Friends

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Sun-kissed skin dons a light sheen of sweat, small arms fighting back the aches shooting through his joints. The bow of the boat digs into the soft sand of the shore, the water lapping at the old wood. As the small brunet hops over the side of the boat his sandals stick into the wet sand as the water washes up around his ankles. The warmth of summer has warmed the water, forcing a smile onto the young boy's face as he splashes his way up to the shore, a soft giggle fluttering over his lips.

The pale sand glimmers in the rays of the sun, his crimson shorts molding against the grains as he pants softly. He had run around after the tiny fish swimming through the shallow water, giving quite the chase. The rims of his white t-shirt are a dark blue, contrasting to his bright sky blue eyes.

The small island he's on, which is a far row from the mainland, is peaceful and serene. He had recalled his dad saying something about how he used to play on the island and decided that today would be the day he ventured there. Of course he snuck out from under his mother's watchful eye, but he couldn't help it, that behavior just screamed Sora's name!

Sora brushes the chocolate spikes away from his eyes, the rest of his hair spiking every other which way. His eyes dance with enjoyment as he glances all around him. Just as his Dad had described; A shack is melded into a taller piece of land reaching up from this one. Stairs are said to lead up inside to the top of it where a door sits before a bridge stretching all the way to a an isolated island, much smaller than the one he's on. But what really catches the child's eye is the waterfall pooling softly into a medium sized dip in the land.

He climbs over the edge of the bushes and up a small ramp before standing at the edge. Sora doesn't dare to step in it though. Instead he cups his hands together and sets them in the water, collecting as much of the cool liquid as he can before lifting his hands to his mouth. The water trickles down his chin but he wipes it away with the back of his hand, motions freezing as a humid breeze rustles leave cascading down the rock wall to his left. Footfalls seem to echo off the rock face and Sora slowly stands to his feet, backing up as he does. As the vines full of leaves begin to sway away from the stone Sora turns swiftly on the heel of his sandal, lunging down the ramp and over the lip of ferns. He throws open the door to the shack and shuts it roughly behind him.

Not wanting to be stuck in one place, Sora runs up the small stairwell and shoves another door open, coming out on top of where the shack is built inside that piece of the land. His eyes instantly sweep back toward where he had been, seeing no sign of anyone having been following him.

That is till his nerves are set on end by the soles of shoes climbing the steps he had just come from. Promising to himself to never watch another movie his parents had warned against, Sora begins to dart across the straight bridge. As he runs the tip of his sandal bends underneath his toes, making him tumble. Due to the narrowness of the bridge he rolls off the side as he tries to catch himself. Sora grips at the edge, knuckles turning white as his teeth grit together. The fall might not look like much, but for someone so small it could really hurt him. Sora swallows hard and closes his eyes tight as his grip on the edge begins to loosen.

"Hey kid, grab on!" demands the voice coming from above.

Sora opens his eyes and latches his hands onto that of another kid. Pale limbs peek out of his sight as he's heaved back up onto the bridge. A nervous laugh splits past the slight pants coming from them. Sora looks up at the other kid as he stands. "Thanks."

Short, silver tresses come just to his ears while brilliant aquamarine orbs have a strength about them that's uncanny. The boy brushes his fingertips through his fringe, the bangs swept out of his eyes. "No problem." He walks around Sora and toward the only bending tree at the end of the path. "I guess I should say sorry for scaring you." Sora scrambles to get up and hurry after the other boy, both of their feet stopping at the base of the legendary Papou tree. "My name's Riku."

"Mine's Sora." Sora's eyes linger on the boy's waist which has a wooden sword hanging from his belt. "So, what were you doing?"

"Checking out that secret cave. It's real dark though."

"And the sword?"

"To get stronger. Wanna practice?"

Sora nods eagerly, "I just gotta get mine from my boat. Be right back!"

As Sora goes to run off he stops at the sound of Riku calling out to him. "Hey Sora?"

The cheerful boy turns around with a smile on his face, already expecting the question that the other would say. "Would you be my friend Riku?"

Riku gives a soft nod, "Yeah...Don't trip on your way back okay?"

Letting Sora nod this time, he runs off to go get his toy sword and meet back with Riku...exactly where they began meeting every afternoon.

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Riku lounges back against the Papou tree as Sora jumps over the bent trunk to land beside him. The lunar haired male turns his eyes over to Sora just as the brunet opens his mouth. "Hey Riku, do you remember how we met?"

A deep chuckle slips past Riku's lips. "Yeah, you were clumsy even back then, always needing someone to save you." he declares as Sora pouts, staring off at the ocean.

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^^ Was a contest prize for someone over at this group on dA. :D Simply wanted some fluff about how they met, sooo, yay~