For Day 28 of the Kingdom Hearts 3 Countdown Challenge - Healing. Please read the other fics in the series first under Kingdom Hearts 3 Countdown Challenge Ficlets as these fics will be a followup to those.


"Where… am I?"

His eyes fluttered open. Sky. Blue sky. All around him was blue sky and white clouds.

Huh. This place seemed… calm. Peaceful. Not at all like—

He winced and clutched his heart.

His heart. Why… why did it hurt so bad?

Oh yeah. His heart was in pieces. His soul had been torn from his body. He was dead.

Then how… how had he ended up here?

He stumbled to his feet. All around him were these stone columns and platforms that kinda looked liked clouds and—

Hundreds and hundreds of flickering images of him.

Huh?

He peered closer. One of them was waving his empty hand like it had a Keyblade in it. Another one had his hands behind his neck. A third one was twirling around like—

Like that time he'd danced with—

He couldn't remember the name. It was gone.

These were… pieces of him? Pieces of his heart, scattered all around? Fragments of his memory?

His hand went to his chest again. It still felt hollow, empty. It ached.

He had to get the pieces back.

He staggered over to the nearest one, a flickering image of him falling to his knees. As soon as he touched it, it disappeared into specs of light, and his heart ached a little less.

"Riku."

Next he found an image of himself looking at something in his hands. When he touched it, a small surge of energy went through his body.

"Ven."

He felt a little stronger now. Still shaky and weak, but he didn't feel like he was gonna pass out anymore.

On to the next one, a little faster this time now that his legs were obeying him better now. When he got that memory back, the one of him sprawled on the ground, a ghost of a smile tugged at his lips.

"Donald. Goofy."

Slowly, little by little, he collected the memories, his heart getting stronger and stronger with each one. Most of them were just usual, everyday memories of his life back home or day-to-day activities. All the background stuff that made up the bulk of his heart.

But some of them were special. Some of them were really important memories. Like Xion thanking him for saving her. Terra apologizing for attacking him as the Lingering Will. Axel telling him he made him feel like he had a heart.

Somewhere along the way he'd gotten the strength to run and jump and climb. He dove down and collected a whole string of memories floating like they were asleep. Then he rushed through an entire group of them and got a whole bunch back all at once.

His strength was returning, he could feel it. His heart was returning, too.

More memories, he had to get them all. His hand reaching down to pull Aqua out of the water. Holding Roxas's hands and telling him he was his own person. His pinkie promise with Naminé. The King asking him to help him close the door.

With each one of those his heart got stronger and his soul was getting the life poured back into it.

But something was still missing. Even with all the memories he'd gotten back, something was still gone. Something important, no, someone important—

He had to find this person. His heart wouldn't be complete without them. Couldn't be. The hollow ache inside him reached down to the deepest levels of his heart, to his very core. Even with everything else mostly falling into place he still felt broken, incomplete.

"Your name, what's your name?" came his voice, echoing throughout this empty place. "Please, I have to remember—"

But there was no answer. As far as he could tell he was the only one here.

He kept searching, kept collecting more memories, kept piecing himself back together. He checked new areas he hadn't been to before. Looked at places he'd already visited. Climbed on top of columns for a better view.

But still this person was just out of reach, their name on the tip of his tongue, their face lurking just out of his vision.

"Where are you? I can't find you."

His heart throbbed, crying out for the pieces of it that were still missing. It hurt worse than when he'd barely had any of his heart left at all.

There were gaps, so many gaps in his memories. This person was important. This person was supposed to fill those gaps, he just knew it.

Then why couldn't he find them?

"Please, help me remember," he begged, hoping someone, anyone would hear him. "Help me find my memories of you."

Something caught his eye, a soft light flashing in his pocket.

"Huh?"

He reached down into it. There was something there. Heart pounding, he pulled it out and stared at it.

It was a charm made out of thalassa shells from back home. A charm given to him by—

A soft hand rested over his. "It's my lucky charm. Be sure to bring it back to me."

He glanced up, and the person was smiling at him. The person he'd been trying so hard to remember. The person who made up so much of his heart. The person who meant more to him than anything. She was really here. She was really real.

"Kairi."

His voice was choked with emotion but he didn't even care. Her smile got bigger as she rested her hand against his cheek and wiped the tears out of his eyes.

"You made me a promise, remember?"

"Yeah."

Her eyes took on a playful glint and her voice became mock-stern. "You're not gonna let something like death get in the way of that now, are you?"

He shook his head. "No ma'am."

How could he, when she was looking at him like that?

Her face relaxed into a smile. "Good." She stood on her tiptoes and brought her other hand to his face, then gently pulled his lips down to meet hers. His breath caught as the rest of his memories returned all at once in a thrilling rush.

"Come back to me," she said softly, her breath tickling his cheek as his mind and heart reeled from the kiss. "Come back to all of us."

When his eyes fluttered open again, she was gone. His breath was the only sound in this realm as his heart raced and his brain tried to figure out what had just happened.

His hand went to his heart. It didn't hurt anymore. It was completely whole again. And not just that. It was so full it felt like it was gonna burst.

He brought his hand to his lips and giggled. Boy, did it feel good to hear his own laughter again.

Was this what he'd been missing out on all this time? Because man, it was awesome. Why had they waited this long?

As he replayed the memory over and over again in his head, something hit him like a ton of bricks.

He… he wanted to kiss her again.

No, he really wanted to kiss her again.

But to do that, he'd have to find his way back to her, some way, somehow. Yeah, he was dead, but that didn't seem like such a big problem anymore. Not knowing what waited for him on the other side.

Sheesh, she sure knew how to get him to stop acting like a lazy bum. Riku would call him whipped for sure, and Donald and Goofy would, too, but he didn't really care. If that was what it took to get him to keep going, to get him to find a way to keep fighting, then that was okay by him.

Plus, the thought of kissing her again more than made up for it.

After one more look at her lucky charm, he returned it to its usual home in his pocket. He couldn't have wiped the smile off his face if he tried.

His Keyblade appeared in his hands, solid and real. His heart was back and he could fight again.

Pointing it towards the heavens, he shouted, "My name is Sora, and I will return to my friends!"

He grinned as the sky opened up.

It wouldn't be long now.