My Little Pony: Sora's Misadventures in Equestria

by Codex92

Can You Heal a Broken Heart?

Sora barely slept a wink. He felt numb, lost a huge piece of himself. The last couple days were grueling on his psyche, including his heart. The filly he thought he took in and felt sorry for, Cozy Glow, was actually a mare with a growth defect who used the power of the Keyblade and the magic of friendship for her dark, personal gains. His heart fell for her ploy, treated like a toy that she freely battered around without any care of its fragility, and now it's been shattered. It only made things worse when M appeared to him, berated him for his blind eye to Cozy's actions, and even made him feel worthless at the mention of failing to save the ones he couldn't save and twisted that knife already struck in heart by forcing him to choose to kill Cozy Glow or be killed by her. His Anti-Form, altered into a deadlier, feral form as he finally unleash his pent up wrath and anger on Cozy, was seen by Celestia, Luna, Neighsay, the Young Six, and the royal guard in Canterlot. They no longer saw him as a hero of their world; he was a monster, just like Cozy Glow.

As soon as Kairi woke up when the sun began to rise for the morning, she took Sora to the hospital to check on his left forehoof. It was still sore and left him subtly wincing after Cozy used her power to shift the earth and nearly crush his hoof in a painful vicegrip, the alicorn fearing it might have been broken. Though it was simpler to fly, the couple slowly walked to the hospital, Sora leaning against Kairi while she helped keep pressure off his broken hoof with her magic. Sora went without wearing his clothes, left on their dresser, along with his necklace as it rested on top of the folded shirt and jacket. They passed several ponies going about their morning as they walked through town, though their greetings to the couple died when they saw the depressed look on Sora's face. They might not have known what happened, but they did grow concern as he brought a lot of life to Ponyville along with Pinkie Pie.

Sora was checked in once they arrived, going over the basic checkup in case something else was wrong after Kairi mentioned his hoof. Though he had a clean bill of physical health, Nurse Redheart could see he was emotionally unwell, but didn't press for details and focused on examining Sora's physical injury. After assessing the damage, she wrapped his left leg with some bandages and put a sling over his neck.

"Thankfully, it's nothing too serious," Redheart said. "Even though you said it got crushed fighting those monsters, it looked more badly sprained. No broken bones or torn muscles. Just as long as he stays off that hoof for a few days, it'll be back to normal in no time."

"Thanks, Nurse Redheart," Kairi said.

Sora just silently stared at his leg, Redheart helping to let it sit comfortably in the sling. "I know you and your other friends tend to get into a lot of rough scrapes saving Equestria from those Heartless things. Just what kinds of creatures are they?"

"Something you can be glad you're not running into every day," Kairi slightly joked.

"I'd rather deal with Rainbow Dash whining in boredom if she sprains another wing," the nurse said.

Once he was all set, the couple exited the building and slowly made their way down the road. It was a beautiful day out, but the atmosphere just felt gloomy for Sora. Kairi guided him to Sugarcube Corner, hoping a snack or sweet at the barkery would help get his mind off of everything. Pinkie would be busy at the school today, but that would give her some time to think of a way to help cheer Sora back up.

They walked inside with the fresh scent of baked goods wafting from the kitchen. Pound and Pumpkin were playing with their toys in the corner when they heard the bell ring above their front door. Spotting Sora, Pumpkin giggled and ran up to her favorite foalsitter, grabbing his right leg and hugged it.

"Sowa!" she cheered as she nuzzled him. Looking up at him, her smile turned upside down when she saw how upset he looked, barely even noticing her. "...Sowa?"

"Sorry, Pumpkin. Sora's...a bit too tired to play today," Kairi gently told the unicorn foal. She grabbed the filly, rubbing her head to calm her down. "Maybe next time. Ok?"

Pumpkin whined, but she obeyed. Kairi let her back down on the ground and return to playing with her and her brother's toys. Mrs. Cake stepped out from behind the counter and approached the couple.

"Well, how nice to see you both back, Sora and Kairi," she greeted. "Pinkie told us you've been away on your honeymoon. I didn't know you got married recently. Congratulations."

"Thanks, Mrs. Cake," Kairi said.

Sora grunted slightly, barely acknowledging the baker's presence. Mrs. Cake noticed Sora was definitely out of sorts, having seen this a before years ago after hearing about the Crystal Empire's return.

"Oh dear," she mumbled. She glanced back at her twins, spotting Pumpkin occasionally looking over to them with a worried look in her blue eyes. "Pinkie told us about the...'incident' that happened at the School of Friendship. Although, we thought it was much worse when we could all practically feel the explosions that occurred from some monster attack."

"I think all of us would have preferred a monster instead," Kairi said, subtly glancing at Sora as he lowered his chin on the table, staring blankly at the front counter display.

"I-I see...W-Well, things might...turn out ok with time," Mrs. Cake said, though with Sora's case, it might be quite a longer while than the last time she saw him so miserable. "Can I get you anything?"

"Surprise us," Kairi said.

Mrs. Cake nodded and went back to the counter. Kairi began to rub Sora's back, though her ear perked up when she thought she heard commotion coming from downstairs. The staircase leading to the Cakes' and Pinkie's home upstairs creaked open slightly, which was one of the few weird entrances to the basement where Pinkie's party cave dwells. Coming up from the downstairs slide hidden under the stairs, Pinkie scrambling up the slide with a panicked, exhausted grimace.

"I don't know what to do!" Pinkie exclaimed as she managed to climb out. She got the Cake Twins' attention, her frizzy mane more frizzed out and going more loco with her energetic cocoa. "Sora's so upset, it's making me upset, like some sort of happiness sponge is being sucked away even more, and I don't have any clue what kind of party I can think of that'll make him go back to-!" While frantically ranting about, she paused when she caught Sora and Kairi sitting at one of the tables across the room. Clearly not expecting them to be at Sugarcube Corner right now, Pinkie put on a fake smile, far too wide to be believable, leaning against the bottom step and slowly, awkwardly closing the party cave's entrance. "Sora! Kairi! What a surprise! Oh, wait! Surprise party is not a good idea!...Or maybe it will?"

"Uhh...Hi, Pinkie," Kairi greeted awkwardly. "I...thought you were at the school."

"Hehehe! Really!? I probably should since it is a school day, and I got Laughter lessons to teach!" Pinkie said. "Time flies when you're planning birthday party number umpteenth and a half in who knows when that'll be!"

Pinkie bounced her way out of the bakery, though the sound of the sproing in her step almost sounded completely off. Not even Pinkie could find a way to cheer Sora up, and even confirmed just how much of an impact Sora's mood could affect everyone around him. Sora barely reacted, lost in his own thoughts while barely conscious of everyone else around him.

---

At the School of Friendship, every student was gathered to the main lobby for yet another announcement. With the magic returned to Equestria, most of them expected Cozy Glow to continue running the school like she had to make it more fun. They were glad to see Twilight Sparkle returned along with their teachers and Starlight, though they began to worry what's been happening the last few days and what they had discovered. Twilight was nervous, afraid to know how the student body would take the unfortunate news that occurred in the last three days. Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow, Rarity, Starlight, and Lea were present, but there was no sign of Pinkie Pie.

Twilight was about to begin when the front doors slammed open, then shut behind the late arrival. "Sorry I'm late, Twilight!" Pinkie called out, hopping over everyone and landing in the surprisingly small gaps between the students as she made her way up to join her friends. "I was up all night trying to figure out what to do to help Sora cheer up. I got nothing!"

"Ah think he just needs some time to recover from this, sugarcube," Applejack whispered. "All we can do is support him and let him know that what happened weren't his fault."

Despite Pinkie's need to see others smile and make them happy, she knew her possible distant cousin was right. Sora was going to need time, a whole lot of it, and the love from his true friends and family to help him. Sadly, with the next Keyblade War threatening to break out soon, they were going to need Sora along with all the more experienced wielders to put a stop to Xehanort and his Organization's plans.

Focusing on the school for now, Twilight took a deep breath, then used her magic to amplify her voice for everyone to hear her. "Everypony, thank you all for coming. The last few days have been stressful, and almost terrifying. Our magic was fading, but we managed to recover it before it was lost to us forever. My friends and I left to Tartarus to confront who we thought was responsible, the evil centaur, Tirek, but he was still locked away after we defeated him a couple years ago. He was partly responsible as he had somepony in Equestria giving them detailed instructions on how to steal the magic and even find a way to lose it forever. Sadly, his accomplice was somepony from this very school." The students all murmured in surprise as they all looked at each other. Many had thought that it was Neighsay, as Sora had accused when he returned and the unicorn chancellor's actions explaining his decision to take over this very school after getting it shut down because of the Young Six's accident. "The accomplice, much to my disappointment, was my former friendship assistant, Cozy Glow."

Gasps rang out, the ponies all startled and aghast at the horrible news, some even protesting that it was impossible for a filly like her to even think about doing anything evil. Twilight winced, obviously expecting some backlash, and it was beginning to escalate. Lea stepped in with a huff, pulling out his memory ornament from his pocket.

