THIS IS BEFORE SORA, DONALD, AND GOOFY SEE PLUTO WITH THE MESSAGE AT THE END OF KINGDOM HEARTS!

Thank you.

Dreams

Some tell me they're going to be great people… they're going to be known in the world. They all smile at you and grin with the cutest idea that makes you grin back. Although it may be in sympathy, it gives a little hope to your heart. They are those who have dreams, but you can only go so far. That's what I have learned from this one experience. This one that has left an open spot that I never knew of… and I will never ever forget it. So I will tell you, and you can think of it as you will.

My name is Sora. I'm the holder of the Keyblade. Now, I'm not saying that I regret having the Keyblade. Sometimes I stare out the window and think, 'Why was I chosen? Why not someone else? Why did this become my problem?' I've thought about going the other way around to something more positive, but it ends up turning negative.

It goes from 'I can help people, at least' to 'What if I fail those people? The ones who don't deserve to be destroyed?' It's so confusing sometimes. I can't blame others. I can't say Maleficent did it or say Darkness should be destroyed. If I did, I'd be doing the same thing as everyone else. I'd end up thinking about myself and how if I ruled the world, it would be a better place. Soon enough, I'd get selfish and my greed of power would be the same as theirs. The wanting to help people can't get too strong. The wanting of destroying evil cannot overcome my thoughts. No one can destroy darkness and no one can destroy light. It is the way of life.

"Sora! Sora!"

I looked up at my feathered friend, Donald. I met him in Traverse Town, which is the town we're in right now. Just recently, I watched my friend Riku being closed behind The Door with Mickey and my other friend, Kairi leave me. It hurt a lot. Feelings overcame me and I almost couldn't look back anymore.

"Garsh, Donald, don't you see that Sora is sad?" Goofy said with a sad expression on. Donald crossed his arms and tapped his foot impatiently.

"I'm sorry, Sora, but remember… you promised us a smile," Donald stated with a small huff of breath. His lids lowered and he sat down next to him. "Look, I know it's hard, but you will see them again. I don't know how, but I'm sure that you will find them."

"Yeah! And if you don—"

At that moment, Donald smacked Goofy and started to scream at him about not to be so negative. I managed out a slight chuckle and a small smile. It pleased them to see me cheer up a bit.

"E-excuse me…"

I looked at the girl who was standing beside me. She had long messy black hair that fell to her shoulders and a pale blue dress that was about knee length. She seemed no more than 7… maybe 8.

"You're… the Keyblade Master, right?" she asked, her eyes a little too cute for me to look away and ignore her. I chuckled and nodded. Her face lit up like a lantern and she bowed to me. "M-my name is Yume. I'm very pleased to meet you!"

"Same here. You can call me Sora," I replied, a bit surprised that she bowed to me. Yume nodded and pointed to Third District. I raised an eyebrow.

"It may seem rude of me, but could you escort me to my mommy's house?" she asked. Her hands fumbled with each other as she looked me in the eyes shyly. "I… I was bad and wandered away. I have to find her, so she doesn't get mad or worry."

"Oh, sure," I replied. Donald and Goofy stared at me and I nodded. "Yume, this is Donald and Goofy. They helped me."

"Oh!" she said, bowing to the both of them. Looking up, Yume smiled happily. "I'm very pleased to meet you two also!"

"The pleasure is all mine," Donald replied courteously, which was a little new for me. Goofy… was, well… Goofy.

The little girl grabbed my hand and we walked to her house.

On the way there, I asked her a couple questions so it wouldn't feel awkward. She seemed very nervous too, as if just being with me was going to get her in trouble. I guess meeting someone on a different level than you must be strange—actually, it is, I know it.

"So… Yume, what do you want to be when you grow up?" I asked. She hesitated before answering. She knew, I could tell. It was more of whether or not she would tell me.

"I want to be… someone," she answered. "I want to be someone that isn't looked down upon. I don't want to be like my name, dream. I don't want to be forgotten the next morning. If anything… I'd like to be an explorer. I want to find out the mysteries of the world and be able to solve them, and then I'd write them down and teach everyone. I wouldn't be forgotten then. Yes… I'd like that."

We were now standing in front of her house and she unlocked the door with a key she had in her pocket. I was a bit taken back from her words. They were a bit sad and left me empty. Her eyes looked at us again and she smiled.

"Wait," I said before she closed the door. "What's the first mystery you want to solve?"

"I guess… can you really change after 5 years when you promise you will?" Yume answered and she closed the door. I pondered on that for the rest of the day. I thought you did, if you really worked hard on it. I changed, and it hasn't really been 5 years. Goofy rushed into my bedroom with panic on his face. I figured he couldn't find his hat again, but no, he was holding a newspaper in his hand.

"SORA!" he shouted and I took the paper from his hands. Looking it over, I saw her face. It was sad looking, yet peaceful. The article told of Yume's mother and how she had been beaten her daughter brutally. Scars covered her back and stomach and yet none to her arms. Yume's mother supposedly promised to take better care of Yume since the drugging of when the young girl was 3. Tears trickled down my cheek as I thought of her words.

I want to be known as someone… I don't want to be forgotten the next morning… Then I won't be forgotten. Yes… I'd like that.

I clenched my teeth and shut my eyes. I felt so sorry for this girl. She knew this was coming and her dreams were the only things that made her want to move forward. 'At least,' I thought, 'She got the answer of her first mystery… but it's the wrong answer.'

The answer was clear. People could change. It was a matter whether they wanted to or not. Yes, people could change, but Yume would never know that. Yume would never go anywhere or live her dream. Yume would never become a faded memory in my eyes. I knew she would like it better that way. I will never forget Yume.

End of Dreams

Author's Note: Well... this is my first Kingdom Hearts fanfic. It's a little weird, I guess. It's not that sad when you really think about it. I guess it was so-so, but I figured I should make stories OTHER than ones of Avatar (which is the majority of my works)

KH fanatic,

Sammy