Moira, a kingdom hearts fanfic

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters used in this fic, nor do I own Kingdom Hearts.

Warning: Yaoi, Alternate Universe settings. If you don't like it…yadda yadda…leave, thanks. :3 And they're all rather OOC, I guess.

Sudden flash of inspiration. My own little tribute to the LeonRiku fandom. x3 The story title, Moira, can have a bunch of meanings. I personally was aiming toward fate or circumstance.

Wrote it while I was supposed to do Chemistry homework, actually… Everyone yell at me for not doing my work! --;

Anyway, a little something to tide you guys over for a while, because my other fics won't be able to be updated for a while…I've got the outlines all planned out…I just have to type it out. xD

Enjoy my little one-shot.

Moira

A tale of two men, matchmakers, and wild cards.

It wasn't that he didn't enjoy the holidays. No, not that at all.

Rather, Riku quite enjoyed Christmas time. Especially where they lived, with its high soaring skyscrapers and streets lined with bright luminosity fit for the occasion. Things usually slate gray and mechanical acquired beddings of green and red, making the grand metropolis pleasant. (If a bit of an eyesore to eyes adjusted for city life.)

The buildings, normally shallow and dull, became a child's unconventional toy block city.

Tree branches dipped low with heavy snow, allowing children to pull on them and laugh as they were drenched with quickly melting snowflakes.

Ice monuments were created every winter. Artists of every age and ethnicity carved out their hearts into their work. The result was breathtaking. Multihued lights shone about them, making them gleam a spectrum of colors. They were by far Riku's favorite site.

And the snow cones, of course. Shredded ice scooped into a cone-like shape, drenched with authentic flavoring.

Pina Coloda, of course. Riku's favorite.

How people made money off frozen treats during winter, Riku didn't know. But he wasn't going to comment on it, so long as it made him happy.

No, the reason Christmas wasn't looked as forward to as some other holidays was because it was a time meant for family. A point in time meant to spend with someone you cared about.

Whether it be family, friends, or lovers.

Riku's family had died off years ago. Fire still burned in the back of his nighttime fantasies of flying. Flying away from the fire.

Flying fast enough to save his Father. Mother. Siblings.

…He wasn't self-pitying. He wasn't one of those people who blamed everything on themselves.

But his pride wouldn't let him simply forget, either.

Putting aside his family issues, Riku didn't look forward to Christmas because he didn't like to see the pity in his friends' eyes.

Sure, he loved buying things for his friends. Loved seeing their eyes unclouded lit up in glee, and in wonderment.

Enjoyed receiving things in return.

But he always turned down offers to spend Christmas at their houses. He made sure to always have an excuse ready during the holidays. Curt answers of "I have plans." or "I'm going somewhere else." cut conversations short more often than not.

But their yearly Christmas Eve gathering was tomorrow, so he was going to put up his mask like he did every year, and step out with a upbeat smile meant to reassure.

A loud, obnoxious car honk woke him up the next morning. At an unheard of 5 AM.

Riku groaned. They get earlier and earlier each year…

He heard footsteps booming up his stairs as he was falling back into a peaceful sleep. Riku thought he was dreaming for a second, the footsteps forming into thunderclouds. He counted the beats. One-thousand…two-thousand…three-

Eyes snapped open as a lively Sora jumped onto his bed and pulled off the nice, warm, toasty covers, exposing his suddenly shivering body to the cold, cold room.

"Rikuuuu!" An impatient Sora tugged Riku's arm. "Get up! It's Christmas Eve, you…you low-pressured teen, you!"

"Soraaa…" He groaned as he saw Kairi appear in the doorway, smartly dressed in stylish Santa garments. A fluffy Santa hat too big for her was settled on her head, ruffling her auburn hair.

"Wake up, sleepyhead!" She said cheerily, heading immediately to his closet. They'd known each other long enough to know their houses inside and out without asking.

Pulling out a set of black jeans (Riku had flatly refused to wear green) and an expertly cut red sweater that she knew matched his hair, Kairi laid them out on Riku's bed. She then, gesturing for Sora to help her, picked up his arm while Sora apprehended the other, and they pulled.