"Hey, if you don't believe us, then have a look and memorize this!" Holding the ornament above him with his magic, he showed the school what had happened to him, Starlight, and the other wielders who had stayed behind. The moment they saw Cozy Glow and heard her diabolical plan, the complaints immediately ceased. They were shocked by her behavior, her greed for power, and her grand master plan for taking over the school and destroying Equestria's magic. What shocked them the most was how she had a Keyblade like the other warriors, and she had fought back against the Young Six and Sora, seeing him with Cozy Glow on occasion and far more emotionally distressed when he found out. "That filly you all thought would be your friend was using all of us, and nearly tried to kill us. And she's not a kid; she's a fully grown adult, aware of the actions she made, and doesn't give a crap about the negative repercussions or everyone she lied to or could have hurt in the end. She only cares about herself, and she used what was taught here at this school as a weapon against all of us, all so she can gain power from friendship and take over Equestria."

Any complaints had died, no one speaking up to defend Cozy anymore after witnessing the truth before them. Lea cut off the magical feed, putting the ornament back in his pocket. Twilight silently thanked Lea before continuing her speech.

"Lea is right; Cozy Glow mistook what this school was meant to teach and took advantage of every lesson she learned. With her medical disability, she made us all believe she was only a little filly who acted sweet and innocent...The worst part of it all is that Sora was the one who had a much closer bond to the persona she made us all believe." Twilight paused for a moment, letting it sink in to everyone present after seeing him in the memory playback for that moment. "...He felt it was his responsibility to deal with her, as much as we had begged him to reconsider. Despite the pain he's suffering from, he prevailed, defeated her, and we sent her off to Tartarus where she will spend the rest of her life imprisoned for her crimes.

"As of today, Cozy Glow's student records will be erased from this school. She is no longer a friend; she is a wanted criminal, and one of the worst villains my friends and I have ever stopped since we became the bearers of the Elements of Harmony." Twilight had even considered she could be even worse than Xehanort, but even in the alternate Sombra timeline, that version of Xehanort chose to fight against the unicorn Heartless in an attempt to help stop him with his enemies. Though he had selfish reasons as to why, he was once concerned about Sora and the darkness being released from his anger toward Sombra after what he did to Kairi's heart. She looked out to her students, letting out a sigh. "...I opened this school so I could teach everyone throughout our world the magic of friendship. To spread the lessons we have learned to make our world one truly of peace and equality.

"Neighsay was right when he claimed friendship would be used as a weapon against us. But where he suspected six of our true prodigal students, five of which come from neighboring kingdoms the princesses and I have welcomed and grown better ties with, we never expected the one to use friendship like this would be a pony." Looking back at her friends, who were listening to every word as much as their students were, she looked back to the student body, held up her hoof, and summoned Harmony in a flash of light. "Like us, those six students represent the very same spirits of the Elements. They are a beacon of peace and harmony for Equestria, but we can share it among other races, other creatures. Friendship is not a tool to grant one immense power; friendship is what grants those who wish to fight for the ones they love that kind of power...Sora is by far the strongest out of all of us.

"He's made many friends, fought for them without asking for anything in return for saving them. I barely knew anything about it while studying under Princess Celestia. And when I first met him in Ponyville, he was that kind of pony you could rely on, who could be there to make you laugh or assure you that things will be ok. I never saw that in him until we traveled to the Castle of the Two Sisters deep in the Everfree Forest, where we found the Elements of Harmony. But it wasn't until years later where we discovered he was also a crucial piece of what makes the Elements so strong; he is our friend, a hidden, seventh Element that the Tree of Harmony was waiting for." Holding her Keyblade for them all to see, she emphasized the keychain at the end of the hilt, where each link was a symbol of each mare's respective Element, and the silver crown that grew from the end, connecting them to the pommel. "He is the light that we needed for the magic of friendship in the Elements...And I'm afraid Cozy Glow may have tarnished that light with her lies.

"I hope that the rest of this school year, everyone will truly take these lessons to heart. Including what happens when you take another's generosity and kindness for granted and betray their trust." Though the students were all silent, they understand the horrifying example Twilight gave. And since most of the ponies knew about Sora and his heroics, they were disheartened to know he was in a terrible state of misery after the shocking events that unfolded last night. Twilight dismissed her Keyblade, seeing everyone wasn't going to make any arguments. "Now, let's all head off to class. Finals will be in another month."

They all left to go to their first period classes, the air heavily silence sans the multiple hooves clopping along the floor. Rainbow, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Rarity followed them to begin their class lessons while Twilight stood where she was, wondering if Sora would really recover from this.

"Lea!" Sweet Delight came running up to Lea, nearly bowling him over as she caught him in a tight embrace. Axle came up as well, hugging the stallion's hind leg while his mother held him. "I can't believe you almost got killed by that...Oh, for goodness sake, you've had so many close calls, I'm going to have a heart attack at my age!"

"Well, that's kinda the risk saving worlds and stuff," Lea said, trying to play it off as a little joke, but Sweet only hugged him tighter, almost crushing his ribs.

"Then stop it before you worry both of us like that again!" Sweet exclaimed, Axle nodding his head rapidly against Lea's leg.

"Right. No promises, but I'll try to be careful next time," Lea said, wheezing slightly.

Sweet let go of him, giving him a kiss before doing so. "You'd better have that memorized, you doof," she chided. Lea laughed slightly, tapping a hoof to his head, getting the message loud and clear. Sweet Delight let out a sigh, nuzzling his neck in relief. "I can't believe that filly was nothing but a monster. She even helped Axle Beam with friendship lessons, and even learned EHL to communicate with him. I'm glad she's going to rot in Tartarus for eternity."

"I should have known something was up when she started to take lessons at the school," Starlight mumbled. "Getting tutored by the Cutie Mark Crusaders would easily help her pass, only to fail on purpose so they could take lessons at the school with her...I even mentioned how diabolical that was for a filly to come up with!"

"I think what's worse is what Aqua got out of Cozy Glow before she got her one-way ticket to H-E-double hockey sticks," Lea mentioned. "She's a Key bearer from a different world, even though she's still a pegasus. Somewhere out there is another world with other wielders, and with how much trouble's been going on, those lazy jackals aren't doing a thing to help lighten the load."

"Maybe they're hiding because they know what Xehanort might be planning and keep themselves neutral in the next war," Twilight pondered. "...And, speaking of wars...If Sora can't get any better when the time comes...I might actually have to take his place with the others."

"Twilight, you're the Princess of Friendship!" Starlight reminded the alicorn. "Without you, what about what you want to do by spreading friendship throughout the whole world!?"

"It won't really matter if Xehanort plans to destroy every world in the cosmos if the X-blade and the power of Kingdom Hearts are in his possession," Twilight reasoned. Sweet and Axle were shocked by the bad news, though they weren't told much about who Xehanort was or what Kingdom Hearts was. Starlight's protests died, knowing how bad the situation would be after seeing what the Realm of Darkness looked like if Equestria were to fall. She didn't want to imagine the worlds being wiped out by someone with an insane goal like universal genocide. "I need to get back to training. Starlight, can you overlook the rest of the school year for me?"

"Oh boy. Uhh...I mean, I guess?" Starlight said. "As long as Discord doesn't come up with another crazy lesson and try to run the school his way again. Speaking of, where in the hay was he in the last few days? Probably could have used his help since Cozy's glyph was only taking magic from Equestria."

---

Riku, Ventus, and Xion opened the door to Cozy Glow's room, the former letting out a huff at the child-like bedroom made for her. "Alright. Let's get rid of all her crap so we don't have to be reminded of that snake."

Riku stepped inside, Ventus and Xion following, though they were highly concerned with Riku's ire. It wasn't easy for any of them right now. They knew he was mad at Sora for trying to give Cozy an out, preventing the deadly duel in the first place when they could have apprehended her without trouble. Riku began tearing down Cozy's drawings that were hung up, the childish artistry giving her that illusion that pulled the wool over everyone's eyes.

"Riku, are you alright?" Ventus asked.

"Of course I'm not alright!" Riku shouted, ripping the drawings to pieces with a frustrated grunt. "I hate that little runt for what she did! She nearly got us killed, made Sora lose his damn mind in denial, and when we had her, his stupid heart decides to keep giving her far too many chances, and after thinking he got killed by her Megaflare, I was never going to forgive myself for punching that idiot in the face for suggesting that stupid duel and stopping him!"

Xion growled, taking offense for Riku's comments toward Sora. "What if you had been in Sora's shoes if you were the one who took Cozy in!?" she shouted. "Do not blame him for trying to do something good for someone we all thought was innocent! You would have wanted to give her another chance at redemption if you had to make such a tough choice!"

"Oh, I'm sorry, you weren't ambushed and attacked from behind and forced to be trapped in a giant ball of magic!" Riku argued. "You had to leave before you ended up turning back into the stump that damn bug queen made out of you when she tried to clone an evil Sora!"

"Have you ever wondered how it felt to die at the hands of one of your best friends and have the memories of knowing me being wiped from existence!?" Xion shouted. "I'm not risking that after what I had to deal with in that stupid Organization! You know that!"

