Power of the Enchanted

Chapter Five: Flaming Orbs are the Perfect First Impression, Don't Ya Know?

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"Hey there, how can I... aw, it's only a kid." I heard the guy behind the counter mumble.

"I'm not a kid! And the name's Sora." I retorted defensively. "Okay, okay. Simmer down. So why the long face, Sora? You lost or somethin'?" the guy asked. "No. Well, maybe.. Where are we?" I asked, letting down my walls of pride and started asking the real questions. "Huh? Well, you're in Traverse Town." the guy twirled the toothpick in his mouth and stared. "Traverse Town... So gramps, is this really another world? Not my island?" I inquired, skimming the bit of shop around the guy behind the counter. "'Ey don't call me gramps, the name is Cid. Anyways... not sure what you're talking about, but this sure ain't your island." Cid took the toothpick and pointed it at me in a somewhat threatening way. "I guess I better start looking for Riku and Kairi... and Lynnette." I whispered, kicking at the ground. "Good luck with whatever you're looking for... wait, did you say Lynnette?" Cid perked up. "Yes?" I asked, raising my eyebrow. "Is that her?" Cid pointed across the shop. I turned around and saw Lynnette sleeping peacefully on the shop's couch that was behind me.

"Lynnette!" I exclaimed and ran over to her side. "Is she okay?!" I cried to Cid behind the counter. "She's fine, just got a major goose egg is all." Cid sauntered over and knelt down beside her, revealing a large red bump on her forehead. "Lynnette..." I whispered and touched her arm, stroking it softly. "Wake up." I leaned over and whispered into her ear. I could tell she heard me when she crinkled her nose, and her eyelids began to softly flutter.

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I felt someone stroking my arm, trying to wake me up. My head was still in pain, of course, so I was groaning and moaning until I opened my eyes to meet familiar blue eyes. "S-sora?" I cried his name through the pain. "Yeah, it's me; we made it off the island," he said softly, helping me sit up slowly. "I know we're in Traverse Town. Cid told me." "Yeah, I met Cid too, he's right here." Sora shrugged towards where Cid was, and I looked. "Hey Lynnette, how ya feelin'?" Cid asked, chewing on that toothpick of his. "Sore," I moaned and placed my head in my hands. "I just wish I could get rid of this massive migraine that I have." When the words finished coming out of my mouth, a green glow lit up from my palms. Sora, Cid, and even I jumped back at the weird sorcery that just happened. "What was tha- your head!" Sora's eyes were wide, and he pointed at where the wound was on my head. Instinctively, I raised my hand to my forehead.

"It's gone! My wound and migraine are gone!" I gasped, giving my head a couple of taps to make sure that this was real. "There's no pain!" I said, giddily. "Well, well, you gots some mad magic there, Lynn," Cid commented, staring at me in awe. Memories of the icy blue glow that had shot out of my hands from earlier came back to me. "This isn't the first time something like this has happened," I admitted, staring at my hands. "Then I recommend going and talking to a friend of mine, Merlin. He'll help you out with this whole sitchi-ation. If you ever run into trouble, you can come to me. I'll look out for ya." Cid gave a half-smile and a chuckle. Sora held out his hand for me to take, and he helped me up. "Thanks for everything, Cid. I'm sure we'll be back." I smiled and waved as Sora, and I exited the shop.

"So, how'd you find me?" I asked, playfully shoving him."I woke up in the alleyway behind this shop after you got swept up; it wasn't long before I did too, and I had to fight off this gigantic monster." Sora described making motions with his hands to show me how big the monster was and how he fought off different similar monsters in the other districts of Traverse Town. "So Lynnette, when did you change?" Sora asked. "Huh?" I looked down at my clothing, and I was in a different outfit than what I left Destiny Islands with. Gone was the yellow romper and my Grecian bun, now replaced with: a blue halter tank top, jean shorts, white thigh highs, boots, black laced-up fingerless gloves, and an armlet that had chains hanging. My hair was now in a waterfall braid and curled down my back. "I-I didn't." I shook my head, staring in awe at my new outfit. Sora was about to say something when he was cut off by this deep voice.

