Chapter 1
"Sora... Sora...! Sora! Get up, you lazy bum!"
At the sound of Kairi's voice, Sora jerked up in an unexpected motion, and immediately fell out of the tree, landing flat on his back in a very uncomfortable way. Wincing, he rubbed the back of his head and sat up.
"Owww! Ow-ow-ow-ow!" he said, scowling. "Wha'dye do that for?"
"Silly, you were taking a nap," Kairi's voice replied, sounding from somewhere over his head. "I told you to go climb the tree an' get some apples, not sleep in it!"
"I was gonna get 'em," Sora said defensively, turning around to see his friend standing next to the tree, a satisfied grin on her face. "I just wanted to take a little nap b'fore, is all."
Kairi began to laugh. "I doubt that, Sora. Come on, I'll forgive you if you get them now."
The girl was one that Sora had known for more than half of his young life; she had arrived out of practically nowhere 9 years earlier, when was just 5 years old, adopted by a childless couple in town. The arrival of the girl with the big, dusky eyes was quite a story in the town, and it wasn't long before Sora himself got to meet her.
Immediately, he began to develop a warm friendship with her, and it would be hard for him not to smile when he saw her auburn head coming his way after school. Even in this situation, where his neck was nagging him with pain, he was finding it difficult to put on a cross expression, but he managed. He contorted his face into an expression of pain and annoyance, and brought himself upright. "I really was gonna get 'em," he said.
"Of course you were," Kairi replied, putting her hands on her hips as Sora took a cat-like leap at the tree, clinging to its trunk. "Come on, we'll be able t'get more if we put 'em in my skirt."
"You shouldn't do that!" Sora said, looking down. "It's not... it's not proper!"
"Well, why?" Kairi said, giggling. "It's not like you're gonna get a look at my bloomers or anything."
Sora found himself turning bright red, and scurried up the tree a little more. "Just be sure to catch 'em!" he announced, reaching for an apple and dropping it to her. Kairi caught it effortlessly in the fabric of her lilac-colored skirt, and looked up to see where Sora was heading next. However, a rather well-thrown stick caught him by surprise, and he fell out of the tree once more.
"No need to be using poor little Kairi's skirt like that," a cool voice said, as somebody neared the tree. Kairi took the apple out of her skirt and smiled when she saw who it was.
"Riku!" she said, waving at him. "What're you doing here?"
Sora looked and saw his other closest friend: Riku. Riku was a year older than him and Kairi, but that didn't matter, in terms of whether or not he would play with them. An exotic-looking boy, with ashy hair and sky-blue eyes, he was as close to Kairi as Sora was, and in recent years, they were beginning to become rivals of a sort for her attention (despite the fact that she herself was somewhat oblivious to the fact).
"Heard you were gettin' some apples," he said, brandishing a woven basket he was holding. "Wouldn't trust Sora with that sort of work, so I went to go get a basket from my mother."
"Hey!" Sora retorted, regaining his balance. "I get apples just fine!"
"Really, Rip Van Winkle?" Riku replied. "I just knew you'd be takin' a nap. You're really like a cat; you do nothin' but sleep and eat."
"Am not!" Sora replied, reaching for a branch to pull himself up on as Kairi began to laugh. "Gimme that basket, there."
"Why should I?" Riku laughed. "Kairi can have it; you keep gettin' those apples, like you were supposs't."
"Riku, stop bein' so mean," Kairi admonished, taking the basket from him. "Sora, I'll catch 'em when you throw 'em to me."
"Naw, make Riku do it," Sora said, climbing the tree and lounging among the higher branches. "I don't feel like it anymore."
"Sora!" Kairi said, laughing in spite of herself.
"Get down from there!" Riku called. "I'll get you myself, y'know!"
"Oh, forget about it," Kairi said, fingering the apple in her hands as she turned to leave. "I'm headin' back home."
Sora was out of the tree in an instant, brushing off his overalls and picking a stray leaf or two out of his brown hair. "Great! Let's go get somethin' at the general store, too!" he said energetically. "I want some candy."
"Sora, you are indescribable," Riku sighed, as Kairi began to laugh again.
