Kana:
Keychains Received: Rumbling Rose
Based on the Movie: Beauty & the Beast (1991)
Notable Characters: Beast, Belle, Chip, Cogsworth, Lumière, Mrs. Potts, Wardrobe

First Visit

Sora, Donald, and Goofy happen upon a seemingly empty gothic castle, wondering who it belongs to. A distant and ferocious roar answers their question. It was their old ally, Beast! Excited to see their friend, the crew decides to go check up on him. However, a scurrying Heartless impedes their quest.

Upon following the Heartless into the parlor, the crew discovers a mystical, glowing rose. The arrival of more Heartless breaks their enraptured stares. The shadows prove too much for the Keyblade master, and the Beast himself answers his cries for help. He makes short work of the Shadows, obliterating each one. But it doesn’t stop there. He also knocks Sora, Donald, and Goofy on to the ground as well. As if in a trance, Beast goes on to pick up the rose and leave the room without a word. Confused as to why the Beast didn‘t recognize them, the trio decides to go in search of answers.

They arrive in the East Wing, the residence of Princess Belle. She claims the Beast has been acting cruel and withdrawn, going so far as to lock up all his servants in the dungeon. Sora, Donald, and Goofy head down to the dungeon to set free the castle staff.

After destroying many Heartless, the trio find their way to the dungeon blocked by a very strange sight--a snoozing Wardrobe! An amusing mini-game ensues in which Sora has to switch between pushing the Wardrobe out of the way, and leaving her be so she doesn’t wake up. After successfully clearing the path, the Wardrobe chortles and lets them into the Undercroft. Their progress is stopped yet again by a strange Heartless called the Thresholder, blocking the final door into the dungeon. Sora’s reaction commands set free the real source of trouble--a Possessor Heartless! After dispatching the Possessor, the Thresholder writhes and fades away, clearing the path for entrance.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy enter the dungeon to find it empty, save for a few commonplace household objects. As it turns out, these objects are actually the castle staff, transformed as a result of an enchanted spell. Among them is Lumière (the flamboyant maitre d’ and candelabra), Cogsworth (a tightly-wound clock), Mrs. Potts (a motherly tea-pot), and her son Chip (a chipper tea-cup). The objects explain how long ago, the Beast was once a young and handsome prince. An Enchantress came to the castle and placed a powerful spell on all of it’s inhabitants as punishment for the Beast’s cruelty. The only way to reverse the curse was if the Beast learned to love and be loved in return. The objects cut the explanations short and decide to directly approach the master.

Lumiere and Mrs. Potts lead the crew to a secret entrance into the West Wing, where the Beast resides. In order to pass through the passage way, Cogsworth hangs on to a lever while Sora uses the Keyblade to purify several chandeliers doused in darkness. An amusing mini-game ensues where Sora races against time to purify all of the chandeliers before Cogsworth runs out of strength. With that task complete, the group rushes into the Beast’s room.

As Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Cogsworth run into the West Wing, they catch the tail-end of a conversation the Beast is having with a man in black. The Organization XIII member seems to be manipulating the Beast into thinking that Belle is out to take everything he has, including the rose. Upon noticing Sora, the mysterious man orders Beast to attack Belle’s “accomplices“. Sora uses Cogsworth’s alarm to bring Beast back to his senses.

With Beast finally back to normal, Sora asks him what happened. He reveals that the mysterious man, named Xaldin, took all of his sadness and pain and morphed it into a mind-controlling rage. He locked up his servants in the dungeon in order to protect them from himself. Despite the Beast’s fears, Sora convinces him to visit Belle and apologize. When they reach her room Belle is gone. Fearing the worst, the group runs down to the Entrance Hall. Her cries for help echo from within the ballroom.

Once inside, Belle is spotted running across the ballroom floor onto the balcony. Just then, a Shadow Stalker Heartless descends from above. It uses the powers of darkness to transform the beautiful ballroom into a hellish nightmare. During the battle, the Heartless possesses various parts of the room and uses them to attack Sora--columns, windows, and the chandelier. Once defeated, the creature cocoons itself in darkness, becoming the even more powerful Dark Thorn. Despite it’s massive claws, the creature is eradicated and the ballroom is restored to it’s original state.

There isn’t any time for celebration. Xaldin appears and puzzles the group with wily words, disappearing before Beast could stop him. Goofy explains that Xaldin was after Beast’s Heartless in an attempt to gain his Nobody. Beast apologizes to Belle, and Belle voices her wish that Beast would simply trust her. The castle objects decide to fill Sora in on the rest of the story. The Beast must love, and earn love in return, before the last petal falls. The objects lament if they will ever be human again. Just then, Sora’s Keyblade resonates with the rose and the next gate opens. It is time for another adventure.

Second Visit

Sora, Donald, and Goofy arrive at Beast’s Castle to find Beast dressed to impress, and very irritable. After getting ready with the Wardrobe, Belle descends the stairs, outfitted in a beautiful gold gown. Nervous, they both grab hands and go into the ballroom. The objects welcome Sora, Donald, and Goofy to enjoy the festivities as well. Beast and Belle’s date is cut short by the untimely arrival of Xaldin. He summons a group of Dragoon Nobodies to attack. He informs Beast that he has come to take something Beast holds very dear, the rose.

The group finds themselves in Beast’s room after dispatching the Nobodies. The Beast laments the loss of his stolen rose. Overwhelmed by anger, Beast takes out his feelings on Belle. He asks Sora and Belle to leave the castle. Sora uses some tough words to convince Beast to fight Xaldin for the rose, instead of just wallowing in self pity. With a renewed sense of self, Beast leads the others in the search of Xaldin.

Xaldin appears in the Entrance Hall, revealing Organization XIII’s true goal--Kingdom Hearts. This is why he wants Beast’s Heartless and Nobody. After a quick battle against some Dragoons, Xaldin leaves the castle, rose in hand. Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Beast follow him into the courtyard. Belle finds the rose stashed up by her window. Xaldin grabs her and flies to the bridge, Beast bounding behind.

Xaldin gives Beast an ultimatum--Belle or the rose? Before he can answer, Belle jabs Xaldin in the ribs and runs off with the rose. Xaldin summons his six spears and attacks Sora and company using his mastery over the power of wind. A long and hard battle ensues, but Sora comes out the victor. Xaldin screams and fades back to darkness.

Beast apologizes and invites Belle to remain at the castle with him. Belle agrees and they both share a tender moment. Lumiere cues the music and Belle and Beast end up having their waltz anyway. Mrs. Potts comments on how Belle is always ready for “a little adventure”, and mentions how Belle was actually smiling when she stole the rose from Xaldin. Sora and the others marvel at the sight of the dancing Beauty and the Beast. The adventure at Beast’s Castle is over.