Hearts of the Wind

"Gawrsh, feels kinda like bein' in the Pride Lands again," said a turtle with a dog's head.

"Yeah, you're right, Goofy!" quacked a duck-faced eagle. "Except and Sora's still a human!"

A brown-haired boy looked himself over. "You're right, Donald," he said. "But, my clothes are gone..."

The trio, known as Sora, Donald Duck and Goofy, stood in the dark, woods looking themselves over in the pale midnight moonlight. Donald and Goofy had transformed into animals, Donald changing into an eagle with blue wingtips and a yellow-tipped tail while still keeping his duck bill and blue sailor's cap while Goofy had changed into a turtle with a yellow shell and greenish underbelly, but with his original face and a green cap.

Sora, on the other hand, was different. He was a tall, well-built 16 year old human boy with brown, spikey hair and blue eyes and a crown pendant hanging around his neck. But the upper-half of his body was bare; all that was on the bottom were long, brownish leggings with four tassles going down each side.

Two of the trio's normal weapons had changed as well. Donald's usual Mage's Staff had changed in a wand with a dreamcatcher on the end. Goofy's Knight's Shield was changed to a compass-like shield with a shooting arrow representing the directional arrow, and ears of corn representing the points of a compass rose. Sora's Keyblade still remained the same way it always was.

Now, there was a reason the boys were her. They had gotten word from King Mickey Mouse, their good friend, that a new world had shown up, and it was supposedly crawling with Heartless. They simply needed to go into this world and seal its Keyhole, which was the source of where the Heartless were coming from. Then, they needed to link this world with all the other connected worlds.

"I guess..." Sora started out. "...There are Heartless in this world."

"But everything seems kinda peaceful here," Goofy observed. "Maybe this is like when we went to Atlantica while we were trackin' down Organization XIII."

"You mean there's another reason we're here?" Sora asked.

"Maybe," Goofy said.

"Let's look around," Donald said.

So the trio went off wandering the forest. But suddenly, they were jumped by shadowy creatures with beady yellow eyes.

"Wak! Heartless!" Donald said in a panic.

"Looks like they ARE here," Sora said, drawing his Keyblade. "C'mon, guys! Let's get 'em!"

Sora rushed in and slashed at a few of the Heartless with his Keyblade. Using his staff, Donald called down bolts of thunder to make the Heartless dissapear in puffs of smoke. Goofy ran forward and charged through the Heartless using his shield. This went on for a little while until the trio couldn't fight any longer.

"Man, these Heartless must be stronger in this world," Sora panted, trying to fend off the Heartless.

"We need some help!" Donald said as he whacked a Heartless with his staff. And just when everyone seemed to give up, a tannish blur came in from nowhere and, one by one, destroyed the Heartless with some kind of spear with two feathers dangling from the top. When she stood still and turned around, she was a tall woman with red-brown skin, long, flowing black hair, a sand brown outfit, and a blue necklace.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

Sora got up slowly, using his Keyblade as support. "Y-yeah," he said weakly. "Thanks. Who're you?"

"My name is Pocahontas," the woman said, extending her hand. "What're your names?"

Sora shook Pocahontas' hand. "My name's Sora," he said.

"And I'm Donald!" Donald said cheerfully.

"Name's Goofy," Goofy said with a wave. "Pleased to meet ya, Pocahontas!"

The young woman giggled. "From the looks of things, you're not with those shadow creatures, are you?" she asked.

"Nope! Not us!" Donald said proudly.

"We're here tryin' to find this world's Key---" Goofy was about to say 'Keyhole' before he covered his mouth with his front legs, forgetting that their mission needed to be incognito.

"Anyway..." Sora said, trying to ignore Goofy's near-slipup. "Are there any more Heartless running around here?"

Pocahontas thought for a moment. "Yes, they've been everywhere," she said worridly. "This forest, my village, and every other place. But I don't know where they're coming from. Maybe you can help us get rid of them?"

"That's why we're here," Sora said proudly.

"Good," Pocahontas said with a smile. "Come. We need to speak with someone important about this."

Sora, Donald and Goofy looked at each other briefly before they followed Pocahontas deeper into the woods. After battling more Heartless along the way, the group got into a canoe and went down the river into a small glade. Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Pocahontas got out of the canoe and climbed onto a tree stump platform.

"So, uh, are we supposed to meet someone here?" Goofy asked as Donald helped him up onto the stump.

"She's right in front of us," Pocahontas said, pointing to the front of a willow tree.

"Wha?" Donald said in confusion.

