Kingdom Hearts: Gate to Paradise

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Kai took a moment to look upon the house and the walkway leading across the small lake. Walking forward he took a good and careful glance around them. Could it have been a trap? Nah... those dark creatures didn't seem to have the brain capacity for any sort of tactical thinking. Still it was unsettling to see the old house on the lake with no visible defenses or enemies in sight.

As he approached the waters edge, Kai looked to another path leading from the lake leading through a cave. This opening wasn't empty, at least he thought it wasn't. The ghost of someone moving out of sight just as he'd looked made him think it was only a trick of the mind. Something he'd thought he'd seen but was really just his eyes trying to adjust.

This thought of course was soon forced aside as there was a sharp yell of an old man followed by the sound of an explosion that shook the walls of the cave and forced Kai to brace himself and stand infront of Virie.

Smoke bew out the already broken windows and soon the dirty cloth hanging in front of the door was thrown open as an old wizard stepped out onto the steps, hacking and wheezing great clouds of black while dusting off what looked to Kai to be light blue pajamas and a long matching sleeping cap. Clutched in the old skeletons left hand was a long stick Kai assumed to be a wand, and as the man raised his head to look at the other archway, Kai noticed the glint of spectacles on the mans face just above that long silvery beard that dragged the floor between the wizards feet.

"Blasted Kids! Always sneaking in and tinkering with things! Why if i were just a few centuries younger I'd..Well I'd-I'd show HER what it means to tamper with a Wizard in his PRIME! And she wouldn't be so eager to tinker, Nope! I.. " And the rant ended as he looked around to the stones and saw Kai and Virie standing ont he opposite shore. "...I appear to have more guests!" And his angry old frown turned to a bright smile.
 
Virie stood there, completely dumbfounded. This frail and slightly ridiculous looking old man had just made enough force to take her off of her feet just by popping up and existing. It hadn't seemed like some kind of attack or even an attempt at a showy entrance, just his usual thing. Then he'd gone on to say something about his prime being when he was a few centuries younger. She'd never even heard of someone living anywhere near that long, even a turtle. At least she was pretty sure they had the right old man here.

"Ah... Leon and Yuffie sent us to you for shelter," Virie stuttered, not sure how to greet him. The whole thing seemed ridiculous even to her so in an attempt to make more sense, she held up her key. It felt stupid doing it but anyone and everyone here seemed to recognize the thing even as the tiny, pathetic looking thing it was. Hopefully he'd recognize it too and it'd answer a bunch of questions so she wouldn't have to answer them. In fact, she was pretty sure she wouldn't be able to answer any but the most basic of basic ones.
 
"Shelter? What's this now?" The old man rested his hands on his lower back and gave a big stretch that craned his neck and body in a series of pops. Then he took a step forward to the edge of his little island, raising his hand up to fix his glasses and take a look at the tiny thing in her hands. "What's that puny thing?"

Kai took a breath, "It's a Key.. Old man, uh.. Sir."

"Yea well I SEE that, my boy. I mean WHY is it so small?" The old man said as in a wisp of blue smoke he appeared at Kai and Virie's side, drawing a hand up under Viries hand to examine the thing. "and and and don't think I didn't notice you refer to me as "OLD MAN" either! I'll have you know I have a name!"

Kai jumped, but couldn't help to look back and forth at where the man had been and where he was now. "Uh.. Sorry. Well we don't really have any time.."

"Time time time.. all the world is time and no one ever has any. Always rushing out and about.. never changes either. What was it..uh..." And he paused to think but Kai was growing impatient, and stepped toward the old man pleadingly.

"PLease, We need to let Leon and Yuffie know we made it. They're fighting--" but Kai was quickly cut off by the old man raising a hand.

"Now now don't interrupt, my boy. Even if you're worried about your friends fighting that man in white you shouldn't be. Leon and Yuffie are strong warriors. Saved them from worlds of magic and fantasy for a REASON, ya-see. They're Hearts can't be twisted. They were meant to fight him just as you were meant to come here and see me. Now, Names?" The old man insisted.

Kai...was annoyed and confused.
 
