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[ Kyle, Sora, Riku : Disney : Hangar ]

When the second Joe walked over somewhere, Kyle leaned his head forward so he could see around the group, finally spotting Jenny. "Oooh, there she is," Kyle said.

Sora, noticing about the same time as Joe, began heading over as well, though he gave the two their space. "Need something?" he asked, concern etched in his expression.

Kyle was about to ask what was wrong before he realized it himself--her hearing. He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. On the one hand, he felt pretty bad for her; with emotions running wildly the past few minutes, as he'd experienced himself, it was likely a cacophony-caused headache. On the other hand, with a group that was always fairly large, he hoped she'd learn to control the ability soon--for her own sake more than anyone else.

When Anthony strolled up and began to talk to James, Kyle couldn't help but mentally seize up. All that talking, and he hadn't even been around? Noooo no no there would be no repetition of something so damn long-winded, no, un-uh, Kyle's mind rebelled at the thought. Luckily enough, he didn't seem to care, so Kyle brushed it under the rug with a grin.

"I'd ask why you were throwing up, but I'm not too big on the bile, so I'll just leave it as glad you're feeling better," he said, giving Anthony a small wave. Hopefully, as the conversation progressed towards more light-hearted chatter, Jenny's headache would lessen considerably. "As he's busy checking on Jenny--Anthony, meet Joe. Joe, that's Jenny and this is Anthony."

"I doubt we'll need nicknames. Leaderdude and Joe work fine," Kyle added with a casual shrug, though it was obviously in jest.

{Bobbi, Demyx, Zell, Red XIII/Nanaki .:. Disney Castle Town .:. Hangar}

Bobbi was incredibly grateful that she was used to splitting her attention six ways from Sunday, as she listened to the voice in her head--who apparently wasn't Louis?--and the others. He brought up an excellent point with his questions, and the Archer didn't hesitate in her answer. If it wasn't for the last week, it would have probably been either different, or arrived at after much soul-searching and internal debate. As it stood, her experiences of the past week had affected her too much for her decision to be anything but what it was.

Oh, you're not him? she asked, just to be sure. Sorry, I thought the only male sharing my head was Louis, but I guess not. Anyway, to answer your question, yes. Yes, I can kill someone for the sake of the greater good. It... It won't be the first time.

The memory of her arrow--arrows, really, thanks to the enormous missile that had been sent along with her Piercing Icicle--speeding towards Ajora just a few short hours ago played across her mind, deliberately evoked for her new guest to see. Even though Ajora was a replica, he was also a person, and she had made the decision to kill him. It was a decision she wouldn't, couldn't go back on, and she knew she'd make the same choice for anyone who was a danger; danger to her friends, danger to innocents, danger to the worlds. Her heart was heavy with the weight of that decision, but she was certain it was the right one.

Thankfully, she was distracted from such heavy thoughts by Sora teasing leader!Joe, and she was distracted enough to chuckle at the lighthearted antics of her friends. Then Anthony showed up, followed by Kuro's subsequent facepalm, and Bobbi laughed out loud. Of course, that was right when she noticed poor Jenny over in her corner, now being fussed over by newguy!Joe. Bobbi winced sympathetically at the time-mage's mention of a headache, but didn't move to help. She knew from her own splitting headaches that too many people too close was a bad idea, and she wasn't about to make matters worse by pressing in on the girl.

:Would you like an ice pack for your head or something, dear?: she asked over the charms, trying to keep her "voice" pitched low enough to not be jarring or make the headache worse. :Walking ice dispenser, right here~:

((With any luck I can find myself a coffee shop or something and get another post up in a week or so, next time I have a day off to myself. Unless I can "borrow" internet from one of my neighbors again. ;P I'll get on as often as I can, you guys, I just don't know how soon or frequent that will be.))

[ Amy : Disney : Hanger ]

Amy didn't even notice that Jenny was already here, and had assumed she was still on the ship catching up on some much needed rest. She hadn't spoken up when the ice ball introduction game was going on, so Amy figured she just wasn't there. She felt kind of bad for not noticing her until now.

Anthony missed the introductions and the grand explanations while he was busy being air-sick, but she doubted anyone was willing to go over it all again. She would have to get a copy of the conversation from Kyla, like she had made a note to remember to do. Then he could just read it, and bam–knowledge imparted. She wondered if Kyla had kept a log of their introductions as well... probably not.

"Yeah, the doors are locked. We've been waiting a little while for someone to come unlock them," she answered Anthony.

