Kingdom Hearts : Heartfelt Adventure {Day 8 ; Invite Only}

[Je suis a toi]

[Noelle ~ HT ~ Plaza]

Noelle had been investigating the town plaza ever since they had gotten back from scouring Halloween Town for Oogie's lair. They ultimately gave up and left it to Jack to find. Grateful for the downtime, the agromancer went around to explore. The Nightmare Before Christmas had to be one of her favorite Disney movies. She liked most things Tim Burton, but nothing topped Nightmare. Now that she was actually there and had the time to look around she was practically childish with excitement. Her physical exhaustion was something to take notice of, but she couldn't let that stop her.

Making sure to keep within the square and in everyone's sights Noelle hopped around, looking at all the buildings, climbing up walls to peer over them, poking at the slimy Swamp Monster then quickly running away to avoid questions or conversation . . . Noelle stumbled upon one of the tombs and pressed on it. The door popped open and she looked. She found Behemoth.

"Uh oh."

Behemoth's dull eyes took notice of her and he looked thrilled. "Kittyyyyy!"

"Behemoooooth!" Noelle said in reply before quickly jumping away before Behemoth came after her. He left the tomb and went on his way, distracted by something else.

With a sigh, the agromancer jumped up onto another low wall and peered over the landscape. She could see a faint outline of a really tall tree . . . a really tall moving tree . . . oh, no, it was just Jack. OHEY JACK!

"Hey guys!" She shouted, pointing over at where Jack was quickly approaching, "I founds a Skellington!"

"Everyone!" Jack exclaimed as he drew nearer to the plaza, "I've found it!"  

[Riorin]

ɀ·ვ·ს·მ ჱ

ღ Halloween Town | Plaza :.

"MMF FUMPH FIT!!!" Zeba exclaimed, jumping to her feet as she struck an action pose, complete with her weapon. The blade's golden edge glistened with a mortal sheen in the dim plaza lights, like the claw of a tigress ready to strike. The whole effect would've been rather frightening if, you know, there wasn't half a cookie protruding from her mouth.  

[LavenderSakura]

[Jenny :: HT :: Plaza]

Jenny let out a small squeak as she was unexpectedly picked up into the air. The cool wind rushed around her face as she felt her feet lift off the ground. After the initial surprise, the mage broke into a laugh. She was glad to see Kyle feeling upbeat again, rather than the humorless look he had prior. It eased away a bit of her fatigue so that when Jack Skellington suddenly appeared and shouted out his discovery, Jenny jumped and the smile on her face widened.

"Really?" She stared up at the lanky Jack, finding that it would have probably been a lot easier to look at him if she were still in the air. No matter. She took a step and stumbled over her feet before quickly regaining her balance. She suddenly remembered why spinning through the air was fun yet slightly dangerous for someone like her.  

[Jeimuzu Kuro]

{James : HT : Plaza}

{{Cue: This is Halloween(KH)}}

James was doing what he often did when he was bored or impatient, he paced back and forth, all the while humming to himself the very familiar "This is Halloween" song from Kingdom Hearts II. He really had nothing else to do, they had finished scouring the whole of the above ground of Halloween Town for any sign of where Oogie might have gone. The search of the ruins of the laboratory bringing back some very unpleasant memories. The Shade Corsair only hoped that the replicas wouldn't be involved in the eminent fight with the bag of bugs.

James' attention though was suddenly turned toward Kyle, who had been spinning Jenny around in what could only be considered pure joy. Something that he hadn't seen from Kyle in... he couldn't remember how long. He was one of the few people in the group who knew about the Empathy curse that Kyle was under. It seemed though that the curse had finally broke, judging by Kyle's optimism and unbridled joy. He couldn't help but chuckle though of course his small smile was hidden behind the shadow that was his face. He approached Kyle regardless though.

"Good to see you're back to normal was afraid that..."

James' thought was cut off there though as Noelle called out that The Pumpkin King, Jack Skellington was quickly approaching. James' blood red eyes from the shade's costume seemed to light up in anticipation as Jack told them he had found the location.

"Great! Lead on Pumpkin King!"

For some reason, James felt full of energy. Eager and ready to go. As if all of the effects of the fight with the replicas had finally completely gone away. He couldn't help but burst out laughing though as he heard Zeba's exclamation from behind a half eaten cookie.

{Auron : HT : Plaza}

The once again skeletal looking Auron had not joined the group in their frantic search for Oogie Boogie. He had mostly stayed in the central plaza, his eye scanning the area for heartless as he leaned his back against a building. When Jack came back announcing that he had found where Oogie was hiding, the samurai raised himself off of the wall and with ease swung the giant katana onto his shoulder.

"Let's get moving then..."