"I don't care!" Sora laughed. "Race y'back to town, Riku."
"You bet!" Riku chuckled, and the two boys stopped in their tracks, waiting for some sort of signal. Kairi realized she wasn't being followed anymore, and turned around.
"All right, you want me to start you?" she said, placing the apple in Riku's basket. "On your mark, get set... go!"
The boys began running as fast as they could back to the small town at the base of the hill, with Kairi close behind. Out of breath by the time they reached the paved road, they took a rest outside the drug store, Kairi laughing at their escapades.
"Don't overexert yourselves, you two," she chided, taking the apple out of the basket again and shining it on her skirt. "Now... I wonder who won?"
"Y'mean there's a prize?" Sora said, his eyes lighting up. "What is it, what?"
"It's the apple, y'dunce," Riku said, as sharply as one could when out of breath. "B'sides, anyone can see that I won."
"Noo, I did!" Sora retorted. The two began a rather silly fight, until Kairi took a bite of the apple herself, and they fell silent.
"I don't think either of you win at bein' best-dressed," she laughed, and continued down the street.
"Ow, she had us beat," Sora said bashfully.
"That wasn't fair," Riku added, finding himself smiling.
"Come on, you two; are y'coming to the general store or not?" she called after them, and the trio was soon caught up again.
-///-
Considering the troubles of other cities, the small town of Destine, Iowa, where the children lived, was faring relatively well. It was true that the drought was absolutely devastating to the nearby farmers, and the low market prices of goods were causing trouble for store-owners, but life managed to go on.
Happiness was simply and easily found through the radio and movie theatre, and in small pleasures such as kite-flying, an easy hobby with the seemingly endless sea of prairie that surrounded the town, and the untamed wind that accompanied it. Sora, Riku, and Kairi rarely found themselves bored, or complaining about their situation, despite the fact that Riku was the only one whose family was not under the stress of monetary troubles; he had a rich aunt in the eastern states that helped keep his family supported, but was otherwise distant. Sora and Kairi's families weren't as lucky, but they managed all the same.
At any rate, none of the children were preoccupied with such troubles; sweet sticks of penny candy hung out of their mouths as they exited the general store together.
"I just love candy..." Sora said, in absolute bliss, allowing the flavor to spread around his tongue.
"Simpleton," Riku commented, thoughtfully licking his stick of candy and waving it around in the air.
Kairi sighed, as the two began to bicker again. "Will you two ever stop arguing?" she asked.
"Ah, tha's impossible! They're rivals, worse'n the Cappies an' the Monties!" an energetic voice from nearby called, and the two stopped fighting to see a cluster of their friends from school waving at them from down the road.
"Ah! Hello, Tidus!" Sora said, waving at the sandy-haired boy, who seemed to be dragging a wooden pole behind him. Tidus, along with Selphie and Wakka, stood and waited for Sora and his friends to reach them, before resuming conversation.
"Cappies an' Monties?" Riku said confusedly, his eyebrow perched low on his forehead in skepticism. "Y'mean Capulets an' Montagues?"
"Yeah! Tha's right. I'm readin' that book, Romeo an' Juliet, cos I heard there may've been a picture show made of it," Tidus replied, propping his hands on the pole. "I wanna see some sword-fights, those look exciting."
"I think it's romantic," Selphie added, twirling her jump rope in her hand, "but it's so sad! They never get t'be together!"
"I think I read that once; it is very sad," Kairi agreed, clasping her hands behind her back in a familiar gesture as she grasped her uneaten stick of candy. Wakka looked at her with his soulful brown eyes, as if he noticed a ladybird had flown into her hair.
"Well, what're you three doin' out here?" Riku asked them.
"We're gonna go see the picture show," Wakka explained, taking his eyes off Kairi to address him. "Saved up some money, y'see. Wanna come?"
"No, thank you," said Kairi, a mildly absent tone in her voice. "I think I might go to the tree again."
"But we were just there! Whaddya wanna do that for?" Sora asked, his face filled with a sort of amusing worry, and she found herself laughing.
"I just wanna enjoy the sights, is all," she replied. "If you wanna, come on an' join me. I'm not goin' anywhere else."