[[Rufus : ShinRa Headquarters : Main Office]]

Rufus shifted his eyes down to the pages in his hand and placed them on the desk gently, "First of all, I want to reinforce in you that none that transpired this morning will be held against you. We knew when organizing this mission, intel was lacking. There was no foreseeing the events that transpired and you will not be held accountable in any way. You did well," his words were kind, but somehow, tone and inflection lent themselves no such hospitality. Lacing his fingers together over his lap, Rufus got down to business, "but I'm sure it goes without saying I still have a great deal of questions regarding this morning's events. Tseng has filled me in on everything he could explain, but I wish to get another's perspective."

Moving his hand to his computer, he continued with a click, the windows behind him suddenly becoming a display presenting an array of pictures from poor quality blurs to full body portraits of individuals in various environments from deserts to cities, but all best identified collectively as earthlings, "Tseng informs me you encountered others like yourself... as an earthling, what can you tell us about them?"

[ Kyle, Sora, Riku : Disney : Hangar ]

"I don't think a spell like that will work for her anyway," Kyle said with a light shrug as Anthony and Amy spoke before the punch-happy knight walked over to the door. "It's a gift-curse sort of thing, she can explain it."

"Anthony, we already--" Sora tried to talk, only to be interrupted by the powerful--pointless--punch against the door. And then more, and more, all fruitless. Sora chuckled, and Riku simply shook his head.

"Are you quite through?"

The elderly voice sounded all-too-amused from above, calling attention to the Red Rose's balcony that overlooked them. There, leaning on the railing, was none other than the blue-robed Merlin, smiling happily at those collected below.

"Hey Merlin!" Sora shouted, waving. "What's the deal, we've been waiting for ages!"

"Actually only a minute or two," he said with a mischievous grin as he gently floated over the railing and down to the ground below. "We wanted to give you a bit of time to meet Joe here, so we compressed time inside the hangar--and then you all had quite a bit to talk about. Seems you've wrapped things up, though, so it's best we get the show going!"

"Show?" Kyle repeated, lifting a brow.

Merlin simply winked before walking toward the door, turning around to face them.

"What you're about to see is nothing short--" he began, smiling as he spoke fondly to all present, canons included. "--of the tangible effects of your endeavors."

He flicked his wand lightly before laying the tip to his lips. "Genie, they're ready."

"Ladies and gentlemen!"

Genie's all-too-familiar voice suddenly boomed from all around them, as if they were surrounded by massive speakers. It wasn't deafening, or even painful, but it was a vocal presence that filled the hangar. In the distance, very faintly, they could hear the sounds of music.

"Finally, last, but most certainly not least! They've traveled far and wide--"

Kyle's brows furrowed. They? Wait, he doesn't mean--

"--they're the heroes you know, the heroes you love--"

Oh my God he's talking about us--

"--they saved Prince Aladdin and all of Agrabah from the rise of dark spirit Diablos!--"

There was a sudden raucous in the distance, like screams--

"--They turned the tides in a surprise assault on the kingdoms of Archenland and Narnia!--"

The raucous grew louder, more powerful, and would continue to do so with everything Genie announced--

"They rescued Prince Adam and Princess Belle, they saved Halloween, Christmas, and every holiday you can think of from the schemes of Oogie Boogie! They aided the Emperor of the Land of Dragons by wiping Jafar off the map! They pushed back the Archadian Empire, rescuing the worlds of Angel Grove and Hawaii from volcanic doom! They helped in freeing Calypso, goddess of the sea, and kept the Caribbean free! They brought the Atlantican city together and defended it from a nigh-endless horde of darkness! They saved the City of Atlantis from complete destruction at the hands of evil!"

The cacophony outside seemed to shake the hangar walls now, as if the entire city was roaring beyond its magically-enchanted walls. Genie paused for a second, as if to let the sound wash over the city. Merlin simply continued smiling as he turned around to face the doors.

"He always did like grand entrances. Behind me now, everyone," he said, craning his head just a bit to give them a reassuring nod. "It won't do to stay in here."

No matter their nerves (which at this point for some were undoubtedly locking up), they began to walk forward--not so much against their will as guided by an unseen, comforting force. They might feel nervous, they might feel anxious, but something in the air completely eased away any halting fears they might have. This was a wholly positive, benevolent experience. It left their nerves and anxiety alone, but comforted their fears as if to hold their hands.

"They've fought selflessly for seven days and seven nights, doing what they can, where they can! United together against the dark forces, from all walks of life, an inspiration to all of us, it is my great pleasure to introduce to you: Sora, Riku, their companions, and the travelers from Earth!"


The massive double doors suddenly burst open, revealing a long street down the center of the city, and their senses were flooded. The music they'd heard so faintly was now booming from all around, audible even above the endless cheers of the crowd which now surrounded them on either side, lining their path to a platform in the distance.

