"I thought that you had finally come back."

"But when you were back, it was like you were still gone."

The wind was a mere breeze outside. You could see the palm trees rustle a bit, but it was common for island weather – especially this island. Here, it was like everything was peaceful and tranquil. There were very few storms, and the last one, a year ago, was caused by the darkness that had destroyed many worlds and caused many people to lose their hearts. But amongst all this chaos stood a boy and some friends of his who stopped the ultimate goal of the darkness. They helped restore all the worlds to what they originally were, and saved many people's hearts. This boy was Sora.

"I'm gonna' head in guys," said a girl in a small pink dress. She got up from sitting on the sand, brushing some of it that had gotten on her off. She picked up her shoes, before waving and walking away, shoes in hand, from her two best friends.

The two boys looked on after her. One had long silver hair and crazy aquamarine eyes; he merely nodded as she left, acknowledging her. The other had brown spiky hair that defied gravity and had simple blue eyes; he waved and grinned widely as the girl left.

"See ya' tomorrow, Kairi!" he yelled, watching her a bit longer than the silver haired had, before turning so he could face what they had all been looking at.

"Why does it feel like it's so hard to go back there?" the spikey haired boy asked, looking longingly at the island. He and his friends had always played at that island, for many years, though it had been over a year since they last had. And in that time, they had all grown up and had all had way too many experiences for kids their age.

"I don't know, Sora," his friend answered, looking at the island as well. For him, it was the past – a past he had destroyed, and looking at it made him sick. It reminded him of the terrible thing that he had done to his best friend.

"But Riku, I wanna' go back! We haven't been to the island since we came back to Destiny Islands. Don't you miss it at all?"

"Then go back," he said simply, his voice stoic and calm. Riku had always been the more controlled one, while Sora had always been the loud, hyperactive one. "Nothing is stopping you but yourself, Sora."

"But…" he looked over at Riku with almost a whining, yet pitiful face. Sora didn't want to go back unless it was with his friends - that's the way it was supposed to be in his eyes. All of them together again – what had he been fighting for, for so long? It had been all so he and his friends could be home again. Kairi had been home for a while, and had, in her words, come back to get them, since him and Riku had taken a long time. And so now that they were back, why did it feel so…different?

"Sora, it's not going to be like it was – you know that. We can't just erase everything that's happened-"

"I never said I wanted to erase everything that's happened Riku, but I just want…"

Sora didn't know how to finish that sentence, and when Riku looked over at him again, it wasn't hard for him to tell. Sora had always had a very readable face. When he was happy, he grinned like an idiot. When he was pouting, his lips would purse. When he was angry, he would make it obvious and complain about whatever made him angry. And whenever the kid was in a whiney mood, it seemed to always be reserved for Riku.

"You almost miss being in other worlds, don't you?" Riku asked, although it was more like a statement than a question. "Even though this is home, we've seen so many other places, that this place has somehow become boring. Our lives took a sudden turn, and we were put into situations we wouldn't normally be put into. I don't know about you, but I got really used to it. And now being here, it's just…"

"Weird," Sora said, finishing for him. Sora felt the exact same way Riku felt. He loved the islands – they were his home, after all. But, Sora actually missed fighting Heartless and Nobodies every day. It grew tiring, but he was just so used to it – and it really did become fun for him. Plus, Sora had made a number of friends, and the idea that he wouldn't be seeing them anymore…it didn't exactly appeal to him. He missed them, of course.

"Exactly."

The two best friends sat in a comfortable silence, staring at the island that had entertained them both so much when they were kids. Looking at it reminded them both of something, but then also of different things. The island represented their childhood and all the little adventures they would have together. And when Kairi came to the islands, it was even more fun – for one of them, at least. That small little island was where they would hang out; it was their spot. Of course, there were others would join them, like Waka, Tidus and Selphie, but no one could compare when it came to Sora, Riku and Kairi. They were best friends, always have been and always would be.

"Hey Riku?"

"Yeah?" Riku crossed his arms behind his head as he laid down on the sand.

"You think we'll ever see them again? King Mickey? And Donald and Goofy?"

Riku glanced at him, before looking up at the sky. "I don't know," he replied calmly. In all honesty, Riku was pretty confident that if they did see them again, it wouldn't be for a while. Riku didn't want to get Sora's hopes up, but then he didn't want to see Sora depressed, either. The kid wasn't himself when he was depressed or sad – Hell, it made the whole island sad when Sora was in a slump. Sora was everyone's light, especially Riku's. Without Sora, Riku fell into darkness and didn't want to get out of it. But when he saw Sora, and when Sora was with him, it made Riku want to fight against the darkness, just so he could be with Sora.

