(Harmony's) POV:
While going back the way we came, we soon feel the mountain shake again. This time, a huge Heartless, almost resembling a Chinese dragon, appears. The others and I bring out our weapons, ready to fight. But the Heartless doesn't even bother to fight us. Instead, it flies away, heading somewhere else.
Mulan gasps. "It's heading for the city! We've got to warn Shang!"
"Let's hurry!" I exclaim.
Not wasting any time, the others and I climb down the mountain as fast as we can, hoping to warn everyone before that Heartless reaches the city.
(3rd) POV:
Meanwhile, in the Imperial Palace's throne room, Shang gives his report to the Emperor. "As for the man in black, we are having difficulties in locating him."
"We need to be sure if this man poses a threat to our country or not. Continue searching, and let me know if you discover anything else," the Emperor orders.
Shang bows in respect. "Yes, your Excellency."
"H-halt! Who goes there?! Wah!" a guard exclaims, getting knocked unconscious.
The one who knocked the soldier unconscious turns out to be a man, who is wearing the Organization's black coat. It doesn't take long for Shang and the Emperor to realize that this is the spy in black.
"Who are you?!" Shang questions, unsheathing his sword.
Shang gets knocked down to the ground, just as easily as the first soldier. But the weapon the man used is Soul Eater, the same sword that Riku uses. He makes his sword disappear, then walks up to the emperor. No words are spoken as the emperor looks at the stranger with suspicion.
"Your Majesty!" Shang exclaims, trying to get up.
"Be warned. A Heartless is coming to attack. Prepare to evacuate the citizens," the man says.
Shang's eyes widen, instantly recognizing the name "Heartless", since that is what Harmony and the others called those monsters that Shan Yu used during their last visit.
"Who are you...?" Shang asks, eyeing the man with curiosity.
(Harmony's) POV:
I'm not sure how long it took for us to climb down that mountain, but at least we made it to the city. There's just one problem, however...
"Huh? Everything's fine," says Sora.
"The Heartless was heading for this city, wasn't it?" Nagakura asks, confused.
"Guess we beat it here," says Okita.
"Just because it's not here yet, doesn't mean we shouldn't keep our guard up," Hijikata points out.
"He's right. It could arrive at any moment," Madison says in agreement.
"Well, now..." a familiar voice says. We turn our attention to the source, to see that it is none other than Yao, along with Ling and Chien Po. "Look who decided to show up."
Donald glares at the three of them, angered by Yao's words. "What? Is that a problem?"
"Nah!" Ling exclaims.
"We're just glad you're not in black cloaks," Chien Po informs.
At the mention of black cloaks, my friends and I stiffen a little.
"You saw him?" Mulan asks.
"Yeah--he's in the palace," Yao answers.
Whether it's Riku or the Organization; either way, we need to make sure that the emperor and the city are protected. We try to make it to the palace, but some Heartless appear, blocking our path. Thankfully, it's not the dragon Heartless we saw before, which makes this fight easier for us to handle.
"To the palace! Hurry!" Mulan exclaims.
We all nod our heads and run to the palace doors. However, when we try to open it, it refuses to budge.
"Open up!" Luke calls out.
I bang my fist on the door, hoping for someone inside to hear. "Open the door!"
Push, pull, we try all we can do to get the door to open. Some of the guys: Asch, Harada and Nagakura slam their shoulders against the doors, trying to force them to open. Either those who are inside are too busy to care, or something bad happened. Regardless, the doors just refuse to open no matter what we do.
"Over here!" Mulan calls out, gaining our attention.
We look and see Mulan standing next to a pillar.
Madison examines the pillar. "Looks like it connects to the palace."
"Do you really think so?" Heisuke asks.
"Only one way to find out. Start climbing," Harada says.
One by one, we each start to climb up the pillar. Though, in Kuro and Chibi's case, they had to be carried. I'm not sure what type of being Stitch is. All I know is that he grew extra arms, and easily carries them while climbing up the pillar.
Mulan and I are the last ones to climb up. I jump onto the pillar, with Mulan right behind me. We struggle to climb up. Mulan must've lost her footing, because she ends up falling.
I reach a hand out to grab her, but she manages to regain herself. She nods her head at me, letting me know that she's alright. I let out a relieved sigh and nod my head back at her. We then resume climbing and enter the palace.
Once inside, we jump onto the ground level, then head to the throne room. However, there in front of us, is someone wearing a black coat. His back faces us.
"Wait!" Mulan calls out.
The man flinches, then slowly turns around, his attention now on us. Everyone brings out their weapons, prepared to fight, if necessary. I bring out my Keyblade as well, but...I hesitate. I need to know...if the man before me really is Riku.