"That sounds pretty nice," said Tidus thoughtfully. "But I'm more excited for Woody's Roundup tonight!"
"Oh, wouldn't you believe it!" Sora agreed, pumping his fists into the air with excitement. "That was such a cliffhanger last night, I mean, really!"
"Leavin' Sheriff Woody over a real cliff!" the boys said at the same time, and proceeded to laugh together with childish playfulness.
"Grow up, you two," Riku scorned. "I don't like Woody's Roundup; that's a kid's show."
"I don't care!" Sora replied. "You listen to it too, right Kairi?"
However, the girl had already begun down the road, leaving Riku and Sora standing there in mild shock.
"Why'd she leave all of a sudden?" Tidus asked, somewhat surprised, himself.
"Somethin' the matter with her?" Selphie added.
Sora shrugged. "Now, that's just odd," he said, scratching the back of his head, his candy once again perched in his mouth. "She was fine this mornin'."
"Maybe y'did somethin' to hurt her feelings, y'dunce," Riku said sharply. "We should go talk to her."
"Hmhm," Sora said, nodding. "We'll see you all later."
"Goodbye, you two!" Selphie said, waving as they began down the road to where Kairi was headed.
"Now it may be just me, but she looks kinda sad," Wakka observed as they faded off into the distance. " 'wunner what's wrong with'er?"
In a simultaneous shrug, Selphie and Tidus signaled their unknowingness.
-///-
Kairi stopped beneath the large apple tree, and sat down to look at the seas of grass that surrounded the town, illuminated a pale gold by the late afternoon sun, and was alone for a short while before Riku and Sora caught up with her.
"Something the matter, Kairi? Why'd y'go off like that?" Sora asked her.
"Oh, it's nothin'," she replied, not looking at either of them. "I'm just enjoyin' the sights."
"You can look at the sights any day," Riku said, chuckling a little. "Why now? Y'bored?"
She shook her head. "No, just... thoughtful, I guess. I never really noticed how pretty the wind is against the grass."
"Yeah, I guess it is," Sora said, and took a seat beside her. Riku sighed, and leaned against the tree to join in.
"Y'ever wonder what sorts of things're happening out in the world?" Kairi asked. "In the newsreels an' things, we hear about all the troubles in the cities, an' all the dances and art there too."
"Gosh, I don' really know, m'self," Sora said, shifting his legs into a more comfortable position. "You came from the city, right, Kairi?" She nodded. "Y'remember much 'bout it?"
"No, nothin', really," she replied. "The orphanage isn't very strong in my mind. Makes me wonder what it was like, though."
"Me too. I'd love to go to the cities when I'm older," Riku stated. "See all the big businesses, an' those tall buildings! Wouldn't that be something!"
"Sure would!" Sora said. "What would you like to see, Kairi?"
Kairi thought for a good while before answering. "The parks an' things, I think. They must be awful pretty in the springtime."
"Yeah..." the three of them agreed, sighing in contentment together.
They sat there, watching the sun travel further down into the sky; since nobody had anything to say, it didn't make much sense to ask, so they just watched the wind on the grass, until Riku's watch indicated it was time for him to go to dinner.
"You gonna go home too, Kairi?" Sora asked, getting up with him to set out for his own home. Kairi shook her head.
"No, I'm stayin'. I'm not very hungry," she replied. "Don't worry, I'll be fine; I'll head home when I'm ready."
Slightly worried, the boys each went home for dinner, thinking about the well-being of their friend. Sora finished his dinner quickly, and started out for the tree again, to find that she hadn't changed her position. The sun was beginning to set, casting deep gold shadows over Kairi's face.
"Still haven't gone home?" he said, trying to sound as cheery as possible, despite his worried mood.
"No. I'm tryin' to remember what this place looks like, when I leave," she said quietly.
"When you leave? When're you leavin'? Where?" Sora said, becoming slightly panicked. "When did this happen?"
"Just forget about it, I'm not goin' anywhere," she said gently. "You came all the way up here just to see if I was okay? That's sweet of you."
