Steven:
My vision cleared up and I gasped aloud as the horrible pain disappeared from my chest. The ringing in my ears cleared up just in time to hear the words "Mortem acquisivit" leave Black Hood's lips [If he had any] before he disappeared, taking the fog with him.
With the darkness gone, I was able to make better sense of my surroundings. It seemed like the whole D.T.C was here, along with Anna, Bunny and Johanna.
Lazlo and Clam were standing on Hailow's back, keeping him face-down on the ground. Hailow himself didn't look too good as he groaned a low note in pain. The two immediately scrambled off him and helped him sit up.
Anna was right next to them with tears streaming down her cheeks. Upon noticing, she began to dry them off with her sleeve, a confused look on her face. Johanna was in a similar situation on the ground, swiping at her cheeks with a frown as if furious with herself for crying.
Max and Johnny were standing side by side behind Johanna like bodyguards, Keyblades raised in a battle stance. They both had the same distressed look on their faces that I knew matched mine. What had happened?
I focused on the people in front of me. Bunny was crouched behind Danny, looking as if he'd just kicked someone. He had a look on his face similar to the time when kids walked through him during the disastrous Easter two years ago. Meanwhile, Raj was right next to me with his Energy Staff in hand.
Danny was on his knees, panting as if he'd just run a marathon. His Keyblade was raised over his head in defense, and I realized that my own Keyblade was pointed right at him, ready to strike.
I immediately dispelled my Keyblade and held out my hand to help Danny up. "You okay, Ghostbreath?"
To my surprise, he pulled me in for a brief hug. "Uh... what happened, Danny?" I asked as he pulled away.
Danny looked at me funny and glanced at the others as they came closer. "You don't remember?"
"Remember—?" A memory suddenly flashed in my mind. Being surrounded by the silver wolf creatures, the sudden blue glow of their eyes, the sinister laughter that followed, and the painful dizziness I felt before losing consciousness. "Please tell me I didn't turn into some mindless zombie."
Danny opened his mouth and began to shake his head, but frowned and stopped to think for a second. "Actually, yes. You all did."
Max walked over to me with a slight limp. His helmet had come off and his hair was partially flattened to his head on one side. "You've been checking out the zombie files one too many times, my friend. Even I couldn't have guessed that."
I decided to ignore Max and gestured to Hailow, who seemed to be coming 'round with Lazlo's help. "So you were the one to knock out Hailow?"
Danny adamantly shook his head, his eyes trained on Hailow with worry for a few seconds. "The Knight of Misery got to him. I don't understand though. You remember Beatrice, the girl from yesterday? She said she was going off to help him. Either she didn't get to him in time or...." Danny scratched the back of his neck. "Well, let's just say I don't know what Misery did to the two."
His message was quite plain. He wasn't sure if he and Johanna were the only ones we had tried to attack under Misery's influence. I groaned and put a hand on my face. "This is embarrassing. Don't tell Crystal, please."
"You have my—"
"Steven!" We turned around to see Crystal making her way towards us with Beatrice, the music Traveler from yesterday, leaning on her for support. Sandy and the other Guardians were close behind them, slightly battered from the long battle. Elsa was with them, her braid coming loose and a small bruise forming on her right cheek. She seemed to be deep in conversation with Jack and North.
"Crystal!" I sent Danny and the others a warning look before making my way over to my sister. "What happened?"
"We got surrounded. I... I kind of lost my way when the darkness came over. Just kept slashing here and blasting there, trying to find you guys. I found Beatrice a little while later on the ground." Max and Danny took over helping Beatrice for Crystal and helped set her next to Johanna. "Met Elsa, Sandy, and the other Guardians on the way here after the fog dispersed."
I opened my mouth to ask another question, but her eyes caught sight of Johanna. "Jac! Oh my gosh, are you okay?" Crystal knelt in front of Johanna and gave her a big hug.
"I'm fine, Crystal. Thanks for asking." Jack said with a smirk, coming up behind her. Johanna giggled at Jack's silliness.
Crystal pulled away from Johanna and tried hard (with little success) to frown at Jack. "Oh, shove off, Frost. Go and entertain Her Majesty." This made Johanna laugh a bit more for some reason.
Jack merely shrugged and gestured his staff at Elsa, who was now tightly embracing Anna and chastising her for leaving Sandy's side. "And ruin a little sister reunion? Nah. There's plenty of time for a snowball fight later." Jack then turned serious and looked at us. "What happened here?"
I rubbed the back of my neck, contemplating what to tell them. "The Knight of Misery almost destroyed our minds... In the end, it was Black Hood who defeated him."
Before Jack could ask, Beatrice spoke up. "I tried to hold him off for as long as I could. For a moment, it seemed like I was winning. But then..." she closed her eyes for a few seconds as if remembering what the Knight did to her. "All I can say is that the Knight of Misery is quite skilled at illusions."
"I'll say." Johanna muttered.
Crystal turned to her, a concerned expression on her face. "What's that supposed to mean? What did he do to you?"
"I... I saw Mom and Dad. On the ground. As if... y'know." Johanna said quietly, avoiding Crystal's gaze.
