"Pure Light and Pure Darkness: the two elements in constant balance that keeps the world at peace. If the balance is shattered and darkness veils the world, people known as the Warriors of the Light shall come. Each holding a key, a weapon that can shape the world as its wielder sees fit. Some such wielders destroyed the world, plunging it into darkness and shattering the worlds. Others saved it, using its power to protect the worlds."

Chapter One: Nightmares

Standing in a ruined cafe with rain pouring down from the heavens, a boy with brown spikey hair and a girl with short red hair dressed in black armor looked nearly ready to keel over and were gravely injured. Each held key-swords in their hands, with one being silver and gold and the other pink with a floral pattern. The girl fell to her knees, ready to cry as she was surrounded by death and destruction. Her partner glared at a figure standing a far off as he looked at those that protected him and one of his best friends.

One was his sister and brother, raven-haired siblings named Mariam and Orfeo. They were inseparable as they were triplets and their protecting him when the darkness came showed their love for him. Next to the redhead, Lenora, were her guardians, Chevalier, Heloísa and Clara. They also tried to protect them, but failed as the darkness took them out within seconds.

"Why…? Why did you do it, Chao…?" Lenora asked, crying.

Their friend turned foe stood at the entrance, looking at his handiwork. The now ghostly pale raven-haired, very skinny and dressed in butler's attire of a shirt, vest and pants, grinned as his red eyes shined in the darkness. The shadows seemed to cling to him and black and purple chains surrounded him. Other chains were scattered everywhere in the café, destroying furniture, busting through the walls and even skewing patrons that tried to run away.

He looked to the spikey-haired boy, telling him in a darker than usual voice, "I am…"

The young man lifted up his arm, summoning a Keyblade that the spikey haired boy didn't recognize. It was black and red and shaped like an animal's maw. With a swift motion, Chao lunged at him, ready to remove his heart when a barrier of light appeared, bouncing the attack back to him. Chao stumbled backwards and the two saw a ravenette in white and blue named Mary Margaret.

She was joined by her guardian, a man named David. He aimed a gun at Chao and said, "Azure! Princess Lenora, let's go! C'mon! Hurry!"

The boy, Azure, grabbed Lenora and the pair ran with the couple out of the area. Chao tried to attack again as they jumped into a car, but Mary Margaret repelled him with Light. He fell backwards and the driver, another of their friends named Lea, sped off, taking the group to safety.

"NO! Oh…oh…It-It was just a dream…another dream..." a redhaired girl in pink pajamas screamed as she violently woke up from another nightmare.

She woke up in her small bedroom, a quaint little room with her small bed, a few chests of drawers, wardrobe, two bookshelves and a desk. Two doors in front of the bed led to the hallway and the other into the bathroom. A window behind the girl's bed and one on the left wall and another on the right poured moonlight into the room. On the white walls were light bulbs and a switch to control them were at the door leading to the hall.

"Kairi? Kairi, are you okay?"

A small white bird, sitting on the windowsill, flew up from behind the girl and landed on her lap. She quickly morphed into a white cat with blue eyes and said, "You had another nightmare like that. What's wrong?"

"I…I dunno, Naminé. I…I think it's probably from that stew Serah made…Or at least I think it was stew…" Kairi told her, remembering the weird, black, burnt veggie and beef combination the teen made for dinner.

The little cat didn't believe her and said, "Well, I am your Anima, the other side of your heart. So, I already know you're not telling me the truth."

Kairi shook her head, saying, "Well, I don't know what's going on like this for the past…"

"Year. Yes, I'm wondering what's going on with you as this didn't happen a year ago…and today's the anniversary of…" Naminé started.

"Mom…leaving me here…" Kairi sighed.

It had been ten years since Kairi had seen her mother and had arrived at the gates of the Departure College. Kairi didn't remember much as she was only four years old, but what she could came back to her in dreams. Her mother and she ran away from shadowy-creatures called the Heartless, never staying in one spot and trying to find sanctuary. The woman avoided towns for some reason and she gave up, stopping at Departure College and giving Kairi a necklace with a small-teardrop pendant.