"How long has it been, I wonder…" Riku thought to himself, looking up at the sky. He let his gaze drift lazily to his best friend and a small smile touched his lips. Sora was merely looking at the island, before a soft sigh escaped from his lips, and he lied down like Riku. Riku's gaze once again went towards the sky.

"Do you ever just wanna' leave?" Sora asked.

"All the time." Riku saw no point to the islands anymore. The only reason why he didn't care so much was because Sora was there; wherever Sora was, Riku would be there. Even if Riku had to go through hell and back, he'd find a way to be with Sora.

"I think I do too." Sora almost felt guilty for no longer wanting to be on the islands, but what could he do? It was truly boring; it was no wonder why they had wanted to leave. But it was still home…and Sora had been fighting for so long just to come back. And now he wanted to leave? He didn't entirely understand it.

"It's a complicated feeling, isn't it?" Riku once again made the question seem more like a statement.

"Yeah," Sora replied. "I've missed home so much, but…we've been back for two weeks now. I've seen everyone I've missed, I've seen the islands…I feel like I'm just waiting for another adventure to come around and we'll be the ones who have to save the day again. But what if that adventure never comes?"

Riku was staring at Sora again, looking into his eyes. He knew Sora liked being the hero and liked 'saving the day,' but was that really so realistic? They were all lucky to have come out alive, and there were a number of situations where him and Sora, and even Kairi, really could have – or even should have – died. But they obviously hadn't. Though Riku did want to leave the islands and maybe have some fun fighting again, he'd rather have a boring life with nothing to do than to put Sora in danger again. It nearly killed them both the first time, and Riku wouldn't dare do it a second time.

Sora sighed again. "I'm gonna' head in," he said, slowly getting up. "It's getting late, and mom will be worried I won't show up again."

Riku chuckled. "Yeah, it would suck if you got swallowed up into another adventure."

Sora rolled his eyes, before laughing. "You know how my mom is," he said, standing now and looking down at Riku.

Riku knew Sora was expecting them to walk home together, since they lived across from each other. But this time, Riku wanted to stay out a little longer.

"I'm gonna' stay a bit longer," he told Sora, looking up at the sky still. For whatever reason, Riku hated to watch Sora walking away from him.

"Oh," Sora sounded almost disappointed. "Well alright! See ya' tomorrow, Riku," he said, before making his way back home.

Riku was the one to sigh this time, once he knew Sora was out of range. His mind kept bombarding him with useless thoughts and ideas. He glared up at the sky, wishing his thoughts would disappear.

It was the next day, and it was only Sora and Riku out. Kairi would apparently be joining them later; she had to do some things with the mayor. Sora felt a little disappointed, since he always preferred it with the three of them always together, but he never minded him and Riku getting some guy time. As for Riku, he always wanted it to be him and Sora. He used to hate Kairi when they were younger, for stealing Sora's attention, but he grew to put up with her and eventually he considered her a friend.

"So what should we do today?" Sora asked, looking at Riku as he crossed his arms behind his head – a habit he's had since he was little.

"Don't know. What do we do every day?" Riku yawned, still a bit tired. He hadn't gotten much sleep last night, due to that he had stayed up most of the night staring up at the sky, on the beach.

Sora sighed. "Usually just walk around and stare at the island." Sora wanted something to happen! He wanted something to happen right now! But at the same time, he didn't want the worlds to be in danger once again, but what else would cause them to have some epic adventure?

Just then, Riku's brows furrowed, before his eyes focused on something that seemed to be coming from the sky. At first it looked like it was falling, but then it was taking a direct turn towards him and Sora. And the closer it got, the surer Riku was of what it was. Soon his eyes widened, and he almost felt like he couldn't speak for a moment. Him and Sora had been wanting to get off the island – and it looked like they might be able to.

"Sora, you might just get your wish," Riku said, his voice sounding slightly of shock, but also amusement.

"What do you mean?" Sora looked at him confused.

"Look," Riku said, pointing up in the sky towards something that most worlds would never understand. In fact, unless you had seen one before, you would never know what it was.

Sora looked at Riku, confused for a moment, before following the direction of his finger, before his eyes widened at what he saw. It stuck out like a sore thumb.

"A gummi ship?" Sora looked at it surprised, shocked even at what had come out of his mouth. It couldn't be real, could it? Was someone playing a joke on him?

"That's what it appears to be," Riku said simply, his thoughts similar to Sora's. No way this was real.

But it had to be. There was the gummi ship Sora had flown in so many times with Donald, Goofy and Jiminy. Sora could recognize that thing a mile away! It couldn't be anything else.