"This is a joke, right?" Sora asked, crossing his arms. "That tree is supposed to be the person who can help us?"

"On the contrary," a voice from nowhere said. "There's nobody else that knows about the shadowy creatures." Just then, a face materialized on the tree Pocahontas was pointing to. This startled everyone but Pocahontas. Goofy feel backwards into the shallow waters below and landed on his shell.

"G-g-g-gawsrh!" Goofy said in surprise. "Th-th-that tree just spoke to us!"

"Well, of course, dearie," the tree said. "It's not too often you find talking trees. But don't worry...my bark is worse than my bite!"

Pocahontas stepped forward. "Grandmother Willow," she said. "This is Sora, Donald, and Goofy. They're here to try and stop those shadow creatures."

Grandmother Willow looked at the trio for a few moments. "From the looks of things, they look like they're not from around here...they're from another world!" she said spryly.

"Ah, phooey," Donald moaned.

"We're in trouble now, are we?" Sora asked nervously.

"Why would you think that?" the tree asked.

"Well, Miss Willow," Goofy said as he got himself back up onto the stump. "Someone in another world told us that we shouldn't be muddling in other worlds."

"You mean 'meddling,' dear," Grandmother Willow said sweetly. "And you must mean King Triton, am I not correct?"

"How do you know about him?" Donald asked curiously.

"There's a little story that you all should know," the old tree said. "You see, there are a few chosen beings in each world that know about the other worlds out there. Triton and myself are two of them. We know all about each world's connected pathways, Keyholes, and other odds and ends like that. And each of these beings has a certain point of view on the World Order and the affairs of others."

"But King Triton said that we shouldn't be meddling in the affairs of other worlds," Sora sighed. "And the first time we met him, he said we violated the principle...and that my Keyblade only brings ruin, and destroys peace." Sora bowed his head as if in shame. But a willow leaf picked his head up by his chin

"True...true..." Grandmother Willow said with a slight nod. "But just because one rule is broken doesn't mean the worlds are thrown into chaos. You've done the same thing time and time again, and nothing bad became of any of the worlds. I ought to know, because I've heard stories of your travels. But the point is that you are not the cause of ruin in worlds. That is caused by the Heartless that invade each world. You mustn't feel any grief for your actions, child...what happens with the Heartless in each world is not your doing to begin with."

"Gawrsh, she's right, Sora," Goofy said. "Usually, the Heartless are already in a world when we first get to it, anyway."

"Yeah!" Donald said in agreement.

Sora looked deeply at his Keyblade. "Yeah...I guess you're right," he said. "Well, anyway...where's the Keyhole?"

"That old thing?" Grandmother Willow said. "I'm not sure where it is. But I can tell all of you this; something is wrong between the settlers here and Pocahontas' people. An unexplainable rift of sorts. And it's all being started by a creature in red and blue garments."

"Red and blue garments?" Pocahontas repeated, rubbing her chin.

"Sounds like Pete," Donald said suspiciously. "He's always up to no good."

"Well, we'll go check it out," Sora said.

"I'll go with you," Pocahontas said. "You don't know these woods as well as I do. I can help you."

"Okay, let's go," Sora said.

"Right. Thank you, Grandmother Willow," Pocahontas said in thanks to the old tree. The foursome jumped back into the canoe and rowed away.

In another part of the world, a conversation was going on at the settlers' encampment between two people. One of them was a large catlike creature with red and blue garments. This was Pete, and he was speaking to a man in purple named Governer Radcliff.

"So let me see if I understand this fully," the Governer said rubbing his chin. "Those shadowy creatures you call "Heartless" are here because of those filthy savages?"

"You got it, Fancyboy," Pete said. "Those things come outta the darkness in their hearts. And lemme tell ya, there's enough darkness to make this whole forest look like a night with no moon. They even resorted to capturin' that John Smith fella of yours, those black-hearted demons! So if you defeat those savages, them Heartless won't bother you no more, see?"

"You have a point," Radcliff said slowly. "Right then, we'll begin the attack at the next sunrise. Thank you very much, Mr. Pete; I'll be sure to handsomely reward you later."

Pete smiled and nodded, then turned around and left the encampment. He snickered to himself evilly.

"Heh heh heh heh heh...this is all just too perfect," he said to himself aloud. "All I had to do was tell that Powhaten fella that the Heartless have been appearing ever since those settlers dropped in, then tell the same story to Radcliff! Once that fight goes on, there'll be enough Heartless to build my own army! And that Keyblade brat won't be able to stop me!" Pete laughed wickedly as he walked deeper into the woods.