"Virie..." Virie answered numbly, completely baffled. He seemed to already know everything that they were going to tell him and he could even teleport from place to place at a whim. She had no idea why her key was so small. In fact, she didn't even know it was supposed to be bigger until Leon had told her. Heck, he even knew about the man in white outside despite being here. Or had he been the whole time? For all they knew, he could have been up there with them and then popped back here when they arrived. This guy was far, far beyond any matter of shoot fireballs and blowing things up. She could feel a very real seeming weight on her shoulders from his intensity and possibly his magic.

"I... I don't know why my key is so small. This is just how I got it," she answered quietly, half afraid of the answer that would come back. He didn't seem like the type that was out to hurt them but something inside her told her that if he wished it, they'd both be toads right now.
 
The man retracted his hand from under her Key and took a step back to look them over. "Virie.. Ah so that's your name.." He said knowingly, then turned an eye to Kai who had crossed his arms and looked away to think about what was going on. "What happened to not having time?"

"Kai." Kai said sharply at the prod, then adjusted the strap of the bag on his shoulder and took in a deep breath. "Sorry.. I don't like being spoken down to." He apologized, getting the same feeling as Virie. This wasn't the time to be hard-headed.

"You remind me of a boy i met.." the man said, then smirked and gave a slight chuckle before looking to virie when she spoke again. How quietly she spoke made the mans winking eyes sadden and he raised a hand to her shoulder and looked into her eyes. "Now now young lady, don't you worry about that, it was only a personal inquiry. I know a great many things but the finer details are lost event o a wizard of MY caliber."

Kai arched a brow, noticing he'd still elft that little bit of information out. "And just Who is this caliber of wizard? if you don't mind me asking."

"Oh! I'm Merlin. A pleasure to meet you!"
 
Merlin. To Virie, it was just another name but she assumed he must have been a famous wizard in his time. He was a bit of a braggart but she got the feeling that the exaggerations weren't too large at all. He was extremely perceptive too. That or he could read minds. She wasn't sure which. So she got straight to the point.

"I ended up with this keyblade but I don't know why it is so small. Our island was destroyed by a lady in white and we got dumped here in town. The heartless have been after us for a while since. We have no idea where to go, how to use this keyblade, or what we're even supposed to do with it."

To be more specific, they were after her but she figured Merlin already knew that. Actually, all of it pertained more to her than Kai but mentioning them as a pair somehow helped her feel a little more secure, like she wasn't floundering about out there all on her own. Maybe he could answer some of those questions for them. She was still worried about Leon and Yuffie but if Merlin could tell that they were there and who they were fighting, she supposed that he could just as easily teleport up there and whisk them to safety if they needed it which put her a little more at ease.
 
Merlin noticed the look on Virie's face and couldn't help the slight chuckle that escaped him. Perhaps she hadn't heard of him, but it wouldn't do for him to be upset about it.... not too upset at least.

Kai's reaction to the name was a bit different of course. He'd heard of the name, not in a book, but in a dream he barely recalled from when he was a kid. A story of a young boy who became a king... but the details were lost to him. Still, the name was familiar. That was good enough for him, old people tended to lose track of things when they had to explain any one subject. Kai would rather it be on a subject that helped them.

When Virie finished, Merlin nodded and listened carefully as if adding more information to a recent memory. "Ah yes..The Keyblade chooses it's wielder, but it doesn't have the ability to convey how it is supposed to be used... quite the conundrum. but no worry, we'll get that sorted out inside. If you'll follow me---" and Merlin was gone in a blue poof, across the water and walking up the steps to the old house.

"W-wait a second!" Kai called, but gave a slight sigh when the old man disappeared behind the curtain. "..could've taken us with him.. Well. come on then I guess." Kai groaned, starting the crossing.
 
Virie looked blankly after Merlin, wondering if she'd ever get used to his habit to popping over to wherever he wanted to go. At least it was possible to get over there and actually follow. Watching her step, she leapt from shore to the first rock, just barely making it, then to the second. Merlin hadn't been kidding about the keyblade. It was too bad that no one they knew could tell them how it was actually meant to work. One would have thought that at least they could tell her how the other keyblade wielder had done it. Merlin had said that it was supposed to be bigger, Leon too. Maybe it was supposed to be like a gun. No, that wasn't right. It was a keyblade, meaning it was some kind of sword. But then Leon's sword was a gun too. It was ridiculous to try to wrap her head around it. As fate would have it, she miscalculated the next jump and her foot slipped off the edge of the rock, leaving her to take the plunge.
 