They watched as it started to slow down, and finally land – on the island. The gummi ship landed on the island that Sora and his friends had been staring at for two weeks. But in that moment, how could it matter? Riku and Sora immediately ran to get a boat, and quickly rowed it to the back of the island. Once they got there, Sora slipped trying to get out – half because he was excited, and half because he was just clumsy. Riku got out easily of course, and calmly walked over to the other side of the island, while Sora ran. Sora couldn't contain his excitement. Even if it was just one of his old friends he would see, at least it was one of them. He had missed them all so much!

Sora got there before Riku, and when he finally got to the gummi ship, he saw three very familiar friends come out. He couldn't contain his joy and excitement, practically bouncing all the way towards them.

"Donald! Goofy! King Mickey!" he shouted. Before they all even had a chance to look over at Sora, he tackled them all, making them all fall over each other.

"Sora!" Donald complained in his scratchy, near understandable voice.

"Sora!" Goofy said excitedly, as well as laughed his goofy laugh.

"Whoah, Sora!" the king exclaimed, before he smiled at seeing everyone together and happy again.

"Hey, you guys leaving me out?" Riku's voice was prominent and clear over everyone's laughter. And they all stopped to stare over at his form walking toward them, a smirk present on his face. "If I had known Sora was gonna' hog you all, I wouldn't have bothered coming."

King Mickey was the first to get up and go over to Riku. He smiled up at the male, before jumping up to his chest and giving Riku a hug. The other two slowly got up as well, and more so gave Riku a 'dude' hug. Even though this adventure had been long, Goofy and Donald really didn't know much about Riku, other than that he was Sora's friend. It was all the same for Riku, though. He had only said that to remind Sora that he was still there, as well as say 'hello' to the king, since he had formed a friendship with the mouse. After all, King Mickey had been his companion for much of the time that Sora was asleep.

"What are you guys doing here?" Sora asked them, walking over to his four friends. Of course he was excited to see them, but he couldn't help but to wonder why they were on the island in the first place.

"Do you remember the letter?" the king asked, jumping down from Riku's chest.

Riku merely nodded. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that!" Sora said, before grinning with an embarrassed look on his face. He couldn't believe he had actually forgotten about that.

The king sighed, shaking his head but with a smile on his face. "Well, like I had put, there's a chance that the worlds would need you once again. And now they do."

"So we get to go on another adventure?" Sora asked, excitement incredibly obvious in his voice.

King Mickey merely nodded.

"What's it about this time?" Riku asked. If Sora was going to put himself danger, it would make Riku very cautious about them going on this adventure. He knew Sora wanted to leave as much as he did, but he wouldn't risk Sora's life – not again.

"Well, there's someone that you hadn't defeated yet-"

"I thought we killed all the Organization members," Sora said, interrupting the king.

"Sora!" Donald yet at him, giving him the 'look'.

"Sorry," Sora said, covering his mouth with his hand.

King Mickey sighed. "Yes, you did. The Nobodies and all the Organization seem to be completely gone, so you shouldn't have to worry about them anymore."

What a relief, Sora thought to himself.

"However, there is still another enemy. The Heartless are still lurking around, and though they haven't gone to every world yet, we know it is their goal."

"Who is running them this time?" Riku asked.

"Think about it, Riku," the king told him, looking directly into his eyes. "Who else is capable enough to use them?"

It hit Riku then. "Maleficent," he said, his voice calm as ever. But his eyes were clouded.

"Maleficent!" Sora said, his voice sounded with a bit of shock. But when he thought about it, it made sense. They hadn't even fought Maleficent last time, so of course she was still somewhere around kicking. She had her fanatical dream about ruling the Heartless and all that mumbo-jumbo. Sora of course didn't get it, but that didn't matter to him. Maleficent had to be stopped, and he wanted to help.

"When do leave?" Sora asked, excitement obvious in his eyes.

The king laughed this time. "Why in such a hurry?"

"He's been dying to get off the island," Riku answered for Sora. "It's a bit…boring here, to say the least."

"Ah," King Mickey said, nodding his head. "Well, we can depart tomorrow morning. We'll need to debrief you on some things, as well as fuel up the ship. Also, I'm sure you'll want to see goodbye to your families and such."

"Sounds good to me!" Sora was just so excited he couldn't contain it.

Riku sighed, though grinning at his best friend. "What else do you need to tell us?"

"Well…" the king looked down. This was going to be a tough journey, for more reasons than one, and the king hated to depend on the two friends so much, but they were the only ones who could do it. "You guys need to permanently lock all the worlds."

"What?" Sora looked straight at King Mickey. Permanently? He thought to himself. Wouldn't that mean never seeing anyone again?