{Leon : Land of the Dragon : Imperial Square}

Leon and his group stood once again, right outside of the Palace gate. He had not forgotten the cold treatment that the Emperor had given them at their last visit, it was the entire reason they had brought Riku back with them this time, so that the Emperor would listen. Unfortunately for the Gunblader, it had also meant dragging back with the keyblader, half of the group from Earth. He turned his attention to look at all of them.

"Alright, just follow our lead and don't speak out of turn."

The gunblader said to the group as he pushed open the door to the palace once again and began to make the long walk through the courtyard to the palace in silence.

{General Li Shang : Land of the Dragon : Outside the Palace}

General Li Shang had once again accompanied Leon and his group back to the Palace, primarily to see how the Emperor would react now that they brought the one named Riku back with them. Shang had personally been hoping it would be Sora, since he had actually met him before but the Emperor said he would listen if they brought Riku or Sora so whatever worked. The General though had not been expecting the gunblader to bring back with him a bunch of kids though, most of them the ones they had just released from the camp not too long ago. He remained silent for the time being as he looked at the group before follow Leon into the courtyard, making sure that he got to the head of the pack so as not to arouse the suspicion of the guards yet again.  

[Psalm Grasshopper]

((Imperial Square For those of us who don't remember what it looks like.))

[Amy ; Cloud : Land of the Dragon : Imperial Square]

I've never been in a palace before.

Amy stared at the large construction, still a ways off, but intimidating nonetheless. In fact, it was all the more intimidating because she was far away, and knew it would only get bigger as they moved through this courtyard, square, uh, thing. Big area. She distinctly remembered fighting a dragon with Sora in this area, back when she had played the game.

"Why does everything have to be so big?" she commented to no one in particular, struck by the grandeur of it all. For some reason, she had an image of Kill Bill, and all those flights of stairs during Pai Mei's story, and how Beatrix had to carry water up and down them, and get stronger, and become a ninja, and yeah!

She strode along happily, careful to not pass Leon, but glad of the room she had. She could do a cartwheel right now, a row of cartwheels, even, and Ninja-hood was just a stair flight away. She looked back at the group, smiling, hands behind her head.

The scenery was nothing new to Cloud. He had, after all, been here just a short while ago. This was, in his mind, all a huge waste of time. These kids, these Earth Kids, were important, of that he was sure, but what was the point in dragging a Keyblade Master back with them? Why was there even a trust issue? Something was wrong... but other than the tingle running down his spine, Cloud just didn't have any way to prove it.  

[Pie Thrower]

[John.:Land of Dragons]

John followed silently and breathed deeply to himself at the sight of the square. The familiarity of it scared him. It hit a nerve somewhere by telling him that at some point in his life he had been here, but in a completely different manner. Before, he would not be risking his life for the others around him and there would be no time for tourism. There would be no giant portrait of Mao Zedong, no man making makeshift self-portraits of you in the back hallways. No vendors in the center of Tianmen Square selling various t-shirts and rice paddy hats for a mere 20 yuan a piece... This would be a different China, but still... a China that would bring a continuous string of memories of the girl that he loved.

He looked up to the back of Leon and smiled briefly. He was surely safe among them, and that was all he needed. Nothing more.  

[Kichi Kuronagi]

[Kichi :: Land of Dragons :: Imperial Square]

Walking through the square Kichi had to resist talking loudly with everyone about the awesome Dragon Boss fight that they had all been through in KH2. 'Oh man, that battle was epic.' He so badly wanted to talk about that battle now. 'OH, and I wonder if those open chests in the throne room are still there. ...OH s**t, now my curiosity is gonna make it hard not to check the ones behind the throne. Gah.'

While if someone could read his thoughts, they'd think 'Is that really what's on your mind? Just that?' the truth was he was purposely thinking these things. Keeping his mind on the small stuff, so that the big stuff wouldn't drag him down. Well, it had worked so far, so he wasn't planning on stopping now.  

[Bard of Lore]

{Kyle(II) : Land of Dragons : Imperial Square}

Oh the memories that this place was reminding him of. Fun nights hanging out with Jojo, spending a ridiculously long time leveling here, getting all the treasure, leaving no stone unturned, no chest unopened. Those were the days. Granted, these are memorable days too. Just, memorable in a different way. When I last came to China, it was through a video game. Now I'm actually here. And I was here just a while ago, albeit for five days. Oh the fun I had. He thought to himself, reflecting on the time with the shaolin monks.

"But Amy, if it wasn't big, I don't think it would be nearly as impressive. You could fit quite a few people in here you know." He said, not really minding that she was just tossing the comment out.  

[Psalm Grasshopper]

[Amy : Land of Dragons : Imperial Square]

"And impressing people is important," Amy said, in a tone that suggested she didn't believe that in the slightest. She turned to the palace as if addressing the building itself. "Wouldn't want the peasants to discover you're just a mortal man, now would we?"

