Beneath the Blue Sky

Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts and all related characters belong to Square Enix.
Rated: T+ (15+)
Pairings: (Main) Axel x Roxas, (Side) Riku x Sora, (Hints of) Zexion x Demyx / Leon x Cloud
Chapter Word Count: 3,492
Beta'd by: Karinta24

Authoress Notes: I thought I would adjust the way I did my authoress notes. Not much to say, though, for the first chapter, so enjoy!

IMPORTANT NOTE: As of October 7, 2010, this story is on a hiatus due to lack of ideas for this story. I apologize for inconvenience, but I have written myself into a hole that I'm not sure if I can write myself out of. I hope I can be forgiven, and I hope my future stories will be able to make up for the incompletion of this story. Please read at your discretion.

Chapter One: Shocking Blue and Dancing Flames

Once upon a time, there was a boy named Sora. This boy travelled through different worlds, destroying beings called Heartless with a powerful weapon of light called the Keyblade. His goal was to be reunited with his best friends, Riku and Kairi. Many obstacles came in his way. Riku sold his soul to the darkness, believing Sora had replaced him with new friends and that the darkness would help him retrieve what had been lost. Kairi's heart was taken during the destruction of their home, Destiny Island.

Sora fought hard to find his friends, and soon came to a confrontation with Riku. During this confrontation, it was revealed to Sora that Kairi's heart rested within him. A fight ensued and Riku was defeated. However, the darkness continued to consume Riku until he was taken over by a Heartless named Ansem. He disappeared, leaving behind a dark Keyblade, known as the Keyblade of People's Hearts. Sora took the dark Keyblade, knowing of its power to unlock hearts, and used it on him self to release Kairi's heart, thus becoming a Heartless.

Because of this, a certain Nobody was born from the powerful will of Sora. Body and soul came together to form what lacked a heart. However, this Nobody also lacked its original's memories because Sora was saved from the darkness by Kairi.

Wandering aimlessly and lost, the Nobody was found by Organization XIII, a group of powerful Nobodies, and was given his own name.

Roxas.

Since then, so much has happened. Empty lives were lived. Broken friendships were formed. Fake emotions began to feel real. A few certain Nobodies began to feel whole, even without being with their original selves.

In the end, a single promise was made. Neither of them remembers this promise, because it is a new life, after all… But it's not to say that they can't fulfill that promise without knowing it.

"Let's meet again… In the next life"

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Headache.

He had a pounding headache that refused to go away. He had woken rather abruptly that morning, a name on the tip of his tongue, though it was lost as he found himself in the world of reality. He couldn't remember anything from the dream, not even the name he had almost cried out as he woke.

His brother was worried about him; that much was clear. He had told the brunette boy that there was nothing to worry about, but that didn't stop his brother from shooting him concerned looks across the classroom during the classes they had together. Lunch had been no better, as his brother had then proceeded to get the whole rest of the lunch table to worry about his health, to which he continued to protest that he was fine.

When the boys returned home from school that evening, he began to wonder if it was possible for his life to get worse. Their mother had been working so hard to support the twins, but her job just laid her off and they were close to losing the house. And so, the woman announced they would be moving in with family that lived in Hollow Bastion, a good one-hundred miles away from the sunny beaches of Destiny Islands.

The next few days were spent packing what little belongings they possessed and saying tearful goodbyes to all of their friends. No one fretted over his original problem, too busy trying to squeeze him to death in goodbye hugs. When the weekend came, the two boys piled into the back of their mother's car. Their things would be following in a truck driven by their uncle, who had driven from Hollow Bastion to help them get their boxes and belongings.

Roxas and Sora Irino left their comfortable lives in Destiny Islands, and were thrown into the chaos of Hallow Bastion, where their lives would completely change.

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"No one would miss me."

"That's not true!...I would…"

Roxas shot up in bed. He was covered in cold sweat, shivering violently as he tried to fill his lungs with air. For a few seconds, he was trapped in a fog between the real world and the dream world, but he was soon snapped harshly into reality as he felt a hand touch his shoulder. His head moved quickly to look at the wide, concerned eyes of his twin.