Kai was only a little bit ahead of her, he wasn't "Gracefully" skipping across the rocks by any means, but it seemed the longer Kai was in this new world, the faster things were coming to him. Combat, Running across rooftops, even using a weapon he'd never seen before. It fascinated and frightened him all at the same time. He was wondering about it up until he heard the slip and in a flash he turned, carefully adjusted his footing and his hand was out to catch Virie.

It wasn't perfect. In fact, the slick rocks and the sudden movements nearly had them BOTH taking a dip as he pulled Virie up and tried not to slip.

Nearby, tucked to the wall of the other cave entrance, the shadow of a person had returned. small to the ground and carefully watching them with feline eyes that seemed to glow a stormy blue. Pupils were wide and body was crouched low and ready to spring into action if and when the pair needed her help. Of course, this didn't come. Kai had snatched up Virie by the arm and was now coaching Virie to go ahead of him with a teasing chuckle.

With the danger passed, it hid itself again.
 
Virie managed to mostly avoid falling in thanks to Kai. He seemed so good at reassuring her despite her mistakes, even over stuff that should be easy. It was odd how he seemed to be getting stronger and stronger just by being here, like it was where he was meant to be and he was just getting used to it. But her... She didn't seem to be coming along at all, feeling no stronger or coordinated than she had at home. Most of all, she felt even less confident here than she had there, even when the wolves were tearing everything about. Maybe she wasn't meant for this. Sure, that key was supposed to tell her otherwise but it certainly hadn't done a good job of behaving to show her that she was in the right place. With a little luck and only one more near slip, she made it to the other side where Merlin's beat up old house stood.
 
Kai touched down at Virie side with a smirk. "Well, that could have gone a lot worse.." He chuckled, adjusting the bag on his back. "Actually.. since we've got a little time to ourselves. How about you change into something that is a bit better made for traveling about than a dress. Not that the misplaced princess look doesn't suit you." He said, before kneeling down and taking the bag off his back and fiddling with the zipper.

