wow, i should get on here more often, thanks for all the great comments ^-^
thanks dd, you really think so? i wrote this chappy out ages ago and i had serious writer's block at the time! ^^; thanks anyway!
thanks lv_kh, if there are any suggestions for titles, let me know! thanks for your nice comments ^-^
that WOULD be an interesting twist L337, i never even thought of something like that! oh, and there's no way i'm a better cookie maker than you, your cookies pwn! you'd really make a sig for my fanfic

that's so sweet, are you sure it isn't too much trouble?
i think your guess was closest to what King Mickey is up to, sorasheart!
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Sora took Kairi’s hand and began to run. He did not ask questions, simply accepted that they had to leave. Quickly. They all ran through the castle, and out into a courtyard, where the Gummi Ship was waiting. Spots of rain were beginning to fall onto them. Kairi looked up into the sky. The purple haze was fading, giving in to the overpowering black storm clouds. The shield was lifting.
“It’s another storm,” King Mickey cried, trying to make them hear him over the roar of the ever-increasing gale. “I hope we’ll be able to take off before it’s overhead!”
Crowding the Gummi Ship, Sora banged on the locked doors. Donald appeared on the other side of a small window in the door, let them in. King Mickey allowed Kairi to get in first, then followed her closely. Sora stood back, waited until last of all, then, taking one last look at the disappearing shield, entered the Gummi ship. He secured the doors.
The Gummi ship slowly ascended into the air, then suddenly bolted off into the clouds within seconds. The shaking wasn’t so bad this time, even Kairi felt fine. A surprisingly easy take-off, considering the giant storm gathering above the castle. Sora looked out of the small window in the door, and saw the black, swirling masses of cloud high above Disney Castle. They were now in the last reaches of the atmosphere, breaking into other worlds. King Mickey acknowledged Donald and Goofy, thanked them for waiting in the ship for him. He then turned to Kairi and Sora, who were now huddled together on the floor. There weren’t enough seats to go around.
“Is everything alright?” King Mickey asked, concerned, looking from Kairi to an unusually shaken Sora.
“Yeah, I think so,” Kairi said, focusing her attention on Sora. She put one arm around him. “What’s going on?” She asked King Mickey. “Why did we have to leave like that?”
“I knew that the storm was coming,” King Mickey stated, “and it looked huge. I put up the shield to give us some extra time, but it wasn’t strong enough. It’s going to be terrible back down there.”
“Is it bigger than the last storm, back on Destiny Islands?” Kairi asked, inquisitive. Sora was leaned into her, he seemed a little calmer than he was when they’d first got into the ship.
“I’m afraid so,” King Mickey sighed. “It’s gigantic. I’ll be extremely surprised if the castle is still standing when I get back.” Kairi remained silent, but it was clear that she was shocked. She’d always thought that the castle was protected, but she found out otherwise after the events of the previous day. If even the King thought that it would destroy the castle, chances are, the storm would destroy the castle. Sora cleared his throat, broke the momentary silence.
“This is a different Gummi Ship,” he stated. Kairi looked around. They’d all piled in so quickly that she hadn’t even noticed. It was obvious now. This cockpit was much bigger.
“It is,” the King smiled at Sora. “You’ll be pleased to know that you and Kairi have your own room now. This ship is more advanced than the last, too, which is a great advantage. It’s much stronger, so even if we end up in another meteor shower, we’ll come out safely. It won’t be damaged so easily, which is great, considering we’re going to be in here for a while.” He admired his surroundings.
“Just how long are we going to be?” Kairi inquired. It would be difficult to be in such a confined space for a long time.
“Only a few days,” King Mickey said. He noticed the sword clutched in her hand. “It’ll give you plenty of time to rest up and practise all of the moves Sora has taught you.” He glanced at Sora, smiling. Sora seemed distant, deep in thought. This made the King’s face turn from a grin to a concerned look. Kairi noticed the King’s change in expression, and looked at Sora. She touched his shoulder. He twitched, as if being awoken from a deep trance.
“Sora’s a great teacher,” she smiled, tilting her head to look straight at him. “He’s taught me a lot.” She complimented him, tried to encourage him to speak. Sora shook his head, trying to wake himself up. It was as though he’d been asleep for years, trying to regain ordered thought.