The crowd, however, was far from nondescript. There were hundreds upon hundreds of people, but some would have been recognizable. Scattered throughout were people of various worlds--worlds they'd been to, worlds they'd helped. They would see various Atlanteans here, a few Narnians there, some witches of Halloween Town hovering beside some of the aliens from Hawaii. There were kids Dani might have known from Angel Grove, Kyla might have picked out the Hawaiian whose house she helped salvage, some people might have recognized Lumiere and Cogsworth from Beast's Castle... even some of the Atlantican mer- and sea-people seem to have either taken on human forms or were sitting in the occasional street-side fountain.

Merlin had put it aptly. These were the results of seven days hard labor: countless lives, men, women, children, and otherwise, saved by their actions. And, to those who'd only recently come along, such as Joe, it may not have been their own endeavors, but it was inspirational--they were individuals with great influence. These results would only grow more substantial in the future.

"Come along, then," Merlin said, a pleased glimmer in his eyes as he began to walk down the street toward the platform in the distance. A large group of people stood upon it, but they couldn't be identified yet, except perhaps Genie, who was flying around and instigating all the more cheer. "Follow me."

[[ ** - Also yes, this is actually being played throughout the city, so this is what your characters would hear. ]]

[[ EDIT: Oh, and a note--this is a reaction period. My next post will get us to the platform. ]]

[Jenny :: Red Rose :: Hangar ]

"I'm learning to control it... little by little. I though I was much better at it until the surge of negativity." Jenny retorted jokingly towards Kyle. She turned her attention back to Joe who was probably a little confused. No matter how she approached the topic, it would come out strange. Then again, he has most likely seen stranger things in his time here. The mage shrugged, "I hear songs, more specifically heartsongs. Everyone here has a specific song that their heart emits and it changes based on the person's emotion. It always utilizes the base notes but it can get quite harsh if one is feeling a particular negative emotion. Pretty much, I'm eavesdropping on everyone's feelings, not of my own accord of course!" She waved her hands in front of her, feeling slightly flustered.

However, before she could say any more on the matter, Merlin showed up along with the disembodied voice of Genie. Already she could feel a sense of happiness swell up in her, but she didn't quite understand why until the hangar doors burst open. Suddenly overwhelmed by the sight and sounds that the hangar wall had been concealing, "ohhh..." was all Jenny could mutter out past her astonishment.

{Bobbi, Demyx, Zell, Red XIII/Nanaki .:. Disney Castle Town .:. Hangar >> }

Bobbi sighed and a faintly amused smile crossed her lips as Anthony tried to beat the snot out of the doors. Boys and their need to hit things, I swear to God, she thought as the knight gave up on pummeling the hangar doors into submission. She looked up as Merlin spoke and waved jovially to him as he floated on down. And then Genie spoke, and then the doors opened, and she immediately groaned.

“Oh, don’t you dare,” she muttered, feeling her face grow hot with her blush as their group was introduced. And was that cheering she heard? She buried her face in her hands for a moment, trying to hide her flaming red face as Genie just went on and on. She knew everything they’d accomplished, but having it announced like that was just too much! Well, no help for it; they were apparently expected to be paraded around, and dammit, she was going to do so with her head held high, blushes or no. As the others moved out, she put her hands back to her sides where they belonged, and strode proudly with her friends, waving at the roaring crowd and smiling as best she could, albeit shyly, and she had to fight to keep from ducking her head. She was a little heartened to see some familiar faces in the crowd, though; some soldiers she’d fought beside in Narnia, the Atlantican guard captain she’d spoken with… was it only yesterday?

Demyx was surprised as the booming voice announced everything these kids had been up to for the last week. He’d known about a lot of it, of course, especially after the crash course they’d given the new kid, but to hear it all laid out like that somehow made it all much more impressive. He gave a low whistle when he saw the size of the crowd, and realized just how much of an impact the group of children had been making for the past week. He took a moment to study the childrens’ faces, but their expressions for the most part weren’t what he was expecting: very little well-deserved pride, and quite a lot of nervousness and embarrassment.

“They go through all of that and they’re spooked by a parade?” he asked bemusedly, nudging Axel with his elbow and pointing at the kids’ faces.

Zell’s chest puffed up with pride as the kids were announced and the parade started. He hadn’t been a large part of most of their endeavors, but he had still been part of it and he all but basked in the reaction of the crowd. He grinned down at Red XIII, who was looking up at him with a strange expression, almost exasperation, but mixed with a little chagrin as well.

“What's got your tail in a bunch?” the conductor asked, his grin faltering a little in Red's sober gaze.

“The children certainly deserve this praise,” Nanaki said thoughtfully. “But I feel we two could have done much more to aid them.”

“We did what we could,” Zell pointed out with a shrug as they joined the children in the procession. “Besides, they kept running off to places we couldn’t follow. But this ain’t over yet, so don’t worry your big furry head. There’ll be plenty more chances to make an impact.” Nanaki just shook his head.