Maleficent had grown tired of the company of her allies, if she would stoop so low to even call them that. Sure, they could prove useful to her in her quest for power, but that didn't make them any less unbearable. If his name alone wasn't enough to give any indication, Oogie Boogie was rather obnoxious. He constantly tried to make bets with his fellow rogues, despite their lack of interest. She cared not for such games, finding it to be too childish for her liking. It didn't surprise her that Oogie's only followers were children themselves. Maybe she should have just invited them instead.

Ursula wasn't as bad as the rest, although Maleficent often looked down on her for her past failures. From what she gathered, the sea witch had once lived in the palace of her home world, and had gotten herself banished. How embarrassing. Put in such a position herself, Maleficent had no doubt she'd have been running the kingdom within a week. She supposed she couldn't expect everyone to be as competent as her. Ursula's magic was definitely formidable, so as long as she made no stupid mistakes, Maleficent was sure she could hold up her end of the bargain. She wasn't so confident about some of the other individuals involved.

Jafar seemed smart enough, but he annoyed her to no end with his massive ego and talking bird. Had he not promised to retrieve one of the princesses of heart, she would have left him out of this. It didn't help that he and Captain Hook were constantly at odds with one another. Ursula found their bickering amusing, but Maleficent didn't share this feeling. It was one of these arguments that had forced her to exit the castle of the Hollow Bastion for some peace and quiet. She kept reminding herself that it would all be worth it in the end. And that she could destroy any one of those imbeciles as soon as they outlived their usefulness. Patience is key. With this in mind, she strayed further from the castle towards the falls.

Deep within her wicked mind, she sorted through her plans and thanked the powers of hell there had been no sign of that awful mouse or his keyblade yet. While all the details were coming to her slowly, she could say for certain that his interference would be an utter disaster. However, something told her that there was something else she should be concerned with. Maleficent scoffed at the thought that anyone alive could stand up to her and her powers, but she knew that things were going to start changing once her plan was set in motion. Hopefully in her favor.

Engulfed in her ponderings, she almost thought she heard a voice. Pulling herself back to reality, she listened closely. She heard it again, and it certainly wasn't the angry bickering coming from the castle behind her. Her eyes scanned for the source of the noise, and came to a stop at the bottom of the falls. There stood a young boy, maybe thirteen or fourteen. He looked utterly baffled and distressed, his silver hair swinging from side to side as he worriedly examined his surroundings. Maleficent held back a chuckle. She knew it was possible that some of the denizens of the worlds swallowed by darkness could end up here. Perfect timing. Perhaps she could relieve some of her frustrations by obliterating him.

Maleficent made her way down the falls, rocks moving to create a path for her to walk down. She eyed his clothing, trying to discern where he may be from. As she neared closer, he noticed her too. He seemed taken aback at first, and she wondered if her sudden appearance had just shocked him or if he could sense her malicious intentions. Maleficent nearly stopped in her tracks when his eyes met her own. Magic users often have a sixth sense for certain things, and being a powerful witch herself, she was no exception to this. She could sense the darkness within the boy, and something told her to use it. No stranger to the lure of the dark, she considered it for only a moment before deciding to trust her instincts.

Maleficent smiled at the boy, ready to figure out what was in store for her. "Are you lost?" The question hardly required an answer. She knew exactly how he'd gotten here. She was interested to see how much he knew.

He looked hesitant to answer. "Uh...sorta, yeah. I'm...looking for my friends."

"Well, I'm sorry to break this to you, but I doubt anyone here is any friend of yours."

"Oh...what is this place?"

"This is the Hollow Bastion. The epicenter of all that is to come." Not wanting to have to explain any further, she allowed him no time to ask another question. "Where have you come from?"

The boy seemed to portray an expression of guilt. "The Destiny Islands. But I'm not going back. I don't think I could if I wanted to. I'm just trying to find my friends."

Maleficent preyed on this emotion. "Why can't you go back?"

He looked guiltier still. "It was consumed by darkness."

Maleficent smirked, getting closer to the answer. "And how did that happen?"

The boy clenched his fists. "I did it. I opened the door and let all those little monsters-"

"Heartless." Maleficent corrected, smirk growing wider.

"Whatever. They invaded our island, and I'm glad. I was so sick of being stuck there. I knew there was more out there. I knew it. And I was right."

Maleficent placed a hand on her chin. "You weren't afraid of what might happen when you opened the door?"

The boy shook his head, apparently offended. "The darkness doesn't scare me. I would have faced anything to get off those islands."

Maleficent stared him down for a moment, studying him. To say he had peaked her interest was an understatement. "What's your name, child?"

"Riku."

"Answer me this, Riku. You wanted to escape your home, and you did. You've found yourself in a new world, yet you seem so unhappy. Is this not what you truly wanted?"

Riku looked down at the ground beneath his feet, considering her question. She had a point, he had just gotten his wish. But it wasn't what it should have been. And he knew why.

"This is exactly what I wanted." He didn't look up, kicking at the stones by his feet. "But I thought my friends would still be with me. Why didn't they end up here? Are they…" he paused, turning his attention to the witch. "Are they still on the island? Did they disappear with it?"