"Guys! Cut it out!" Ventus shouted, forcing himself between the two before they tore each other's throats out. "We're not going to have another fight around here! Riku, your acting like an ass right now! It's not Sora's fault for what Cozy Glow did!"

"He gave her so many chances and she wasted every single one behind his back!" Riku argued. "He knew the night before when Tirek told him and the girls the truth, but he decided to just push it back into the recesses of his mind and keep fighting for her!"

"Then clearly you have no idea how your best friend feels when his heart is broken," Ventus growled. "What about his dad? You remember when he got the bad news when you guys were kids? He was so mad and in such denial, he lashed out at everyone who tried to calm him down! He loved his dad that much and refused to let him go! He can't bear to lose anyone and just give them up if they are! If you cared about Sora, then maybe he made a mistake saving you when you chose to follow the path of darkness and gave your heart to Xehanort's Heartless!"

Fuming, Riku looked like he was ready to clobber Ventus. He and Xion were ready to fight back and outmatch him, but Riku let out a frustrated snarl and turned away. They thought he was going to destroy the room, get rid of everything Cozy Glow had touched or made. His ears drooped, taking in a shaky breath as he hung his head.

"...I've made far more mistakes than he did," he muttered. "...Sora never gave up on me...even after I insulted him, fought against him...took his Keyblade and left him to fend for himself in a Heartless infested world with a wooden sword...I gave my heart to Ansem, and his darkness began to consume me...I was stupid and screwed up everything. That still haunts me to this day...and despite our falling out...he still worried about me." Ventus and Xion didn't want to feel any sympathy for Riku after acting up like that, but the stallion struggled to hold back his tears. "...I just...didn't want him to let his heart decide everything for him...I know it's his biggest strength, but it was also his biggest weakness in that moment.

"I'm not mad at him...I'm...I'm terrified." Stunned, Ventus and Xion watched Riku turn to face them, his face mixed between fear and sadness as his eyes welled up with tears. "I know his heart was in the right place, but...seeing him turn into that...when he finally snapped...I thought it was bad enough seeing him this angry when we were kids...I thought it was bad enough when I first saw him in his Anti-Form when Pete kidnapped his mom...How am I supposed to help my friend if I feel so...powerless to stop him or change his mind?"

Xion scowled, even if Riku was being sincere as he was feeling emotional in the moment. "Still doesn't make it right by saying your own friend was stupid for constantly trusting the villain when none of us knew," she said.

"...You're right," Riku mumbled, hanging his head as he brought a hoof to his face. "I don't really mean it, but...what were any of us supposed to do? Don't tell me you two weren't just as scared when you saw how badly he beat up Cozy Glow. She didn't deserve any sympathy from anyone, but...that look in his eyes..." It was hard for everyone present last night to forget about that look in Sora's eyes. In such a monstrous version of his Anti-Form, there was no glint of mercy in the shrunken yellow pupils. What was once the Sora they expected had been temporarily wiped, altering his perspective on protecting his friends and family and stopping those who wished to harm them, and it snapped when the filly he thought he knew revealed herself as the villain he was supposed to stop. Even when he beat her to the point of near-death, as they tried to stop him from finishing the job, Sora didn't hesitate to physically go through them, but they were lucky he decided to just trapped them in a veil of dark flames. Riku's shoulders trembled, holding back his sobs. "...I didn't think there was any way we could bring him back...Not after what Cozy Glow did..."

Ventus and Xion had the same thought, though neither of them knew it would have affected Riku this hard. They were aware he let the darkness take hold of him, and he went a whole year fighting back against it until Ansem the Wise's device backfiring back in The World That Never Was changed him back to normal. He thought it was hopeless for him to change after that, and he expected it to be hopeless for Sora when he transformed like that and turned into a monster. Kairi wasn't able to snap him out of it, even with her heart being made of pure light, unable to quell the deep-seeded wrath that Sora restrained from letting out with the power of darkness fueled by that broken-hearted rage. It was easy for the others to dismiss Cozy as an adorable little ally because they didn't dote on her as much as Sora had. But for Sora, he had never wanted to let anyone go, especially when there was no hope of ever saving them.

Sighing, Ventus approached the trembling stallion. "We're all scared," he said to Riku. "And we're all upset with Cozy Glow for fooling us like that. We should be lucky that Sora finally found his sense of self to spare Cozy Glow before he took her life. That would have broken him far more if he killed her while filled with so much anger and hurt in his heart." Riku nodded his head in agreement. He didn't want to see his friend taking a life, not just an enemy's heart. Losing someone close to him may have been painful, but killing someone outright made him worry his friend would permanently change to make him more of a Heartless as he had been against Cozy Glow. "Maybe you should let us deal with Cozy's belongings. Take a walk, or go let off some steam somewhere."

Keeping his head low, Riku silently nodded again, then slowly took his leave from Cozy's bedroom. It was clear that Riku was still miffed at the close scare they had when they thought Cozy killed Sora. Her influence on Sora's heart had drastically changed the atmosphere around Ponyville, and Sora's depressions was bleeding out and affecting everyone around him. Xion grunted, unwilling to excuse Riku's behavior after he had practically insulted her as well as a part of Sora.

"Let's finish throwing everything out and figure out what to do next," Xion mumbled.

Ventus nodded, then the two went back to clearing out the room. Xion picked up the pieces of Cozy's drawings Riku tore up while Ventus approached Cozy's little desk. Opening one of the drawers, she pulled out some more drawings she made, most of them innocent, though they were just a farce for her filly persona. While going through the drawings, one particular one made him pause and stare at it, finding the setting that was drawn familiar. The canyons in the drawing looked similar to the barren landscape of the Keyblade Graveyard, and the giant heart up in the sky looked like a brightly colored Kingdom Hearts. It reminded him of the deadly battle with him, Terra, and Aqua against Xehanort and Vanitas. But there was a lack of Keyblades along the bottom, though it was unclear if Cozy purposefully left them out or forgot to add any of them in to match the current graveyard.

As he continued staring at the picture, his head was suddenly struck with painful migraine, making him grunt and clutch his head, dropping the drawings in his hooves. Nearly falling over from the pain, his mind felt overloaded by what appeared to be memories, though he couldn't make out any of them with how quickly they flashed through his eyes. There were other people, some had Keyblades, conversations from them with voices unfamiliar to him, arguments, each one growing louder and louder and deafening each other. He nearly passed out as he fell, Xion quickly catching him after hearing him cry out in agony from the mysterious headache.

"Ven!? What's wrong!?" Xion called out worriedly.

The voices and memories stopped, making Ventus pant, trying to process what had happened to him. The throbbing in his head went away after a moment, shakily standing back up with Xion by his side in case he collapsed again.

"W-What...What was that?" Ven mumbled to himself.

"I might be guessing, but I know that kind of headache you must have had," Xion said. "A whole bunch of memories came to me and nearly made me pass out from overstimulation when I went to see where I was created; Castle Oblivion."

"...I...I think so?" Ventus said, rubbing his head as the memories that shot into his head disappeared as quickly and painfully as they appeared. "Where did that all come from?"

"Were they memories you lost before you met Xehanort?" Xion asked.

"I'm...not sure. I can't recall them anymore," Ventus said. Looking down at the scattered drawings, he stared at the one picture that caused the migraine, but nothing happened this time. Xion noticed the drawing, too, recognizing Kingdom Hearts floating in the picture's sky and shimmering brightly over the decaying mountain range. Cozy may have been a Key bearer from another world, but at her actual age, there was no way she could have envisioned the Keyblade War and the appearance of the heart of all worlds, or if she knew of the repeat war Xehanort tried to recreate with Aqua, Terra, and Ventus. "...That was...odd."

"You feeling alright now?" Xion asked.

"Yeah. I'm good," he assured. He picked up the drawings, hiding the Keyblade Graveyard's drawing between the others. "Let's keep going."

---

Aqua made her way to the dorms in the School of Friendship. She was going to give her apprentices some time off to rest, both from doing their hardest stopping Cozy Glow and to recover from the shock of seeing Sora going all out in his Anti-Form. Yen Cid was going to need to learn about this as well, especially the new transformation while Sora was in an enraged state. Approaching the girls' room, she knocked on the door.

"Hey, guys, everyone ok?" Aqua asked. There was no response. She figured around this time, with the school day about to begin, they must have been exhausted being up so late and slept in. When she opened the door, she found no sign of Smolder, Silverstream, Yona, or Ocellus in their room. "Huh? Girls?" Concerned, she checked Sandbar and Gallus's dorm room across the hall. Just like the girls', the two boys were missing as well. "Sandbar? Gallus?...Where did they go?"

Terra walked down the hall, meeting up with Aqua. "Hey, what's going on?" he asked.

"Did you see the Young Six anywhere?" Aqua asked.

"I thought they were going class today," he pondered.

"Well, I was going to give them the day off. They more than deserve a break for what they could do yesterday," Aqua said.