"R-Roxas…?" Sora's voice was small, shocked at Roxas's violent awakening. The two locked eyes for a long moment before Roxas groaned and fell back against his pillow, bringing an arm over his eyes.

What had that dream been about…? Why couldn't he recall a single detail of something that had left him wanting to scream and sob until his throat was raw?

With a heavy sigh, Roxas sat up in bed once more, this time with less violence, and swung his legs over the side of his bed. Sora still sat on the edge of the bed, his eyes locked on the form of the older twin. However, he knew he wouldn't be able to get any information out of the boy.

This was the second time in a span of about two weeks that Roxas had woken up, sweating with a choked scream caught in his throat. It had been only a recent thing, but he knew it wasn't connected to their moving to the city. The first nightmare had occurred the morning before their mother announced their leaving of Destiny Island. It then led Sora to wonder if Roxas's nightmares were omens. After all, today was to be their first day at their new school.

Shaking the odd thoughts away, Sora rose from Roxas's bed to hear the shower start in the next room. This reminded Sora that he was still dressed in a towel, his damp brunette locks hanging limply about his head. He walked over to the dresser he shared with Roxas and pulled open the top drawer (which was deemed 'Sora's Underwear Drawer'). He pulled a fresh pair of boxers out and slid them up his tanned legs before he discarded the towel off onto his bed (located against the other wall of the bedroom, about ten feet away from Roxas's bed). He walked to his half of the closet to retrieve the outfit he would wear for the day, which ended up consisting of a red t-shirt and jeans.

Roxas stood under the hot water, shutting his eyes and trying to focus his mind on his dream, trying to pick out any tiny, significant detail that might remind him of what he had dreamt of. However, he was met with a painful block that left him with a growing headache. With a sigh, he decided to forget it for now as he picked up the bottle of shampoo and squirted some of the cool liquid into his hand.

Roxas's shower lasted all of seven minutes before he climbed out and grabbed a towel to wrap around his waist, using another towel (one Sora had used earlier for the same purpose) to quickly towel-dry his hair to the best of his ability. He took a comb from the bathroom sink counter and ran it through his dirty-blonde hair. Once his hair was free of tangles, Roxas exited the bathroom and reentered his bedroom, where Sora was fully dressed for the day.

"Isn't it cool that we get our own bathroom, Roxas?" Sora asked. Roxas could tell Sora was trying not to ask anything about his earlier episode.

He gave a nod in his brother's direction as he walked to the dresser, opening his own underwear drawer and pulling out a pair of green boxers; his favorite pair. He pulled them on and threw his towel onto his own bed before he, too, went to his half of the closet to get clothing. He decided on a black t-shirt that read 'The Black Mages' in ice blue letters and a pair of baggy, dark-blue jeans. He slid a checkered black-and-white wristband onto his left wrist before he started to walk toward the door.

Just as his hand touched the door knob, Sora raised his voice again. "Are you okay?"

There was a brief moment of silence before Roxas looked over his shoulder, smiling gently at his twin brother.

"Of course."

Saying nothing more, Roxas pulled open the door and walked out into the cool hallway. Sora watched after his brother for a long moment before he let out a sigh and followed after him.

Downstairs, Megumi Irino sat at the kitchen counter, chatting happily with her nephew, Cloud Strife. The man listened to his aunt chatter on about the most random things of the morning while he finished cooking eggs on the stove. He brought the pan full of eggs over to a large plate and dumped them on there, setting the plate on the counter next to a stack of plates. He nodded in greeting to the twins as they arrived and turned back to shut off the stove.

The boys sat themselves at the counter and ate their breakfast of eggs and toast in relative silence, listening to their mother finish one of her stories of when she used to work at the bar years ago. They glanced over at the woman as she turned to them and addressed them.

"Excited for your first day at your new school?"

She was answered with shrugs from both, to which she pouted a little. She turned to her nephew for encouragement, to which he shrugged as well.

"Radiant High School isn't that bad of a school… You two should fit in pretty well there."

Cloud was a senior at the school while Roxas and Sora were sophomores.