"...Riku? Is it you?" I ask nervously.
My friends' eyes all widen at my question. Some keep their guard up, while the others become curious. As for the man in front of us, he removes his hood, revealing his face. Instead of Riku, it turns out to be someone else.
"No. Never heard of him," the man says.
Suddenly, some Nobodies appear, surrounding us. Not only that, but that man from the Organization disappears. I only took my eyes off of him for a second, and now see that he's heading for the exit. I'll admit, I'm sad that that man didn't turn out to be Riku.
But I know we've got more important matters to deal with right now. Since we're in a hurry, I change into my Master Form, making it easier for us to defeat the Nobodies. Once the fight is over, everyone looks at me with curiosity.
"Guess it wasn't Riku," Goofy says.
"Harmony, why did you ask if that guy was Riku?" Asch asks.
I look down at my feet. "...Back on the mountain, the man we were chasing...I think it was Riku..." I say.
"How can you be sure?" Saito asks.
"Because he saved me. I know the Organization needs me, Sora and Madison alive for their plans, but...he fought alongside me and took out some of the Heartless with me. And the way he fights, I definitely recognized his movements to be Riku's," I explain, feeling tears taking form in my eyes. "I tried to go after him. I even asked if it was really him or not, but he...He just took off, just like that. If it really was him, then why did he leave without saying anything? I found him, and lost him again."
"Sorry, Harmony," Donald apologizes, feeling sorry for me.
"I can't stay. I'm worried about Shang," says Mulan.
Madison places a hand on my shoulder. "I'm sure there'll be a next time in finding Riku. Right now, we need to protect the city. That Heartless could arrive any moment now."
Realizing that Madison is right, I quickly wipe my tears. "You're right. Okay, let's go!"
With that, we get back to the task at hand and head to the throne room. On his seat is none other than the emperor, with Shang right next to him.
"Your Excellency! Shang! Something terrible has happened!" Mulan exclaims. "We saw a huge monster fly out of the mountains and toward the city!"
"Ahh. So it is as the young man said," says the Emperor. "Isn't that right, Captain?"
"Y-yes, Your Excellency," Shang answers.
"A young man?" Hijikata asks.
"You see, a young stranger visited us not long ago. The Captain fought the visitor, but was quickly defeated," the Emperor explains.
"To my dishonor," Shang admits, looking ashamed.
"It seems that young man was the one in black that I have heard whispers about," the Emperor says.
Hearing the mention of someone dressed in black catches mine and my friends' attention.
"What did he look like?" Okita asks.
"Did he mention the name Riku?" Sora asks.
"He didn't offer his name. He was rather rude," the Emperor answers.
"Rude? That MUST'VE been Riku!" I exclaim.
"Riku's in the Organization?" Donald asks, worried.
Goofy thinks about it for a moment. "Gwarsh..."
For the accusation, Madison glares at the two of them, and gives them a good bonk on the head. "He is NOT part of the Organization, he is only wearing the coat to keep them from finding him! How many times do I have to repeat myself?!" she questions, obviously irritated at Donald and Goofy for thinking of such a thing about Riku.
"But why would he come here?" Mulan asks.
We all put some thought into it, but come out empty. "If he had stayed here instead of running off again, we could've asked him ourselves," Heisuke points out.
Before anything else can be said, we feel the whole room shake around us.
"Could that be...?" Harada begins to ask.
"The Heartless?!" Mieu screams in a panic.
To answer Harada and Mieu's question, Chibi and Kuro both let out dangerous growls. They only do that when there are Heartless nearby. My guess is that it could be that dragon Heartless from the mountain. And from the sound of things, it's somewhere in the city.
"I'll check outside," Mulan declares.
My friends and I nod our heads in agreement, and then get ready to go help Mulan. Before we can get a move on, Shang speaks up.
"Mulan!" Shang calls out, showing concern for Mulan's safety.
"Shang--guard the Emperor! I'll be fine--with them!" Mulan exclaims.
"We've got her back. Just focus on keeping the Emperor and the palace safe," I say.
"Indeed. That is true: We need not worry while you protect us," says the Emperor.
"Hurry!" Donald exclaims, urging us to get a move on.
I know now wasn't the time, but while heading outside, I notice another one of the torn pages for Pooh's world. After putting it away for safe-keeping, I quickly catch up with the others. Since we're inside the palace, we easily open the door this time. The moment we do open it, however, that Heartless shows itself, nearly catching us by surprise.