Kairi remembered her last words to her as her toddler self tried so hard to keep her mother near her. The woman told her to take care and dashed off into the night. Kairi remembered crying and seeing the gates open. Guards with dog Animi pulled her inside and that was the last thing she could remember.

"Well, if she's still out there…then maybe we'll see her again?" Kairi said, not really sure.

The little Anima on her lap curled up and said, "Let's just go back to sleep. You still do have class tomorrow."

Kairi agreed, laying back onto her pillow. With a bit of difficulty, the girl finally returned to sleep with no dreams or nightmares.

"Kairi, I am Master Eraqus Nexi and here's Hironobu, my Animus. I heard that the guards found you outside the college gates. You and little Naminé," a man in white and grey garb told the child.

Kairi sniffed, holding Naminé, whose form was of a small white cat with blue eyes. She looked up at Hironobu, a black hawk with eyes that seemed to bore into Kairi's mind. The Anima looked away, burrowing her face in Kairi's arms. Eraqus gave her a sad smile and told her, "Well, I would hope that your stay here will be fruitful, full of happier memories."

"I…I want my mommy," Kairi whimpered.

Seconds later, the girl burst into tears, bawling as she missed her mother. Master Eraqus made no motion to comfort her, as if he was unsure of what to do. Instead, he handed her a star-shaped charm, saying, "Take this."

The girl eyed it through her tears and asked, "W-What is this? I don't want it! I want my mom!"

"I know. But, this is a Wayfinder and it helps those that lost something find it again. And if you give a Wayfinder to those you care about, you'll find them again, even if you're far, far apart. Like the Paopu Fruit, only not as tasty," Hironobu said for Master Eraqus.

"What he said," Master Eraqus added.

Naminé hopped onto the table, quickly changing her form to a white hamster. She sniffed it and said, "Um, it looks like a regular necklace."

"But it can help as I put a trace amount of Paopu Fruit juice on it. It had the power to bind hearts, in a good way, and will help you find those you care about," Master Eraqus told her.

Kairi took it and thought of her mother. She hoped that it would be like a beacon, telling her mother where she was and helping her find her.

Halone 25th, Tuesday, 2011th year of the 14th Lux Era…

"Kairi? Kairi? Kairi!"

The young redhead, in Departure's uniform of a white polo shirt, black jacket and skirt, knee-high socks and shoes, looked up from her books and saw her friend/guardian, Serah Farron. The fuchsia-haired teen had on the same uniform, but wrapped her jacket around her waist. Her Anima, a fox with the pinkish fur, hopped onto the table Kairi sat at and said, "You okay?"

"Um, yeah. Uh, I'm fine," Kairi told her.

Serah looked around the small library and asked, "No, seriously what's wrong?"

"I told you nothing is wrong," Kairi said.

She sat at a table in a corner of the library surrounded by bookshelves and had her books and bag on the table. Papers were scattered on it, which had her homework and she only gotten around to finishing ten percent of it. Kairi's thoughts were scattered and she refused to finish as she stared at the Wayfinder Master Eraqus gave her long ago. Serah sighed, folding her arms and asking, "Did you even go to class?"

"Yes! I just didn't want to socialize with anyone," Kairi said, looking at the pink Wayfinder.

Serah's Anima, a fox named Zarita, said for her, "Well, we can't have you in a funk right now. Let's go. We have Cryst Arte class and you need to work on Healing Artes."

Serah grabbed Kairi's arm and the girl protested, not wanting to go to practice…and her things were left behind.