Since they knew he wouldn't get up unless they got him up themselves…

Stumbling into the adjourning bathroom, his glare did nothing to the two behind him, their giggles echoing through the door he slammed soon afterwards.

He didn't look so bad, his mirror reflection stated. His long hair was rather disheveled from just waking up, but a simple comb fixed that problem. He eyed the clothes Kairi had shoved into his hands and pulled them on with a shrug.

There was a reason she was in the arts department, after all.

Washing his face and brushing his teeth, he thought of what he had gotten Sora and Kairi.

For Sora, a short deep red jacket made of thick, smooth fabric, with Sora's name embedded on it in Kanji. Riku knew he'd been wanting to custom order one for a while, and so took liberties to do it for him.

Along with a tube of Miracle-care Styling gel. For kicks.

And for Kairi, a camera. A professional, photographer's camera. She'd been worried about where to get one for the new class she was planning to take, as they were rare and not made very often anymore. He'd also gotten her various close-up lenses and cylinders of film.

Even though they wouldn't find out until tomorrow, Christmas, he was content with the choices he had made.

As they drove away from his house, he noticed Sora's footprints littering his yard. He shook his head. Sora and his obsession with unturned snow…

"Where are we going?" Riku asked, realizing they weren't heading to the usual festivity grounds. They were driving into a more suburban area, fully adorned with large, white houses that just screamed fairytale.

"To meet Cloud and some other guys. They wanted to come along." Sora said, nodding his head to another identical white house as they pulled to a stop.

"I wonder who else is going to be there?" Kairi said, more speaking her thoughts out loud than asking. "This isn't Cloud's house."

"Who knows?" Sora answered. Sora always answered, no matter a rhetorical question or something else. It was just one of those quirks that came with the package.

Kairi noticed Riku's slight shiver as they got out of the car. "I knew I should have made you wear a jacket…" Her disapproving gaze was enough to make him grimace and look away.

"I'll be fine." He always was. Riku couldn't remember the last time he had caught a cold.

Sora's gloved fingers pushed the icicle-laced doorbell. A chime-like sound echoed throughout the house. Sora made a face at the noise. Riku snickered at his expression while Kairi tittered in amusement.

"Coming!" A voice they faintly recognized shouted.

The door swung open, revealing a merrily dressed blonde. Cloud was decked in shades of green, from his dark green turtleneck to his even darker thick trousers. He had a white jacket thrown over his shoulders, and was smiling a bright, hospitable grin.

"Hey guys. Come on in – make yourself at home for a while. We're still getting ready."

The trio nodded, stepping into the fully furnished home and shrugging off their jackets. (Except Riku, of course.) Odds and ends decorated every crevice, as it was apparent the owner hated to throw anything away. A sturdy wooden staircase led to the bedrooms upstairs.

"Go get yourself drinks or something – I have to go stop Seph from primping his hair." A distant call of "I do not PRIMP." echoed from the upstairs. Cloud smiled sheepishly.

Sora shrugged and headed into the kitchen to make a round of hot chocolate. Kairi set to digging through the proprietor's cabinet, looking for things they could conceivably bring along with them.

Riku headed upstairs. "Bathroom." He said when he saw Kairi's inquiring stare.

She turned up the thermostat when he was out of sight. God knows that Riku needed it.

A puff of hot air blew out as Riku opened the door. It was comfortable against his chilled skin.

He always had a habit of washing his hands as often as he could. His mom had drilled it into him. After all, it could be the reason he had never caught a cold before, couldn't it?

He blinked a misty droplet out of his eye. Someone had obviously taken a shower before he had come in.

Riku washed his hands thoroughly, then dried it on the towel rack and wiped his hand across the mirror, brushing off the vapor that condensation had caused.

Stormy gray eyes met his in the mirror.

A scream tore from upstairs, causing Sora to pour scalding water over his finger. A yell charged its way disguised in his voice before he could realize it. Kairi quickly took the kettle from him and set it down, and grabbed Sora's hand, running it under faucet water.

She remembered a split second later hearing somewhere that cold water wasn't good for burns.

The shriek from upstairs was forgotten as Sephiroph raised an eyebrow, walking into the kitchen.

Upon seeing the situation, he opened a drawer and pulled out a little box of band aids depicting various poses of Pikachu on them.