Maleficent was surprised at his sudden change in tone. His concern for his friends was muffling his pull towards the darkness, and she could sense it growing weaker inside him. If this boy was going to be of any use to her, she would have to get his mind off his missing friends. It was rare to find someone not afraid of the darkness who hadn't already been consumed by it. This was an opportunity, and Maleficent knew those don't always come around.

"I wish I could give you an answer for that, but I'm afraid I just don't know. At least not presently. Given time, I may be able to help you find what you're looking for." She watched as his momentary despair was replaced with a glimmer of hope, something she despised above all else.

"You mean, you think they're out there? Could you find them?"

"It's too soon to tell, but odds are if you made it off your world, so did they." Maleficent used her magic to extend a bridge of rocks in front of the boy, leading up to her own. "Why don't you come with me into the castle? I'm sure you need a rest, and perhaps I can begin to search for the answers you seek." She didn't wait for a reply, turning and heading towards the castle gates. After a few moments she heard his footsteps behind her, and mentally patted herself on the back for a job well done.

This could make things interesting.

After leading him to a small room within the large castle, Maleficent left Riku alone to rest. He was reluctant to get too comfortable, his mind spinning with a billion thoughts. The islands were gone, and they weren't coming back. He would most likely never see his parents again. Didn't that bother him? His home and his family, both gone. It should have been devastating. It should have driven him to utter sadness and depression.

It didn't.

He didn't regret it. Not for a second. Spending another day on that island would have only driven him mad. Now he was free. He could explore this new land and other ones too, if he can find a way to travel between them. Riku got the feeling that despite her hospitality, Maleficent wasn't the type of person to help others for nothing. But if she did know how to travel between worlds, perhaps whatever she would ask of him would be worth it. She'd currently only told him to get some sleep, but Riku doubted he'd be nodding off any time soon.

Truthfully, he'd spent most of his life with Sora and Kairi. They were his real family. He and Sora had talked about leaving their world since they were kids. As soon as they met her, they found that Kairi shared the same passion, and they all vowed to leave together. Riku hadn't exactly stuck to the plan (build a raft and sail away). But it was taking too long, and he'd wanted immediate action. Even though they didn't sail away on the raft, Riku had still hoped they could all leave together.

He felt a little stupid for feeling so upset. He was the oldest out of the trio, almost fifteen years old. He should have been fine on his own. He should have been ready to ditch those two losers and go off to better things. But that wasn't how he felt. He valued the bond between them more than anything. If they hadn't been around, he probably would have opened the door much sooner. Sora and Kairi were the only things tying him to the islands.

One image burned into his mind as he thought of his missing friends. Moments before the darkness swallowed him and he found himself here, Sora had approached him on the island. He'd tried to share his excitement; tell Sora that this is what they'd all been waiting for. He remembered the boy had asked about Kairi, and he'd assured him that Kairi would be with them. Sora seemed afraid at the time, but Riku was not. Nothing about the darkness scared him. Even if it had killed him, it would have been better than being stuck there his whole life.

Despite his absolute joy at finally escaping, he remembers Sora's frightened expression. It bothered him. Riku had come to think of himself as a protector for both Kairi and Sora, and he didn't like the people he protected to be scared. Riku recalls extending his hand, partially to comfort Sora, and partially to make sure they stayed together. He knew Kairi was around somewhere, but he wasn't concerned with her in that moment. The last thing he can picture is Sora reaching out for his hand before the darkness clouds his view and he found himself here. In the hollow….whatever it's called.

Riku wondered what had happened after he disappeared. He supposed Sora went in search of Kairi and he and the girl were together somewhere right now. Would they even look for him? He knew both of them were very fond of each other. He even used to tease Sora about it sometimes. Would they really be content as long as they had each other? Riku scowled at the thought. He did not like the idea of being the third wheel. If Sora hadn't been so concerned about where Kairi was, maybe he would be here with him right now.

If he and Sora had wound up somewhere together, they would definitely search for Kairi. He didn't want her to be all alone, and heaven knows Sora would flip out if she was missing. When he was a bit younger, he felt a little bit of resentment towards the girl at first. Just petty childhood jealousy. He and Sora had been friends, and now Sora was spending more time with Kairi. No big deal. Happens to all kids. He got over it. He thought as they grew older, they'd all grown closer together. Was he wrong? Had it still been Kairi and Sora with that other boy around sometimes? Kairi wasn't the type of person to hog someone to herself, but he knew she definitely felt closer to his brown haired friend.

Riku hated to admit it, but that familiar feeling of jealousy started to surface. It was pathetic. He wasn't a kid anymore. Did stuff like this really still matter to him? Who cares if Sora and Kairi are together right now? They'll look for him. And if they don't, he'll find them. It doesn't matter. They're still his friends. And if one day they decide they don't want to be his friend anymore, that's fine to. He's got a whole new world in front of him. There'll be tons of new people to meet and new friends to make. Just like he's always wanted.

Riku slumped onto the small bed in the room, leaning his head against the wall and looking up at the ceiling. He almost chuckled out loud at his own expense.

Why didn't he just take my hand?

Thank you for reading.

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Update: I have sort of fallen out of this fandom for the moment, but I always circle back to games like this. When I do, I will be sure to continue this fic. It may be a while, but I am just stating that I have not completely abandoned this.