Title: My Heart's a Labyrinth
Chapters: 6 of ?/ + Prologue and Epilogue
Author: 08FanfictionAddiction
Ch. 5 Rating: M
Pairings: Eventual Seiner and others I'll figure out as I go along
Spoilers: The labyrinth
Chapter 5 Warnings: violence and dark and sexual themes
Genre: Romance, drama, fantasy
Summary: After a heated argument with his friend Olette, he jokingly calls the Goblin King to take her away. When it actually happens, he learns he has 13 hours to solve the King's Labyrinth before his friend becomes a part of the goblin court forever.
A/N: We find out about Hayner's uncle in this chapter, therefore it's a very dark chapter. I'll mark asterisks at the beginning and end of the part if you don't want to read. I know this chapter is LONG overdue and I'm sorry. I sorta lost the inspiration for this fic but now im back on it.

Chapter 6

Hayner knew where they were in an instant. He'd been there quite a few times with his mother and Olette. It was the train station. He knew what day it was too. He remembered this day from the time he woke up, to the time the sun went down.

He remembered the exact position of the sun, who was there that day. He remembered the sound of the train whistling and the feel of the steam coming out of it. Trauma had a way of branding details into a person's mind.

This moment was in the past. 10 years to be exact. Oh Hayner remembered it well.

The two other males were staring with wide eyes, wondering what everything was. Hayner was frozen in place. He couldn't say anything to them about what was going on or about to happen.

It was then that he turned and he saw a man standing near them, outside one of the trains. Standing next to him was a younger version of himself. He knew his mother was somewhere nearby.

"That's… that's my dad and me… when I was a kid." He said, pointing in their direction.

Hayner hadn't meant or his voice to come out low and gravelly like it did, but this was a moment he'd been trying to forget for years.

Roxas and Demyx didn't ask, they just stepped closer and grabbed his arm or shoulder or support. Hayner felt like they should atleast know why they were here.

"My father left when I was little. I wouldn't listen to what he had to say. I was only 7 and I was angry, sad, and afraid at the same time I thought he was leaving because he hated me." He said. He watched as the young version of himself ran off.

"I know now why he left. My mom told me that when he was a child, his parents were abusive and… he didn't trust himself not to do the same. He was afraid he would be a horrible father." Said Hayner.

"I know what I have to do and I have to do it alone." He said. His friends pat his shoulder again and nodded. He walked forward to his father, touching his shoulder.

"I want you to know that I forgive you… and I love you father. You were the best father ever." He said. The man smiled as if he heard Hayner and got onto the train. Hayner felt relaxed. As if something had finally been taken off his back. He turned and walked to his friends.

Before he could say anything to his friends, the fog rolled over them and seemed to consume them. It cleared and they were outside again, in front of another knight that made Demyx cower slightly.

Hayner could understand why. If the Prince were to wear knight's armor, it would look like this. It was a flame red and had spikes coming out of the helmet. The horse itself was huge, with a pitch black mane. Behind the knight was swirling red mist and Hayner knew they would have to face whatever was behind it.

"You have faced the first fear but it is not over yet. Either step through the mist or stay in this realm forever." Said the Knight, his voice echoing.

Hayner wasn't but he knew that he couldnt stay here. He had to get through this. So with a nod, to Demyx and Roxas, he started walking towards the mist.

"Are you sure? The first one was tough. We can't be sure what might be ahead." Said Roxas, but Hayner nodded. "We don't have a choice." He said. Hayner was angry. He wasn't sure how much time he had and here they were, trapped facing their fears.

"Wait… I think I remember something about the Knights." Said Demyx. Roxas and HAyner stopped, looking at him.

"I remember there were legends connect the Knights to the end of ages, which is the end of this age and the beginning of a new one. The legend says that there are fourKnights and each of them represents a sign that the end is near." Said Demyx. Hayner was impressed. He'd never heard Demyx say so many words.

"What are the signs?" asked Hayner.

"Well there is War and Death. War is always riding a red horse in the stories." Said Demyx. Hayner was confused. If this was war, was the one before death? Hayner couldn't think of anything in his life that was war. Maybe it wasn't his.

"Well we won't know until we go in." said Hayner.

"I better go in first." Said Roxas, stepping up to the mist. He stepped inside, followed by Hayner and Demyx after.

When the fog cleared, Hayner's face paled. He knew where they were. The one place he'd feared as a kid. His childhood home.

"You know where we are?" asked Roxas. Hayner nodded. He knew what day it was too and why he was here. He noticed they were in the living room and there was a party going on. They were all wearing different clothes.

