Sora and Roxas' mom was a romance author and their dad was an aspiring screen-write, so it's not surprising that at least one of them grew up a bit... melodramatic.

Sora has always had a flair about him. The hair, the clothes, his personality - and it only served to endear people to him. Even in preschool, kids would flock to him, to listen to the stories he would make up, right off the top of his head. And of course, he was a romantic. Who wouldn't be, growing up surrounded by the kinds of things his mom wrote and took inspiration from? She had always been a fan of the cheesiest lines, and never once hesitated to use them on him. And they never failed to make him smile.

Right along with all those flairs came his obsession with the Soulmate Phenomenon. Whenever he had the chance, he would talk about it with other people, ask their thoughts and opinions. Most would just kind of shrug, indifferent to it. What was the point in getting excited, when it wasn't a guaranteed thing? Only rarely did a name develop on someone's body that would link them inextricably with another. They didn't share Sora's fascination with something so unknowable, inexplicable, and unpredictable.

Occasionally, he'd find someone who was as excited by the thought of the possibility as he was, and they'd gush over it in a way that kept others at bay. Sure the bond was rare, but that didn't mean it didn't happen! There was a chance it could happen to them, that they could have a Soulmate. But where they grew out of their obsession, or lost interest with it, Sora never did.

Roxas, the more levelheaded of the two, only every so often tried to talk Sora down off of his cloud nine, mostly because he didn't want to see his brother get hurt if he was let down. Hope could be paralyzing, and it was poison to live off of the thing. But Sora would just smile and laugh it off and Roxas could only shake his head.

Lucky for him, he didn't have to worry.

It was when Sora turned 18 that the name appeared on the back of his shoulder, writ in white and looking like it had always been there. His scream brought his brother bolting to his side, only for the blond to be spun until he was dizzy by his ecstatic twin. They found a second name on his other shoulder two days later (this occurred occasionally, when an especially strong bond was going to be formed - it also helped with knowing who you were looking for). Sora had been determined to wait the week that second names would turn up in, and the second he saw his, he went straight to the internet. He wanted to know the significance behind Hati and Sol. Later, he honestly wish he hadn't - Roxas agrees abundantly.

"The end of the world Roxas!" The blond groans, trying to block out his brother's melodrama with his pillow. "Only at the end of the world! It isn't fair!"

Finally he can't take it any more. Instead of exploding though, Roxas sighs and glares mildly at the other. "Explain it to me again?"

Sora looks miffed that he has to, but he already knows his sibling hadn't been listening. "It's the legend of Hati and Skoll - wolf brothers in Norse mythology. Hati seeks to consume the moon, Mani, while Skoll seeks to consume the sun, Sol. And guess when that happens - Ragnarok. The end of the freaking world. It's the only time they meet."

Roxas rolls his eyes again. "Sor, do you honestly think that you won't meet your stupid Soulmate until the end of the world? I'd say that's a bit unlikely." But the brunet just shakes his head.

"It could happen! What if World War III breaks out and we find each other while running for our lives? Or the polar ice caps melt and we end up stuck on the roof of the same building together?" He pauses at an arched blond brow. "Okay, maybe not something so big. But like," He pauses, rolling over and hugging his pillow. "What if you or mom or dad died? That'd be the end of my world, and he could be at the funeral. Or the legend says that the world will be consumed in darkness before it ends. What if something happens to me? What if I get in an accident and I go blind and he's the last thing I see? Or the guy who caused the accident? Or I meet him afterwards and I never get to see him at all? What if he's a cannibal!? Consume could be meant literally!"

Sora shuts up at the pillow thrown in his face.

"Do you hear yourself? It. Will. Be. Fine." Roxas grimaces, voice softening. "Nothing is going to happen to mom or dad or me. Nothing is going to happen to you. You're over-thinking things and blowing them out of proportion like you always do. Just like mom does. You two are like the same person sometimes." He sighs, and Sora watches as the dark silhouette of his brother pinches the bridge of his nose. "Just... get some sleep. You've been worrying about this all day, you need to rest that over-sensitive brain of yours."

