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Kingdom Hearts: All Good Things 7
For story summary, warnings, pairings, etc, see the first chapter.
Chapter: 7/25
Chapter title: Thinking of You
Chapter rating: PG
Chapter summary: Lea gets help from a fairy lady and helps her in turn. Of course, kids get into trouble.
Neverland is not exactly one of his favorite places.
Not that he has anything in particular against the place, but it just rubs him the wrong way. A big part of it is, he suspects, the fact that the only times he ever came here in the Organization, he was working with Roxas.
Now he's all alone, and Roxas isn't anywhere to be seen.
Well, it's no use to stand here and wonder. He's got a spiky teenager to find.
For a moment he actually tries to fly, but finds his efforts useless. Oh well. It shouldn't be much of a surprise, given how long it's been since his visit. The magic, whatever it was, would have worn off by now. Better just get used to getting around on foot.
Which would, of course, be infinitely easier if the whole place didn't consist of islands and rocks and sea.
It doesn't take long for him to be utterly exhausted and frustrated running around, but he's not going to give up that easily. There are so many places where Roxas could be, and he's just barely scratched the surface of this world. If he has to swim to every island in this stupid sea to find him, then he will, exhausting or not.
Oh, light, he hopes he won't have to swim to every island.
A little jingling sound draws his attention first, before he even sees the shining light from the corner of his eye. As he turns to look, the little fairy is there, eyeing him suspiciously.
"Well, hello, little miss." Lea gives her a lopsided grin. "You wouldn't have happened to see Roxas around here, would you?"
She tilts her head as though not sure what he's talking about. That, or she's just being difficult.
"You know. Roxas? The kid who was with me last time? Black coat like this, brown spiky hair?"
She seems to think for a moment, then shakes her head with another little tingling sound.
"I see." Lea feels like a deflating balloon. "Well, suppose it was worth a try." Swimming it is, then.
She hovers nearby for a moment, then flies up to his face again. Looks like she's trying to say something, judging by the worried look on his face.
"What? I can't understand a word you say, you realize." Lea raises an eyebrow. "Let me guess. You need help with something?"
She nods vigorously, then mimes what seems to be whacking something. Lea can't help but grin.
"Heartless trouble, have you?"
Another nod. Well, he supposes he can't blame her for not being able to take Heartless out by herself.
"Well, tell you what. You give me some more of that sparkly stuff of yours, and I'll follow you to wherever you need the Heartless away from. Deal?"
She still looks suspicious, even though obviously she's the one who needed his help. What, did she expect him to follow her on foot?
"I kind of need it to get around, you know." He summons his keyblade, now, startling her if the little jump is anything to go by. "I promise I'll help you, but you'll have to help me first."
After a moment's thought, she nods, then flies over him with the familiar shower of sparkling golden dust. Lea pushes away the memory of Roxas standing right beside him, then focuses. First, he needs to get in the air.
He closes his eyes, and he could swear he is seeing Roxas, so clear and vibrant and just plain alive right before his eyes. If he reaches out his hand he'll be able to touch him, surely, yet he doesn't dare to even try for fear of shattering the image instead. He can't do that, after all. Can't break the imaginary Roxas before he's found the real deal again.
Instead of reaching out, he focuses on thinking. Thinking about Roxas, about the warm feeling he gets as he recalls that face, that special sensation that first convinced him that perhaps he might still have a heart or at least feel like he did. Roxas' words are clear in his mind, as though they are just being whispered into his ear, a simple request to believe in him.
Of course. Some days, that's the only thing he can believe in.
He's not sure when his feet leave the ground, but as he opens his eyes again, he is in the air, floating off to the eternally dark sky. After a moment to get his bearings, he turns to the fairy, who is flying little circles around him.
"So. Where'd you need me to whack stuff, again?"
She actually looks surprised, the poor thing.
It's not that difficult, in the end, though they do run into some pretty big Heartless, probably because nobody has been around to clean them up for a while. It's nothing he can't handle, though, and since he now has a Keyblade, they shouldn't even come back. The fairy lady mostly hides in his hood, not that he can blame her. Her natural defenses seem to consist of flying higher than the enemy, and… well, that's about it. At least while she's in his hood, she's not distracting him from the actual enemies.
It's after he's brought down a particularly big and nasty Phantomtail that he hears the cries for help. For a moment he wonders if the fairy has finally learned to speak comprehensibly, then realizes there are several voices, coming from above him. Looking around, he sees three heads poking out over the edge of a particularly high rock.
"Uh. You know those people?" After all, she's the local here.
Apparently she does, judging by the sudden frantic jingling as she flies out of his hood, waving her little arms toward the rock. Well, okay, he's got the hint.
Lea flies up to the rock right behind the fairy lady, occasionally glancing around for any remaining Heartless. There are none, though, or at least none show their faces by the time he's flown up high enough to see the people in need of help.