She began to walk away, when Sora grabbed her shoulder and stopped her.
"Listen, Kairi... what's th'matter? You don' seem like yourself," he said softly.
"It's nothin', I'm fine. G'night, Sora," she said, and began to walk away.
She didn't even turn to look at him.
-///-
Later that night, Sora lay in his bed, unable to sleep, when he heard the rumble of an engine coming down the road, and it caused him to jerk up and look out the window.
Hardly anyone drove at night, much less to Destine; what was going on? Stealthily, he put a pair of overalls over his nightshirt and crept out the back door, not bothering to put his shoes on. As the car went along the road, he gasped with horror when he saw where it stopped.
Kairi's house.
Immediately, Sora began to run.
Riku lived only a short distance away from him, and they often would sneak out together with Kairi and play games out by the tree. But this time, Sora rapped on his window in urgency, absolutely scared. Riku's pale face came into view, and he opened the window.
"Sora, what're you doin'?" he asked, rubbing his eyes; he had obviously just been woken up.
"It's Kairi! There's some sorta car out'n front of her house!" Sora reported, his voice a crazed whisper. "I think they're gonna take her away, Riku!"
"Take her away? Who'd take her away?" Riku replied, beginning to feel very worried.
"I dunno... but I went to see her at the tree this evening, and she said she was gonna go somewhere..." Sora said, and was quiet for a small while. "Riku, we gotta help her!"
"How?" Riku shot back. "What're we gonna do?"
"We gotta run over an' get her!" Sora replied. "C'mon, climb out an' help me!"
Though they were quite lacking a plan, Riku slipped himself out the window and ran with Sora to Kairi's house, where soft, unrecognizable words were being spoken between her, her adopted parents, and some fierce-looking men in black suits.
"What're they doin'?" Sora asked, and Riku shushed him. "Riku, they're gonna take her away!" he continued, in a horrified whisper.
"I know!" Riku said. "We can't do anythin' about it, Sora; those guys look like they're from th'government or somethin'!"
"Government? Why would the government want Kairi?" Sora replied. "We can take 'em down!"
The men began to get up, and took Kairi by the hand; her mother began to cry softly, dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief.
"Now's our chance! We can take 'em out when they're bringin' her to the car!" Sora said, and began to run.
"Wait, Sora, no!" Riku called, but it was too late. As the men opened the door, Sora lobbed himself in their direction, but was met with resistance. One of the men wrapped his arms around Sora's, keeping him disabled.
"No! You can't do this! You can't take Kairi!" he raged, kicking and flailing his arms around. "Kairi!"
"Sora, don't do this! You'll get in trouble!" Kairi called, but was stopped as the men ushered her into the car.
Riku, seeing Sora was in danger, ran to his aid, and attempted to punch his way forward, but was stopped in a similar fashion. "I'm so sorry, I promise I'll write!" Kairi called, looking out the windows at them. "Don' forget about me, don' ever!"
The men let go of Sora and Riku, entering the car themselves, and beginning to drive off. In vain, Sora tried to run after it, but stopped as he reached the limits of the town, sitting down on the dusty road, silent with shock and grief.
Her adopted parents could no longer care for her, and had sent her back to the city, where she was to get a job in a factory, they later learned.
And with that occurrence, their very world was shattered.
-///-
The next morning, at the tree, Riku still wasn't taking the news well at all.
"That's jus' not fair!" he said, waving his arms in the air. "Why didn't she tell us?"
"She said she didn't want us gettin' in trouble, I think," Sora said, attempting to stay calm. "I think it's unfair that they've taken her away. I mean..." He trailed off, unable to think of anything relevant to say.
"Well, this is jus' wonderful, eh?" Riku said bitterly, flopping against the rough bark of the tree. "We'll never get t'see her again, won't we?"
"Well, she said she'd write," Sora said, a hint of optimism in his voice.
The two boys were silent for a good long while, the combination of outrage and sadness simmering rather uncomfortably between them. Then, Sora spoke, with sudden urgency.
"We gotta get her back," he said.
"What?" Riku said, very surprised indeed.
