old as the hills, and just as out-of-reach.
It's always been the burn of confinement, heavy and present around his heart, that keeps him moving toward the shores of the island. He never does figure out how to explain it to Sora and Kairi
(and in his mind it's always Sora&Kairi, never Sora&Kairi&Riku, because even his subconscious knows he doesn't belong)
but he figures they'll understand someday. He's known them long enough. He feels them like an extension of himself.
But for now, what he knows most of all is that he needs to leave. After all, the island is only so big, and there are only so many times his imagination can make it into something better.
Things are changing.
Things are happening.
And Riku knows he can be more than he is now.