They both went around the school, peeking inside the classrooms to check if they were in their assigned classes for the day. Surprisingly, they were nowhere to be found, even when they asked the Mane Six if they've seen them. They couldn't have gone too far from Ponyville, nor did they decide to run off again like before. Aqua began to mull over if they might be somewhere in Ponyville, but one curious thought made her believe she knew where they might be.

Guiding Terra to the castle, they made their way to the library. Facing the portal leading to The Land of Departure, they both walked through. Her hunch was right when she and Terra both heard yells, grunts, and spells firing off up on the mountain peak.

"Are they...training?" Terra asked.

Walking up the path, they reached the summit and found them doing exactly as Terra expected. On the side, Sandbar, Silverstream, Yona, and Ocellus stood while they watched Gallus and Smolder having a sparring match. Both the griffon and dragon panted, their bodies scuffed slightly, but physically fine as they were getting exhausted from their bout. With the watching members of the Young Six, they had several water bottles resting in a cooler, snacks and sandwiches to munch on between breaks, and some towels to dry themselves off as both masters could see the two duelers breaking a sweat.

Gallus and Smolder stared each other down, waiting for their opponent to make the next move. Gallus took a slight step back, then shot forward with a yell. Smolder flapped her wings and met him halfway, both swinging their Keyblades and clashing head on. Smolder had a power advantage over Gallus, but he managed to slip Smolder up with his impressive agility. Smolder gasped, but quickly caught herself and pressed her hands to the ground, vaulting into a somersault, and mid-flip, shot a small burst of ice through her dragon breath. Gallus sliced the shards of ice and retaliated with his own Blizzard spell, missing Smolder as she landed on her feet and dove out of the way. They rushed each other again, Keyblades clashing as they grunted and struck the other's weapon. Their strikes were swift, strong, but coordinated, avoiding accidentally hitting each other while going all out.

One last clash pushed the two of them back, sliding across the ground a few feet before getting back into their battle stances. "Alright, that's enough!" Sandbar called out. By the stallion's interjection, Smolder and Gallus wilted, relieved to take a break after their round. "Yona, you and me now."

"Yona ready!" the yak cheered.

Sandbar and Yona took Gallus and Smolder's spots, both of them taking a seat next to Silverstream and Ocellus as the changeling levitated them some water and a towel. "That dragon breath of yours is no joke," Gallus complimented.

"I could barely keep up with you," Smolder said with a laugh.

"Not enough to be faster than Cozy Glow," Gallus added with a grunt, gulping down his water until it was halfway empty. "Next round, push me harder."

"Same with you, chicken boy," Smolder said.

"Try not to overdo it too much," Ocellus advised.

"Yeah! It's called practice, not dying from exhaustion," Silverstream agreed.

Sandbar and Yona summoned their Keyblades and crouched low, ready for their sparring match. "Come at me with everything you've got, Yona!" Sandbar said.

Yona nodded, stomping her hoof as she prepared to charge. With a snort, Yona sprinted forward while Sandbar stood his ground. She ducked her head, aiming her horns at the teenage colt, but he stood firm. Waiting at the right moment, he blocked her horns with his Keyblade, grunting slightly as he was pushed back by the still charging yak. Aqua and Terra gasped as they watched Yona pushing Sandbar across the summit, his hooves leaving a groove in the earth as he struggled to push back. They thought he was going to accidentally get shoved off the mountain, but Yona's charge began to slow down. Sandbar grunted as he was managing to push back, his back hooves inching ever-so-slowly against the edge of the peak. Straining against the stronger yak, Sandbar grit his teeth tightly in the grip of his Keyblade, and with incredible effort, he slowly stepped forward, using his earth pony strength to push back against Yona.

Slowly, Sandbar was gaining ground while Yona kept her hooves grounded, forcing Sandbar to push himself harder to push the proud yak back. She grinned, not letting him win that easily as she began to shove back, but he didn't relent and continued shoving, both sides determined to outmatch the other's natural earthly strength. Aqua and Terra were impressed, despite the near scare earlier. They didn't know how long they've been out here for, but they were surprised to see them come out here and solely focus on their training after what they experienced last night.

"Yak not getting pushed by earth pony like Sandbar," Yona taunted, pushing him to use every ounce of muscle in his scrawny body. "Sandbar like baby yak smashing little branch, but baby yak can break logs bigger than pony."

"Ugh! O-Oh yeah?" Sandbar grunted with a smirk. "Pony show yak how strong he is!"

Grunting even harder, Sandbar began stomping his hoof with each step forward, pushing Yona back and began to inch her back further and further. Surprised, Yona growled, putting all her weight into her stance. It slowed her down a little bit, but Sandbar continued shoving, pushing past his limits and the fully grounded yak. Yona began to grunt, subtly shaking her head to disrupt Sandbar's balance, but he kept his Keyblade locked in a clash with her horns. With a shout, Sandbar sprung his hind legs and pushed against Yona hard.

Yona yelped as she was knocked off her hooves, but Sandbar put a little too much oomph into his push. Ramming into her, they both yelped as they tumbled over each other, dropping their Keyblades in surprise before coming to a halt. Yona was flat on her back with Sandbar flopping on top of her, their muzzles smooshed against each other. The pair both opened their eyes after the slight tumble, they immediately shot open when their felt lips accidentally brushing against each other. Sandbar was the first to move, lifting his head up with his cheeks burning red, his eyes shifting to his friends, who winced more at their unexpected tumble. Yona wriggled her snout curiously, unaware of the awkward situation the two got themselves in, then let out a laugh.

"Yona wrong; Sandbar knock Yona back like strong pony-size bull," she complimented.

"Heh. Ehh...D-Didn't know I...had it in me?" Sandbar sheepishly said. He giggled nervously while rubbing the back of his neck, trying to play off the accidental kiss. His embarrassment sank when he spotted Aqua and Terra watching them from the entrance to the mountain path. "M-Master Aqua! Master Terra!"

The others gasped and looked at the two masters. Scrambling, they all ran up to Sandbar and Yona, Yona rolling herself over and flopping Sandbar to the ground as the five teens stood at attention. Sandbar stood up and joined his friends, still heavily flustered as his eyes shifted over to Yona a few times. Unbeknownst to the colt, Aqua and Terra noticed the accidental smooch, hiding their smirks as they approached the Young Six.

"What are you six doing up here?" Aqua asked.

"We're getting some extra training in for today so we can get stronger, ma'am!" Silverstream spoke, puffing out her chest as she explained their reason like a soldier to their commanding officer.

"We could see that when we decided to look out here," Terra said. "And none of you were worried about your classes at the school, or the finals coming up?"

"Mental health break," Gallus answered, slightly joking by passing that as an excuse to train.

"Uh huh. A 'mental health break' from the studying that's important for your final grade," Aqua sarcastically stated. "You're not trying to ditch out on class today, are you?"

"W-Well, maybe not all day," Ocellus said. "Just some more training is all."

"We just don't want to get our tails handed to us like with what happened with Cozy Glow," Smolder added.

"...I see," Aqua mumbled.

"We all didn't know how capable she was, but you guys tried your hardest. And you even worked together to team up on her," Terra said. "We were just concerned how you were feeling after last night. With what happened to Sora."

The Young Six wilted, glancing at each other with worried grimaces. "...A little bit," Sandbar answered. "...That's not...really normal, is it?"

"No. It really wasn't," Aqua said with a sigh.

"Master Sora in trouble?" Yona asked. "Yona still want to go on adventure with him as teacher."

"He's not in any trouble, but he's going to need a lot of time to recover," Terra said.

The Young Six lowered their heads. They knew Sora was suffering, and they didn't know how much time he was going to need to forget about Cozy Glow and move on from this. Assuming he can from how broken and defeated he looked when he walked away from Cozy after beating her senseless and destroying her Keyblade.

"I was hoping you were all in your dorms resting so I could tell you you would be taking some time off from training," Aqua said. "Mostly because of your friendship finals and to recuperate as well from the last few days."

"We don't want to skimp on our training," Gallus said. "We all wanted to get stronger so we don't let any of you down."

The others agreed with Gallus. "And I appreciate you guys putting in the hard work," Aqua said. She approached them and kneeled down to their level. "But as students, you haven't had the kind of experience we've had. Sora, Riku, and Kairi may have gotten involved in this around your age, except they had no choice but to learn to fight and survive on their own before Master Yen Cid gave them official training. Unlike them, you did have a choice to become Key bearers and take up this responsibility. They willingly pursued the paths they were thrust into when their world was destroyed."

"And we're also deciding to push ourselves and become masters just like you all," Smolder said. "Especially for Master Sora."

"He's a great teacher, both as a master and a teacher in friendship," Sandbar said. "We couldn't do anything to Cozy Glow, and he had to deal with her by himself. He taught us that he never fought alone. We want to show him that he never has to when we're just as strong as he is, and we can give him our strength when he needs it, too."

"We even learned something very important thanks to Cozy Glow before we knew she was really evil," Silverstream added. "She thought we could never be friends since it wasn't in all our natures, but we proved her wrong. We never gave up on each other, even when we thought it was hopeless. Together, we will never be apart or face our worst fears on our own, because-"

"Our friends are our power," the rest of the Young Six joined as they quoted the empowering line they all abided by.