"They'll come at you out of nowhere." Sora and I whirled around and matched the voice to the person. "Huh?" I questioned. "Who are you?" Sora asked, readying himself in a fighting position with one arm held out to defend me. "And they'll keep coming at you," the stranger continued, "as long as you continue to wield the Keyblade." The stranger was silent for a moment and brought his hand up to his chin in thought. "But why? Why would it chose a kid like you?" "Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Sora gripped tighter onto the keyblade in his hand. I just watched the figure. I don't know why I didn't summon my own keyblade. Perhaps if I did, it would have made the situation worse.

"Never mind." the man grunted. He started taking ominous steps towards Sora and I. "Now, let's see that Keyblade." "What? There's no way you're getting this." Sora exclaimed. "Alright, then have it your way." The stranger swung some sort of weapon over his shoulder. It was almost similar to our keyblades; it looked more like a mix of a gun and a sword. He dramatically swung his weapon downwards and got into a fighting stance. He leaped towards Sora with a speed that I knew Sora, and I couldn't keep up with. Sora pushed me out of the way and was able to block the man's hit just in time. I landed on my backside and slid against the lamppost. Who is this guy and what's his beef with Sora? I watched as Sora got into motion and began striking the stranger; it was strange how it seemed to already be second nature to Sora to fight with the keyblade. The man dodged and did take a few good hits from Sora. I started to really freak out when he pulled his gunblade in front of him, and an orange glow came from the tip. It grew bigger and bigger until he swung and flung it at Sora.

"No!" I screamed as the flaming orb barreled towards Sora. I held out my hand in hopes that the ice that had come to my aid earlier would help me now. I squeezed my eyes shut; I didn't want to see the aftermath if this went bad. "Lynn!" Sora's voice rang, and I opened my eyes. Icy blue swirls had erupted from my palms and surrounded the orb, absorbing the flames and dissipating the attack altogether. "That was amazing!" Sora praised me. The man gave a grunt of disapproval and continued to attack Sora "Sora! Let me help!" I stood up and got ready to summon my keyblade when Sora stopped me. "No, this is my fight." That's when the guy swooped in for a final blow, he knocked Sora off his feet, and Sora flew down the stairs into the courtyard before us. "Sora!" I screamed and scrambled to my feet, racing down the stairs to his side. I slid on my knees and held his head in my lap. He was out cold. The stranger took deep breaths as he walked towards us slowly. I bit my lip in fear when another voice broke through the air.

"Awe, you're slipping Leon." The stranger answered to 'Leon' and turned to face the girl who teased him. I was dressed similar to her, but not as revealing. She almost seemed like a ninja with her attire: she wore short shorts with thigh high socks, a bandeau looking top with belt buckle straps, a fabric headband around her forehead, and fishnet gloves on her arms. "I went easy on him." Leon rolled his eyes. "Looks like things are worse than we thought... A lot worse." I kept quiet; I didn't know what to say. Leon stepped towards Sora, and I held Sora closer to me. "Don't worry, I won't hurt him, I'll take him somewhere where he can get some rest," Leon said. 

"How can I trust you? You just tried to kill him." I gritted my teeth and stood my ground. "Oh, don't worry," the girl laughed. "He won't be hurting your friend, plus if he does, I'll beat him up for ya." I nodded. It wasn't typical for me to trust someone automatically, but I felt something about these people. Leon lifted Sora over his shoulders, and the girl waved at me to follow. "I'm so rude, I forgot introductions. This walking stone here is Leon, and I'm Yuffie, and might I add that I'm also a stellar ninja." Yuffie quirked. "I'm Lynnette." "Don't worry, you and your friend will be safe here with us!"