apart completely.”

Sable considered that as they climbed the ladder back into the cockpit.  Goofy smiled and gestured to the seat Sora usually claimed, which Sable cautiously sank into as more screens popped up.  In one were the chipmunk brothers as they ran through a checklist.  On another was Sora, in a little one-person cockpit, also going through a list of ship-prep as he activated whatever he was sitting in.

“So, he’s…going to fly through the Realm of Darkness?” Sable asked, still trying to wrap her head around it.

“Don’t be ridiculous!” Donald scoffed.

“The way the King explained it.” Goofy spoke up. “There used to be lots of different roads between Worlds, but when Ansem sent out all those Heartless, the roads got washed away.  Like a flood washin’ out a bridge.”

“Darkness being the flood?” Sable guessed.

“Yup!  But the darkness has gone down, so the space that used to hold the pathways can be reached again.  But it’s all just one big mess.”

“So, what happens once Sora clears a path?”

Donald answered. “Then we can pass between the next World and Hollow Bastion anytime we want.”

“Unless another surge of darkness washes it out, again.” Goofy added.  “It’s all a lot nicer than it used ta be, though.”

“Yeah, we had to go through the paths the Heartless used, back then.” Donald shuddered as, on the screen, Sora flipped the chipmunk brothers a grinning thumbs-up.  “It was awful.”

Sable noticed a countdown appear on the screen as she asked her next question. “Then how did we get to Hollow Bastion without having to do this?”

They both shrugged. “The King probably cleared it for us.” Goofy reasoned. “Remember how he left us the gummi ship?  Well, it had to get there from somewhere.  Anyone with a gummi ship can open a gummi route, but people with a Keyblade are fastest about it.”

The countdown dropped to single digits.

“Then shouldn’t we be able to use the other paths he’d have had to make?”

There was a screeching whoop from the speakers as the little gummi fighter was launched from its ‘mother ship’.  Sable saw the flash of a keyhole from the window and just managed to catch a glimpse of the fighter itself before it struck the keyhole and vanished.  On the screen, it showed Sora flying through a dark space dotted with comets and meteors and other ships marked with the Heartless emblem.

“Oh, His Majesty can travel between worlds without the paths.” Goofy explained, gesturing absently with a gloved hand. “He has a Star Shard.”

“A what now?”

“It’s like a piece of a gummi.” Donald waved to the ship around them as explosions lit up the screen. “Part of a World Barrier that shattered when the World fell to the Heartless.  Only a Star Shard can carry people between worlds without needin’ a path.”

“But it can be kinda particular.” Goofy added. “The King went on some mighty interestin’ adventures before he learned to use it right.”

Sable considered that.  It explained a lot.

Then she blinked and jabbed a finger at the screen. “That was a Nobody!”

“Wha?”

Donald and Goofy both squinted at the screen.

“It was mixed in with the Heartless ships, Sora’s already blown it up.” Sable frowned. “Can Heartless and Nobodies craft their own paths the same way?  Is that why it’s so crowded?”

“Master Yen Sid did say they had their own pathways.” Goofy agreed slowly, still squinting at the feed from Sora’s fighter.

“So, that’s more of a universal in-between place where…anyone could start shaping paths between Worlds?”

Donald scowled at her. “That’s what we just told you.”

“Not that specifically.”

The magician rolled his eyes and focused back on the screen.

They watched as Sora continue to carve a massive swath of destruction through any and every Heartless battalion that went after him, and a few more random Nobody ships for flavor.  He was good, even with such a clearly basic fighter. 

That brought to mind something else.

“So, another question.” Sable started, watching Donald huff and roll his eyes again. “Sora is clearly qualified to fly a ship, so why all the fuss earlier when he tried to pilot this one?”

An almost literal dark cloud stewed over the pekin’s head as he refused to look at her.

Leaning over, Goofy put a hand to his mouth and whispered loudly. “That’s the comfiest seat.”

From the way white feathers were floofing under Donald’s collar, Goofy was probably right on the mark.  That was…so very petty.  Yet very Donald.

“Sounds like something to take up with engineering.” Sable deadpanned, staring at the royal magician and taking some amusement at seeing him start sweating.

“We’ll get right on it, Sable!” Chip chimed in over the speaker. “Next time you guys are World-side, me an’ Dale will make sure all three seats match.”

“And we’ll add another seat for you!” Dale added. “So, ya don’t have to stand the whole time!”

Violet eyes blinked, surprised. “That would be much appreciated, thank you.”

A pair of tiny thumbs-up answered her before the brothers returned to navigating for Sora.

As they continued to watch Sora make the Heartless armada greatly regret being in the same spacelane as him, Sable frowned.  Chip and Dale had only mentioned a Keyhole.  Singular.  After Hollow Bastion there were supposed to be two; one to the Land of Dragons and the other to Beast’s Castle.

She really hoped it wasn’t the Beast’s Castle, the idea of being in close proximity with Xaldin was not a nice one.  His fight had been one of the ones to give Sable the most trouble in the game and the Nobody himself was a creep. 

Also, there’d been no mention of Twilight Town vanishing from the map, which was also concerning.  Sable wondered if, because they were specifically looking for newly opened routes, the chipmunks hadn’t actually checked old ones yet.  They’d probably added Hollow Bastion to their World Map when Mickey had first taken the gummi to Twilight Town.

Sable would wait and see if they said anything after they got back from…whichever World Sora was leading them too.

              ———