Aqua smiled, their determination and the lessons they took to heart made her proud of them. She didn't want them to push themselves too hard, but they truly had the makings to be masters one day.

"Right," Aqua agreed. "Never forget that."

Unable to contain her excitement, Yona laughed and nearly bowled Aqua over and hugged her. The others soon gathered and joined in on the group hug, expressing their bond as more than teacher and students. Terra smirked, watching them as Aqua hugged them all back, but his grin faded when he looked out at the mountains.

"We'll need to give Sora all the strength he needs to make it through this rough time," he uttered to himself.

---

The day passed rather slowly in Ponyville. Class was over, leaving the staff at the school with nothing else to do, so they went back to their respective homes. It was a rough day, mostly for everyone's concerns revolving around Sora's emotional health. Kairi wandered around town with Sora after they ate at Sugarcube Corner, distracting his thoughts as best as she could, but she was having no luck. She knew it was going to take much longer for him to feel better, being there for him to reassure him that she was there for him.

Fluttershy fed her animals at the sanctuary, though she could sense the animals could feel the depressing situation this far from town. They were probably frightened last night when Sora transformed and his roars reached the sanctuary. After feeding them and making sure they were comfortable, she went back home to relax. As soon as she walked inside, Discord and Dizzy popped into her living room, both of them wearing plaid-colored Hawaiian shirts and big sunglasses and Discord was carrying several bags in his hands.

"Hello, my dear Fluttershy!" Discord greeted cheerfully.

"Discord? Dizzy?" Fluttershy uttered, part of her happy to see them, but their odd clothing baffled her, which was getting rare for her to experience with the draconequus. "Umm...What are you wearing?"

"We went on a little vacation," Dizzy said. "Took a little trip to all the worlds Sora's been to."

"And we even brought you some souvenirs!" Discord added, dropping the dozen bags on the floor and began rummaging through one of them. "Oh, you would have loved to see some of these worlds, but being so busy at the school, you must not have any time to go on your own vacation."

"How long have you two been gone for?" Fluttershy asked.

"About a week, a few days," Discord said. "But time flies when you're seeing the sights!" From the first bag, he pulled out a long and thick-looking firework with a dragon's head on the opposite end of the fuse. "Here's a fancy looking rocket with a dragon head. And they make a pretty big explosion of fireworks!"

"You sure that's supposed to be a firework?" Dizzy questioned.

"We'll light it up later and see." Discord placed the dangerous explosive next to Fluttershy's couch and dug into the next bag. What came out was a rose, but it was dripping red paint, and was surprisingly still wet. "And this here's a white rose painted red!"

"...Why would a rose need to be painted red?" Fluttershy asked.

"Ooh! Funny story where we got this," Discord giggled. "It's my personal favorite world. There's this queen who likes red, but a couple of her incompetent playing card guards accidentally planted white roses, and tried to paint them red to hide their mistake. Sadly, they got found out, and the queen ordered-" Discord then brought his free hand, quickly swiping it against his neck, which caused his head to pop off and roll over to Fluttershy. His head came to a stop, looking up at the startled mare with an excited grin. "-off with their heads! Ha ha! I love her! She's pure insanity!"

"Er...what an...interesting story?" Fluttershy grimaced.

"I've got so much more! Want to see?" Discord asked eagerly while his body placed the painted rose in a bowl to keep it from making a mess in the pegasus's house.

"Maybe later." Fluttershy gently picked up the draconequus's head, hovering up his headless body and placed it back in place. "Now is not really the best time for...excitement."

Growing concerned, Dizzy and Discord looked at the disinterested pegasus. "Why, whatever is wrong, my dear?" Discord asked, then let out a horrified gasp. "Oh no. Did I forget about our Tuesday Tea!?"

"No, it's not that," Fluttershy assured.

"Oh! I know what it was! I forgot about our two month anniversary!" While Discord was panicking, Dizzy facepalmed.

"Anniversaries are yearly things," the colt reminded the adult. "Who does monthly celebrations?"

"You're right. We should have been celebrating weekly instead," Discord said.

Dizzy groaned and smacked his head into the ground, sinking his neck into a chaotic void. "Why did you throw away your common sense and give it to me!?" the colt exclaimed in frustration.

"Discord, it has nothing to do with you. I promise." She gave Discord a small peck on the snout, reassuring him he wasn't in any trouble for forgetting one little monthly celebration. "Something happened while you two were on vacation...though, it would have helped if you told me you wouldn't be around in advance."

"But I thought I left a note on your refrigerator," Discord said.

"I didn't see one," Fluttershy said.

Dizzy popped his head out, then teleported to the kitchen, then back to the living room. "It should have been there...Unless..." Frowning, he looked around the room, spotting Angel hopping down the steps. "Angel," Dizzy hissed. Hearing his name, the bunny didn't have a chance to flee as Dizzy stretched his arm, snatching him and dragged him over to him. "Alright, you evil little rabbit. Where did you hide our note?"

Angel scowled at Dizzy, chittering angrily, making Fluttershy gasp in surprise. "Oh! Angel, language!"

"Oh, them's some fightin' words, eh!?" Dizzy exclaimed. "You're a little brat, and you can't split Fluttershy up from Discord no matter how hard you try!" Angel squeaked again, making the colt's jaw drop, quickly picking it up to growl at him. "Hey, leave our mother we've never met out of this!"

Fluttershy flew down, splitting Dizzy and Angel apart before they hurt each other. "You two are going to get a timeout if you don't get along!"

"He didn't deny he hid our note!" Dizzy shouted. "Spoiled little rodent thinks he can have you all to himself!"

"Either way, I do not want to see anymore fighting," Fluttershy said.

Angel growled, but hopped away, keeping to himself and away from the draconequui. "What exactly did we miss while we were gone?" Discord asked curiously. "Was there an epic climactic battle for the end of the season!? Oh, I always plan my time off at the worst times!"

"You two don't know the half of it," Fluttershy sighed, flapping over to her couch as she hung her head.

"What did you all confront this time?" Discord asked. In a flash, he summoned a monstrous Heartless mirage that looked more goofy and comical than terrifying. "A massive creature from the pits of darkness?" Dismissing the creature, his and Dizzy's bodies flashed as they now were dark cloaks similar to the Organization's. "Somepony from the Organization threatening to take over the world with their power and army of Nobodies?" After the two acted mysterious, their cloaks disappeared as a sizable meteor hovered over Dizzy as he pretended to panic. "A giant meteor falling from the sky that'll crush our planet and blow it to smithereens!?"

Discord dropped the meteor on Dizzy, which was made of rubber and squished the colt, attaching him to it as it bounced on the floor a few times. As outrageous as those scenarios could have been, Fluttershy had wished it was either of them instead.

"...Worse than that," Fluttershy said.

Both draconequui gawked in surprise. Dizzy's bouncy meteor popped, making him flop to the ground, but he got back up as he and Discord sandwiched Fluttershy, wanting important details.

"How can it be worse than a meteor!?" Dizzy asked.

"Did some evil villain try to hurt you?" Discord questioned with a snarl, instinctively curling his serpine body around his pegasus lover. "If anyone dares to hurt my Fluttershy, they will know no bounds to my chaotic wrath!"

Before he could teleport around finding the unfortunate victim who harmed a single hair on Fluttershy's head, Fluttershy squirmed out of his coiled embrace and rubbed his clawed hand. "I'm fine. But...Sora isn't," she said.

"Hm? Sora?" Discord mumbled.

"Did something happen to him?" Dizzy asked.

"...Well, a few days ago, magic in Equestria was disappearing, and after three days, it would have disappeared forever," she said. The news shocked both chaotic deities, knowing one particular creature whom Discord allied with and regretted doing so who wanted the all the magic for himself. "We thought it was Tirek, so we went down to Tartarus to investigate. He was still locked up, but knew it was happening because he had an apprentice beyond the gates stealing the magic...He told Sora who it was...and it all spiraled from there."

"Well, who was it?" Discord asked. "I'm guessing it was that old fool of a stallion who tried to shut down the School of Friendship."

Fluttershy shook her head. "No...It was...Cozy Glow."

Dizzy and Discord let out a dramatic gasp, both genuinely shocked and in disbelief. "You mean that pegasus filly we saw who was one of the flower fillies!?" Dizzy asked.

"Ooh. I think it's starting to make a bit of sense," Discord curiously mumbled. "It's always the cute and adorably nice ones with curly hair that end up being the evil, spoiled little brat or the deadly tyrant nopony ever expects because...well, she's little and young."

"She's...actually a grown mare," Fluttershy stated.

"Stunted. Even worse," Dizzy growled.

"But the magic has returned, and out of all of you, my best bet is that Sora had managed to succeed and end her plans of world domination with Tirek in no time flat," Discord said.

"He...He did, but, Discord, Sora-" Discord interrupted as he laughed and popped off the couch.

"Then why be so mopey!?" he asked gleefully. "Sora saved the day yet again, and Pinkie hasn't thrown him a party for his courage, strength, and strong-willed determination to save your world!? I think she's gotten a bit too lax on her partying to do a proper hero's party!"