"At least you'll know one person there." Megumi tried to encourage them, but they only shrugged again as they finished up their breakfast. The boys took their plates to the sink before they went to the front room to pick up their backpacks (Sora's a red one with various doodles drawn over it in black marker and Roxas's a checkered black-and-white one, much like his wristband). Cloud walked along with them, picking up his bag before he turned to his aunt, giving her a small wave.

The three left the house and went to Cloud's car. The twins piled into the backseat and Cloud took the driver's seat. The ride was silent, but once they were off the block, Roxas felt something warm take hold of his hand. He glanced at his brother to find that his small tanned hand was holding his gently and they locked eyes for a moment. Sora offered a weak smile, and Roxas mirrored it as he squeezed his brother's hand.

The car ride was about ten minutes long and they soon arrived at the large high school. Seaside High School had been small, housing only about 800 students at most, and the halls were mainly outdoors. Radiant High School was large, towering three stories tall, and was connected with various indoor halls. Students swarmed around the front of the school, and the boys were sure that there were even more inside.

Cloud parked in the Senior parking lot before stepping out of his car. He waited for Sora and Roxas to get out of the car before he locked the car and shut his door. As the three walked up to the sidewalk, a voice called out Cloud's name. The blonde looked over to see a short, black haired girl waving her arm enthusiastically. He let out a light chuckle before turning to his cousins.

"You two think you can make it to the office on your own?" He asked. The twins could see the sacrifice in his eyes at the silent offer he made, and they both smiled at the same time.

"Yeah, it shouldn't be that hard." Sora said, his smile turning to a grin as he stepped forward and pushed Cloud in the direction of his friends. "We'll see you after school?"

After receiving a nod from their cousin, Sora and Roxas gave a wave to the man and turned their backs to him, starting to walk toward the massive buildings. Roxas pointed out a building that had the word 'office' at its first floor and the two made their way toward it.

About ten minutes later, the two had their new schedules and were sitting outside the front office, comparing them. The only class they had together was mathematics and that wasn't until the last class of the day. Fear struck both boys at the thought of having to go almost the entire school day separated, but they knew there was no way to change it.

The school bell rang, signaling that it was time to go to their first class. Sora reached forward and gave Roxas's hand a small squeeze before they parted, Roxas heading off to English class and Sora heading for History.

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Roxas was not looking forward to lunch one bit. He was sure the cafeteria would be absolutely crowded and he doubted he'd be able to get his lunch in enough time. With a sigh, he walked into his art class, walking up to the teacher with a slip showing that he was new and needed a seat. The teacher signed the slip and pointed Roxas to a nearby table.

He took a seat at the side of the table that the teacher had pointed to. The stool was uncomfortable beneath him, but he figured it couldn't get much worse. He tapped his pencil gently on the table as he waited for class to begin. He was so engrossed in his pencil tapping that he didn't notice someone had sat next to him until he accidently dropped the pencil and scrambled to grab it before it rolled off the table. He paused as he took in the features of his table partner.

Her hair was pale golden-blonde, her skin almost sickly white. She wore a white blouse with a knee-length white skirt, and white sandals to match. She held a pencil in her small hand and was drawing in a sketch book. He was almost convinced that she was void of all color… Until she looked up from her drawing and he was frozen for a moment, caught in her shocking blue eyes.

Nostalgia suddenly hit him and he felt dizzy for a moment, his head spinning. He'd seen those eyes before. Of course, he and his brother had often been commented for their surprisingly blue eyes, but this girl's eyes were different… Their familiarity was something he was convinced he'd seen before. But he would remember if he'd actually seen those eyes before…

Why did they seem so familiar…?

A small smile slid onto pale lips.

"You're new, aren't you?" Her voice was warm and welcoming. Besides teachers, she had been the first person to speak to him at the new school. He swallowed hard and nodded in response. She held out a small hand to him. "I'm Naminé Nakahara." She sounded like she wanted to keep speaking, but she stopped herself, pressing her lips together, but still smiling.

When his brain finally connected to his body, he forced his hand to move, taking her small, pale hand in his tanned hand. He was afraid to grip too tight, as if she would break if he did so.

"A-ah, I'm Roxas… Roxas Irino…" He forced out before he took a deep breath, smiling gently. "It's nice to meet you, Naminé."