Leon wasn't sure what to think of the person that had just walked into his bathroom.

Apparently, the silver-haired teen didn't notice Leon was standing there, since he'd just walked right in front of him and turned on the sink.

Leon wondered if the kid was related to Sephiroph. The hair and eye color certainly said so, but Seph had stated that he didn't have any relatives. Well, sane relatives. The teenager seemed sane enough.

He seemed embarrassed, too. Or cold. His face was cutely flushed with what could have been mistaken for fever.

When he found Leon behind him. His posture twiddled in awkwardness as he mumbled a quick apology and all but dashed out of the room.

Well… Leon dried off, willing to see what the day would bring.

Riku groaned as he shut the door behind him, face dusted a vivid pink. He had just walked in on someone coming out of the shower.

…But what a someone it was! He had long shaggy brown hair, cut in an offhanded layered look, and a thin scar overlaying his face gave his expression a darker, more sensual look.

He was fresh out of the shower, hair drenched and droplets of water sliding down strong shoulders, soaked into a white towel that covered the rest…

Riku slapped his forehead. He was NOT interesting in a completely stranger, he told himself. I can't believe I walked in on him…

Sephiroph nodded to Riku as he came downstairs, the flush fading from his face. Riku's skeptical expression caused a chuckle to come from the silver-haired man's lips.

"He burned himself pouring water earlier." Sephiroph explained, looking amused.

"…Sounds like something Sora would do." Riku smiled at the dark look Sora sent his way, promising something…not nice.

Riku mentally noted to watch his back for exploding balloons for the next few days.

"Hey guys." Cloud walked in. His hair was nicely in place with his favorite brand of gel, spikes defying gravity even more so than Sora's. "We can leave as soon as Leon's ready."

"Leon?" Sora asked, blowing on his finger. The poor digit had subjected itself to being wrapped in gauze and Pokemon bandages. (Riku, for some odd reason or another, remembered a day years ago when Sora had run around asking everyone for a kiss to "make his boo-boo go bye-bye".

"He's nice once you get to know him. Brown hair, gray eyes. He was upstairs when I left, anyway."

Riku looked away, a tint of color on his face. He didn't meet anyone's eye. Oh, I know exactly where he is…

They'd passed a few moments debating favorite flavors. Sora liked blueberry, which Kairi couldn't stand – instead opting for lemon. Cloud adored lemon as well, and Sephiroph favored the rainbow mix. Riku of course chose his personal favorite.

"Oh, here he is. Meet Leon. Leon, this is Sora, Kairi, and Riku."

Leon nodded at each of them in turn, in acknowledgement. He had to hide a smirk as he noticed that 'Riku' had simply nodded and looked away, glaring at something unseen to anyone but him. His friends had jumped up with happy greetings that he accepted, thoughts walking through his head.

Sora cheered. "All right! We're all ready to set out!"

Kairi nodded in agreement and they all put on their shoes. Tucked scarves and overthrown jackets joined them. Cloud frowned.

"You're going to catch a cold." He said worriedly, eyeing Riku. Sephiroph glared at his coatless body in agreement.

Riku threw a glare at Kairi, an unspoken warning not to say "I told you so." She kept her mouth shut and simply shook her head in concurrence.

His own un-prided soprano shriek highlighted the air as he found a long black trench thrown over his shoulders. Turning, those same gray eyes he couldn't look at stared back.

"Take it. I have another one."

Riku could only look down in surprise as Kairi prattled into thanks, commented about how "Riku won't take care of himself, so we have to do it for him."

A proclamation of readiness and the house was empty. A car blared down the street.

The photographer they had managed to get was a bad one.

They'd been holding their poses for about twenty minutes now. Honestly, it wasn't that hard to work a digital camera, was it?

Or it could have been because the girl was giggling and trying to look bashful while waving her fingers at them.

Sora had tried to position himself in a running posture. His only problem was, Sora never had a good sense of balance.

Then came the domino effect. He toppled backwards into his best friend, who blinked with surprise before falling on Leon, who, with care, managed to fall redirecting himself, pushing nimbly on Sephiroph. Seph, of course, re-righted himself with poise.

Cloud had laughed at the mess of body parts at his feet.

"Finally…" Sora grumbled, hands shoved into his pockets for warmth.