"While you were sleeping, Yuffie wasn't the only one to show up, there was this fairy....."

~~~~~~~~~~~

"My, my, you're a bit worse for wear, aren't you?" Said an old woman with silvery gray hair and a long blue dress and tall witches hat. She was a round sort of woman, but with a kindness in her eyes that knew nothing but a mothers love and care. "The poor dears..."

"Well.. We've been through a lot since we've left home... Well... more like we were forced.." Kai frowned, looking over his shoulder to Virie. "She's not meant for this kind of stuff. She shouldn't have to deal with monsters and crazy people in white trying to kill her."

Yuffie grinned from ear to ear. "Aww.. that's cute!"

Kai rolled his eyes and stood up with a growl in his throat and a threat to his step, but Leon rose a hand to calm the boy before he got into it with someone who could quite frankly wipe the floor with him. Instead Leon nodded toward the old woman to ask a question. "What brings you here, Fairy Godmother?"

Kai paused at that. A fairy godmother? A REAL fairy Godmother?

"Why to see what was going on of course!" Laughed the old lady, her wings fluttering a little bit before she took flight and hovered over to Kai to examine him carefully. "With so much darkness stirring about of late, I very well couldn't just sit at home. Cinderella is doing just fine now, and though I love to see a happy ending I know when I am no longer needed and must go elsewhere to render my services."

"What kind of services? All you did for Cinderella was make clothes, right?" Kai objected, taking a slight step back as the fairy was getting a little too close for comfort.

The Fairy Godmother gave a winking smile, patting the boy on the head before touching down in front of him with a slightest of effort. "So you know of my tale? How delightfully intriguing!" She said with a slight clap of her hands, then a curious glance to Leon and Yuffie. "But how? I wonder.." The looked on their faces showed them to be just as unsure as she was. "Hm, a matter to look into on a later date. Right NOW, I have more important things to do for you. Yes, in that world my magic has a curfew, but magic cast outside that worlds laws allows me to cast a must more helpful and longer lasting spells."

The woman pulled out a wand and fluttered back a few feet. "The Journey ahead of you and the girl is going to be a tough one, and with so many different laws and magic in the universe you'll need protection from your enemies. This armor won't be like the kind given to knights, but I promise you it'll be just as strong, and will help keep from safe from various spells for a limited time. There are also some worlds that may require a change of appearance and boy won't that be fun for you!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kai raised a hand to tug on his jacket, glancing up to Virie with a smirk. "... So she waved her wand and my clothing changed. As a test, Leon took me out back and sparred with me." Kai shook his head at the memory. "His fireballs weren't exactly deflected.. but when I was hit I wasn't turned to ash, so there must be something to them. She made some for you too, and put them in here."
 
Virie stared, more than a little confused. She'd heard that particular story before from Kai, the one about Cinderella and the fairy god mother... but that wasn't possible. they'd never left the islands. There was no way he could have known about that. And yet he did. The thought of the possibility that Kai could actually see these other worlds through dreams ran by and left as quickly as it came. It was ludicrous to even entertain such a thought. Putting it aside for the moment, she reached into the bag and pulled out a bundle that didn't look all too much like clothes. Instead, there were some blankets, wrapping up some random things, starting with water bottles and ending with a glass slipper. A few more thoughts ran through her head. Apparently, this fairy god mother had a sense of humor.

"You're kidding..."
 
Kai watched with curiosity as it wasn't what he'd expected. He expected Virie to have gotten something a bit more useful than a glass slipper and some blankets. To him it didn't seem quite fair... Though he was in front of the Fairy Godmother when his clothes had changed.. maybe this was how it was meant to be? Perhaps it was the Fairy GodMother's way of equipping Viries "Knight" with the armor needed to protect her.

This annoyed Kai, it seemed everyone but him believed Virie to be incapable.. She was strong. He Knew she was.. she just needed the time to find what it was she was supposed to do.

His shoulders slumped, and it was with a dejected sigh that Kai looked up to Virie with a half smile. "...Sorry, Virie.. Well at least we have some stuff to keep us warm when we're camping out, right?"
 
Virie examined the slipper carefully, thinking about the story and looked down to her right foot which at the moment lacked a sandal which was back with the what was left of the island. Reaching down, she slipped it onto her foot and waited to see if it would do something. It was a perfect fit and it glowed a couple times but after that, it seemed to be satisfied, leaving her with no visible change.

"Well that didn't work so well," she sighed, nodding. It would have been nice to get some new clothes but she wasn't going to take it too hard. It wasn't like being able to take an extra hit was going to save her or anything. Maybe it had some other purpose. Or maybe it just didn't want to work for her, just like her keyblade. Taking the slipper off, she slipped it back into the bag and slung it over the shoulder.

"I guess we shouldn't keep Merlin waiting," she said, walking in, trying to hide her disappointment. It seemed like people liked giving her stuff but never stuff that actually worked. The whole "It'll work when the time comes" thing sounded cool in a story but it was completely nerve wracking in real life.
 