"There's this thing, it's called..." Madison begins to say as she moves her arms in a circular motion, creating a ring of black and white flames. She then hurls the flames at the Heartless. "LEARN TO BACK OFF!!!"
The flames hit the Heartless, causing it to fly away from the palace, giving us enough room to head outside. While shaking the flames off its body, the Heartless hovers in the sky for a bit. It then swoops down at us, attempting to knock into us. Thankfully, we manage to avoid getting hit by the Heartless.
Deciding to take the initiative, I jump on its back, followed by Mulan. Since my friends and I are obviously not going to get anywhere with it constantly flying in the air, I figured maybe it would be best to get on the Heartless, and attack while I'm on it. Sadly, my idea ends up in total failure when the Heartless makes me and Mulan fall off by flipping in the air. Asch notices this and manages to catch me in his arms, while Madison performs a Graviga spell, slowing down Mulan's fall.
"It's no use! We're not going to be able to take that thing down when it keeps flying around like that!" Nagakura exclaims.
"It's circling around for another attack," says Saito.
Madison thinks for a moment. "Harmony, change into your Master Form. I think I might have an idea."
Deciding not to question Madison, I do as told, changing into my Master Form. "Okay, now what?"
Without saying anything, Mads does that same trick she did before. She makes a ring of black and white flames, and places them on my Keyblade, making it look like it's either covered in the flames or producing them.
"Now, when that Heartless comes at us, strike it with your Keyblade. My flames will take care of the rest," Madison explains.
"You sure it'll work?" Luke asks.
"Trust me!" Madison exclaims.
Chibi and Kuro bark, letting us know that the Heartless is swooping down. I stand my ground, getting in front of the Heartless. Then I strike its head with my Keyblade. When I do, the flames that were surrounding my Keyblade spread across the Heartless' body, making it scream in pain as it crashes to the ground.
"Now's our chance!" Madison exclaims.
At Madison's signal, we land a string of attacks on the Heartless giving it severe damage. Working as a team, Madison, Sora and I deliver the finishing blow. The Heartless screams in pain, and makes an attempt to fly in the air. But it doesn't get far. Instead, it ends up crashing down.
As it gets closer and closer to the ground, it ends up falling straight to Mulan. My friends and I all become worried, knowing that she's not going to make it out in time.
"Mulan!" we hear Shang call out.
Shang uses his own body to cover Mulan, in an attempt to protect her. The Heartless' body lands on top of them. However, instead of being crushed and killed, the Heartless' body fades away into oblivion. I let out a relieved sigh, glad to see that Mulan and Shang are alive.
"They're alright!" Heisuke exclaims with a smile.
Sora also smiles. "Way to go!"
"We did it, mieu!" Mieu exclaims, while Stitch grabs a couple of pompoms from out of nowhere and does a sort of victory cheer.
Shang and Mulan both get up from the ground, holding each other's hand. They both smile at each other. Judging by their expressions, I can tell that those two have a thing for each other. My friends and I give them knowing looks, knowing full well that they were so in their own world that they forgot about us.
By the time they take in their surroundings, they notice our starring. The two of them then let go and look away from each other. They're faces are beat red from embarrassment. Then all of a sudden, fireworks are shot into the sky, as though it's someone's way of congratulating us for saving the city once again.
Later, we all head back to the Emperor's throne room. Since there wasn't much time to discuss things, we're hoping to hear more about the stranger, who appeared before the Emperor. We need to be sure if the person was really Riku and not someone else.
"Once again, you have served China well. It would please me to reward you. What is it that you wish?" the Emperor asks.
While Donald clasps his hands together, obviously hoping for our reward to be treasure, Goofy and Stitch's stomachs grumble, making them hope for our reward to be a feast. Although it is nice for the Emperor to show such generosity, I can't take advantage of his kindness. It wouldn't be right. There is, however, one thing that I do want.
I take a deep breath and speak up. "You said that a guy in black came to see you, right? Could you please tell me what it was he said to you?"
"That is all you request?" the Emperor asks, shocked by my words.
I nod my head. "It is, yes."
While Donald, Goofy and Stitch look downcast, the rest of my friends smile, proud of me for making a selfless request. But after a quick moment, Donald, Goofy and Stitch get over their disappoint and look at the Emperor, also curious about what the man in black said.
"Dragons have crossed our land and left a great web of paths. These dragons wield much power, and they are the source of many gifts to both man and nature. But it would seem someone of evil intent disturbed one of our dragons, and transformed it into what you call a Heartless," the Emperor explains. "It is my belief that this young man came to warn me of that danger. Then, I could alert and prepare my troops."
"Did you?" Hijikata asks.
