I've finally figured out the plot for this fanfiction! And, sadly, I have to eliminate some pairings. (Which seems like a good thing anyway) When I have pairings added in the chapter, I'll put a warning up here telling you so.

I've added two more characters in this installment, and I warn you the first one probably won't be who you think it is to begin with.

The Journeys of Final Fantasy, Chapter 2

"Hey, Aerith, have you seen...," Tifa's voice trailed off, brown eyes widening as her gaze drifted slowly around the room. "What's going on?!" Tifa then demanded, suspicious eyes stopping at Aerith.

"That's something we'd all like to know," Seifer answered, rolling his eyes in annoyance.

Cloud and Leon exchanged glances briefly, the brunet sighing before getting to his feet and tacitly demanding everyone's attention.

"What is it, Leon?" Aerith asked in a gentle, calm tone, Yuffie and Cid's looks turning somber before looking to Leon.

"This isn't just a coincidence," Cloud interrupted quietly, his gaze meeting Leon's before the brunet nodded in affirmation.

"Something sinister is in the works," Leon continued grimly, Seifer groaning loudly while raking a hand through his hair, clearly agitated.

"Always one to take charge, eh Leonhart?" Seifer sneered, Leon's stoic countenance never wavering as Yuffie stomped over to Seifer, impatience written all over her face.

"Quiet, you! Can't you see he's trying his best to think?! And who do you think you are waltzing in here, which, might I add, we only LET you do in the first place?! If you're going to talk like an asshole, then get the hell out of here!" Yuffie finished, many wide eyes gazing at her with amazement.

(POV Shift)

"You're certain this will work?" an eerily smooth voice questioned skeptically, a dark sleeve rolled up to his muscular bicep as another pair of eyes glanced nonchalantly before swabbing a small area.

"You don't trust us?" another voice questioned, the uncertain man hardly making a sound as a long needle pierced the skin of his elbow, drawing blood before pulling it out once more.

"I don't enjoy one-sided bargains," the voice answered icily, pulling his arm of the cold, vice-like grip before standing. "How long?"

"Not too long. I am quite capable," a new voice replied, a creepy grin splitting across his features before leaving the room.

"Where is the other?" the skeptic wondered aloud, golden eyes glancing once at his looming form before leaving the silver-haired man to his solitude. "It won't be long now, Cloud," Sephiroth smirked, fist clenching before disappearing.

(POV Shift)

"Riku! Riku! Stop running!" Kairi yelled from behind him, out of breath with a pretty smile set on her lips. "Why were you running so fast?" Kairi then asked, her posture slightly tilted forward as she regained lost breath.

"Sorry, I'm guess I'm just used to racing Sora," Riku answered somewhat sheepishly, a lazy grin settling on his lips.

"Hey guys! Look what I found!" Sora's unmistakable voice shot through the air, Riku and Kairi glancing up at the blue-eyed boy as he jumped off the dock into the sand with a silly smile. "I think it's another letter from the King," Sora told them excitedly, Riku's eyes rolling as Kairi's brow creased with anxiety.

"I wonder what's wrong this time...," Riku's voice trailed off, his eyes scanning the letter.

"He said Donald and Goofy would get here a day after the letter arrives...that doesn't leave us much time!" Sora exclaimed suddenly, insistence embedded in his naïve eyes as he silently pleaded with Riku.

Sighing, Riku told him, "Yeah. We better go get ready." Obviously what Sora wanted to hear, a genuine smile crossed his features, Riku ruffling his hair before walking towards the dock. "C'mon. Let's go," Riku instructed lightly, untying the rope that held the single boat to the dock.

(POV Shift)

"Has Sora been notified?" Merlin's voice cut through the retort Seifer was more than prepared to give the spunky and albeit smaller girl, most eyes landing on Merlin's aged face.

"I'm sure it goes without saying that the King has already taken their position into consideration," Squall answered smoothly, Merlin nodding before cupping his chin with a thumb a forefinger, nodding at odd intervals and seemingly holding a conversation with himself.

"The 'King'?" Vincent questioned quietly, Squall glancing sidelong at the man before inclining his head in affirmation.

"The King of Disney Castle," Squall began, a few people fidgeting in their seats.