"But Discord, Cozy Glow was important to-" Discord scooped the pegasus up in his arms, making her squeak in surprise.

"Well, Tirek chose the wrong little miscreant to put that stallion down!" Discord interrupted yet again. Dizzy was growing a bit concerned, seeing the worry on Fluttershy's face while his older self was too distracted with throwing a party in Sora's honor. "I'll set up everything at the castle and it'll be such a grand surprise!"

Fluttershy wasn't able to get a word as Discord teleported all three of them out of the cottage and in the castle's throne room. Once they appeared, Fluttershy yelped as she was dropped in her throne, wordlessly watching Discord rapidly snapping his fingers, setting up banners and streamers in black, red, and yellow all around the room. The banners had Sora posed with his Keyblade in many different stances, smirking cheekily or gritting his teeth in ones he swung his blade to attack his foes. On the table were a variety of different chaotically concocted confectionaries, and on a cart he conjured up was a massive cake with bright white frosting, symbols of the Heartless, Nobodies, and Unversed around the layers, and on top was a frosting design of Sora pinning a defeated Cozy Glow and Tirek beneath him, standing triumphantly while the two villains were knocked unconscious.

Discord cracked his knuckles, giggling excitedly as he continued snapping his fingers, teleporting all their friends into the room aside from Sora and Kairi. Startled, all the wielders, the rest of the Mane Six, the Young Six, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Starlight Glimmer, Spike, Sweet Delight, Axle Beam, Donald, Goofy, even Princesses Celestia and Luna had no idea what was going on as they stood in the Castle of Friendship's throne room.

"W-What is the meaning of-?" As soon as Celestia spotted the giddy Discord, she and her sister frowned at him. "Discord, what are you up to?"

"Nothing malicious or chaotic, I assure you," Discord said. "I'm just disappointed that none of you have actually bothered to show Sora the least bit of gratitude for saving Equestria yet again, except this time from the clutches of Tirek and his little apprentice filly, Cozy Glow, and the destruction of all your magic."

Everyone's ire quickly turned to unnerved grimacing. Discord clearly has no idea what happened, and with all the cheerful decorations, he didn't know Sora was anything but happy right now. Most of the group looked over to Fluttershy and Dizzy, the pegasus wilting as she tried to explain, but Discord was far too excited to listen.

"Uhh, Discord, I know you mean well, but Sora's not-" Spike tried to elaborate for the draconequus, but Discord clasped his mouth shut with his disembodied paw, glancing at the doorway with his ears perked up.

"Shh! Is that him?" Slithering off to the door, Discord poked his eye through the thin crack between the double doors. As he predicted, he spotted Sora and Kairi walking inside the front doors, unaware of the morose expression on the stallion's face. "Right on time! Quick, everybody hide!"

"But Discord-!" Fluttershy tried to speak up, but the excited draconequus used his magic to dim the lighting in the throne room to pitch black, creating dozens of random pieces of furniture in front of everyone for them to "hide" behind.

Shushing everyone, he hid next to Fluttershy behind her throne, growing his dismembered paw back to his wrist as he waited for Sora and Kairi to walk inside. Out in the foyer, Sora and Kairi were ready to head back to their room, but they paused when Kairi noticed several neon signs with Sora's name on them and pointing to the throne room doors.

"What in the world...?" Kairi had a gut feeling that Discord must have set these up, either to pull a harmless prank or announce something to Sora. Whatever it was, she hoped someone managed to tell him Sora wasn't in the mood for any fun or games. "Discord, what are you up to now?"

With Sora limping beside her, Kairi opened up the doors to find the room completely dark. It didn't stay that way for long as the room immediately brightened as party noises and black and white confetti sprayed out and covered the whole room. Discord popped into the center of the room, flashing away the furniture to reveal everyone else, dazed, confused, and mortified to see Sora's reaction to his "surprise" congratulatory party.

"Surprise!" Discord cheered. He conjured party hats on everyone's heads, including Sora's as he was snapped out of his stupor from the startling surprise. Discord then appeared between him and Kairi, splitting the alicorn from Sora while carrying an assortment of musical instruments on his person. "Praise our conquering hero!"

He then played a fast-paced, loud musical piece in a one man marching band in commemoration to Sora, skipping around while making everyone wince from the loud drum thumps that echoed in the room. "Discord, what are you doing!?" Kairi exclaimed.

He paused, the music stopping along with him. "Giving Sora the hero's treatment for saving the day again!" he said, then resumed his obnoxious instrumental nonsense. He finally stopped as his instruments wilted, frowning in annoyance and tossing them aside. "You know, for all the hard work Sora's put in, nopony's ever given him a proper party for being the good Samaritan and selfless protector of every world out there. So, for all he's done for Equestria and stomping the villains - including myself when I was evil - I'm going to take responsibility for thrown him the BIGGEST bash that not even Pinkie Pie can pull off with her distant coltfriend adding in his own flair!"

"Hey!" Pinkie exclaimed angrily.

"Discord, now is not a good time for a-!" Aqua tried to warn Discord, but he continued setting off random bursts of confetti and a whole lot of annoying party favors.

"I shouldn't be the only one partying! Come on! Let's put on some tunes and really show Sora he deserves this!" While Discord continued trying to get the party started by snapping a gramophone into existence, he wasn't aware of Sora's face twitching, his confusion slowly boiling to anger. After Discord began to play a bouncy party tune, which made the device begin dancing around as it floated in the air as well, the draconequus wheeled over Sora's cake to him. Seeing Cozy Glow and Tirek on it only reminded him of the biggest mistake he'd ever made, making Sora shake with rage. "You think I should put candles on this? It's not a birthday party. Ah, who cares!? We can just dig in and enjoy this lovely cake I-!"

With his Keyblade firmly grasped in his hoof as it appeared upon walking into the throne room, Sora yelled and slammed it down hard onto the cake. He even broke through the materialized cart it sat on, splitting it in half and smashing the cake to pieces, spreading crumbs and frosting around him, Kairi, and most of it splatting on Discord, the impact causing the gramophone to scratch the record and freeze in surprise. Confused and shocked by Sora's outburst, Discord blinked as he glanced down at him.

"...You think...I deserve a party...for what I did?" Sora growled.

No one else spoke, too afraid to make an attempt to calm Sora down. Discord wiped some of the frosting off his face, baffled.

"...Did you want a pie instead?" he asked, still not understanding why Sora was so upset.

"Do you have any idea what happened to us the last few days!?" Sora shouted. "Equestria's magic was dying! Where the hell were you when this all happened!? HUH!?"

"I-I...I was...doing a little sightseeing," Discord mumbled. "...Outside sightseeing?"

"Oh! Ok! So, you gave yourself a little vacation!" Sora sarcastically reworded. "Good for you! Hope you had your fun! I had a blast as well! How about we celebrate my biggest failure in all my life as well!? Perfect!"

"Sora, calm down," Kairi tried to console, but she winced when Sora rammed into Discord, slamming him into the table and knocking the rest of the food and beverages off the crystal table.

"If this is supposed to be some kind of joke, Discord, I'm not laughing!" Sora screamed, even making Discord wince and flinch away as the pegasus yelled in his face. "What reason do I have to celebrate when I put all my friends in danger!? When I almost doomed this entire world of its magic!? All because I gave everyone else up and trusted in the monster who was responsible for all of this!?"

Discord was at a loss for words, trying to be a good friend to Sora and starting to regret talking over Fluttershy when she was trying to explain to him what happened. "I-I don't understand."

"You do-!?" Sora ground his teeth, almost like he was going to blow up in anger again. "So you decide to wing it and hope I would LIKE getting thrown a stupid party!?"

"Fluttershy tried to tell us, but Discord got too excited," Dizzy said.

Sora leered at the draconequus colt, who immediately cowered behind Fluttershy's throne. Even Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo hid behind their respective sisters, afraid to look at Sora in his rage. Scootaloo saw it first hand with Lightning Dust after disregarding her safety in the deadly stunt she set her up with, and though he had immediately calmed down when he scared The Washouts off, she thought she would have faced it as well. Sora looked back down at Discord, who grimaced anxiously at the next spew of verbal scolding from the pegasus.

"...For some sort of megalomaniac who knows everything about everyone, you clearly have the brain of every single type of animal that makes you the DUMBEST creature to ever even consider having any train of thought to begin with!" Sora exclaimed. Discord was appalled, but unable to bark back when Sora being this enraged had been shocking for him to bear. "You like looking through my memories like a sick voyeur! How about you update the stupid book about me from my memories and educate yourself further if you think you know me just as much as everybody else in this room!?"

Part of Discord was afraid of what he was about to see, but he did as he was told. Summoning Sora's memory book, he shakily flipped through the pages to the days he had missed out on. He did save Equestria and stopped Cozy Glow, just like Fluttershy said, but what he ignored made him realize how badly he messed up and misjudged Sora's emotional state. The still illustrations painted the whole story for Discord; Sora was in shock at who Tirek claimed was his apprentice, struck with denial and attacked the old centaur, left his friends in Tartarus while he selfishly found a new route back to Equestria, nearly assaulted Neighsay and thinking the true culprit was him while Cozy watched with subtle sadistic glee at Sora's descent into madness, Sora's dejected and heartbroken expression when he found all his Key bearing companions and Starlight Glimmer trapped in Equestria's magic. He lashed out at everyone else around him and solely focused on proving Cozy's innocence, and in his broken state, he ignored all of his friends for the filly who he cherished more than even Kairi.