Back in another part of the forest, Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Pocahontas ran through the forest, taking out various Heartless as they went along. They eventually got to the village, where their pace slowed to a walk.

"Woah," Sora said in awe.

"So what do we do now?" Donald asked.

"We need to speak with my father," Pocahontas said. "We need to let him know that you three have come to help defeat those creatures."

The group proceeded to a small tent, where a tall man in chief-like clothing named Chief Powhaten stood. Donald and Goofy gulped at his large size.

"Wingapo, daughter," he said. "Where have you been?"

"Father, I've brought some help," Pocahontas said, motioning to Sora, Donald, and Goofy. "They can help us fight off those Heartless."

Chief Powhaten looked confused. "Heartless?" he repeated. "You mean those shadow creatures?"

"Yeah," Sora said, stepping forward. "I'm Sora. This is Donald, and Goofy."

"It seems kinda strange," Goofy said. "But even though we're animals, we can talk."

The Chief smiled slightly. "I'm glad you've volunteered to help," he said before his smile changed to a look of seriousness. "But we already know where those creatures are coming from. It's the pale-faced settlers."

"Settlers?" Sora repeated. "Who told you that?"

"A catlike creature in red and blue," Powhaten said.

There was a stunned silence before Powhaten continued. "And he said that we need to eliminate them. Starting with the one who killed one of our braves!"

"What!? No!" Pocahontas cried.

"I'm sorry, but it must be done," the Chief continued angrily. "Because of your foolishness, Kokoum is dead! Now leave me be..."

The foursome left the tent in shock. Donald was the first one to vent.

"So it WAS Pete!" he snapped. "I knew that big palooka was up to no good again!"

"What're we gonna do now?" Goofy asked.

"First, we need to see the person Powhaten's gonna eliminate first," Sora said. "Then we should see Grandmother Willow again."

So the group went to see John Smith, who was tied to a stake in a tent.

"John," Pocahontas said quietly. "It's me. And I've brought help."

The man looked up and smiled slightly. "So, you three are supposed to be help?" he asked.

"What would you expect?" Sora replied.

"We know it's not your fault those Heartless are runnin' around," Goofy said. "It's somethin' else."

"I've wondered what those creatures were," John said. "Anyway, I appreciate the help, but you can't help me now. I've been sentenced to death tomorrow, nothing can change that."

"We can try," Donald said in hope.

"Yes," Pocahontas said. "We'll think of something to help you. I promise."

John and Pocahontas shared a deep, passionate kiss before Pocahontas and the others left. Back at the glade, they explained the problem to Grandmother Willow. But as they explained the situation, they noticed the sun rising in the east.

"Uh oh!" Donald quacked. "Sunrise!"

"And if the sun's up, that means..." Sora said slowly.

"They're gonna kill John Smith!" Goofy yelped. "We gotta hurry!"

Just then, a soft wind began to blow through the glade. The arrow on Goofy's back began to spin with the wind. Pocahontas looked in awe.

"The spinning arrow..." she said quietly. "I was right! The arrow was pointing to him!"

"Huh?" Goofy said, trying to look at the arrow on his back.

"The arrow from your dream!" Grandmother Willow said. "Do not be afraid...let the spirits of the earth guide ALL of you. You know the path you must take..." The arrow stopped and pointed to the sun. "Now, follow it!" And with that, the foursome dashed away to stop what was about to happen. As they ran for it, both Radcliff's army and Powhaten's army readied themselves for war. John Smith was laid out on a stone platform, ready to accept his fate. Powhaten was just about to bring down the final curtain on him before...

"STOP!" squacked Donald from behind. Pocahontas threw herself across John Smith as Sora, Donald, and Goofy readied their weapons. Powhaten looked stunned for a moment before his face molded back to anger.

"Stand back, all of you!" Powhaten said sternly.

"If you kill him...you'll have to kill me, too," Pocahontas said.

"Yeah! And that goes double for us!" Goofy snapped.

"Don't you get it?" Sora asked desperately. "You're going down the wrong path! That catlike creature, Pete? He's just setting you up! Killing John Smith will only lead to more Heartless in this forest! You can't kill him!"

"He's right, Father," Pocahontas said, looking up. "Look around you. This is where the path of hatred brings us to. This is the path I choose, Father...what will yours be?"

Powhaten seemed to soften his tension a bit. He thought for a moment; kill this settler and brace himself for more Heartless...or let him live? He rose his staff up high in the air as the wind blew, feeling his daughter's spirit in the wind. Sora, Donald and Goofy let up.