“Yeah, we made a lot of progress,” he mumbled, becoming a little more conscious, now aware of what he was saying and what was going on. “Kairi’s picking it all up really quickly, and it’s building her confidence. She’s a lot braver than she was. She’s great.” Sora smiled back at Kairi, proud of his ‘student’.
“Great,” the King said happily. He was pleased that she’d made some progress. “Remember, practise makes perfect, and there’ll be plenty of time to practise here!”
“How was Queen Minnie?” Sora asked, trying to contribute to the conversation, trying to make himself seem normal.
“She’s fine,” the King replied. He sensed that Sora wasn’t feeling right, but continued to talk to him anyway. Maybe talking to someone would help him open up, or feel better. “She’s a little worried about us, but it’s only natural. At least I know she’s safe, she’s far away from the castle now.”
The cockpit was larger than the one in the last Gummi Ship, but it was still a relatively small room. Buttons, lights, levers and switches all lined the grey walls. The floor was made of dark grey plastic tiles. At the front of the cockpit was one large window, which looked out into the vast, starry, empty space. Behind the window were three seats, all fully equipped with seatbelts, restraints, and pilot controls. Donald and Goofy were sat in the two front seats, flying the Gummi Ship through the unlimited darkness.
“That reminds me,” King Mickey suddenly spoke. “Donald and Goofy have offered to pilot the ship for most of the journey, but they’ll need to take breaks periodically, to rest. Sora, I hope you can help out with this, I know you can fly this Gummi Ship. Is that ok with you?” He looked directly at Sora, who, again, had floated off into his own world. He was sat directly in front of King Mickey, but he seemed miles away. “Sora?” King Mickey spoke louder. “Sora?!” He was shouting now, trying to get Sora’s attention.
“Huh?” Sora snapped out of his trance, looked up at King Mickey. “What?”
“The King wants to know if you’ll help out with flying the ship,” Kairi reminded him.
“Oh, uh, yeah,” Sora responded slowly, in a world of his own.
“I’ll be there to help you out,” the King said, much more calm now. He knew that if Sora was still in this state, he’d be useless at flying a Gummi ship. King Mickey decided that he’d make sure he was with Sora whenever it was Sora’s turn to fly the ship. “Only one person is needed to fly the Gummi Ship, but a second is needed in case of emergencies, and obviously, for company. That means that while Goofy and Donald are flying the Gummi ship, you should be asleep, relaxing, and having something to eat. That way, you’ll be in the correct state to be piloting.” Sora nodded slowly, taking it all in silently. “Oh, and that reminds me,” King Mickey continued. “We have plenty of supplies for the journey, but you need to be careful with them. Everything we have has to last for this journey, when we reach Square-One, and the return journey. That could be a long time, so go easy on what we have.”
Sora nodded. Again, he was somewhat distant. He was keeping himself attentive by playing with Kairi’s red hair, plaiting it and twisting it around his fingers. This was his way of concentrating. Kairi didn’t seem to mind. She barely even noticed at all. He looked up at King Mickey. His eyes were dark circles on his lily-white face. He looked absolutely exhausted, drained of all his energy. He’d had only a few hours of sleep the night before, and had spent the whole day leaping around the garden, teaching Kairi how to use her new sword properly. He needed a long rest. King Mickey, astounded at Sora’s drained face, decided it was best to let him go for a rest.
“Sora, perhaps you should go take a rest,” the King suggested. “Your room is over there.” He pointed to a grey door. Sora nodded, and tried to heave himself up off the floor. Kairi saw he was struggling, so helped him to stand up.
“Thanks,” Sora mumbled. He made slow, lethargic steps towards the door. They all watched him stagger out of the cockpit, followed him with their eyes. They were astounded. Something had to be wrong. Sora was usually much more energetic, even when he tired. He was always happy and lively, regardless of how he felt. Kairi stood in the cockpit, faced King Mickey.
“I think I should go make sure he’s ok,” she said quietly, picking up her sword.
“Good idea,” King Mickey commented. “Kairi, make sure he gets a good rest tonight, he needs to pilot the Gummi Ship tomorrow. There are some important matters I need to discuss with him, too.”
“Ok,” Kairi replied. She wondered what he wanted to talk about, curious. Probably matters concerning when they reached Square-One. She left the cockpit and closed the door behind her.
really long chappy, only cause i'm feeling generous after all of those sweet comments

let me know what you all think!
<3 <3