A/N: This is random, even for me.

0.o

Based off of illbewaiting's fanart (take out spaces): www. illbewaiting. deviantart. com/gallery/#/d2wuujs

Kairi walks along the shore of the island, one full of so many memories. She chats idly with Naminé in the back of her mind, a pleasant smile on her face.

The ruby-haired girl stops, however, when something on the edge of the sand ahead of her catches her eye.

She rushes over, pink dress gently flapping against her legs in the wind. She stoops down, puzzled, and rescues the strange figure's head from being facedown in wet sand. "Miss?" she calls, trying to wake the woman. She rolls the older girl onto her back, and carefully brushes grains of sand from the side of her face. "Miss, can you hear me?"

Washed up on shore, not too different from Kairi herself. How did this woman get here? Where did she come from?

As the young woman opens her eyes slowly, something clicks in Kairi's mind. The woman has crystal blue eyes, the same shade as her short blue hair. And her clothes… they are nearly from a different time, something in the recesses of Kairi's earliest memories.

The woman groans and forces her groggy self to sit up. "Where… am I?" she murmurs, hand to her head as if she had a headache.

"Destiny Islands," Kairi replies vaguely, still staring at the woman. She feels in her gut that she knows this woman…

"Truly?" the woman says, suddenly cheerful. "This isn't a dream? I've left that place at last?"

Kairi raises an eyebrow. "I'm not sure what you're talking about, but yes, this is Destiny Islands. Why, have you been here before?"

The blunette nods. "Yes. Once or twice, years ago." She glances around. Then, a bit shakily, she stands. Kairi follows the motion with her indigo eyes before doing the same. The strange older girl smiles. "I have hope, now. He's here."

Kairi tilts her head questioningly. "He?" she repeats. "Who's 'he'?"

"Sora," the woman answers wistfully, and a tear slides down her cheek. She wipes it away. "He has something I'v e been searching for. But I got lost along the way, stranded in a place between Darkness and Light."

"Riku and I were stuck in this weird place that was somewhere at the edges of Darkness and Light," Sora had told Kairi once, after he and Riku had also come washing up on shore, running toward her. She stares wide-eyed at the woman now. This woman… who is she?

'Maybe I can help?' Naminé says, an echo in Kairi's mind. 'I'm a memory-witch, remember? I can help you remember her. Your heart knows her; all your brain needs is a visual reminder.'

Please, Naminé, Kairi answers hurriedly. I need to know. Who is she?

It takes merely seconds. Then, just as the woman turns to look at Kairi, about to ask something, a memory sparks in the redhead's mind. A memory of creepy creatures, a blue-haired girl saving her, a bundle of flowers, and a hand to her small chest, giving her Light.

All at once, before the older girl can speak, Kairi bursts out, "Aqua-oneechan?" in a breathy voice.

Aqua freezes, a curious expression taking over her facial features. "You know me?"

Kairi is nearly about to cry. "Don't you remember?" she says softly. "I was a child, about four years old. But… how could I forget you? You saved my life from some things that, in retrospect, resembled Heartless. And I gave you some flowers I had picked, and…" She blinks away tears. "You gave me a gift. You touched right here," she gestures to her sternum, "And there was a small burst of light."

Aqua's face is no longer confused. Slowly, steadily, a smile makes its way across the blunette's lips. "Of course I remember you," she says, taking a step closer. "Kairi."

Kairi smiles warmly, and this time, a couple tears do fall. "Aqua-oneechan. What happened to you? I've haven't seen you since –" She cuts off, then looks more carefully at her long-lost friend. "And… you haven't aged! How can that be?"

"I've been to too many places and done too many things for time to matter much," is the best response the Keyblade master can give. She shakes her head. But then, slowly, she leans forward and lightly touches Kairi's face. Instinctively, the younger girl's hand comes up and touches Aqua's hand. "How have you been, Kairi? What are the worlds like now?"

"Mostly at peace," the redhead murmurs, staring up into Aqua's eyes. "Thanks to Sora."

Aqua jerks backward slightly. "So you know him?"

Kairi smiles brightly. She bows her head and shuts her eyes, admitting, "He's one of my best friends."

The blunette also smiles. She brings her hand down and grasps Kairi's hand between them. "I'm glad. That's how it should be, I believe. After all, he has a lot in common with Ven, and you a lot with me."

"Ven?" the ruby-haired girl questions softly. The two begin walking together down the shoreline.

"Yes. I'll explain later. But right now, let's go see Sora."

Kairi nods, smiling again. "Okay."