Departure College, courtyard…

A small group of ten stood in the enclosed courtyard, all wearing coats and armed with various weapons. Their Animi varied and stood next to their hosts as they stood in front of training dummies. One was a rather gruff older teen, standing in a boxer's stance and had icy mist swirling around his fists. Next to him was a young woman that was Serah's older sister, Lightning. She was armed with a blade with a gun attachment, aka a "gunblade".

A light snow shower fell, covering the various bushes and bare trees with a light dusting of snow. Kairi watched with Serah as the group used various artes, from Fire to Lightning to Ice and Water. Remembering how the elements worked, Kairi knew that the snow shower was a perfect chance to use Ice or Blizzard Artes. Ice drew on thoughts of cold and even the weather itself. If one mastered it, they could use the various levels of Ice Artes: Blizzard, Blizzara, Blizzaga, Blizzaga and even some super powerful ones such as Diamond Dust and Glacier. She never seen the higher levels in person, but the fighter with the ice around his fists, Snow Villiers, used mainly Blizzard and Blizzara along with his martial arts.

"C'mon, Liam!" Snow yelled.

Liam, his Animus of a snow owl, raised his wings and said, "Need ice!"

"Froststrike!" Snow and the Animus shouted.

He blasted ice forward like he was a character from Wyvern Sphere Z using a "chi blast" and lunged forward, freezing and then punching the training dummy in front of him. Snow grinned and Lightning muttered, "Show off. Zantetsuken!"

Electricity flowed through her weapon and she leapt forward, slicing her training dummy in two. She was pleased and her fox Anima, Elysia, had a smug expression. Everyone grumbled, not thinking they were as strong as Lightning and Kairi was a bit unnerved. Why did they have to train so much? There wasn't that many Heartless in the region. And if one showed up, the Departure branch of the Holy Sanctum's Guradian Corps would take them out. Unless they're training to join?

"Okay! Everyone, at attention!" the captain of the guard, Cid Raines, called out.

The group, including Serah and Kairi, lined up in two rows and stood up straight. The raven-haired leader of the Departure Guardian Corps stepped in front of them, his crow Animus perched on his shoulder. He seemed pleased with what he saw and said, "I trust that you all know why you're training like this."

No one said anything and he continued with, "We, the Guardian Corps, are protectors of the populace from the darkness, the darkness being the Heartless that has plagued our world since time immemorial. Those that join the Guardian Corps are fulfilling a calling that the first of the Primarchs, Doga Topapa, received from the Holy Mother. And once you join, you'll be able to protect your family, friends, neighbors and anyone that you care about, all while fulfilling the Will of the Light."

Kairi looked at a rather proud looking Snow, who wanted to join to protect Serah. Serah wanted to join to protect Snow and Lightning joined to protect Serah. And Kairi? She was mainly dragged into it and didn't want to do anything with the Guardian Corps. All she wanted to do was graduate, learn more Healing Artes and use it to travel the world as a Medic.

"Yeah, you never were one willing to fight."

She suddenly felt a headache and started to sway as everything started to get dizzy. Naminé shifted her form from a small hamster on Kairi's shoulder to a tiny fairy and fell onto the ground. Kairi's vision quickly darkened as the mysterious voice spoke to her again.

"But you're gonna have to fight soon."

Kairi found herself falling, hitting the snow-covered ground hard.

"So much to do, so little time."

"Huh?" Kairi asked, waking up in a place with dark clouds covering the skies.

It looked like an abyss and the girl floated about the place, slowly sailing towards a pillar of light. Naminé was nowhere to be found, but Kairi didn't feel panicked at the lack of her presence. After several moments, the girl arrived at a glass tower, with its top depicting a sleeping version of her in a flowing white dress. The image had her sleeping on what looked like a reclining throne, surrounded by smaller portraits of people she hadn't a clue about…until she reached Lightning, Serah, Snow and Eraqus'.

"You recognize this place?" a voice asked.

"Um, no…" Kairi replied as she landed safely onto the glass pillar.