Crystal seemed to understand and gave her friend another hug before turning to Johnny. "I told you to watch her for me. It was so simple, Johnny!"
"But I—" Johnny began.
"Don't blame him." Johanna defended. "I wanted to help. Besides, you couldn't have expected Johnny to stay by my side in battle the whole time."
Bunny took that moment to notice the still-unconscious Pitch a few feet away, sand butterflies flying around his head. "Nice work, Sandy. Now what?"
"Now..." I trailed off. Apparently, the whole zombie thing had kind of short-circuited my brain.
As I racked my brain, I noticed Anna and Elsa talking quietly to each other nearby. The younger sister tried to sit on a rock, and... 'FSS!'
"Ow!" Anna yelped, abruptly standing up and holding her behind. "Hot!"
The princess's exclamation jolted us back to our senses. Crystal shot up almost as quickly as Anna did and muttered something to herself. "Jac, you'll be okay for the spell?" she asked, hauling Johanna to her feet. Johanna nodded, wiping the sweat from her forehead. "Good. Now, repeat after me. El mun—"
"Ahem." Beatrice cleared her throat, interrupting Crystal. "Crystal, there may have been a little... confusion about the spell."
"Meaning?" Crystal asked impatiently, prompting Beatrice to speak faster.
"Johanna Clifford is not a Traveler, so she cannot perform the spell herself. You will have to do it for her." Beatrice explained, slowly standing up.
Crystal frowned in confusion. "Kai specifically said—"
"That it is important for a fan of the two realms combined to say the final verse, in order to show acceptance of how things were before. But unless she is a Traveler, she can't do the actual spell without... passing out." I had a feeling she was going to say something other than 'passing out'.
"A fact Kai and Benjin didn't bother explaining." Crystal put a hand behind her neck as she looked up for a second or two. It gave me just enough time to process her words. Benjin? Who on Tyton was Benjin? "That would've been nicer to know earlier. Certain... events could have been avoided." Johanna smirked at that, making me wonder what they did exactly when they disappeared through the portal earlier.
Just then, the ground shook for a good five seconds. Johnny stumbled, his eyes in a half-squint. Max put a hand on his shoulder, but Johnny waved him off. "I'm fine." He muttered.
After a concerned glance at Johnny, Crystal knelt down and drew two snowflakes in the ground once more. Her finger left white glowing marks in the grass where she touched, something we wouldn't have noticed with all the snow earlier.
"B, I'll get started on the spell. Tell Jac her lines for me." Crystal said, spreading her hands out towards the snowflakes.
Beatrice nodded and spoke to Johanna in a quiet voice. I didn't really pay attention as I was too focused on my sister.
Crystal's forehead was beaded with sweat, and I doubted it was solely because of the heat. I, myself, was quite drained from the battle earlier and I didn't even use magic. Magic tends to draw a lot from a person, one of the few reasons it's not used all the time.
"El mundio del nix et glacies," Crystal began chanting, her eyes closed in concentration.
Having done her part, Beatrice turned to the royals and the Guardians. "Better say your goodbyes."
The ground shook again and Crystal wobbled back and forth, trying to keep her balance. However, she didn't stop chanting. "Nunc separant,"
"I still think they could've worked." Johanna muttered next to me as she watched Elsa give Jack a hug.
I snorted at that, getting Johanna's attention. I walked closer to her and muttered in order not to be heard by the others. "Frost is... way too innocent and quite focused on fun. I don't think he'll be falling in love or whatever anytime soon."
Johanna groaned. "Not you too!"
"Jac." Crystal had finished chanting and was now looking at Johanna expectantly.
Johanna took a step forward and after a shaky breath, recited, "As two worlds together cause bad things to erupt, the realms must be separated to not corrupt. On behalf of the people, I allow this. On behalf of the realms, I ask this. And on behalf of the multiverse..." she paused, making me momentarily panic. Did she forget the words? Is she having second thoughts? Is—? "I demand this."
The ground rumbled once more, but it was more of a settling motion. Like, when you shake the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle and they fall into place instead of jumble up again.
Immediately the temperature turned down a notch. I must've blinked or something, because one moment, the Guardians were there and the next, they weren't.
"Where are Anna and Elsa?" Raj asked, for the two had also disappeared.
"Back where they were before this whole mess." Beatrice responded.
"Right. And now," I turned to Crystal. With the danger of exploding out of the picture, something she said earlier came back to my mind. "Who's Benjin? Why haven't I heard about him before?"
Crystal had the nerve to roll her eyes at me. "A friend, Steven. What else?"
"Yes, of course." Max said in a slight mocking tone, resting his elbow on my shoulder. "We'll have to see this friend of yours. How old is he?"
Crystal opened her mouth to probably say some kind of jibe at Max, but Beatrice interrupted. "Wait, you mean they don't know about any of us? Not even... Kai?"
"I didn't really have time to tell them, B. And what's with your tone?" Crystal crossed her arms. From what they said, I guessed Kai was Crystal's touchy best friend among the Travelers or something.
"Benjin's a guy. That's why we need to know about him first." Johnny told Beatrice.