"My daughter and her friends speak with a wisdom beyond all their years," Powhaten boomed. "We have all come here with hatred in our hearts...but they come with courage and understanding. From this day forward, if there is to be more killing, it will not start with me."

The winds died down as everyone lowered their weapons. The chief signaled for John Smith to be released. His ropes were cut, and he was able to stand freely. He smiled at the trio.

"Thanks, boys," he said. "I've been in a lotta scrapes like this before, but I never got out of one with help."

"It's no big deal," Sora said as he hoisted his Keyblade up ont his back.

He turned to Pocahontas and hugged her in thanks. but down below, there was still tension. Radcliff snatched a gun, realizing nobody was going to shoot. He aimed for Powhaten, but Smith saw it coming and shoved him out of the way, taking the bullet in the stomach. Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Pocahontas looked shocked and stunned, first at John, then at Radcliff who seemed to be struggling in some sort of pain...with Pete's hand on his back.

"Pete!!" Sora yelled. "What're you doing!?"

"I'm gonna get me a powerful Heartless one way or another, runts!" Pete shouted. "And this guy's got more than enough anger and hatred in his heart to make me one beauty of a Heartless!" Pete released his hand from Radcliff's back as he began to mutate into another form. His fingers became long and clawlike, while his feet were big and his legs were long and thick. Curved bull-like horns grew from the Governer's head as his arms became more and more muscular. Large, black eagle wings also appeared on his back. The Governer had changed from a regular human to a giant Heartless.

"What do we do?" Pocahontas asked in fear.

"We need to fight it!" Powhaten said as he was about to signal his men to attack.

"Wait!" Sora said, stopping him. "This creature's too powerful to be taken down by a bunch of warriors. We'll handle this! Are you with us, Pocahontas?"

Pocahontas nodded, and the foursome rushed into battle with the large Heartless. Sora slashed it with his Keyblade, Donald called down thunderbolts, Goofy rammed it with his shield, and Pocahontas cast magic spells with her spearstaff. But the Heartless came raging back, thrashing and swiping at the heroes. Sora and Donald teamed up and let loose a spectacular chain of comet explosions, knocking the Heartless back a little. Then, Sora and Goofy spun around while holding onto each other, hitting the Heartless multiple times. Then, Pocahontas and Sora used their weapons to double cast magical blasts before casting a tornado of crackling lightning at the Heartless. Finally, all four heroes attacked the Heartless, and then, clasing their weapons together, defeater Radcliff in a blinding light. When the light faded, the Heartless staggered back and faded in wisps of smoke. It was over; Radcliff was gone, and Pete ran off in a panic.

Later on, after a sad sendoff for John Smith, who had to go back to England, Powhaten thanked Pocahontas, Sora, Donald, and Goofy for showing him the truth. Then, before the trio left, Pocahontas gave them a private sendoff at the glade with Grandmother Willow.

"Here, take this," she said, handing Sora a keychain shaped like an ear of corn. "It's to remember us all by."

"Thanks, Pocahontas," Sora said.

"Will we ever see you again?" she asked.

"Oh, we'll be back, Pocahontas!" Goofy said cheerfully. "Don't you worry!"

Pocahontas giggled. "Oh, wait! The Keyhole! Grandmother Willow, do you know where it is?" she asked

The old tree thought for a moment. "I believe it's there," she said as she pointed a branch to the nearby waterfall. Soon enough, a keyhole appeared through the waterfall. Sora pointed his Keyblade at the Keyhole, and a beam of light shot from the blade's end. It hit the Keyhole, making it dissappear as a locking sound was made. Then, Grandmother Willow herself began to glow. Using another beam of light from the Keyblade, Sora connected this world with all the others.

"Now we KNOW we'll be back soon!" Sora said with a smile.

Pocahontas smiled back. "You and your friends are always welcome here, Sora."

"Thanks," Sora said warmly. "Well, guys...let's go."

"See ya later!" Goofy said as he got into the canoe.

"Bye-bye!" Donald quacked as he landed onto Goofy's shell. Sora rowed off with his Keyblade and looked one last time at the young woman he just met. She gave a long wave, and Sora gave one back. He knew that he, Donald, and Goofy would be back someday soon.

(End Credit Music: Colors of the Wind by Vanessa Williams)

Haley Joel Osment as Sora
Tony Anselmo as Donald Duck
Bill Farmer as Goofy
Irene Bedard as Pocahontas
Linda Hunt as Grandmother Willow
David Ogden Stiers as Governer Radcliff
Jim Cummings as Pete
Russell Means as Chief Powhaten
Mel Gibson as John Smith