#cloud kh

Alright, here’s the real juicy stuff. I’ve been referring to it as the I love my son au for hopefully obvious reasons

Because its me, obviously, I want Ienzo to travel with them. Let’s say he escaped Xemnas and has been living in Traverse Town for pretty much his entire life, probably as a street rat. Does he know Leon? Maybe. Maybe Leon found him in Radiant Garden and took him in, or maybe they only know each other in passing. Point is, he’s a really powerful magic user and easily fills Donald’s role as the magician. (Something I think could be interesting is if Ienzo doesn’t have his heart. He escaped Xemnas, sure, but he’s still a Nobody, even if he doesn’t know the term for it. Cue some confusion from Sora and Leon over why Ienzo is like this, why heartless don’t chase him, what he means by “I don’t have a heart” etc. And hey! It could give Sora some insight into the Org that he wouldn’t have otherwise... just a thought.)

So, why would Ienzo, Nobody or not, go with Leon and Sora? I mean, obviously Leon is going because ma’am that is a CHILD, why are you giving him a SWORD- but Ienzo? He just wants his family back. Or, at the very least, find out what happened to them and why. 

Pretty much everything is the same in kh1 except 1) Leon helps find the puppies (and actively derails the adventure to do so) 2) Leon gives as much emotional support as he can and 3) the trio isn’t split up by choice. (when they ARE however... the drama. Ienzo, in his childhood home that he destroyed with hints of what could have happened to his family up against worried dad!Leon who knows Sora is out there with only a wooden sword and Sora being terrified on his own with no way to heal himself and no backup and he wants his dad, dammit!) I also think it would be funny if Ienzo got an admirer in the form of Demyx, who has been following them around. He was supposed to report what they were doing to the Superior but he got... distracted.

I would think, since Zexion isn’t in the Organization, Saix wouldn’t send Axel to Oblivion, since the whole point was getting rid of VI and everyone else was an afterthought. However, with Ienzo being a rather valuable asset even when he was a baby, I would like to think that no one is rank VI; Xemnas saved it for Ienzo and was just waiting for an opportunity to get him back. So Zoey would get kidnapped at some point during COM. (much to Leon’s distress) Bonus points for drama involving the three (technically 4 if you count Heartless!Ansem) dad conundrum.

Also during COM, Repliku stays alive because I love him very much and he deserves it. Leon doesn’t get sealed away though... the whole ‘turning into cards’ thing is weird and takes away from Luxord’s power set so we’re gonna throw that whole thing away and instead have Leon get yeeted back to Traverse Town because the Org was getting sick of him interfering with fights and also, you know, having a damn braincell. Plus, angst for when he realizes he forgot his kid for a year.

In kh2, since Ienzo is kidnapped, Kairi is the magician and can, in fact, heal. Zexion is part of the Org but really doesn’t want to be, Cloud and Leon get married offscreen after getting separated from the kids, Sorikai feels, Zexion kills Saix because I said so (and because saix killed vexen), significantly more murder because most of the org is alive (although Leon stops them initially from killing anyone because child soldiers and murder is bad), it’s revealed that Roxas was in a weirdly close friend group with Zexion, Demyx, Axel and Her, all that good stuff. Hey, maybe after fighting Xemnas, Sorikai hang out in the Relm of Darkness and find Aqua. I dunno.

I would also like to mention, that in this theoretical au, healing spells aren’t a easily accessible thing, and magic itself isn’t widely accessible either. Generally, humans have a pretty low amount of magic, and while keyblades can boost and channel magic, they only really allow for basic offensive and defensive spells that can be improved upon. And though it can boost ‘magicka’ to a point, it’s not like you can just keep using magic forever. Why you ask? Well, making magic less accessible is just fun because it makes fights more grounded with higher stakes, as compared to “blow the bad guy away with magic wind powers and then fly to safety.” Plus, it means that not as many characters can use magic, making magic teachers a valuable resource. As for why healing spells aren’t really a thing? Well, I just personally think healing spells are kinda cheap narratively, especially since potions are a thing but my main two reasons are a) it solidifies Ienzo as a valuable asset both to the Gang and the Organization and b) angst. Like... oh I don’t know... Leon takes a bad hit for Sora while they’re separated from Ienzo and out of elixirs/potions? Hmm...

And as a final act of total self indulgence, maybe throw some half-awake Ventus in there. As a treat.