Kids. It's kids, and rather strange-looking ones at that, too, dressed up like some kind of animals. They seem relieved at first to see the fairy, only for their eyes to widen as they spot Lea.
"A pirate! It's a flying pirate! Oh, now we're done for!"
"Oh, shut up, I'm not a pirate." Lea sighs, watching as the fairy flies around, making sure they're all right. "What exactly are you doing here?" The rock seems to be more accurately a cliff, with the mouth of a cave behind them, stuffed with rocks. Well, that direction's obviously blocked, but if they know the fairy, couldn't they have just flown off?
"Well, we were just looking through the caves when something really big and nasty came out," one of the boys explains, one dressed like a fox. "And then we ran off and closed the hole behind us but then we couldn't get away!"
"Right, because of the cliff. Well, fairy lady is here now, and I took care of the monster, so you can just fly off."
"It's not that easy!" Of course. Nothing is ever easy, is it? "Our tails got caught when we closed the hole!"
Oh. Looking closer, he can see the tails in each of their costumes, with the ends pinned under the stones. How careless would they have to have been to manage that?
"Right. Well, if fairy lady can give you a pinch of sparkly stuff, I can take care of the stones."
"Her name is Tinker Bell!"
"Well, she hasn't exactly told me that." And yet, he has to deal with her angry little jingles before she gives the boys a shower. "Okay, get ready to fly off… Aero!"
It's easier than he expected, getting the stones to fly off with his whirlwind. He supposes the kids wouldn't have lodged them very firmly, panicked and small as they are. Though that still doesn't explain why they didn't just get the stones off their stupid tails themselves.
A roar bursts out of the mouth of the cave, the sound of something very big and hungry. Ah, right. That's why.
The kids at least have the good sense and panic to fly off as soon as they're free, leaving Lea alone on the cliff as the footsteps of something very big and heavy start approaching.
"Oh, right." He sighs, taking a better grip of his keyblade. "Almost forgot. This is what you get for being a good guy."
That is about the only complaint he gets out before he is attacked by the second Phantomtail of the day. What was it even doing in a cave? Phantomtails are very much characterized by not being in caves. Or underground in general. Or, well, anything but airborne. They can fly, damn it.
Well, he'd probably best not waste his time wondering where it came from. Especially with that pesky being able to fly thing, and the kids who are now screaming at him to take the monster down. He probably shouldn't let them get eaten, even if it would put a stop to the screams after a while.
Roxas would be so proud of him right now.
This one is somewhat harder to defeat than the first one, probably because it's angry at having been shut in the cave, or because he is already somewhat tired from the first battle. However, he manages to get it down at last, without even having any losses in the screaming audience, by either him or the Heartless. If that doesn't prove he's one of the good guys, then nothing will.
Of course, as luck would have it, as soon as he lands to dig for a potion in his things, the kids fly to him, again accusing him of being a pirate.
"Oh, shut up," he sighs as he finally locates a potion and downs it right away. "How exactly am I a pirate? I don't even have a ship."
"Yeah, but you've got an eye-patch." Is the brat seriously trying to poke at his ruined eye? "Only pirates have eye-patches."
"Not true. The one I got this one from wasn't a pirate, and he had one, too." A smirk spreads over his face. "Look out, it might be catching."
The brat draws his hand away with a yelp. Geez, they really are pretty naive around here.
"Well, if you're not a pirate, what are you doing here?" demands the biggest of the boys, dressed like a fox. "The only adults who are here are pirates!"
"Hey, I'm here, aren't I? So obviously I'm the exception to the rule." He shrugs. "I'm looking for someone."
"Oh? Did you lose someone?" a smaller boy blinks at him.
"Something like that. The fairy lady —" an angry jingle, oh, right, "Tinker Bell saw him when I last visited. She said he hasn't seen him, but I thought I'd take a look myself, anyway."
"Well, Peter Pan sometimes brings lost boys here," the oldest says. "That's how we got here. But he hasn't brought anyone new lately."
"Yeah, well, the one I'm looking for is somewhat older than you." He sighs. "You said there aren't any adults around here, right? What about boys older than you?"
"No, there aren't." The kids all shake their heads. "There's only Peter Pan, and he's always been here."
"Right." Just his luck, isn't it. "Well, I suppose I'll still take a quick look around just to make sure. Unless the fairy lady has any more Heartless for me to take down?" Another annoyed jingle. "I'll just take that as a no, Miss Tinker Bell."
He'd better get moving if he wants to check everywhere before the week's over. He didn't even realize just how big this world is. And because flying around would be too easy, the largest island is full of forests, too.
Well, he never thought he was taking on an easy task when he set out.
It's going to be very much worth it when he finds Roxas, though.