"Sorry, Leon, but I better get to the castle; Tron's been bugging me about MCP activity that really shouldn't be happening in the first damn place," Cid spoke gruffly, Squall waving him out the door before turning to face the group once again.

"It's a rather compli-," Squall's voice abruptly was cut off at Cid's loud yelp, the sounds of battle alerting the rest of them to the outside ruckus. "Cid?" Squall ventured, Cid's shoulders heaving, his spear resting against the crook of his neck.

"Heartless. They're back," Cid breathed, Squall's face visibly contorting. "Damn menace never go away," Cid muttered under his breath, Vincent, Zell, and Seifer exchanging confused glances.

"Yuffie, Aerith, go with Cid. Cloud and I should explain the situation," Squall informed them, determined eyes nodding in his direction before the trio left.

(POV Shift)

"Where are they?!" Sora cried, pacing back and forth in the sand, an amused Riku watching with a slight smirk perched on his lips.

"Chill out, Sora. They'll get here eventually," Riku placated the other teenage boy, a feeling of nostalgia washing over him before he shook his head free of those thoughts. As if on cue, a certain Gummi ship bolted into the clear blue sky before plunging into the watery depths that surrounded Destiny Island, Sora's face hardly able to contain his excitement.

"A-hyuck! Hiya, Sora!" Goofy guffawed, dropping into the water before enveloping Sora in nothing short of a bone-crushing hug. "How ya been?"

"I've been great, Goofy. How are things at the castle?" Sora made conversation, Donald squawking in an attempt to interrupt.

"Now isn't the time for this! We gotta go see Leon!" Donald continued, Goofy's eyebrows creasing as he tapped a finger to his lip.

"I'm coming with you," Riku insisted, both anthropomorphic creatures gazing at him lamely. "What?" Riku then asked, clearly annoyed.

"Well, I guess it's okay...," Donald conceded, Sora smiling happily.

"What about me?" another cracked voice called, Riku and Sora turning to see a clearly-distressed Kairi eying them. "You're not just going to leave me here, are you?!" Kairi continued, Riku and Sora exchanging glances.

"It wouldn't be safe for you to come with us, Kairi," Riku began, raking a hand through is long hair, his eyes drifting everywhere over the island, save for the hysterical redhead now staring down Sora.

"What if the islands are attacked again?" Kairi pressed, torn between wanting to go and respecting the boys' decision.

"She has a point," Sora commented aloud, Donald 'hmph'ing.

"Fine. She can stay in Radiant Garden," Donald mumbled, a look of relief now present on Kairi's face.

(POV Shift)

"Do you think they believed us?" Cloud asked Squall softly, the both of them staring out over the Great Maw, not a Heartless in sight.

"It won't matter soon," Squall replied concisely, Cloud inclining his head in agreement. "Besides, they have no reason to not believe us," Squall continued, his eyebrows furrowing as his hand subconsciously tightened his hold on his gunblade, another presence close by.

"You sense it too?" Cloud wondered aloud, Squall briefly nodding before swiftly moving out of the corner, gunblade extended as if he expected to find an enemy laying in wait.

"Squall?" a familiar voice asked, Squall's eyes widening as his gunblade dropped to the ground in shock. "Where...where is this place?" she continued, pushing herself off the ground and flipping a rogue strand of ebony hair over her shoulder.

"Radiant Garden," he answered, his shoulders visibly relaxing as he allowed a small smile to lift his lips subtly.

"I've never heard of it," she told him with a small smile, slowly rounding the corner and taking sight of Cloud. "One of your new friends?" she then asked knowingly, Cloud surreptitiously glancing back and forth between the two, trying to venture a guess as to their previous relationship.

"It's Cloud," he told her nonchalantly, extending a hand for her to shake.

"Edea," she told him with a soft smile, her black dress ruffling in the wind that now decided to pick up.

"She was the Matron of the orphanage when I was a child," Squall explained, Cloud nodding stiffly after releasing her hand.

(POV Shift)

"We're here!" Sora told them all, his eyes darting across the square in hopes of finding one of his many friends who lived in the lively place now called Radiant Garden.

"Sora! Wait for us!" Goofy called, he and Donald chasing after the teenage boy as Riku and Kairi exchanged glances.