"Excuse me." Said a woman to Demyx as he moved to the table behind them.

"We can be seen." Stated Roxas. Demyx nodded and looked around. Everyone could see them but they didn't really pay attention.

Hayner started to move through the crowd and he found someone familiar. His mother and…. His uncle! Hayner nearly jumped back. He grabbed the guys' wrists as he stared at the man. He saw his mother point somewhere and his uncle head off.

"We have to follow him." Said Hayner, quickly slipping through the crowd. Roxas and Demyx took off after him. Hayner knew the path by heart and soon, he was in his room. He peeked around the corner and watched as his uncle talked to a younger version of himself. **

"No… No don't do it!" whispered Hayner. He quickly pushed his friends down the hall as his uncle led his younger self deeper into the large house. Hayner followed after them. He got there right on time, just as his younger self was being dragged into a closet, screaming. Hayner remembered. No had heard him scream. They were too far away.

Hayner ran over and banged on the door. He beat it a few times, causing the lock to break and the door to swing open and revealed his younger self, naked and cowering in the corner and his uncle with his pants down. Hayner wasted no time in attacking the man.

Hayner threw all he had into every hit to the man's face. As he punched the man, he began to cry and even through the tears, he hit the man until he was tired. Finally, gasping for air, he slid off onto the floor, sobbing. His friends let him crying, knowing that he just needed this…. Or maybe they were just shocked. Hayner had survived something like this?

How could the man do this to him? Make him face this shame and humiliation? This man scarred him for life. He wanted to kill the man, even though the man was already dead. He'd been found out and sentenced to death but still, Hayner suffered from the scars.

All of a sudden, he stopped crying and he looked at the man, bleeding on the floor and the smaller version of himself. He walked over and kneeled down, handing the kid his clothes.

"Don't be afraid. This man can't hurt you anymore." He said. The kid nodded and stared with wide eyes. Hayner walked over and stood next to his uncle, who watched him through puffy eyes.**

"I should kill you for what you did. I… want to kill you… but I won't. That won't solve anything…. Because I've already won." He said. Hayner stood up straight and held his head high. "I won't let the likes of you or anybody control me anymore. I won't let the scars keep me from finding the love and friendship that I deserve." He said.

Hayner wiped his face and the fog started to roll away. He stood there silently and Demyx touched his shoulder. "Hayner…" he said, softly.

Hayner turned and looked at them, sniffling. He gave a small smile, then a soft laugh. "I can't believe I did that… I can't believe I let that simmer inside of me." He said. He put his hands in his pockets and looked at the mist.

"Honestly… I don't think that anything we're going to face next can compete with what just happened." He said.

As he looked at the next knight, he realized that all these challenges were changing him. They helped him come to terms with his father leaving and they also helped him face his nightmare, the one thing that had been controlling him. He had conquered that fear and now he was free. He was free to do what he wanted. Love who he wanted without being afraid that something like that would happen.

Hayner couldn't help but laugh, confusing his friends. "I just…. I've never felt so… free. My mind has never been so clear or… relaxed. If that makes sense." He said. His friends smiled and nodded.

Hayner realized that Demyx' legend was starting to make sense. Four knights… the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. This next knight was thin. So thin, you could see every bone in its body. It had dull black hair and its horse was in a similar state. Hayner knew this was Famine.

"Your third challenge awaits. Enter or stay in this realm forever." Said the Knight with a whispery voice.

"I know what the knights mean. The knights represent Pestilence, War, Death, and Famine." Said Hayner as they walked.

"Yeah that's it! I don't see how Famine fits in here though… you aren't extremely skinny like that knight back there." said Demyx. Hayner gave him a small smack on his arm and rolled his eyes. "I don't know." He said.

He took a deep breath and stepped through the mist. What wait on the other side, surprised him. He was in town and they were looking at the struggle ring. People were cheering and rushing around. All of a sudden, he was shoved from behind by some guys passing him. Okay so they could be seen. Demyx and Roxas kept him from falling.

Hayner glared at the figure, only to find it was Sora and his lackeys. Sora kinda looked like Roxas, only his hair was brown and spikier. He wore a jumpsuit of sorts with large shoes. Sora's lackeys were a duck and a dog sort of creature, who seemed to follow him everywhere.

"Ha well look who it is. Gayner! Hey Gayner!" said Sora, making his lackeys laugh. "I was surprised to hear that you were competing against me for struggle champ. Sorry but I don't think a homo like you can beat me. You might as well just give up now."