"The pleasure's mine."

The teacher called the attention of the class at that time, and the two were forced to tear their eyes from each other to pay attention to the instructions.

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The cafeteria was packed, as Roxas had predicted, but he was surprised at the size of the building. It was a two story cafeteria with six stations per floor, along with a few snack machines. Students were moving smoothly through the lines, which the blonde was thankful for. He looked around, trying to see if he could catch even the tiniest of glimpses of spiky brunette hair. He caught sight of Cloud with a group of people at a table, but there was no sign of Sora.

With a sigh, he started to walk toward one of the lunch lines… And that's when he saw him.

Wild spikes of blood-red hair caused the boy to become dizzy. He felt like he had just been punched in the stomach. Waves of nostalgia hit him over and over again at the sight of the color. Where had these sudden pains come from? Roxas was 99.99% sure he had never seen anyone with that color hair before… So why was it bothering him so much?

"Roxas?"

The blonde blinked a few times, turning in the direction he heard his name. Sora's sky eyes were wide with concern and he took a few steps forward in order to stop his brother's swaying; Roxas hadn't even noticed that he had started to stumble a little, his head spinning. He was able to collect his bearings in a few short seconds and he looked sheepishly up at his brother's questioning eyes.

"Just... a little dizzy." He managed to say weakly.

"Oh no, I hope you're not getting the bug that's been going around." A female voice spoke up. Roxas blinked and turned to see that Sora had three companions with him.

The one who had spoke, the female, had soft peach skin with auburn hair and dark olive-green eyes. Behind her, a boy with spiky butterscotch hair and tough (yet, at the same time, soft) chocolate eyes stood, watching Roxas carefully. Next to him was another boy, who stood slightly taller than his friend, but was also a bit larger. His raven hair stuck up around his grey headband, his dark eyes full of curiosity.

"Oh, you better not be getting sick! That means I'll be next!" Sora groaned.

Roxas blinked a few more times before he slowly shook his head. "I'm not sick, Sora. I just got a little light headed. I'm fine now."

Sora didn't believe his brother for one moment, but when the two locked eyes, the silent argument had been fought and Roxas won. He turned his eyes to look at the three, who had been watching them during their brief silence.

"I… never caught your names." He said, getting his mind off of the earlier subject.

"Ah, yes. I'm Olette Hirasawa." The girl spoke. She motioned to the thinner boy. "This is Hayner Sasaki," she then motioned to the other male, "and Pence Taya." She gave him a warm smile. "It's nice to meet you, Roxas."

"How did you…?"

"I told them your name earlier when I went looking for you." Sora cut in before Roxas could finish his sentence. Roxas blinked but shrugged. It was then that he noticed that Sora had a tray of food and the other three had sacked lunches.

"Ah… Let's go find somewhere to sit, yeah?" He suggested.

"Aren't you going to get any food?" Olette asked, her voice taking on a sort of motherly tone. Roxas shook his head.

"I'm not really that hungry." He lied. Of course, Sora saw right through it, but didn't push it. He would just stuff fries into his brother's face when they sat down.

The group of five maneuvered their way through the cafeteria, but Roxas froze slightly when he caught sight of a familiar face. She was sitting by herself at one of the taller tables against the wall, sitting on the high stool-chair with her legs swinging gently. She was drawing in her sketch book again, her tray of food looking untouched. She looked up after half a second and offered a small smile and wave before she looked back down. She didn't motion for him to join her or anything, and Sora was tugging on his arm with his free hand. He reluctantly followed his twin to the lunch table.

Roxas was kept busy the rest of the lunch period, not given a single chance to look back at Naminé or look for the red spikes that had caused him to nearly pass out in the middle of the cafeteria.

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That night, Roxas dreamt of dancing flames.

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I must keep drawing. My inspiration has hit even harder, now that I am able to see the other half of the story. It started when I first laid eyes on the passionate flame. I saw his story and it sparked me to draw what I saw. Now, I have met the other half, the bright light, and now I must draw even more. I must keep drawing until the whole story is complete.

It won't change anything… But until I know how their story ended, I will not be able to rest easy.

So many stories to tell… If only I could draw faster…