She stopped her soon to be tirade right there. "Wow, I'm being really negative. I, uh, I think I'll do a cartwheel."

She proceeded to do so, and cartwheeled off to the side. It went fine, she had that odd feeling one gets when the world turns upside-down, but it was no different from what she remembered from her cartwheeling days as a child. She did, however, regret it almost immediately after she did it.

"Hooo, God," she said, crunching down on the ground to ease her injured legs, "Never cartwheel before you stretch. Not a good idea." As if any of the men in her group would need that advice. She could just imagine Leon cartwheeling.  

[Jeimuzu Kuro]

{Luxord : ??? : Dark Tower}

Luxord sat, his legs crossed ankle over knee as he listened to the group discuss the failure regarding Seymour's making the replicas obedient. The Gambler of Fate though didn't consider their breaking free a failure. It was through the replica's distraction that they were able to turn their newest recruit.

"Instead of arguing about what has been done... Let us turn our attention to what shall be done."

{Kuro Oni : The Flying Dutchman : On Deck}

{{Cue: For Whom the Bell Tolls}}

Kuro Oni stood on the deck, of the ship, near the bow. Looking out at the raging sea on which they sailed. Seemingly unfazed by the wind, the rain, or the waves crashing against the ship. They had succeeded without great difficulty to obtain the Heart and now they could sail the seas without fear. Davy Jones as a prisoner to their will. This ship he was certain would have given his pathetic original the creeps, but to him it was a sanctuary. He could hear the organ being played by none other than Davy Jones himself down below, the sound rising from the ships depths to the deck. The chaotic melody filling the dark corsair's body with excitement.

"It will not be too long... Until we meet again. Then we can continue this conflict of ours and soon your life will be over!"

He was speaking to himself, not to anyone else. But any of the other replicas who heard him speak would know all too well who it was he was referring to.

{Davy Jones : The Flying Dutchman : Captain's Quarters}

Davy Jones continued to play the organ as he had ben persuaded to do by Ajora. The blasted replica who looked like nothing more then a young man to him. However, the Captain of the ship of lost souls could sense such an ominous aura, and of course there was the fact that he quite literally held his life in his hand.

'So long as he keeps his end of the bargain...I will go along with him. For now.'

That was the corrupted immortal train of thought right now. He would do nothing against these replicas so long as they delivered the man that they promised... The infamous Captain Jack Sparrow.  

[Enji_Chou]

[Kyla: LoD: Imperial Square]

The sights, and sounds, she loved it! China! Kyla had always wanted to see china!! It took all her self-control to mask her inner giddiness! From the towering curved roof tops with dragons statues of gold snaking their way cross, to the streams of lanterns that lit the streets and interiors. It was enough for her to almost forget that being a female- until Mulan came along, she would have been considered nothing more than a dog that followed behind a man at all times.

Now she wasn’t stupid enough to think their views would change overnight- but she would come into the palace with her head held high, and she dared anyone who met her gaze with contempt to stop her.
Keeping silent regardless, her hand was zooming across pages and pages of stored images she was determined to immortalize into her book and keep track of their journey since the split.

All around her the others were releasing their stress in various ways, mostly talking despite Leon’s warnings. Kyla hoped that wouldn’t create a problem. Good lord- don’t anyone go fan-crazy when they approached the emperor! Might as well just kill her now- from embarrassment!
Amy did a cartwheel out of the corner of her vision, and Kyla had caught on her paper like a snap shot.

Funny- she thought. She was capturing images much faster then ever before. A side effect from her job class, maybe? She must be getting better at spontaneous sketching. Good, they’re going to need it.

As they followed the gunblader Kyla sped up so she could follow almost right behind him, having learned the hard way it was best to see what was coming. There was a strange tension in the air, she wasn’t sure who it was coming from- but the atmosphere wasn’t as nearly as awe striking as she once hoped. There was a sensation of expectancy, like waiting for a shoe to drop, she recognized this sensation immediately and kept her eyes open regardless how coolly the more experienced characters acted.

To her right in front, beside Leon, was Shang. Now she felt funny- and it was odd, after being in this twisted world for a few days, one would think you’d get over seeing childhood figments taking on true existence in front of you. Guess sometimes there are exceptions. Kyla always liked the Mulan’s story as a child. She related a lot to her, guess many people do…

Whatever the case, she had to mentally push herself to not stare so much. Being rude in ancient china was NEVER a good idea.