For some unknown reason, the Emperor chuckles at Hijikata's question. "I was about to, but he told me the situation had changed."
"He said "a group of wise guys and girls" had arrived, and they would take care of things," Shang says. He then digs around his armor for something. "He also told me to give this to you guys. I've never seen a fruit like that before."
Sora, Madison and my eyes all widen as we stare at the object in Shang's hand. It's actually a Paopu fruit, the same kind that would grow on our island! And the way Shang said those words "wise guys"...there's only one person I know who would say something like that.
Then the man I encountered on the mountain...
I take the fruit from Shang and smile at it. "Riku!"
"That's gotta be Riku!" Sora exclaims, also smiling.
""A group of wise guys and girls", huh? Yep. Definitely sounds like something he would say," Madison says.
"How can you be sure?" Okita asks.
"Because this fruit is actually called a Paopu fruit. It would grow all the time on our island," I answer.
"There's also a silly legend about it. If two people share a Paopu fruit, their destinies will become intertwined with one another. They'll remain a part of each other's lives, no matter what," Madison explains.
After hearing Madison's explanation about the fruit, I lower it down for Chibi, Kuro and Stitch. They all look and sniff at curiously.
Donald and Goofy then look at each other with worry. "But if he's not hangin' out with Organization 13, then why didn't he say anything when we encountered him on the mountain?" Goofy asks.
I sigh, still bummed that Riku took off like that on the mountain. "I wish I knew."
"Maybe there wasn't enough time to talk and catch up. Maybe that's just how much of a rush he was in to inform the Emperor about that Heartless," Harada suggests.
"Even so, the least he could've done was stay, especially after we took care of the Heartless. I know the Organization's after him, but he didn't have to take off before at least talking to Harmony, Sora and Madison," Heisuke points out.
Heisuke's words make me start to feel down again, which easily gets noticed by Asch. "Hey, at least he's okay, right?" he asks, trying to reassure me. "And the next time we see him, let's be sure he doesn't run away and ask him ourselves of what's going on."
I nod my right. "Right. As long as he's okay, then that's good enough for me."
"Yeah, that's good!" Donald exclaims, nodding his head in agreement.
"Though, next time we do see him, remind me to smack him for making us worry," I say, smiling up at my boyfriend.
Asch smiles back at me. "Heh. You got it."
"I'll try to send a letter to him through my chimera when I've got a chance. Can't make any promises about getting a response, though. But at least it's better than nothing," Madison points out.
"He'd better write back. I think he's worried you guys long enough," says Nagakura.
"Now then, Fa Mulan. Do you have a request?" the Emperor asks.
"I'd like Shang...I-I mean...well...The Captain..." Mulan stutters, trying to find the right words to say.
Is Mulan going to admit her feelings about Shang?
It seems I'm not the only one who's curious, because the Emperor becomes quite eager to hear her request. "Yes, yes, my dear. What is it?"
"Could the Captain have a vacation, please?" Mulan asks.
Shang's eyes widen with shock. Though, I do notice his cheeks turning a little pink.
"I hardly expected such humble requests," the Emperor says, standing up from his throne. "In this case, I'm afraid I must refuse. Captain Li's responsibility is to protect the Emperor. And yet, Mulan..." at first, Mulan looks sad for having her request denied. But she soon straightens herself at the call of her name. "Would you like to serve alongside him and protect me?" at this, both Shang and Mulan become shocked by the Emperor's words. "Two reeds together are stronger than one. But the choice is yours alone."
"Thank you, your Excellency!" Mulan exclaims with a smile, bowing in respect.
Shang walks up to Mulan, and they both smile lovingly at each other. Seeing how things worked out between them, I can't help but lay my head on Asch's shoulder. He smiles down at me and wraps his arm around my waist. Seeing Mulan and Shang together must've made Sora start thinking about Kairi, because I see him wipe away a tear.
Donald and Goofy try to reassure him that it'll be okay. But all he does is look away from them, smiling, acting like nothing is wrong. Then I begin to realize something.
"Hey, Shang. Why don't you and Mulan have this?" I ask, handing the Paopu fruit to Shang.
"Don't you want it?" Shang asks, confused.
I shake my head. "It's fine. There's plenty more of those back on my home island."
"Harmony, good luck. I'm sure you'll find your friend," Mulan says.
"Thanks," I say.
I'll admit, a part of me is still sad that I missed my chance of seeing Riku again. But at least he's safe. He even gave my friends and I proof that it was definitely him instead of the Organization. And who knows? There might be other chances in seeing him again. Till then, I'm just going to have to be patient and keep helping people as I go, while locating the Organization's base.