Chapter 6 - Familiar Tune
Chapter 8 - Relationship Advice
Chapter: 7/25
Chapter title: Thinking of You
Chapter rating: PG
Chapter summary: Lea gets help from a fairy lady and helps her in turn. Of course, kids get into trouble.
Neverland is not exactly one of his favorite places.
Not that he has anything in particular against the place, but it just rubs him the wrong way. A big part of it is, he suspects, the fact that the only times he ever came here in the Organization, he was working with Roxas.
Now he's all alone, and Roxas isn't anywhere to be seen.
Well, it's no use to stand here and wonder. He's got a spiky teenager to find.
For a moment he actually tries to fly, but finds his efforts useless. Oh well. It shouldn't be much of a surprise, given how long it's been since his visit. The magic, whatever it was, would have worn off by now. Better just get used to getting around on foot.
Which would, of course, be infinitely easier if the whole place didn't consist of islands and rocks and sea.
It doesn't take long for him to be utterly exhausted and frustrated running around, but he's not going to give up that easily. There are so many places where Roxas could be, and he's just barely scratched the surface of this world. If he has to swim to every island in this stupid sea to find him, then he will, exhausting or not.
Oh, light, he hopes he won't have to swim to every island.
A little jingling sound draws his attention first, before he even sees the shining light from the corner of his eye. As he turns to look, the little fairy is there, eyeing him suspiciously.
"Well, hello, little miss." Lea gives her a lopsided grin. "You wouldn't have happened to see Roxas around here, would you?"
She tilts her head as though not sure what he's talking about. That, or she's just being difficult.
"You know. Roxas? The kid who was with me last time? Black coat like this, brown spiky hair?"
She seems to think for a moment, then shakes her head with another little tingling sound.
"I see." Lea feels like a deflating balloon. "Well, suppose it was worth a try." Swimming it is, then.
She hovers nearby for a moment, then flies up to his face again. Looks like she's trying to say something, judging by the worried look on his face.
"What? I can't understand a word you say, you realize." Lea raises an eyebrow. "Let me guess. You need help with something?"
She nods vigorously, then mimes what seems to be whacking something. Lea can't help but grin.
"Heartless trouble, have you?"
Another nod. Well, he supposes he can't blame her for not being able to take Heartless out by herself.
"Well, tell you what. You give me some more of that sparkly stuff of yours, and I'll follow you to wherever you need the Heartless away from. Deal?"
She still looks suspicious, even though obviously she's the one who needed his help. What, did she expect him to follow her on foot?
"I kind of need it to get around, you know." He summons his keyblade, now, startling her if the little jump is anything to go by. "I promise I'll help you, but you'll have to help me first."
After a moment's thought, she nods, then flies over him with the familiar shower of sparkling golden dust. Lea pushes away the memory of Roxas standing right beside him, then focuses. First, he needs to get in the air.
He closes his eyes, and he could swear he is seeing Roxas, so clear and vibrant and just plain alive right before his eyes. If he reaches out his hand he'll be able to touch him, surely, yet he doesn't dare to even try for fear of shattering the image instead. He can't do that, after all. Can't break the imaginary Roxas before he's found the real deal again.
Instead of reaching out, he focuses on thinking. Thinking about Roxas, about the warm feeling he gets as he recalls that face, that special sensation that first convinced him that perhaps he might still have a heart or at least feel like he did. Roxas' words are clear in his mind, as though they are just being whispered into his ear, a simple request to believe in him.
Of course. Some days, that's the only thing he can believe in.
He's not sure when his feet leave the ground, but as he opens his eyes again, he is in the air, floating off to the eternally dark sky. After a moment to get his bearings, he turns to the fairy, who is flying little circles around him.
"So. Where'd you need me to whack stuff, again?"
She actually looks surprised, the poor thing.
It's not that difficult, in the end, though they do run into some pretty big Heartless, probably because nobody has been around to clean them up for a while. It's nothing he can't handle, though, and since he now has a Keyblade, they shouldn't even come back. The fairy lady mostly hides in his hood, not that he can blame her. Her natural defenses seem to consist of flying higher than the enemy, and… well, that's about it. At least while she's in his hood, she's not distracting him from the actual enemies.
It's after he's brought down a particularly big and nasty Phantomtail that he hears the cries for help. For a moment he wonders if the fairy has finally learned to speak comprehensibly, then realizes there are several voices, coming from above him. Looking around, he sees three heads poking out over the edge of a particularly high rock.
"Uh. You know those people?" After all, she's the local here.
Apparently she does, judging by the sudden frantic jingling as she flies out of his hood, waving her little arms toward the rock. Well, okay, he's got the hint.
Lea flies up to the rock right behind the fairy lady, occasionally glancing around for any remaining Heartless. There are none, though, or at least none show their faces by the time he's flown up high enough to see the people in need of help.