"The only way to stop the Heartless is to lock all the worlds. But there's a true lock, one that is impossible to break. And one that can only be locked and unlocked by your keyblade, Sora. The worlds haven't been truly locked in a long time, but Master Yen Sid and I have realized that if we want the worlds to truly be at peace again, we have to truly lock them all. Heartless will never be able to get in, but neither will anyone else."

"We need you to go to all the worlds that are still unlocked, destroy all the Heartless and then truly lock them. Once that happens, because you are not from that world, you will be dispelled and lifted out of there. And-"

"And after that, we can never see them again…" The thought of never seeing his old friends again terrified Sora. He didn't like it at all. He'd rather fight Heartless for the rest of his life than to never see old friends again. But at the same time, he wanted those friends to be safe. And if they way to do that would be to never see them again…he would have to do it.

"You actually would be able to see them again Sora, because of your key, but it wouldn't be something you could do every day. Maybe once every year, if that."

That was good enough for Sora. "We'll do it!"

"Wait Sora," Riku told him, looking at him. "There's more to this," he looked to the king. "Isn't there?"

"So sharp, Riku," King Mickey said, a small smile on his face. "Yes, there is more. Your friend Kairi is a Princess of Heart, and being a Princess of Heart means that she is pure – and that she can rule." Sora's eyebrows crinkled with confusion. "Kairi is originally from a world called Radiant Gardens. Around when Xehanort posing as Ansem took over, the world transformed into now what is known as Hollow Bastion. Kairi's heart, even though Radiant Gardens has changed much, will recognize its true home, and therefore her heart could possibly make her stay there. And Hollow Bastion is in need of a queen…"

"Wait a second, you're saying that…Kairi won't be able to live here anymore?!" This was a shock to Sora. He knew Kairi was from a different world, but the islands were home now, so how could her heart want somewhere else?

"She can if she so chooses," King Mickey told Sora. "A person can live wherever they so choose, but you guys are bored here, correct?" Sora and Riku slowly nodded their heads. "All three of you could live in Hollow Bastion." Sora's eyes widened. "And Sora, remember Leon, Aerith, Yuffie, Merlin and everyone else? There still there, Sora."

The king was absolutely playing on Sora's weakness – his friends. But it was a decision he, Donald, Goofy and everyone from Hollow Bastion had made. They would do whatever they could to have the three keybearers live in Hollow Bastion. Kairi would be the queen, and Sora and Riku would be the knights. And in that way, everyone wouldn't have to miss Sora as much.

Sora was having a tough time with this. Leave the islands for Hallow Bastion? He would almost never see his mother again, and he had missed her during his previous adventures – though he would never admit it. And what about Riku and Kairi? They would miss their families too. And yet…Sora found himself not feeling truly home anymore at Destiny Islands. Maybe…maybe they should go to Hollow Bastion.

"We would have to ask Kairi," Riku said, thinking about it. He knew Sora would ultimately choose Hollow Bastion, and Riku would follow him. Sure he'd miss his dad and other relatives, but Sora meant everything to him; he wouldn't live without his light.

"Of course," the king said, agreeing. "Where can we speak with her?"

"She's with the mayor right now," Sora said, his hands going behind his head and crossing. "But we're supposed to meet up with her in a bit."

"Then we will wait."

They met up with Kairi a little after noon on the beach, back on the main island. She was surprised to see the king, Donald and Goofy, but nonetheless, she was glad to see everyone happy and together.

"Hey Kairi, the king wants to talk to you about something," Sora said to her, his voice a little nervous. He knew how Kairi felt about the islands, how much she loved it, but maybe she wanted to leave too?

And so, King Mickey told Kairi everything that he had told Sora and Riku. He told her about the true keyholes, about Radiant Gardens and how she was from there, how they wanted her to be the queen and how Riku and Sora had agreed to stay there with her.

"Me? Be…queen?" Something like that shocked Kairi beyond belief. She was a kind-hearted person, but she didn't even know Sora's friends. Kairi was sure she could get along with them and everything, but what if Hollow Bastion didn't feel like home to her? She had been at the islands for so long…how could anything else be home to her? "Can I think about it?" she asked the king.

He merely smiled. "Of course. It would shock me if you agreed so soon. We can take you there and show you around."

Kairi smiled at the mouse. "That would be great."

"Oh! One more thing I forgot to mention to you guys," the king said, and everyone listened. "I believe Riku knows this, but Kairi can also wield a keyblade."

"I knew that," Sora said. "She was using one in the World that Never Was."