"He's like a little kid," Riku sighed, Kairi giggling for a moment before nodding in agreement. "We probably shouldn't let him roam alone with those two bozos for too long; who knows what kind of mess they could get into," Riku joked, slowly making his way past the Moogle's Synthesis Shop. Hesitating, Kairi looked behind her before shaking her head; had she really seen a glimpse of the white dress? Blonde hair? She sincerely hoped not.

Having reached Merlin's House, Sora politely knocked on the door, an irritated 'come in' in a tone he didn't recognize answering him. "Leon...?" Sora questioned, Riku shrugging when Sora looked back him before he pushed open the heavy, wooden door.

"Oh! Hey, Spikey!" Tifa called to Sora through pants, dodging a left sweep as she countered Zell's attack with a fist in his gut. "You're good!" Tifa told Zell, both of them now thoroughly exhausted and panting for much-needed air.

"Uhm...," Sora stuttered, his eyes moving from the blond who was pointedly ignoring him, to the dark and somewhat scary figure who seemed caught up in his own thoughts, to the new blond Tifa had just finished sparring with.

"Oh, right. You don't know them, right?" Tifa asked with a smile, pulling off her gloves and sticking them in an interior pocket of her skirt before pointing back towards Zell with a thumb. "This is Zell; he and Leon were buddies back in the day," Tifa snickered, Zell waving at Sora with another silly grin. "The blond with the stick up his ass is Seifer; he and Squall were rivals for years," Tifa explained briefly, Sora's mouth creating the letter 'o.' "And last, but not least, is Vincent. He was part of our group a while ago," Tifa's voice softened minutely, Vincent's red eyes glancing at Sora's wide blue ones.

"N-Nice to meet you," Sora greeted him sheepishly, a hand resting on the back of his neck.

"Sora? Would you mind moving?" Squall's unmistakable voice rang through his ears, an eyebrow raising at the two he didn't recognize. "What are you doing here?" Squall continued, Sora's face instantly turning serious.

"The King sent us a letter and these idiots," Riku cut in, suppressing a snicker as Sora, Donald, and Goofy looked playfully outraged, outraged, and oblivious, respectively.

"And you are?" Squall asked with a small smirk, his arms crossing over his chest.

"Riku," he answered succinctly, eyes narrowing slightly.

"Matron!" Zell interrupted, eyes widening as Edea smiled knowingly and stepped forward.

"Zell and Seifer too; what a reunion," Edea laughed, a hand on her forehead before pushing a few strands from her eyes. "You didn't tell me they were here as well, Squall," Edea reprimanded gently, Squall merely shrugging as Edea chuckled. "It's rare to see you without Raijin and Fuujin," Edea commented to Seifer, his piercing green eyes lifting to hers.

"I don't know where they are," Seifer answered, his teeth grinding.

(POV Shift)

"How are things, Tron?" Yuffie asked him worriedly, Tron's reply muffled by static. "Cid! Do something!" Yuffie then insisted, Cid glaring at the spunky ninja before continuing to install his newly-made program.

"Take your time, Cid," Aerith told him airily, Yuffie's mouth gaping as she sputtered at Aerith.

"But Tron could be-," Yuffie's voice was cut off as the static's noise increased, Tron's voice finally becoming discernible.

"Hello, Friends. How are you Users doing?" Tron asked mechanically and politely, Yuffie punching a fist in the air.

"We're great, Tron. How are things in there?" Yuffie asked, the trio almost able to hear him wince.

"MCP activity has been growing and I still don't know why," Tron sounded troubled, Yuffie visibly frowning.

"I ran a scan of the entire system, but didn't find anything that could explain it," Cid itched idly at his hair, trying to think of some glitch that could cause such a disturbance within the computer.

"I'll be back in a moment," Aerith informed the other two, neither of them really paying too much attention as she quietly exited Ansem's secret computer room and continued through to the veritable maze. "Ugh," Aerith heard a voice groan, her eyes widening in concern as she ran to the Postern, a man crumpled on the ground.

Shuffling around for a mere moment, Aerith retrieved a potion and quickly administered it to the injured man, his eyes finally blinking open.