Kids. It's kids, and rather strange-looking ones at that, too, dressed up like some kind of animals. They seem relieved at first to see the fairy, only for their eyes to widen as they spot Lea.
"A pirate! It's a flying pirate! Oh, now we're done for!"
"Oh, shut up, I'm not a pirate." Lea sighs, watching as the fairy flies around, making sure they're all right. "What exactly are you doing here?" The rock seems to be more accurately a cliff, with the mouth of a cave behind them, stuffed with rocks. Well, that direction's obviously blocked, but if they know the fairy, couldn't they have just flown off?
"Well, we were just looking through the caves when something really big and nasty came out," one of the boys explains, one dressed like a fox. "And then we ran off and closed the hole behind us but then we couldn't get away!"
"Right, because of the cliff. Well, fairy lady is here now, and I took care of the monster, so you can just fly off."
"It's not that easy!" Of course. Nothing is ever easy, is it? "Our tails got caught when we closed the hole!"
Oh. Looking closer, he can see the tails in each of their costumes, with the ends pinned under the stones. How careless would they have to have been to manage that?
"Right. Well, if fairy lady can give you a pinch of sparkly stuff, I can take care of the stones."
"Her name is Tinker Bell!"
"Well, she hasn't exactly told me that." And yet, he has to deal with her angry little jingles before she gives the boys a shower. "Okay, get ready to fly off… Aero!"
It's easier than he expected, getting the stones to fly off with his whirlwind. He supposes the kids wouldn't have lodged them very firmly, panicked and small as they are. Though that still doesn't explain why they didn't just get the stones off their stupid tails themselves.
A roar bursts out of the mouth of the cave, the sound of something very big and hungry. Ah, right. That's why.
The kids at least have the good sense and panic to fly off as soon as they're free, leaving Lea alone on the cliff as the footsteps of something very big and heavy start approaching.
"Oh, right." He sighs, taking a better grip of his keyblade. "Almost forgot. This is what you get for being a good guy."
That is about the only complaint he gets out before he is attacked by the second Phantomtail of the day. What was it even doing in a cave? Phantomtails are very much characterized by not being in caves. Or underground in general. Or, well, anything but airborne. They can fly, damn it.
Well, he'd probably best not waste his time wondering where it came from. Especially with that pesky being able to fly thing, and the kids who are now screaming at him to take the monster down. He probably shouldn't let them get eaten, even if it would put a stop to the screams after a while.
Roxas would be so proud of him right now.
This one is somewhat harder to defeat than the first one, probably because it's angry at having been shut in the cave, or because he is already somewhat tired from the first battle. However, he manages to get it down at last, without even having any losses in the screaming audience, by either him or the Heartless. If that doesn't prove he's one of the good guys, then nothing will.
Of course, as luck would have it, as soon as he lands to dig for a potion in his things, the kids fly to him, again accusing him of being a pirate.
"Oh, shut up," he sighs as he finally locates a potion and downs it right away. "How exactly am I a pirate? I don't even have a ship."
"Yeah, but you've got an eye-patch." Is the brat seriously trying to poke at his ruined eye? "Only pirates have eye-patches."
"Not true. The one I got this one from wasn't a pirate, and he had one, too." A smirk spreads over his face. "Look out, it might be catching."
The brat draws his hand away with a yelp. Geez, they really are pretty naive around here.
"Well, if you're not a pirate, what are you doing here?" demands the biggest of the boys, dressed like a fox. "The only adults who are here are pirates!"
"Hey, I'm here, aren't I? So obviously I'm the exception to the rule." He shrugs. "I'm looking for someone."
"Oh? Did you lose someone?" a smaller boy blinks at him.
"Something like that. The fairy lady —" an angry jingle, oh, right, "Tinker Bell saw him when I last visited. She said he hasn't seen him, but I thought I'd take a look myself, anyway."
"Well, Peter Pan sometimes brings lost boys here," the oldest says. "That's how we got here. But he hasn't brought anyone new lately."
"Yeah, well, the one I'm looking for is somewhat older than you." He sighs. "You said there aren't any adults around here, right? What about boys older than you?"
"No, there aren't." The kids all shake their heads. "There's only Peter Pan, and he's always been here."
"Right." Just his luck, isn't it. "Well, I suppose I'll still take a quick look around just to make sure. Unless the fairy lady has any more Heartless for me to take down?" Another annoyed jingle. "I'll just take that as a no, Miss Tinker Bell."
He'd better get moving if he wants to check everywhere before the week's over. He didn't even realize just how big this world is. And because flying around would be too easy, the largest island is full of forests, too.
Well, he never thought he was taking on an easy task when he set out.
It's going to be very much worth it when he finds Roxas, though.
Chapter 6 - Familiar Tune
Chapter 8 - Relationship Advice