Hayner stood up straight. "I can beat you anytime, anywhere." He said. He turned and walked up to the struggle ring. He stood in his corner and held his struggle bat ready. Sora did the same, sneering at Hayner. The match started and Hayner found himself rooted to the spot. He couldn't move.

"Whats wrong Gayner? Too scared to fight?" asked Sora. Sora pulled out his struggle bat and charged at Hayner, knocking him on his back. "Come on Gayner." He said. Hayner still couldn't move as Sora attacked him. Finally he began to hear the crowd getting louder and louder and he looked up. The crowd was cheering for Sora. Sora walked over and pinned him down by his shoulder.

"Listen to how much they hate you Gayner." Said Sora. He point over at Roxas and Demyx. "Even your friends hate you." He said. Hayner looked over at Roxas and Demyx, frowning. No…. they didn't hate him… did they? No, NO! He refused to believe it but he couldn't move.

Suddenly, he heard a voice calling him. He looked over and noticed that Roxas had begun to cheer for him. Demyx began to cheer as well and that was all Hayner needed. He realized what was happening. Sure everyone may have hated him, but he had friends that liked him just the way he was and as long as he had them on his side, he didn't need to worry about the haters.

He found his strength again as he tripped Sora and scrambled up, holding his bat ready. They began to struggle but now Hayner was obviously better. The cheering slowly began dying down for Sora and Hayner's name was popping up more. With a strong rush of strength, Hayner knocked Sora back. He groaned and dropped his bat, too tired to go on. Hayner had won the battle. Roxas and Demyx ran up to congratulate him. He heard Sora groan and looked over at him.

"It's not fair. I don't understand why… why you still win, even with the world against you. Why Hayner, do you still get everything you want?" asked Sora. Who seemed like he was trying not to cry. Hayner walked towards him.

"I don't get everything I want. I had to work to get to where I am and while it's true that I've had many people against me, that doesn't matter. It doesn't matter what people think of you, or what they believe you to be like. The only thing that does matter is what you think of yourself and what those that like you for who you are think." Said Hayner. Sora frowned as he looked up at him.

"Don't ever let anybody force their own opinion upon you. Be who you wanna be and live how you wanna live. Being different doesn't make you wrong." Said Hayner. He offered his hand to help Sora up. "And being friends with a homo doesn't make you wrong either." He said. Sora stared at Hayner's hand. What Hayner really giving him a peace offering? After everything he did? He stared at Hayner a moment, before hesitantly taking his hand. Hayner pulled Sora up, smiling, before shaking his hand.

"Hi. I'm Hayner and I like dating guys." He said. He smirked and took his hand back. "Hi I'm Sora and… I think you're pretty cool Hayner." Said Sora, who then gave a small smile.

"Friends?" asked Hayner. Sora stared at him a moment, then shrugged with a grin. "Sure, whatever." He said. He gave Hayner a small salute before heading off the platform. Hayner grinned as Roxas and Demyx touched his shoulder.

The stage and crowd began to disappear as the fog rolled in once more. When the fog cleared, Hayner found himself in a dead, empty field and facing the last Horseman. The knight on the horse in front of him wasn't wearing armor, just a black shroud. Its horse was also covered in a black shroud. The Horseman didn't say anything, just gestured into the fog behind him. Hayner nod and walked past the Horseman and into the fog.

Unlike the previous times, Hayner had no clue where he was. He appeared to be in some grand apartment and by the look of things it was his, if the struggle trophies with his name on it were anything to go by. He had a large case full of medals and trophies. Not only that, but he apparently had joined the army because he had old medals and memorabilia and pictures of him in a uniform.

This was just the living room. Apparently he had a grand kitchen, with a den down below. He also had just two bedrooms and the view outside his window was amazing. As Hayner moved through the apartment, he began to notice something strange. There were numerous pictures, but almost none with himself in them. Plenty of pictures of people he'd met and plenty of pictures with Olette and what must be her family, but not one of his with his significant other or even a boyfriend. All these awards and accomplishments… and he had no one to share it with.

It was Roxas who realized just how quiet Hayner was. Demyx was too busy asking what everything was and Hayner could only focus on the loud roar in his ears. This was his greatest fear; that he would never find someone to love, who would love him in return. Roxas lowered Hayner to the floor of his bedroom and just rubbed his back as Hayner seemed to curl in on himself.