"But Kai—" Beatrice was cut off as Crystal gave her a look. Hm, better add that to the list of questions for later.
"Benji looked to be in his twenties." Johanna said, grabbing our attention. "No older than you guys, I'd say. I'm pretty good at guessing ages. Unless it's anime, maybe. Did you know—"
"Thank you, Jac." Crystal said with a warning glance.
A twinge of annoyance hit my gut. "Wait, Johanna knows this guy?"
"Just recently! I— It's a long story." Crystal sighed. "Look, I'll meet you guys back at the castle after taking Jac home."
"Already? But—" Johanna protested.
"I'll take her if you want, Crystal." Beatrice offered.
"It's fine, B. You should probably get back home." Crystal said, turning away from us. "Get some rest before your next duty."
'Wow. Suddenly, we're invisible here.' Max said telepathically. I nodded slightly, agreeing with Max.
"You're one to talk." Beatrice replied. "With the way you're carrying on, I'm surprised you managed that separation spell without passing out or something." Beatrice then stepped forward to give Crystal a hug. "Heed my previous warning, Crystal. Don't do this on your own."
Crystal frowned, pulling away. "What warning?"
Beatrice looked at Crystal, then at me. "You didn't tell her?"
"Uh..." Suddenly, being invisible seemed pretty good to me.
"Tell me what?" Crystal demanded.
A com-link suddenly appeared on Beatrice's wrist, beeping like crazy. The Traveler suddenly seemed a little panicked.
"Beatrice?" Hailow asked.
Beatrice simply took Crystal by the shoulders. "Keep the end in mind, friend. Keep the end in mind." Ah. That warning.
Beatrice then ran off and jumped through a portal. Crystal stared after her for a moment as if pondering those words, before turning to Johanna as if nothing happened. "Well, that's our cue."
Johanna sighed in defeat and waved at us. "Fine."
"Crystal—" I began.
A movement caught my attention out of the corner of my eye. Max had taken out the brand new Neuralizer he had 'borrowed' from Men in Black. And his latest tech was pointed straight at Johanna.
I quickly reached out and knocked the Neuralizer out of his hand. 'Are you crazy?' I telepathically said.
'...Sorry. Habit.' Max smiled sheepishly at me.
"Back soon!" Crystal called, dragging Johanna towards an open portal.
"But—" I cut myself off as she disappeared with her friend. Back soon? I doubted that. She had just escaped yet another serious questioning, so why would she try to 'be back soon'?
"Girls." Max said with a shrug.
Lazlo snickered. "Don't let Lori catch you saying that, Max."
Max's face went slightly red. "I, uh... where'd my helmet go?" he began to walk away.
The others began laughing at Max's embarrassment, and I couldn't help but laugh along. This was just a passing moment, I knew. It couldn't always be like this. But after all that had happened today, a moment was all I needed.
You:
A noise comes from the kitchen, and the usual white glow of Crystal's portals shines through the doorway. You slowly inch your way towards the doorway, wary of who could be there.
"Ah." Crystal's voice comes from inside. "Back to reality."
"Reality?" Johanna's disbelieving voice asks.
"Hey, it's easier than saying 'realm of reality'." Crystal retaliates.
"What, now?"
"Never mind." By now, you are at the edge of the doorway and the sound of footsteps reach your ears. You prepare to be spotted, but they stop as soon as they started.
The sound of the fridge opening reaches your ears. That alone almost convinces you to reveal yourself, but you decide to wait and listen to what else Crystal has to say. Why would she take her friend to your house anyway?
"You know Jac, I met this prince back when I was in Weselton. Dylan was his name. Charming fellow, he was. Nothing like the Duke, and it seemed—"
"Oh, shut it." Johanna snaps, annoyed.
"Hey, I thought you didn't like this drink, Jac." Drink? Talk about a quick change of topic.
"I don't."
"What's it doing here, then?"
"How am I supposed to know? Where are we, anyway?" A short silence follows.
"I did say I was taking you home." Crystal says slowly, the sound of a bottle being set on the counter following her statement.
"I doubt my kitchen's changed in the last few hours I was here." Johanna says. "And it hasn't been that long since you've been there either!"
"You said you were going to have it remodeled, last time I was there!"
"It was delayed." Another short silence.
"Dang it, where are we?"
You choose this moment to make yourself known. "Does this answer your question?"
Crystal stares at you in surprise for a moment, Johanna looking at you curiously beside her. You spot your favorite drink on the counter next to them. Johanna looks at Crystal. "What—"
"Uh, Jac, this is (your name). (Your name), Johanna." Crystal says a little awkwardly, rubbing the back of her neck.
You give her your normal greeting and Johanna smiles politely in return, saying, "Nice to meet you." She then looks at Crystal. "Looks like a lot to tell Yasmin, Rayleigh, Janine—"
Crystal clamps Johanna's mouth shut. "No, you can't tell them anything. Look—" she then glances at you apologetically. "Uh, sorry for the intrusion. We'll get going."
Johanna's muffled protests escape her mouth as Crystal drags her quickly through the portal. Crystal's final words reach your ears before the portal closes, "You listen well, Jac—"
Well, that wasn't at all weird now, was it?