[Axel: Land of Dragons: Imperial Square> Palace]
Ok, he recognized some of the faces that had returned, but apparently in between some of them where some new faces. Some of them were carrying a knowing look in their eye. Could it be the new additions weren’t green horns like some of the others? They looked, weathered, somehow.
Like letting their guard down wasn’t a good idea and they knew it. Like the girl who did cartwheels, her cynical commentary seemed to reflect she was over being easily impressed by this ‘new world’ they claim to have been apparently flung into.

Looking across the flock of sheep to ‘blonde’ (Cloud), he noticed the buster user was as tense as always. And he didn’t blame him. He wondered if the emperor was really going to be satisfied with just seeing Riku. HE met the guy enough times in the past to know he was legit- but he didn’t remember the kid meeting the old man on the throne before. Meh- maybe he missed that party.

Beatrix was stoic as always, and Leon was leading the pack with Shang in tow…and a shadow behind them both. Axel squinted and saw it was just of the earthlings, apparently wanting to see what was up ahead. She was scribbling away into an open book in her arms.

Some of the guys were quiet, but their eyes stared widely all around them- one dude looked like he hit s sore spot. (John) He kept close to Leon for obvious reasons. They all seemed to know, regardless if they met, that he was the ‘safe’ guy. Another guy(Kyle 2) was coping with sarcasm, replying to the girl and taking part in their mockery.

He saw the kids were trying to keep up their morale, exchanging light-hearted and sometimes, sarcastic remarks, which he found interesting. Just hope they don’t go all ape-s**t when they enter the throne room. But if the s**t hit the fan, he was sure they could handle it.

Beatrix could just bring the house down, while the ferret (Yuffie), robed the guy of this crown.

He had stopped abruptly, knocked out of musings when he had nearly walked into the wobbling and dizzy teen (Amy) who did her cartwheel without stretching, as she claimed. He looked down at her and smirked. “Gotcha, now up quickie lil girl- before Mr. Personality leaves your dizzy butt there on the rug.” He offered a hand to her in earnest.
 

[Psalm Grasshopper]

[Cloud ; Amy : Land of Dragons : Imperial Square]

Cloud was unaware he had been frowning. When Axel looked over he became sensible of his expression, and was quick to hide it behind a mask of stoicism. He wasn't actually indifferent to the matter at hand, but Axel- that man, that nobody, had a way of putting Cloud on his guard, not just physically but emotionally.

It had taken this long for him to come to terms with it. Axel was a nobody, and a treacherous one at that. Cloud heard the story from Cid, but however he had heard it then, he translated it as this: Axel had betrayed his comrades. Up until now in their journey, Cloud had been at conflict with his own feelings of the nobody, stuck between trying to treat him as a man redeemed, and-

He looks a lot like him.

Cloud realized he was staring. Axel was in the middle of helping a small girl get back on her feet. Looks, mannerisms, even his voice sometimes. There was no way that Axel was this somebody's nobody, that was impossible, but the similarities were there nonetheless.

He tore his eyes off of the nobody. Axel was not him. Now if he could only keep that in mind, he could treat the fiery red head as a member of their team that had done nothing but help them so far, instead of as, well, a traitor with his friends face. Some memories were better left buried, and buried deep.

It took a moment for her to realize who was talking to her, and she didn't realize at all that he had almost bumped into her, so disoriented was she from that cartwheel, but when she did look up...

Axel. Holycrapmonkeys, Axel.

Her mouth dropped open, and some incomprehensible words tumbled out. She laughed rather stupidly at herself, and covered it all up by taking his offered hand, pulling herself up with his help, and saying, maybe a little too quickly, "Oh, I'm fine, I-" Oh, wait a minute, wait a minute. Her tone changed abruptly, "Who you calling a little girl?" she demanded.  

[Kaegoe]

[Dawn : Halloween Town : Plaza]

Dawn yawned, from both boredom and tiredness, as she leaned against one of the street polls. She glanced over in the direction of Kyle and Jenny as he swung her around. It pulled a smile across her face. It was very light hearted and it was nice.

Dawn looked away with a small laugh, as she reached up to play with the ends of her hair with her fingers.

"You know one would think it would be easy to find a skeleton in this place," she said with a pout just before Noelle's announcement, "Oh speak of the devil..."

[Mulan/Mushu : LoD : Imperial Square]

Mulan looked around the square. She was anxious. After the last meeting with the Emperor, she felt rather uneasy. She could only pray that things will do better this time around.

"Don't worry!" Mushu told her in his usually calm and laid back additude, "Everything is going to go fine. We got Riku here right. Plus we got back up this time."

The red dragon pointed to the group of Earthlings that had accompanied Riku and Leon when they came. Minus a few, they all were familar faces.

Mulan looked at the group and felt somewhat at ease but not enough to be as calm as her guardian.

"I just can't help but feel as if something is very wrong here, more then we know. I have known the Emperor to act in such a way, " she sighed as her eyes looked at the palace doors.