"Someone's here." Said Demyx, quickly arriving into the bedroom. Hayner listened and heard the oh-so-familiar, if a little older, voice of Olette. It was accompanied by a male voice and sure enough a moment later said voices walked into the room. Olette had aged beautifully and Hayner could only guess that the man was her son. Hayner and his friend made no move as the figures walked in but it was apparent that they couldn't be seen.

"Mama, it's still early. I wish you'd let me handle this…" said the man. Hayner recognized the man from some of the pictures.

"Then you oughta help me with my jacket instead of prattling on with useless things." Said Olette, shrugging off her jacket. The man took the jacket before they turned and head into Hayner's walk in closet.

"If he weren't so stubborn, he would have handled this months ago." Said the man, slightly more muffled. He came back out, carrying labeled boxes.

"Yes well… Hayner has always been stubborn." Said Olette, with a sad and almost hollow laugh. Hayner found her laugh hard to listen to.

"Stubborn but organized. Look, he's already labeled everything." Said the man. He pulled out a sheet of paper and held up a phone like device.

"Of course who would leave a list, as if I didn't already know what he wanted." Said Olette, fondly. They worked a few minutes, separating things into piles on the bed. Things to throw out, things being inherited, things being donated. Olette began to check over the list again, when she began to cry. Hse wiped her eyes and silenced her sobs with a hand over her mouth.

"I just can't believe he's gone." She said and that's when Hayner found himself crying. He was gone. He was dead and Olette was the one, the only one, who had come to take care of his things and arrangements.

"I told you that you should have let me do this myself." Said the man.

"I know but this is Hayner." She said softly.

"I know. I understand. You two always took care of each other. You loved each other." He said.

"Always." Said Olette. The man nodded and helped her with her coat as they began to carry the things out of the room. The man took her hand before kissing her cheek and Hayner realized just how good of a mother Olette must have been.

Hayner was quiet after that. He didn't cry but he just sat, lost in his thoughts. Roxas and Demyx just let him think; they didn't push for answers. Hayner just needed time to think. It was beginning to dawn on him that while he may not have a significant other, he had a best friend; that there were things worse than not having somebody willing to stand by you your entire life. Someone who would stay with you until the end… Maybe it wasn't the love he'd always wanted, but it was a kind of love that lasted forever and that was all anyone could ever ask for.

Hayner stood up suddenly, surprising Demyx and Roxas. He nodded in affirmation when they gave him a questioning look and they head out of the room. The fog began to roll past them and Hayner gave a small smile. He felt different than he had before; more confident. Not cocky per say because he knew that even though he'd faced his greatest fears, he still had to get through the labyrinth and find Olette, but he had more faith in himself and was ready to face whatever came next.

The fog cleared and they found themselves standing under a tree. The sun was just beginning to set and there was a quiet river near them. A bridge stood going over the river and standing in front of the bridge was a knight. This knight was different in that he seemed shorter than the Four Knights and slightly more rounded. His armor wasn't as thick and he appeared more human. He was holding a long sword and had a slightly lazy look about him, but sprung to attention upon seeing Hayner and the others. Hayner found the knight more terrifying because of the helmet and mask he wore.

"Congrats. You have successfully completed the challenges set by the four knights. If you hope to pass back into the land of the goblins safely, then you must answer one final question." Said the knight. He said it as if he rehearsed it and had been waiting a long time to say it.

"So if we answer it correctly, then what happens? We get to cross the bridge?" asked Hayner. The knight seemed put off by the question.

"Exactly." He said, nodding.

"And if we get the wrong answer, we stay here?" asked Hayner for clarification.

"Yeah that's the gist of it." The Knight said, watching all of them suspiciously. Hayner crossed his arms.

"So then it's just you keeping us from leaving… no magical barrier or anything?" he asked. The Knight nodded and gripped his sword.

"That's right. I guard the bridge and only those who I say can pass will pass and you can't pass until you answer the question." Said the Knight. Hayner sighed and rubbed his head. Well they obviously needed to cross the bridge and even though he had no idea what the Knight would ask. Still, he had no time how much time had passed while facing his fears and they couldn't waist anymore time.

"Alright then." He said.

"Wait Hayner…" said Roxas.

"We don't have time to waste Roxas." Said Hayner. Roxas grabbed his shoulder.

"No that's what I mean. There are three of us and just him. Why not skip the whole question thing and just get past him?" whispered Roxas so only he could hear. Hayner frowned. He'd thought about it earlier.

"I'm going to give it a try. He never said that I could only answer it once. There's no reason to freak out." Said Hayner. Both Demyx and Roxas eyed the knight warily, who then surprised them by taking off his helmet and mask. Hayner was surprised that underneath the tough knight exterior, the guy himself seemed nice and laid back.