Three altars appeared, each with different weaponry floating above them. The voice spoke to her again and it felt so familiar, oddly enough. It told her that power, the power to save the world, slept within her and she needed to awaken it.

Stepping to the altar with a wizard's staff, Kairi grabbed it and heard, "The power of the mystic. Inner strength. A staff that holds wonder and ruin. You want this power?"

"Wonder and ruin…I don't think that's a good thing. Are you saying this power can destroy stuff?" Kairi asked.

"When used by the wrong hands, yes," the voice told her.

"Um…then no," Kairi responded.

She quickly placed it back on its altar and headed to the one with the sword. The redhead grabbed it and heard, "The power of the warrior. Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction. Do you want this power?"

"Terrible destruction? Why does this sound worse than that staff?" Kairi asked.

"As I said before, power is only destructive if wielded in the wrong hands," the voice told her.

Kairi placed the sword back, quickly backing away and heading for the shield. Picking up the red and black shield, she heard the voice tell her, "The power of the guardian. Kindness to aid friends. A shield to repel all. Now, do you want this power?"

"Um, well…I don't have many friends…" Kairi said.

"So, you don't consider Lightning, Snow and Serah your friends, even though they've been with you since you were a child?" the voice asked.

Kairi shrugged, telling it, "They…They're my 'guardians'. I don't know why I have them, but I don't think they would consider me a friend. Just someone that they were forced to protect."

The voice said nothing and Kairi placed the shield back. Looking around at all three, she felt a tug at her heart towards the staff. Next thing she knew, Kairi was standing in front of the altar, holding the weapon.

Pleased, the voice told her, "So, you chose the power of the Mystic. Now, what will you give up in exchange?"

"The power of the warrior. I don't like the idea of having a sword that can destroy everything," Kairi said.

The sword disappeared and the shield rocketed towards her. Both the staff and shield turned into particles of light, entering her chest and providing a warmth. Just as she opened her mouth to question it, the pillar was covered with inky blackness and she sunk like a stone into it.

"Hold on. The door won't open just yet. Wake up. Tell me more about yourself," the voice told her.

Kairi opened her eyes, winding up in the courtyard of the Departure College. There, she saw Master Eraqus sitting at a chess table and speaking with Grandmaster Cid Raines and their Animi. Behind her was Snow and Serah, talking underneath an old oak tree and their Animi. Lightning was at a training dummy, practicing with hers.

Oddly enough, Namine was nowhere to be found, but none paid attention. Wondering if she was home, Kairi approached Lightning and the young woman stopped to see her. She, putting away her gunblade, asked, "Kairi, what's most important to you?"

"Uh, that's a weird question," Kairi told her.

"Seriously, what's important to you?" Lightning asked.

Kairi folded her arms and thought about it. The one thing that came to mind was family. So, she replied with such.

Lightning cocked and eyebrow, asking, "Is family really all that great? They can cause trouble for you."

She disappeared as she resumed practicing with her weapon. Kairi backed away, terrified and went over to Snow and Serah, who didn't notice her approach at first. Panicked, Kairi said, "Snow! Serah! Did you see…?"

"Oh, hey Kairi!" Snow greeted.

"Hello, Kai. Oh, we got a question for you," Serah said.

"Um, you didn't see Lightning…?" Kairi started.

"What do you want outta life?" Snow asked.

Kairi's eyes widened as she was shocked that they didn't see what she had seen. Lightning was suddenly spirited away and they didn't seem to care. Serah gave her a reassuring smile and said, "Like, what are your lifelong aspirations?"

The girl went deep into thought again, not able to readily answer the question. She remembered always wanting to leave the College and traveling the world to find her mother…and even helping those on the way with Healing Artes and medicine. So, she answered, "Um, to see the world and help as many I meet."

"Hmm…is helping others really such a big deal?" Snow asked.

"Yeah, what if they aren't grateful for the help?" Serah added.