"Let it go, Sora. It's a curse that our group's so attractive, you know." Cloud said airily, dismissing the subject. The ice structure in the background of their pictures was magnificent, shards of color dashed in front of their eyes. Sephiroph's hair had managed to reflect slivers of blue onto his clothes as well.

Still, he'd grumbled when he saw it. "I look like a damned fairy." Seph had murmured, his finger itched over the button with a trash can fluttering over it.

"No way!" Cloud snatched the camera away. He shook his finger in what Riku guessed was Cloud's version of a teacher's lecture. "We worked too hard and stood too long for you just to delete them like that!" He sniffed. Besides, you are a fairy.

"Are we going to dinner now, then?" Leon asked. He wasn't cold at all, even in his trademark leatherwear.

As Sephiroph acquiesced to Leon's question, and Sora was busy packing snow into a small triangle in retaliation to Kairi's perfect square, Riku felt oddly grateful.

"…Thank you. For the jacket." Riku mumbled, hoping he'd been loud enough. His pride wouldn't let him repeat it.

"Not a problem." Leon replied. They settled into a comfortable silence, things remarkably similar on both their minds.

Dinner was a short affair.

The restaurant they had chosen was a gaudy place, complete with royal purple drapes and deep red chairs set with ruffles on the edges. Mistletoe settled above every chair, which more traditional couples always gave into. Tablecloths were painted in bright green ivy with polyester berries seated into crooks and crannies.

The waiters hadn't left them alone, showing up every few minutes to sweetly ask if there was anything else they could get them. (Cloud and Leon had to hold Sephiroph back. "Now now, Seph, you promised no more homicide…" …Of course, not five minutes later they held Cloud back from slashing at yet another girl showing up to ask for their numbers.)

Riku and Leon had a rather nice talk about their amusement from their friend's antics.

Leon couldn't help but glance how Riku looked when he smiled. How he stretched and flexed his fingers in time with his laughter. How he tapped his foot in exasperation when another schoolgirl showed up.

They had left rather quickly, leaving a petite tip that showed their dissatisfaction.

The rest of the afternoon was spent in the park.

The group had made a snowman. Quite a few, actually. One of a duck-like figure, chasing another dog-like figure holding a shield. A smartly dressed mouse with big ears sat watching them, and with him was another mouse, her mouth fixed into a never-ending smile.

They were rather proud of their work, taking pictures. Cloud and Sora had gone to a twenty-four hour convenience store to get good dye, which they'd sprayed onto the snow. The result wasn't what they had hoped for, multicolored gloves and melting piles of slush, but they were pleased all the same.

They had a round of snow cones, too. Riku smiled as Leon handed him a Pina Coloda, apparently overhearing the groups' earlier rambling.

Sora and Kairi smiled at their friend's light happiness.

Perhaps he wouldn't be alone this Christmas.

And when they'd gone home, they'd parted in unspoken mention.

Waving goodbye to the group, he'd had a rather good time after all; Riku unlocked his front door and stepped into his house.

It felt strangely lonely after the loud daylight hours. His loud steps echoed down his entry, ominous and mocking.

He touched a dark covering still over his shoulder, and turned around, jacket flaring. He walked right back out the door.

Riku'd forgotten something.

And he'd found in, on the bottom shelf of an antique shop not yet closed before midnight. He graciously paid for it and walked home, stride matching his grin.

It was perfect.

It wasn't that he didn't enjoy the holidays, Riku thought. Not at all. It was rather that he usually didn't have anyone to spend it with.

He opened the door to the obnoxious ringing in his ears. He wondered who he knew was considerate enough to come at such a decent hour. His friends weren't that insightful, Riku knew from experience.

He opened the door, dressed in only his sleepwear, shivering at the cold. An abrupt heat source blocked the wind before he could feel any chiller. A brightly wrapped package held securely in the visitor's hands.

Stormy gray eyes met his directly.

The snow angels littered the snow flooring around Sora's footprints seemed so much whiter. That little knot they'd both been holding in their hearts began melting away.

It's said, that if you run into the same person several times in the same day, it's not coincidence. It's fate.

-End-

I may do another one-shot sequel to this, set in the same timeline, except during New Years.

Read and review.