"Don't worry. They are worried about you and I get that. Look, I don't know why you're here but I would like to. My name is Pence and it is my job to guard this but I don't wish to keep you here forever."

Hayner didn't really know what to say before he sighed. "My name is Hayner and my best friend Olette was taken by the Goblin King when I accidentally wished he would take her away. Now I have to beat the labyrinth and get her back." He said. Pence nodded and studied Hayner.

"I think you should answer my question. I think you'll know how to answer it." Said Pence. Hayner took a moment to breathe. It was difficult to talk about Olette.

"Alright. Ask your question." He said. Pence grinned.

"What have you learned by going through the Realm of the Four Knights?" he asked. Hayner sighed. He had kinda figured something like this, but he already knew the answer.

"I learned that real courage is not about not being afraid, but about facing your fears and going on to do whatever it is you want to do." He said, confidently.

Pence grinned and stepped aside. "You may pass. I have one more question though." He said. Hayner looked at him, questioningly.

"What is it?" asked hayner.

"Would it be okay if I joined you?" asked Pence. Hayner stared at him incredulously, then smiled and nod.

"Good because guarding this bridge was starting to bore me and rescuing a damsel from an evil king sounds like a grand adventure." Said Pence. He let the others go past him, before bringing up the rear as they all passed over the bridge.

"Anyone know the way to the Goblin City from here?" asked Hayner.

"That way!" said his friends simultaneously as they point down the road, causing Hayner to grin.

"We're about thirty minutes away from it." Said Roxas.

"What? How did that happen?" asked Hayner, not that he was upset about that, he was just surprised.

"A gift from the Knights. It isn't often that someone gets through their realm and you did an amazing job." Said Demyx, smiling.

"Well how generous of them." Said Hayner. He smiled and they walked along the dirt path, which eventually came into some old ruins.

"The old goblin City." Said Roxas. He began to skip ahead, with Pence on his tail. He could hear them discussing the legend of how Seifer came into power. There was definitely a story there that Hayner was eager to hear but he could only catch snippets of it. Something about Seifer being a sorcerer and has always lived alone. It was a sudden growl, that stopped the conversation.

"Aw man I'm famished." Said Roxas, causing Pence to laugh at his pun.

"I know a good place to eat once we get inside the city." Said Pence, rubbing his stomach and grinning at the thought.

"We have to rescue Olette first. Then we can think about food." Said Hayner. The thought of food did cause all of them to move faster though. Demyx was ahead too but he turned around and wait for Hayner to catch up. He had a guarded expression but Hyaner didn't have to ask because when he came up to him, Demyx pulled out a perfect looking peach.

"Wow thanks." Said Hayner as he took it and started to walk again. Demyx stayed close by him, even when he hurried to catch up because he'd lost sight of the others. Hayner took a bite of the peach, the flesh melting into his mouth and the sweet juice making his taste buds tingle.

As he chewed, his vision began to swim and he stumbled a couple times before finding himself on the ground. HE tried to move again but the ground twist and turned under him. As panic began to set in, he found the ground slowly settling and becoming comfortable. He leaned against a low wall, unable to remember why he wanted to leave or where he was.

The peach rolled from his hand as his head lulled to the side. He could see something in the distance coming closer… Were those bubbles? He watched, the panic fading as the bubbles came closer. He felt… safe and warm somehow. He could see images inside the bubbles. An owl, a book and inside another was a castle, that seemed to call to him. The castle that he'd seen many times.

He knew that if he could to it, he would be happy and he wouldn't want for anything. HE wait for the bubble to reach him and felt an overwhelming warmth when it did. As his hand closed around it, he realized it was more like a crystal ball. As he looked closer, he realized he could see figures dancing in the windows of the castle.

Demyx had gone on ahead, afraid that if he stayed there, he wouldn't let Hayner bite the peach. When he finally turned around and didn't see Hayner, he panicked and jogged back with the others, searching around where he'd last seen Hayner but found no sight of him. The other split up and searched around as well. Hayner was just gone and no one knew what had happened. No one except him that is.

Demyx slumped on the ground by the wall and began to cry quietly. The others came over, asking him to talk. It was a few minutes later that he ran his hands through his hair and looked at them both.

"I think I've made a huge mistake." He said.

A/N: Sorry for lateness. I hate writing sad things so it took me forever to write this chapter
So the first horseman was famine, the second was war, the third was pestilence and the last was death.

Also yes I know I made Sora mean in this. Please don't hate me!