Kai watched her try on the slipper. He hadn't considered that. In a world of magic why wouldn't there be a magical shoe to help Virie finally get something without having to be told "when the time is right". But alas this hope was in vain. The slipper was as useless as the single sandal she had on this entire time. Even if she wouldn't get magical attire.. he'd at the very least ask the old wizard to give her another shoe.

"Right, the old man hardly seems the patient type." He said with a slight grin and followed her inside.

What awaited them was the inside of a house far larger than what it led you to think from looking at it. The interior a massive study filled with teetering piles of books and magical gadgets. Various items collected from around the world, and although the place was in complete disarray, the walls of the house were a well kept stone and looked sturdy enough to weather the wrath of war and then some. In the center of the mess was a coffee table where the old wizard was sitting and pawing over a rather large book, seemingly in a fit.

He sat in a large red armchair, and as if remembering Kai and Virie were there, he glanced up from his book for only the briefest of moments before waving the wand he kept close at hand and conjured up a pair of chairs on the opposite end of the table. "Go on, take a seat take a seat. You've earned a break, and answers to your questions aswell. Yes. I do believe it is about that time."
 
Seriously? Merlin was actually going to answer their questions? It was almost too good to be true. But if he was, she was going to milk him for all he was worth. The answers were long overdue.

"Alright, then," she said with a smile before taking on a more serious look, "Why is my keyblade like this? What exactly am I supposed to do with it? Who are those people in white and what do they want? And can we actually fix everything if we open Kingdom Hearts?"

She's shortened the list down but had hit most of the meaty questions all at once, the most important ones.
 
Kai moved up to the table and took a seat. Letting virie take the reins of information gathering. And for once they didn't get a look of uncertainty. Merlin Knew the answers, Kai felt the wizard knew perhaps more about them than even they did, and it was a welcome change to running around blind.

Merlin shut his book as the questions came, raising his hand to slow her down a bit as she gave him only what she deemed to be the most important ones on her mind. The old wizard then stood and cleared his throat. Then with a flick of his wand a young boy with large yellow shoes and red shorts appeared in miniature in the center of the table.

"To understand why your keyblade is the way it is, you must first understand WHAT the Keyblade is and how it works." Merlin started.

"Leon told us that part, The Keyblade is a weapon of light and it's used to fight the darkness." Kai chimed in, and Merlin gave a wise nod of his head as the boy on the table rose his hand into the air.

"That is correct my boy, but did he tell you that the Keyblade directly reflects both the strenghts AND weaknesses of the Keybearer (..er.. That'd be you, Virie) and their heart?" Merlin added, and the boy's hand began to glow. "The Keyblade if a mystical weapon forged by the perfect balance of Light and Dark. Leaving it to be a neutral vessel that needs to be filled with the will of it's wielder. I could go into the details of how and why, but that-that-that's really a tale for another time and another place later on down the line. All you need to know is the stronger the keybearer's heart, the stronger the keyblade."

The boy gripped the light in his hand and pulled down as the light extended in his hand and formed the handle and key-like edge of the Kingdom Key, with the keychain dangling about as he tested it with a smug grin.

"Now, the keyblades shape is decided by two things. The Will of the Keybearer, and the Keychain attached to it's end, and no two keyblades are the same." Merlin said, as the boy stopped playing with the kingdom key and shut his eyes, drawing his hand to his heart and focusing. The keychain on the end of the key began to glow, and as it changed to what looked to be a tiny music note. The moment the keychain changed, the keyblade flashed a brilliant white before extending to what looked to be an ornate handle and a full length piano keyboard, slimmed to the neck of the key blade with a golden sixteenth note from the edge to make up the teeth of the key. Something Kai noticed. The Keyblade really was a "Key" no matter what shape it took it seemed.

"The reason your keyblade is so small, appears to be a direct reflection of how you view yourself, dear girl." Merlin explained, pointing to Virie's Keyblade. "Small and rusty from misuse, but all it needs is someone to believe in it to unleash it's true power!" He grinned with a knowing chuckle. "Don't think your little stunt in the second district last night went un-noticed. A brilliant attempt, but it'll take much more than wishing to get it to do THAT again. Nope! Once you start believing in yourself, your heart will grow stronger, and the keyblade will reflect it, no doubt about that. Though judging by the size, I think it'll take a bit more than a few words from an old wizard to make you really Believe, eh?"

Kai frowned at that. "But what is she supposed to do with it? And what about those people in white?"

"OH! right you are! The keyblade is USED to fight the darkness, specifically the heartless. Those terrible creatures you faced. Leon told you that much, but what he didn't tell you is actually tied with your question of the people in White." Merlin waved his wand again and a miniature generic for a man in white appeared infront of the boy and the boy took up arms. On the back of the white robes was the Kanji for "evil" for a more "accurate" representation.

"The Order is what I've come to understand they call themselves. This is the first time they've come to Traverse Town, but I've been to other worlds to help those who have been unfortunate enough to have encountered it's members." Merlin said as the small boy and the "evil" robed man began to fight. "They wield horribly destructive powers that even I don't know the full extent of, but what I DO know is that each member is associated with an animal on the chinese zodiac."