"Sora, I don't think you get it," Riku said. He could probably put it in simpler terms for Sora. "Not every person can wield one. When I gave Kairi Destiny's Embrace, I wasn't even sure if she could actually wield it because you have to be a wielder to use it, but she did."

"So…Kairi is like us?" he asked Riku, his eyes widening.

Riku nodded his head. "Kairi can wield a keyblade for the same reasons that Riku can," King Mickey began to speak again. "When you two were little, you touched a person's keyblade, did you not?"

Riku's eyebrows furrowed, before he remembered a time when he and Sora were playing when they were little. There was a man with brown hair, and he had a keyblade – and the man had told Riku to hold onto it for a moment, and Riku had.

"I remember," Riku said suddenly, his brows still furrowed. "I can't believe I had forgotten about that. His name was…was…"

"Terra," the king said for him.

Riku's eyes widened. "Yeah, Terra. How did…?"

"I knew Terra a long time ago."

"What happened to him?"

"That's…something you will learn for yourself, in time."

"I don't remember touching anyone's keyblade when I was younger," Kairi said, her voice quiet. She was trying to remember, but she just couldn't remember it.

"Probably because it was back when you were in Radiant Gardens," King Mickey told her. "You don't hold many memories from your old world, right?"

She shook her head. "Right. I only vaguely remember my grandmother."

"Well Kairi, maybe a bit before you came here, to Destiny Islands, a woman named Aqua protected you, and you had grabbed onto her keyblade."

"Oh," Kairi said, her turn to have the wide eyes now.

"Then why can I wield one?" Sora asked the king. "If you're saying they touched a keyblade when they were younger, then how did it happen for me?"

"That's…not something I can explain yet, Sora. It will come in time."

"Oh…" he complained, crossing his arms behind his head. "Why do I always get left out?"

Everyone couldn't help but to laugh out at Sora then.

"Hey! What's so funny?" Everyone still laughed. "You guys are mean."

That night, Riku and Sora were still out. Only now, they were on their island – the one that had been so hard to go to. They had all spoken to their parents about leaving the next morning, although they hadn't talked to them about possibly permanently moving. Kairi was still unsure, and they didn't want to douse their parents moods even more by saying something that might not even happen. So, they merely told their parents that they would be going on another adventure, and they would be back.

Riku and Sora were sitting on their favorite tree on the even smaller island a couple of feet away from their island. They were looking out into the sunset, not uttering a single word. What could they really say? Riku knew what he wanted to tell Sora, but he didn't know if he could at this point. The mood was right, even the setting was right…but Riku couldn't do it. Riku couldn't tell his best friend that he was in love with him, and had been since they were little. Of course, when they were younger, Riku hadn't realized what it was. But as they grew older, and hormones started rolling in, Riku understood more and more his feelings for Sora.

As for Sora, he just wanted to appreciate this sunset. This would possibly be their last night in Destiny Islands, and he wanted to remember every single detail. How the sun looked, how the sky was orangey, how the ocean was a mixture of pink, purple and blue and how the sand looked orange as well. He looked up, seeing the paopu fuit from the tree. He grinned; he even wanted to remember the tale about the paupu fruit. He wanted to remember that when two people share it, their destinies become intertwined. It had always been something he found romantic, although he never talked about it because he knew Riku would tease him for it.

"I'm gonna' miss this," Sora said, looking back to the sunset.

"Me too," Riku said softly. Even if it was boring, the place was still their home. It was where they were born, where they grew up and where they had been dying to be for over a year.

"But…I really hope that Kairi chooses to stay in Hollow Bastion." Sora knew by now that he wanted to stay in Hollow Bastion with all his friends.

"I think I do too," Riku said, nodding. He had been in Hollow Bastion a short time, but if Sora wanted to be there, that's where Riku would be.

Sora grinned, before getting off of the tree. "Come on Riku," Sora said, holding his hand out for his best friend to take. "Let's go in."

Riku was stunned for a moment, before he grinned and took his best friend's hand. He would cherish those few seconds where he and Sora held hands, before he had to let go – for fear of his friend finding out his true feelings.

"Jeez Sora, how long did you want to hold my hand?" Riku teased, smirking at the younger boy.

Sora's cheeks turned reddish. "H-Hey, you were the one who wasn't letting go!"

"Uh-huh, sure Sora," he said, chuckling.

Riku walked faster than Sora, and Sora then had to catch up because he had stopped when he got embarrassed from Riku's comment. "Hey, wait up!" And Sora started running to Riku.

He stopped, grinning, before looking back at Sora as he waited for him to catch up. I'll always wait for you, Riku thought, almost wishing that Sora could read his thoughts. But at the same time, he was pretty sure that he would keep his feelings a secret from Sora – forever.