Disclaimer for this and all chapters: I do not own anything from Kingdom Hearts! I own the plot and any OC's here in. I do not write for profit, rather I enjoy spending my 'nonexistent' life writing fanfiction.

The Raven Calling

Chapter 1

Answer the Calling

Sora hefted his school bag onto his shoulder, running his hand through his unruly chocolate spikes. "Bye mum!" He called out, throwing the front door open and greeting the day.

Sora was your average boy, brown hair, blue eyes, slim build. There wasn't much that could have made him stand out in a crowed. He had a normal mother and father, plenty of friends and a girlfriend who he loved deeply. Yet Sora was anxious, always wanting more.

He walked to school, one hand in his pocket, the other held firmly around the strap of his schoolbag. The sun was shining, just like it should have of the painfully normal school day. Like any other student, Sora had been wishing for a miraculous snow storm, or even a fire to burn the school down.

"Hey Tidus, Hey Waka!" Sora called out to his friends from the Blitz Ball team. "How was your weekend? Do anything fun?"

Tidus, a tall blond haired boy with a dark tan that spoke of too much contact with the sun, put his arm around Sora's shoulders. "Hey Sora my pal!"

"What do you want?" Sora and Tidus had known eachother since they were in diapers. He knew that tone of voice that his best friend used. The mock hurt on his friend's face did nothing to deter his accusation. "I know you Tidus, now what is it?"

"Fine!" Tidus huffed, causing Waka to chuckle. "Shove it Waka, you're already on thin ice!" He shoved the tall, obviously bleached blond. "Piss me off anymore and I'll keep you from my bed all week!"

Flushing, Sora put two hands over his ears. "I'm STRAIGHT! Remember guys?"

Waka seemed to look away, a flush on his face from the thought that any passer-by could have heard about his sex life. Tidus on the other hand, didn't seem phased. " Aw, come on man! You know ya like it!" Sora promptly shoved an elbow in his stomach. "okay, okay. Shesh Sora! Anyways, so um... Can I 'stay' over at your place tonight?"

"Oh god, not again!" Sora shuddered horrified. The last time Tidus had asked to 'stay' over, he had meant for Sora to cover for him if his parents called while he and Waka shacked it up in a hotel somewhere.

"Please?" Tidus pouted, sticking out his lower lip.

"Fine." Sora tossed his hands up in defeat, his blue eyes loosing some of their luster. "But just so you know, I don't condone illicit relations out of wedlock."

"Thanks pal." Waka chuckled, taking hold of Tidus' hand. "See ya on the blitz, ya?"

"Yeah." Sora nodded as Tidus and Walka left him to finish his walk to school. It always happened like that. He would meet up with them, they would talk for a while before Tidus and Waka would leave, hoping to get one final make-out session in before class started.

Caw caw caw

Sora looked up, seeing the raven above him, it's beady eyes staring at him. He felt a shiver run up his spine before he tore his eyes away. "Creepy." He mumbled, picking up his pace to get to school faster.

Destiny Charter.

Hell on earth, and the only school on the island. A jail for the youth, and a pleasure palace for the ruthless ones called teachers. Sora stood outside of the school, looking at it cautiously. "Another day." He mumbled, seeing his friends, Hayner, Olette, Pence, and his girlfriend Kairi.

"Sora!" The redhead raced to her boyfriend's side, smiling as she grasped hold of his hand. "Morning So-ra" She cooed in a sing-song voice.

"Morning Kairi. Where's Namine?" Sora looked around for the girl who had always been glued to Kairi's hip.

"She had an art project, so she went to drop it off at the art club." Kairi explained, leaning her head on Sora's shoulder. She and Namine had been close since they were kids, much like Sora and Tidus. Their parents had often said they should have been twins, after all, their moms had been in labor at the same time.

Sora shook his head, threading his fingers into the girl's hand. "Kairi, wana do something after practice?"

"Oh..." Kairi looked down at her feet. "Actually, I promised Nami that I'd help her out with her art thing after practice."

Sora noticed the crestfallen expression on his girlfriend's face. "Hey, Kairi, stop looking so sad!" He pressed his lips to her forehead. "We can do something some other time. You'll cheer for me during practice right?"

"Who else would I cheer for?" Kairi grabbed her bag as the bell rang. "I'll see you at lunch Sora!" She gave him a quick hug before running off into the school building.

The spiky haired brunet sighed deeply, looking once more at the school building.

Caw caw caw...

Two sets of beady eyes looked down at Sora this time. The pair of ravens seemed to be assessing him, but he knew it was impossible. "Get a hold of yourself Sora. Just make it through the day." Quickly, he grabbed his bag and made his way into his first class.

Yes, Sora was average, and lived the average life. He had no idea it was going to change.