"We gotta get her back, that's what we gotta do!" Sora repeated, a slight smile on his face. "I'll... I'll hitch a ride out east, an' I'll find her an' bring her back home!"
"You're nuts! You're just nuts!" Riku said, absolutely objected to the idea. "Tha's the stupidest thing I've ever heard you say!"
"Well, I could do it!" Sora said obstinately. "I could get some stuff in a hankie, and tie it on a stick and ask for a ride."
"Nobody in their right mind would give a kid a ride," Riku replied hotly, when his voice faded off as he himself got an idea. "Say... maybe I could send a letter to my aunt, an' she could come get us!"
"What, now you're sidin' with me?" Sora said, very confused. "I thought you said lookin' for her was foolish!"
"I said hitchin' a ride was foolish," Riku replied, his own plan looking very good in his mind. "My aunt's got autos, she could come an' get me! Plus she's got partners in all sortsa places, an' she could find Kairi too! I bet she could!"
"You're even crazier'n me!" Sora said, practically shouting. "You're her nephew, you should know more about your aunt'n me! She's the most heartless person I know, an' I've only met 'er once!"
"Don' go sayin' things about my family!" Riku shot back, his voice full of rage. Sora was silent for a while; this was definitely not how Riku normally acted, and it was, needless to say, very bizarre.
"Riku, whassa matter with you?" he asked. "You're not usually this angry about things..."
"Stay away from me. You insult my family an' say my plans're dumb. I'm gonna get Kairi back, I know it!" he said, pointing at Sora.
"Riku, wha's-" Sora began, but was met by another angry jab of the finger; Riku didn't want to hear anymore. "Well, fine! I'm gonna hitch a ride, first thing tomorrow! An' you're not gonna do a thing about it!"
The two boys stood there for a while, before Riku spoke.
"Well, aren'cha gonna leave? I told you t'get away from me!" he said.
"You leave! I'm not movin'. Dontchu have a letter to write to your precious 'Aunt Liffy,' anyways?" Sora said nastily, and Riku turned red with rage and stomped away, leaving him alone.
When Riku was out of earshot, Sora slumped down against the tree to think things over. After all, they had had a very violent row, which was very uncustomary of either of them, and he wasn't quite sure what to make of it. What in the world was wrong with Riku?
He supposed it was Kairi leaving so suddenly, but even that wouldn't upset Riku that much...
It was then, in the middle of this thinking, that he saw something carved into the bark of the tree, that he had nearly forgotten about.
Sora and Kairi's names were carved there in the wood, with Riku's above them; they had put them there when they were 8, and Riku had borrowed one of his father's knives. The tree had grown considerably, but the names were still there, as clear as the day they were carved. Sora nearly felt like crying, and took his own penknife, and began carving something new into the wood himself.
He added a small but visible "+" on the tree, between his name and Kairi's. Sniffing in anger, and nearly to the point of tears, he tossed his knife to the ground, prepared to walk away.
But when the knife hit the ground, it made not the thud of metal hitting earth, but the clink of metal hitting metal. Curious, Sora turned around and knelt down where his knife had landed, to see something shiny and silver sticking out of the ground. Once he had retrieved his knife and placed it back in his pocket, he began to tug; the thing came out fairly easily, and he brushed off the dry, crumbly soil to find a silver key in his hand.
"What's this?" he asked himself, turning it over in his hands; it was rather large, about the size of a pencil, and rather heavy. He noticed a small design carved into the handle of the key, and realized something.
"This's got the same design as Kairi's locket!" he softly said to himself, remembering the necklace that Kairi owned; she had been wearing it since she arrived as a child, and never took it off. "I better give this back to her if I see her," he said, but then stopped himself, and shook his head. "No," he said, attempting, in a way, to encourage himself, "when I see her. Yeah, tha's it."
Carefully, he pocketed the thing, before heading on his way home.
-///-
That night, both boys were busy at their own pursuit of Kairi's retrieval; Sora hastily putting things in a blanket for his knapsack, Riku feverishly writing the letter to his aunt, each of them equally determined to succeed in their goal.
The next morning, Sora had already begun down the main road out, and was gone from Destine, Iowa, not to return for a very, very long time.