"Thank you, Pretty Lady," he whispered with a debonair smile, Aerith not skipping a beat as she merely shook her head slightly with an amused smile.

"You know, you're the second person today to show up out of nowhere," Aerith whispered more to herself than to the mysterious man as she pulled her arms from around his shoulders. "How do you feel?" Aerith then asked, the man getting to his feet and staggering a bit before regaining balance.

"I should be all right," he responded, picking up his unattended gun and slinging it over one shoulder. "Name's Irvine," he stuck out his hand, Aerith looking shocked for a brief moment before slipping her hand into his and moving it up and down.

"Aerith; it's a pleasure to meet you," she answered, releasing his hand as she debated whether to take him to the Computer Room or back to Merlin's. "You wouldn't happen to know someone named Squall, would you?" Aerith asked vaguely, Irvine's eyebrow raising almost suspiciously.

"Yeah...," his voice trailed off, not sure whether this was a good thing or bad. For all he knew, she could be working for the enemy! Sure, he didn't know quite who or what the enemy was or where he was but that was besides the point!

"Aerith! Hey Aerith! Where are you?" Yuffie called, rounding a corner to see the cowboy. "Ooooooh. You're from another world too, right?" Yuffie asked, Irvine giving her a quizzical look.

"Damned Yuffie. Always running off," an unhappy Cid mumbled to himself, sauntering into the group before actually taking notice. "I wonder how long this is gonna last," Cid complained, Aerith giving him a disapproving look while Yuffie slapped his shoulder.

"That's not nice! He can't help it he's here!" Yuffie defended Irvine, a guy she had met only five minutes early.

"We should take him to the others," Aerith murmured, Irvine's eyes turning a bit panicky. "Don't worry. Squall and Zell and most of our friends are there," Aerith assured him, Irvine not entirely believing her story.

(POV Shift)

"Are you almost finished, Vexen? Sephiroth's restlessness is growing and it isn't I who it will be taken out on," Xemnas warned the mad blond who apparently wasn't even listening.

"How am I supposed to work with you watching me? Get out of my laboratory!" Vexen replied irritably, his eyes practically glued to the microscope in front of him as he swirled a red substance in a flask. "Yes...that's it!" Vexen talked to himself, another creepy grin falling over his features.

(POV Shift)

"Have they found him yet, Xemnas?" Saix asked tonelessly, Xemnas glancing back before turning back around.

"Not yet. But I doubt it will be long, and this time, things will be different. I assume you've put him under lock and key?" Xemnas continued, Saix nodding.

"Marluxia and Larxene were unhappy with it, as is to be expected," Saix commented, his eyes turning to the moon.

"Are Lexaeus and Xaldin in place?" Xemnas questioned, Saix nodding. "Good. Now leave me," Xemnas instructed, Saix disappearing in a dark, abysmal flash.

(POV Shift)

"So the Heartless have been showing up here?" Sora asked seriously, Squall nodding grimly.

"Then that means they've been showing up in other worlds too," Goofy added his input, Sora and Donald agreeing.

"You're going then?" Squall asked, Riku nodded as though it were the most obvious action in the world.

"We don't really have a choice. People need our help," Sora answered softly, Riku laying a hand on his shoulder. "Anyway, would you mind if we left Kairi here? She didn't want to be left alone on the islands," Sora asked, Tifa nodding happily.

"We'd be glad to let her stay," Tifa explained, Kairi feeling more at ease now than she had all day.

"Hey! Why don't you guys come with us! You can help us clean up the worlds!" Sora explained, his companions giving him a disbelieving look.

"I think before we do anything, we should check to make sure the Organization isn't around anymore; we don't need them making more trouble for us," Cloud explained wisely, Squall nodding his head in agreement.

"The road to The World That Never Was isn't open anymore...we'll have to go back to Twilight Town," Sora commented, his spirits slightly lifted that he would see Hayner, Pence, and Olette once again.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed! Please review! I got a whomping zero for the last chapter. Pairings will develop slowly, just to warn you. No, I don't know which will happen first. Also note that I will probably use Leon and Squall interchangeably, depending on who's talking and the situation. Oh, and I also thought of adding Hojo as a villain...Let me know your opinion when you review!