The brunet huffs and lets out a quiet laugh. He's always been this way, and Roxas has always been the one to talk (or try to talk) some sense into him. So instead of arguing like part of him wants to, he simply nods and turns over, ready for sleep.


"Come on Sora, we're going to be late for the movie!"

A stampede of footsteps and he's there, pulling on his shoes. "Still not going to tell me what we're going to see?"

"Nope." Roxas grins. Sora just rolls his eyes.

He's had the names for two months now, with no sign of his Soulmate. No sign of any world-ending events either, but the teen can't help but fret. His brother, as always, tries to get him to loosen up. This is just his latest attempt.

The theatre is just a couple of blocks away, so they arrive with plenty of time to spare. Enough time for Sora to run head first into a stranger, almost knocking them both over.

"Sorry! Sorry, I'm a clutz, should've been watching where I was going." He immediately apologized, hands hovering and unsure if he'd actually managed to hurt the other. His eyes caught on long silver hair, like...

'Moonlight?' Sora barely caught the assurance that everything was fine before the guy was leaving. The teen squints his eyes, wondering if they are playing tricks, or if the stranger really does have words on his shoulders, sticking out from under his vest...

The brothers both grab popcorn and drinks and head towards their theatre number. Sora finally gets a look at what they were going to see and he nearly chokes on his pop.

World's End. "Directed by M. Night Shyamalan." Roxas speaks up next to him, sounding smug and amused by how ironic the whole thing was. And look who just walked past them, heading for the same movie.

Sora groans; sure he grew up with romance novels, but this was just too much.

He lets himself be tugged along by his brother, listening in blushing reservation as the blond calls out to the stranger from before.

"Hey! You're going to see World's End too? That's pretty funny." Still smug, even if his attempt at small talk is awful. Sora just stands behind him, blushing like a bride and unable to say a word, but doing a very good job of staring. Luckily he is... mostly ignored. Except for a quick moment of eye contact, that doesn't help the heat in his face at all.

He's almost happy when Roxas picks seats, only to have him insist the stranger sit with them too, mostly by keeping him engaged in increasingly forced conversation. Sora feels so bad he ends up pushing his way inbetween them so that he sits in the middle. His brother just smirks at him and turns to watch the previews, but the other guy looks grateful and Sora offers to share his popcorn. The peace offering is accepted after minor hesitation, and the tension dissipates. Mostly.

Unfortunately, once the movie starts, Sora really can't take his eyes off the new person beside him for more than a few seconds. He swears it's the way his hair glows in the light of the giant movie screen, or how his eyes seem so fixated on what he himself should be watching. The teen can't deny though, that his peripheral vision catches on the barest hint of a gleam of light, following the shape of what is definitely a letter, though the rest is covered by the guy's vest. Sora's heart races, even faster when he's inevitably caught staring, and he spends the rest of the movie staring at the screen but unfocused, because now he's the one being stared at.

Sora almost bolts once the movie ends. But he doesn't; he takes a deep breath, and walks calmly to the exit door, giving his opinion with only an air of strain. Roxas heads to the bathroom, and in a surprise move (since he never speaks unless spoken to first), the stranger starts a conversation.

"I didn't catch your name."

The brunet blinks. Smiles. "I'm Sora! My brother is Roxas."

The stranger nods and smiles himself, a wistful expression that looks good on him. "Your parents named you better than mine did. I'm Riku - about as far from the moon as you can get." He chuckles.

Sora's throat closes on itself for a long moment and he just gapes. Eventually, his mouth starts working again. "S-So... so you're -"

"Mani to your Hati, and Skoll to your Sol. My sun and your moon." He smiles awkwardly, shifting his weight and looking like he regrets saying so much. Sora just beams at him, gripping his own hands together to stop from hugging... his Soulmate.

Roxas clears his throat behind them. "Wanna come over and hang out? We're having meatloaf for dinner."

Riku hesitates again. This is obviously completely new to him, and the brunet is just about to speak up and say he doesn't have to, when the taller boy grins wolfishly. And Sora is consumed by it.


-Sable

AN: This took me way longer to finish than it should have, and I apologize for any mistakes or tense-inconsistencies.