Sora managed to last through the morning and into the afternoon. He had spent lunch with Kairi and the gang, spent his fifth period class in the bathroom with Tidus, both preferring to ditch government in favor for a game of poker with sticks of gum for wagers. Soon, just like any other day, Sora found himself in his Blitz Ball uniform. The High School senior stood, waiting for the okay to get into the pool.

Across from the blitz dome, what the team affectionately called the 'tank', the cheer squad practiced. Sora could make out Namine on the bleechers, her head engrossed on the project at hand. From what she had told him before, she was sewing a prototype cheer outfit for Kairi.

Sora's eyes followed his thoughts, watching as the cheer captain called out the routine. She saw him and gave him a small smile before returning to her team. Once Sora's eyes had finished their assessment, he returned them to their coach, a tall, gruff looking man with a poor sense of humor. The team affectionately called him 'jackass' though never to his face, Coach Cid would have them tied by their swim truck to the flag pole had they done that.

"Well, little sissy boys, get yer asses into the Tank." Cid grasped Sora by the scruff of the neck, pushing him forward. "Keep it goin'. I want odd against even." The boys knew the man cared about him, he had shown them several times over the passed years they had known him. His attitude was to show the boy's he cared in his own, sick, way.

Sora was the first in the cold water, making sure he had his breathing tool in place.

Yes, Sora was average. The only thing he knew he had going for him was a Blitz Ball scholarship off the islands. Already he had made plans to move as soon as the school year ended. To Sora, it couldn't come soon enough.

Caw caw caw...

Sora stopped, the ball in his hand. The ravens were outside of the Blitz Dome, three of them, but they had sounded so close, almost as if they sounded in his ears. The next thing he knew, Cid was lifting him from the tank.

"Fuckin' Retard!" Cid shouted.

What had happened? He had the ball, then the ravens had made him stop. What next? Waka tried to tackle him, and he ended up falling toward the bottom. Shit, what an idiot he was!

"What the FUCK were you Fucking thinkin'!? Stoppin' in the middle o' a goddamned fuckin' tank!" Sora saw that Cid's face was growing purple with rage. He wanted to say something but stopped.

Caw caw caw...

There it was again. He looked passed the group of Bitzers and their coach, seeing ten beady-eyed ravens perch on the house lights. He shuddered, managing to sit up. "Sorry Coach." He mumbled, shaking water from his hair.

"I'm going to hit the showers and head home, okay Coach?" Sora saw Cid's face soften ever so slightly.

"Whatever punk." He quipped, shoving Sora in the direction of the shower. "Just don't let it happen again."

Not wanting to look at anyone, Sora kept his head down, even after he took a shower and got his clothes on. He would call Kairi later that night to let her know he was okay.

The whole way home, he felt as though he was being watched. The feeling didn't lessen, even as he arived home. "Mom, I'm home!" He called out, setting his things down by the door.

The house was quiet.

"Mom?" He ended up in the kitchen, finding a note left by his mother.

Sora sweetie,

Your father came home early today. We're going to spend the next two days on the mainland. Your father has business up there. Love you sweetie, there's money in the usual spot.

Love you lots,

Mom

Sora sighed, tossing the note away before opening the freezer. He lifted up the bag of frozen peas, slipping out forty dollars. " Good old mom." He grumbled, pocketing the money. He'd put it away in his savings for when he moved out. It wasn't like his parents ever expected him to actually use the money they left him.

"Great, the house to myself." He sighed, heading up the stairs. He felt another chill rush up his spine as he shut his bedroom door. "What the he--"

Caw caw caw...

Outside of his room, Sora could see at least fifty ravens, lined up and staring inside Sora's window. It wasn't natural! As quickly as he could, Sora pulled his shutters tight, closing the curtains for good measure. He flopped back on his bed, the sky-blue blankets becoming rumpled around him. Before he knew it, Sora had fallen asleep.

Yes, Sora was an average boy. He had an average life. He lived a normal life.

Caw caw caw...

Sora frowned, blinking his eyes open. When had he fallen asleep? He looked around his room, seeing that nothing was out of place. "Crap, I didn't call Kairi!" Sora pulled himself off his bed, tossing his door open. What he saw, took his breath away.

Outside of his bedroom was not his hallway as it should have been. In place of the rest of his house were stones and dirt and water and plants and...

Sora closed the door, opening it again for the same result. The prossess was repeated three more times before he decided to keep the door shut. If this was a joke of Tidus' again he would kill his friend. It was NOT funny. He had no idea how Tidus would have managed to bring his room into the middle of nowhere, but he would be damned if he let the other get away with it.

Caw caw caw..

Sora threw open his curtains and lifted his shutters.

Oh god!

He was located on a cliff, with nothing but a sheer drop into a very small river below. Chances were that the river wasn't so small, but from the distance it looked like someone had drawn it there with a colored pencil. Above him were hundreds of crows, circling, and waiting. Each one was calling out as if in victory. Suddenly, Sora got the feeling he was no longer on Destiny Island.

TBC