The fight between him and Cozy Glow was what horrified Discord the most. Though he was aware of his Anti-form, much like his other Drives, what he saw after the first half of him pleading and begging for Cozy Glow to change, she refused and relished his despair. That close call with a Megaflare sparked the rage within his heart, his dark form transforming him into something far more terrifying. He brutally battered Cozy Glow, held no mercy in his attacks, never giving her a chance to recover or run away, and when she did strike back, he unleashed more fury upon her tenfold. Discord even winced as the pages flipped with all the brutality, practically hearing Sora's demonic roars, even as he verbally lashed out at his friends and really planned to do the unthinkable to her. It was only by a miracle that he managed to stop himself from ending Cozy's life, destroying her Keyblade, and everyone else leaving her to her eternal imprisonment in Tartarus, but his heart was already shattered to pieces. He came out with small physical wounds and a sprained hoof, but at the great cost of his emotional well-being and the psychological torment from the stunted pegasus's manipulative tactics.

"...Oh..." Discord had no words, hesitant to lower the book and up at the angry wielder standing over him, his body quivering as his eyes felt more cold and spiteful, no longer bright and optimistic. He wasn't ready for a party. He had no reason to celebrate a victory where he felt he lost everything, or almost lost everything. Discord only made it worse for Sora, reminding him of what could have been his biggest failure. "...I-I'm...I'm sorry."

"For what? This stupid idea of yours to help cheer me up?" Sora questioned. "Sorry for not being around when your home world was going to die? Sorry for being a friend who would be very helpful stopping monsters from destroying the world or taking over a kingdom with their powers!? Sorry for being the most useless ally Celestia thought would benefit her kingdom after we reformed you to the magic that friendship was supposed to bring!?"

"Sora, that's enough!" Aqua scolded.

"NO! You're all thinking it!" Sora argued back, pointing his hoof at Discord as he winced, crawling back slightly with a dejected, guilty expression. "He was nothing but trouble when he was being reformed! Celestia thought it was a brilliant idea to have him stop Tirek, but he wound up betraying us in the end and made things worse!"

"Sora, I had every intention in that moment to test Discord had truly changed to help us!" Celestia argued. "I could not have imagined he would have been swayed by Tirek and be used by him to regain his strength!"

"Oh, please!" Sora scoffed. "You think you know everything, too!? How about when you got a bit too greedy with all the attention from your loyal subjects, leaving Luna with none while she was suffering from losing Sombra AND being alone without her only family to seek comfort in, turning her to the darkness and transforming her into Nightmare Moon!? You're a great older sister, 'Your Majesty'!" Sora gave Celestia a mocking bow, startling her and Luna with his demeaning attitude. "If the roles were reversed, perhaps Luna would feel much more pity for you when you could have turned into Daybreaker! Except instead of the moon, you'd be banished to the sun if you were more sadistic as a villain than your little sister!"

The reminder of encountering the Dream Eater that could have been her own Heartless upset Celestia. "What is the matter with you!?" Luna exclaimed, stepping in front of her sister while Celestia tried not to lose her composure. "You have no right to attack my sister like that! Your emotional distress gives you no excuse to insult everypony around you!"

"Discord made it up to us when we went to save all of you from Chrysalis!" Starlight argued.

"...With his powers?" Sora asked coldly. He turned his head, glaring at Starlight as he waited for a response from the unicorn. As much as she wanted to tell Sora he managed without his chaos while Chrysalis's throne was still intact, he really could have saved them if the specific type of stone that made it cancelled out every other magic besides changelings'. "You, Ventus, Trixie, and Discord had no power when Chrysalis was still in charge at that point. In other words, he did NOTHING to help us at all!"

"Sora, knock it off!" Ventus yelled as he jumped on the table to pin Sora down.

Without warning, Sora flapped out of the way, then kicked Ventus hard in the face, sending him flying and crashing into the base of his throne. Even with his left foreleg in the sling, he nearly knocked the younger pegasus unconscious. Even if they all tried to stop him to force him to calm down, he was going to break free and push them all back, even with physical violence.

"TELL ME I'M WRONG!" Sora exclaimed. "Someone please enlighten me and tell me Discord did SOMETHING useful that didn't end up causing trouble or hurting someone else because of his hairbrained schemes! What about when Starlight went back in time to alter history!? Nothing tickled your funny bone to warn you something weird was happening!? Or maybe you wanted it to happen when there was a timeline where you successfully took over the world as your chaos capital!" Aqua and Terra rushed over to check on Ventus, who was just slightly dazed from the impact. "What about the Pony of Shadows!? Your reality-bending magic can't handle a Heartless like that!? Or better yet, have you even bothered to fight off any Heartless with us!? And how about the Storm King!? You left us a stupid note saying something about them during that big friendship party Twilight hosted in Canterlot! Why couldn't you help us then!? Another random adventure for yourself to feel freedom, even after we all trusted you to be there to help deal with threats that could hurt your friends!?"

Discord did have his reasons, but after being called out like that, he didn't know what to say. Everyone knew what he was capable of doing, and he could have stopped Tirek before if he didn't offer the prospect of freedom without being chained by friendship and the boundaries that forced him back. He was tricked by the false promise Tirek made, and he didn't want to make the same mistake again after that. Discord learned his lesson, but he didn't want that responsibility of being Equestria's golden ace against any bad guy, minor or major in their schemes. The Mane Six had managed to stop some of those threats with and without the Elements of Harmony, and Sora had done well so far in his career smiting massive Heartless with his own skills and his teammates to help. He could save Equestria with ease with his magic; he didn't want everyone to always rely on him alone if they can't face these issues on their own as well.

Discord sat up, looking back at Sora's memory book. He glanced over the moments he wasn't there for, realizing just how much of a stressful toll it became for Sora the last few years. The alternate timelines that were visited and the outcome of Starlight's meddling with the fabric of time were horrible. He didn't even like the brief time he and Twilight were he had his chaos domain in an alternate timeline, and the result from its creation was where the Mane Six were not only united by Rainbow Dash's sonic rainboom, but also by Sora's unfortunate demise in some gruesome way or another. The Pony of Shadows returning with the Pillars after being freed from limbo had sparked ire toward Star Swirl the Bearded as he also looked back at every Keyblade wielders' pasts, focused solely on the darkness they had tapped into. And while on the run from the Storm King, Sora wasn't able to protect his friends as they were turned into stone statues, trekking through new lands while fleeing from Tempest and Xigbar, and the fight between him and Twilight after her ploy using her friends to distract the hippogriffs/seaponies to steal their kingdom's artifact left him beaten by the less experienced alicorn. Part of Discord wondered if he had intervened, things would have been a lot less stressful, but he didn't and let them all try to solve the problem without chaos disrupting what harmony was trying to resolve.

Hanging his head, Discord dropped the book, then flicked his talon fingers, erasing all the party decorations, accessories, even the mess of food he created in the throne room. "...You're right...I should have helped...but I chose not to," he mumbled sadly. A doorway popped into existence beside him, reaching his hand up to open the door, revealing his home in his chaos dimension. "I thought you would have liked to be appreciated for all the sacrifices you made...I guess I chose the wrong time to do so."

He walked through, leaving the door open. Dizzy frowned, looking up at Fluttershy, then to Sora. The colt hopped up on the table, giving him one last despondent glance, then walked through the doorway as it closed behind him, then poofed out of existence. The air in the room grew still as everyone stared at Sora, shocked, frightened, unsure what to even think about the pegasus standing on the Cutie Map in the middle of the throne room. From Goofy's shoulder, Jiminy watched and heard every word he said, frowning in disappointment as he hopped his way over to the table.

"Now all of that was completely uncalled for, Sora!" the cricket scolded. "We all know you're incredibly hurt with what just happened, but you can't just lash out at us like that! You've clearly lost your conscience in the state you're in and need a big reminder to know just how important everyone is to you! You're a much better person than this, Sora, and letting your emotions get the better of you is going to throw everything you worked so hard for out the window! All of us are trying to help support you in your time of need, but you cannot just shut us out and go after us when you think none of us know exactly how you're feeling!"

Sora stared at Jiminy, barely shrinking as he was talked down to by him, then looked around the room. Everyone was either saddened by his outburst and attacking Discord like that, afraid to speak to him to scold or calm him down. He turned into a completely different person, and no one liked this side of Sora. Looking down at his Keyblade, Sora sat on the table, holding it up as he leered at it.

"...Why did the Keyblade choose me?" he questioned. Gallus, Smolder, and Ocellus winced, astonished to hear the exact same question they had asked themselves on their first treks in another world and facing their own crisis as chosen wielders. "Since that night, that very night my home was taken by the darkness...when I was separated from Riku and Kairi...Why was I chosen in that moment? I always wanted to see other worlds, and I helped people in those very worlds because I knew I had to. I couldn't just let others get hurt and do nothing...But, everywhere I went, I always kept bringing trouble to those worlds...Especially here in Equestria.