The small man in white jumped back from the boy, balancing on the rim of Merlins glass before the water inside it jumped to life, taking the shape of giant rat.

"Some of them use elements with their abilities, but I don't believe all of them can." Merlin noted, "either way, the keyblade is the strongest weapon to use against them, as each member of the Order wields the power of darkness with evil in their hearts." and the boy impaled the man in white and the rat in a single pass, scattering them to dark wisps before taking a victory stance and vanishing in a flash of light.

"The members of the order are doing something to the worlds. I'm not sure what, but after they arrive, the worlds seem to grow sick..and over time get overrun by darkness until finally the Order erects a dark void to swallow the world up into darkness." Merlin frowned, and slumped back into his arm chair. "All those worlds... gone without a trace..."
 
Virie slumped back in her chair. So there wasn't some simple trick at all to the keyblade. It was small and weak simply because she was small and weak. While depressing, it made plenty of sense. The boy Merlin was showing them must have been the other one that Leon had mentioned. He didn't seem to have any major problems at all. As if reading her mind, he went onto answering the question further though the answer was a little ambiguous, one of those "here's the answer that you don't know how to actually do" answers. Just believing in herself was a whole lot easier said than done, especially when she had no good reason to believe. She tended to believe things based on what she could see and feel and nothing so far had exactly screamed that she could be relied upon. Throughout all this, she'd basically just been a target for everyone else to protect. Then came the brief explanation of The Order and she noticed one thing that she didn't like too much. One particular answer had been skipped.

"So can we actually fix everything if we open Kingdom Hearts?" she repeated herself slowly, "And if we can, how do we do that?"

While she appreciated Merlin actually giving some of the real answers, it pained her that those answers were mostly hands on answers, ones with no clear path to follow. The keyblade made you stronger but it was also a reflection of your actual strengths and weaknesses. So a weak person like her couldn't do much with it, basically negating that strength in the first place.
 
Merlin stroked his long white beard in thought on the question, then sat up straight to look at the both of them. "I do believe it will. It may actually set everything right, if you so wish it. As for how well.. I'm afraid i don't have that answer."

"Great, more 'maybe's' " Kai groaned, folding his arms and kicking his feet up on the table to lean back in his chair.

"Well what would you expect? This isn't some-some-some.... FAIRY TALE or childrens story. This is all very very real, you should understand that much. The world doesn't give us ALL the answers, just a path to follow to get them." Merlin said, knocking Kai's feet down.

Kai grunted, then ran a hand through his hair before reclining in thought. A path? What path did they have? They were being hunted.. it wasn't as if they could just snap their fingers and arrive at this Kingdom Hearts place. Then he paused..another question arising from his thoughts. "...Where.. IS this Kingdom Hearts anyway? If oyu can't tell us HOW it's supposed to help, Can you at least tell us where to find it?"

Merlin lifted his cap without touching it, more like it levitated off his head long enough to older fingers to rub absently at an itch before it floated down to rest lightly upon his head again. " Such a stupid boy.."

Kai arched a brow before slamming his hands on the table and standing up. "H-Hey!"

Merlin raised his hand and the arms of Kai's chair came to life, pulling him down to sit. "Calm yourself, but you really should know better. If Kingdom Hearts was in a single location, what would keep it from being found by those who follow the path of darkness? I don't know where it is, All I know is that the Keyblade can lead you there, and you will be able to open the doors just liek anything else with a lock. Just point the Keyblade at it and Presto! your way will be opened. Though I wish i could give you more accurate directions.. Perhaps you should investigate the movements of the Order. They obviously have some motive.. it could be related."
 
Merlin was kidding. He was kidding, right? Well, tough luck. Virie was pretty sure he wasn't even though he was basically telling them to go out there and get CLOSER to the bunch of people who summoned armies and sucked up worlds. He had a point that this was reality and not just a story but really. Going any direction related to that bunch that was no away was like asking to get kicked around and killed once she had served whatever purpose that they'd had in mind for her which likely included... Ah, that wasn't good.

"When the first one from the Order we met destroyed our island, she purposely let us live. It doesn't sound like that was out of charity. If we just head for Kingdom Hearts, won't they just follow us and kill us once the door is open?" she asked. Her hands felt tied. If they did nothing, the bad guys would just do whatever they wanted. And if they went after Kingdom Hearts, they might be giving the bad guys exactly what they wanted, served on a silver platter. It was like there wasn't a good move to begin with. She certainly didn't sound like she had too many uses but if the keyblade really was one of the only ways to locate Kingdom Hearts, she might as well sign up for being their pawn if she tried to fix everything and end up making stuff even worse than it already was.
 
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