The couple disappeared as well and Kairi felt sad and scared. She didn't want anyone else to disappear, so she rushed over to Master Eraqus and Cid, who were in the middle of a chess game. When they noticed, Cid greeted her with a small smile and Eraqus said, "Ah, there you are. We had a question for you."

"Yes. I thought the question silly, but the Master insisted. What do you fear most?" Cid said.

Kairi jumped, seeing the question was quite intrusive…along with all the others. The memory of her mother abandoning her flashed through her mind and Kairi responded with, "Being abandoned and left alone."

The two looked at each other, surprised, and then back to her. Master Eraqus replied with, "Is being alone really all that terrifying? You could get a lot accomplished doing things alone."

"But…! I…can't!" Kairi started.

"It's not such a scary thing, especially if you can help others from behind the scenes. That's I did when I was with PSICOM," Cid told her.

Kairi looked to the ground and said, "But…I can't…I hate being left alone, forgotten even…"

The two vanished and the scenery around her distorted and swirled about. Shaking in fear, Kairi said, "I…I don't want to be alone!"

"So, you care for family, you want to help others with your power and you hate being alone. You fear that if you open your heart, you'll risk being abandoned by those you care about. And since you're shaking at the disappearance of those you call 'guardians', it seems that you care about them a great deal," the voice from before told her.

Kairi sniffled, wiping her eyes as tears fell, and nodded. She could see in her mind's eye a masked woman in white with long red hair nodding with her. The woman gave her a hug and told her, "Just remember, you'll never be alone. Never."

A bright light and the last thing Kairi heard was, "You'll be a Key to open the Door."

Later, Kairi's bedchamber…

Master Eraqus, Cid and Lightning stood around Kairi's bed as the girl and her Anima slept. She had fainted during training and the old Master sighed. Finding a chair, he sat next to the bed and said, "I was hoping that it would wait. But, now she'll be drawn into it."

"But, I thought it wouldn't happen until she was at least 18. She's still only a child, 14 years old. What could the Sanctum possibly fear from her?" Cid asked.

"Yeah, I'm wondering the same thing. I haven't seen it from her and Naminé really only changes shape whenever we're around her. But it happened if front of Guardian Corps trainees," Lightning added.

Master Eraqus refused to look away from the girl and said, "I erased that part from their memories. So, all they can remember is seeing Kairi and Naminé faint, with the Anima still in hamster form."

"Serah and Snow, too?" Lightning asked.

"No. You all are her guardians. You need to know what powers she possesses to better protect her from the encroaching darkness," Master Eraqus told her.

Cid, not sure of what to do, said, "If she really is one of them, that she'll be looking for her and the item that she possesses."

"Not an item. A weapon. A sword of terrible destruction and Cryst Artes that can save or destroy the world," Master Eraqus told him.

"But with that power, the Sanctum could…" Cid said.

"But she's only one of seven, powerful alone but nigh unstoppable when united with the others. The Sanctum could do nothing accept draw attention from the darkness if she was sent to Eden. I trust that you would do no such thing," Master Eraqus said.

Cid gave a small bow, saying, "Understood."

"And Lightning," Master Eraqus said.

He handed her a crystalline compass and said, "If worse comes to worse, take Kairi and leave this place. Do not look back. And if anything was to happen to you, give this compass to her and her heart will know what to do."

"Yes sir," Lightning told him.

Master Eraqus prayed, muttering, "Holy Light…please protect this child from the darkness…"

Finally! A chapter I can get behind! Woo! Anywho, I hope that you all will give this fic a chance.

So, for those fans and those that aren't fans of Final Fantasy, due to the nature of Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy characters will be prevalent in this fic. So, Lightning, Snow, Serah and Cid Raines are from Final Fantasy XIII, with the four of them being l'Cie, but Cid being the head of the Guardian Corps of the Sanctum. Will that similarities show up in this fic with what he did in his original game? That's yet to be seen.

Anywho, as usual, no ideas are owned by me. So…review?

-miano53