"There have been no Heartless in Equestria for a thousand years after Luna was banished. Less than that, because I traveled back in time to meet Applejack's parents, and they appeared while I was there trying to get to know them. I kept putting others' lives in danger with my presence. I fought and I fought to keep this world from falling to darkness without any hesitation, because I refused to let them suffer. I considered myself a hero, a guardian, a savior..." His grip on his Keyblade tightened as he growled. "I always say I fight for my friends and family, that they give me the strength I need to protect them...If that's the case, then why did I forsake all of you and this world for Cozy Glow!? Why did my heart struggle to choose who was more important to me the last few days!? WHY DID I CHOOSE COZY GLOW OVER MY FRIENDS!? WHY DID I CHOOSE HER OVER KAIRI!? SOMEONE TELL ME WHY I MADE SUCH A STUPID CHOICE!"

Sora yelled and threw his Keyblade, making everyone duck. His Keyblade struck the base of his own throne, wedging itself inside as cracks began to form. It didn't crumble to pieces, but it looked like it could break apart at the slightest movement of his Keyblade if he called it back to him or it got nudged by a tiny inch. Sora panted heavily, tears in his eyes as he continued fuming in anger, now focusing it on himself and the actions he made in the last two days. Jiminy was struck speechless as the frustrations Sora began to feel were made loud and clear to everyone.

Twilight stepped forward, reaching the edge of the table. "...It's not your fault," she said. "...Cozy Glow used you..."

"But I made that choice, Twilight," Sora reiterated. "I picked her...over Kairi...I chose her over the girl I've fallen in love with and married...I almost let her and the others just...drop into the abyss of Equestria's heart, and I abandoned you, the girls, Spike, Donald, and Goofy in Tartarus to 'save' Cozy Glow..." His tears began to fall as his right hoof shook in self-hatred. "Tell me what kind of friend and husband that makes me! How could I have just done that to all of you!? I hated what I did! I hate what I did to Cozy Glow!...I-I...I hate how...how I still care about her..."

Despite all Cozy Glow did to him, despite how much he loathed her, despite what he transformed into and attempted to end her life, Sora could not let go of her. His heart still remained tied with her, whether or not it was all from the young persona she made her appearance out to be. M's torment didn't help his mental state all the more when he forcefully reminded him who was more important, and forced to choose between two choices, both of which he didn't like, but could only pick one. Xehanort from the Sombra timeline and his words still echoed in Twilight's mind, detailing how Sora's heart would one day be his downfall if he relied on it too much. He knew and was going to extort it as his greatest weakness, and Cozy was the first one to truly test how fragile his heart could break.

Letting it all sink in to everyone present and show how poorly he failed them, Sora turned away, stepping down from the table, and began to limp off toward the doorway. "Sora," Twilight called out. He stopped, refusing to turn around, but he didn't ignore her. "...You are important...to all of us. You made mistakes, but we're all still here. You still rescued all of us...We still care about you."

Sora's ears drooped, wincing slightly, but didn't look back at everyone. "...Then maybe I don't deserve any of you if I was willing to throw you all away...for her..."

Everyone's heart sank at the defeated statement. Sora continued limping, only to be stopped by Kairi as she tearfully hugged him. He gently pushed her away from him with his wings, barely looking her in the eyes, silently telling her he wanted to be alone. She held a hoof out to him, watching him leave down the hall. She trembled, burying her face in her hooves as he refused to accept any comfort from her and gave up on everything.

Sora reached his and Kairi's room, having discarded the sling in the middle of the hall to walk faster, ignoring Nurse Redheart's orders and the pain spiking in his left hoof. He shut the door, leaning back against it while he stared at the dresser across their bed. His clothes and pouch still sat there, along with his necklace. Having Cozy Glow wear it, he didn't want it anywhere near him, but he also didn't want to part with the treasured accessory he'd worn for so long. Breathing heavily, he forced himself to look away and limped toward the bed. Climbing up, he flopped on his side, staring at the wall in silence. His eyes grew heavy, his weary mind and heart drifting him to a restless sleep, mulling over his life and his ideals up until now. He was no hero; he was just some kid who wound up at the wrong place at the right time. What good was he as a hero if all he did was bring misfortune to the worlds he visited and the ones he met along the way?

Comments

[Andersonsharp]

This has to be sora’s lowest point it. physically hurts to see sora like that and maybe there is no healing his heart. The way he’s acting it’s exactly how he acted when his dad died. M I hope you understand what you’ve done.

[shining paladin]

"The saddest thing about betrayal is that it never comes from your enemies it comes from those you trust the most Sweetie Belle sold out her friends to save herself that's cowardice

[Postwarmonkey50]

Yeesh, I hope Sora recovers from this. Seeing him like this...is really terrifying.

[Matthais Unidostres]

What is Sora gonna do when Discord pretends to be Grogar?

[Princespeedywhooves]

Sora will be ok I am sure of it. It will take some time for him to heal but his friends and family and his wife will still be with him no matter what they will help Sora get out of this I am sure of it.

[Postwarmonkey50]

Sora, what happened wasn't your fault.

You didn't know things would happen, you did what you felt was right. So what if you were wrong before. You think you were the only one who made mistakes? A hero's job is to help those in need, and that's what you did. A hero is not all seeing, nor are they immortal. They're normal people like many others. And yes, this one may be close, and it hurts a lot, but we can't forget who we are or who we promised to help. Do not focus on your failures, but instead focus on how you can continue to help those in need without the seeds of doubt in your mind. That is why we have friends to help remind us of our roles in life, to kick us into shape and in the right direction.

You're not a god, Sora, you're just like everybody else.

And there will be many more failures if we don't come back to the old Sora, the one who believes in his friends and helps those in need, even in the face of overwhelming odds.

[The Dragon Warlock]

11712398
If Discord has ANY sense of intelligence or common sense, he better not do that. If he does still do it, Sora and the pffworld Keyblade wielders are going to be done showing mercy and just go for the kill.

[Delta38]

I think it is time for one Master to speak to another. I mean the spirit of Master Eraqus talking to Sora about the nature of bonds between a master and student.

[branix]

I hope Sora bounces back soon. Seeing depressed isn't any fun.

[BenictheHedgehog]

Man, Sora really is at his lowest that he has ever been. Right back to when his was a kid when his dad died. I get the feeling the others (including Celestia & Luna) are gonna have to need to proof to Sora that they won’t abandon him no matter how many times he pushes them away.

But I think it be best for Kairi to go get Manami & Kaito’s nobody to do a family talk with Sora. As for the others, I think Riku is feeling just as worse as Kairi (if not more) for Sora, but also himself.

Both Sora & Riku need those they deeply care for them. And I am glad Twilight is willing to step up to be the friend that Sora might need & the lover that Riku needs to help them.

I deeply hope Kairi & Twilight become stronger for both Sora & Riku for what Cozy did to them. But I also hope Sora has a heart to heart with everyone he hurt (including Discord) and makes things right when he overcomes this hurdle that M & Cozy Glow forced on him.

[BenictheHedgehog]

Hmm… seems like everyone could use a trip to cheer them up. A Rainbow Roadtrip to be precise

[karmathewriter]

Sora, I think you need a proper duel. Let yourself vent and get everything out in the open. You also need to remember one cruel fact of life "live and learn" aqua, terra and ven are still in the game after they were betrayed. Pick up your keyblade and remember why you fought in the first place? Your friends, family, heck us the audience got your back, which is why I say this from a place of compassion. "Are you gonna let everyone down because you let one bad heart hurt you?"

[DeathRider2021]

I hope Sora will be back to his old self in no time. Maybe King Mickey or his mom could talk to him?

[Xepher-Cross]

Holy hell, Codex! My heart..! That was a phenomenal chapter! If this KH chapter is the prelude to season 9's premiere, then I'm omega hype for this! Congrats man! 👏

[SoraFan23]

Oh my goodness Sora is really going through a mid life crisis. He really is doubting himself and is questioning everything. I mean I get that Sora was angry at Discord, but man he really didn't need to go that brutal on Discord. I sometimes wonder had Fluttershy would've spoken up and told Discord to stop talking and let her explain what was going on with Sora then maybe this whole thing could've been understood, but of course Discord had to make things worse by teleporting everyone and Sora when he was not fully recovered mentally. I really don't know what is going happen to him going forward. This whole thing with Cozy Glow has really hurt him more than I thought. My only fear is that if Sora thinks negatvitiy about himself and Xehanort knows about Cozy Glow than who knows what he'll do when he uses her for his advantage.

[SoraFan23]

11713990
I wonder if Yen Sid can help him. We haven't heard from him in a while.

[asianfanficreader99]

Sora needs to be (literally) knocked some sense into him

[SoraFan23]

11718573
He'll need some real therapy because now he is just doubting himself.

[DeathRider2021]

11715645
That's good idea.