Only One Sky
A brief character study into Sora's mind, spanning pre-BBS through KHII. Mostly a headcanon and a little bit of wishful thinking.
A/n: I'm not into baiting people, so I'll tell y'all up front: this is a drabble exploring my headcanon that Sora is a trans man. If that doesn't sit well with you, don't read it. Leaving transphobic messages won't do anything but make me laugh. Hopefully you'll stay and enjoy.
It started out slowly, like a wrongness that seeped into his consciousness. The nagging feeling constantly kept Sora awake growing up. Riku never seemed to understand, but he was always there with soothing words.
It'll be all right, Sora. Just tell them.
It was always worse when Sora would be dragged to the store. New people, tourists, even Mom's friends would say the same thing every time.
Sora? That's such a pretty name for a pretty little girl.
Sora would just nod and smile; say thank you like Mom insisted. Tug on the clothes that didn't ever fit right. Thankfully it wasn't a big deal when Sora asked for shorts instead of impractical skirts. After all, a bunch of girls wanted to dress up like the boys. It wasn't until Aqua appeared that Sora really thought about what could be. From the first time Sora saw her, he knew she wasn't from Destiny Islands. If magic like traveling to new worlds was possible, then maybe being who he really was could be too?
High school was the worst. There was nothing Sora could do to stop all the changes. Big, layered clothing hid what he didn't want to see happening. Even Riku and Kairi couldn't calm him down fully some days. After one particularly bad day, Mom came to pick him up from the nurse's office and he couldn't handle it anymore.
I'm not a girl, Mom. I'm a boy.
The stunned silence killed Sora for all of the three seconds it lasted.
Oh, honey. Why didn't you say something sooner? Let's fix it then.
The first part of the transition was easy enough. Pills to block the rest of the changes. They were even able to scrounge up the munny for top surgery to reverse what had already happened. Then, that fateful night of the storm, Sora knew this was his chance. The magic he had only glimpsed, all that and more could be his!
It was easy starting over as a teenage boy chosen by the Keyblade. No one in the new worlds had any idea, and it was easy to hide his height with the excuse of age. That, and Donald and Goofy took it at face value that he was just short. The biggest heart attack came when they were thrown into Atlantica. Through Donald's magic Sora was suddenly a merman, and he wasn't even the weird one. The scars on his chest had almost completely faded; he only saw them because he knew where to look. No eyebrows were raised, and when his companions weren't looking, Sora cried of happiness. It had been the ultimate test, and he had passed.
Saving all the worlds and Kairi had been the cherry on top of it all. Yeah, Riku was gone, but he could fix that.
Castle Oblivion screwed with Sora's mind. As his memory disappeared, each new day was a shock, waking up with only his body as evidence that he wasn't yet completely who he really was. In the end, Namine had promised to keep it a secret at Sora's behest, as she was the only one that had had access to Sora's memory and the potentially dangerous knowledge. Namine had offered to "forget" to put the early memories of dysphoria back into the reconstruction of his heart. It had been hard for Sora to pass up, but inevitably the need to be whole made him decline.
Waking up older and taller had been strange, the tightness of his clothes even stranger. Once again, throughout traveling worlds, Sora felt more and more comfortable in his skin. Being on the Gummi Ship had seemingly suspended the hormones his body in a stasis, and his exposure to magic had made it permanent. The changes they made to fit in while adventuring gave evidence to that fact, and Atlantica had proven yet again to be the highlight of the journey. The musical had been nerve-wracking, but the practice adjusting voice pitch had paid off. He sounded amazing, in his own humble opinion.
Seeing Kairi in The Castle That Never Was had awakened feelings in him that he had only thought were protectiveness. All the rivalry between Riku and him had been so much more than that. As she ran into the circle of his arms, he realized that he was in love. And in that moment, the world shifted. Kairi had known about his transition. She had known since forever and she still chose him over Riku. It was enough to make him cry, right in front of Ansem (later revealed to be Riku, embarrassingly). He didn't though, he used the strength for the final battle to stop Xemnas. Getting back to Kairi was all that mattered.
The message in a bottle that lead Riku and him back home through the Door to Light was predictable yet surprising. The light in his heart that Kairi's simple words had engendered had been the reason the door had opened, he was sure. Friendship and love had gotten him that far, through all the trials and darkness, and it wouldn't have forsaken him then. Reunited on Destiny Island with Kairi, Donald, Goofy, and King Mickey, he spent the first week playing around and explaining all that had happened to his parents. While they were somewhat confused, their reaction was of resounding acceptance.
We always knew you were special, Sora. This is just a part of that.
The munny from the last year and a half's journey was more than enough to get the rest of his surgery. And upon his release from the hospital, Riku and Kairi took him out to the Island for a small celebration. As he gazed up on the stars that night on the beach, hand-in-hand with Kairi, he smiled gently, goofy demeanor sedated by the bliss of being whole.
Y'know… I used to be so scared. There was so much I couldn't explain, didn't understand. But now, after being to other worlds, seeing the magic, and fighting the darkness, all this seems so normal. I couldn't have done it without you guys. Thanks for being there.
Both of his friends turned to look at him. Kairi squeezed his hand and Riku grinned.
Of course. You're our Sora.
A/n: Hope you enjoyed it. If KH3 comes out anytime soon, I might consider extending this particular length of thought. As it stands, re:Coded doesn't involve the real Sora, which leaves Dream Drop as the only sequel to KH2 to date. Ending it at the end of KH2 keeps it nice and rounded, but if KH3 is anything like I hope, it'll give me enough to add Dream Drop and KH3 to this headcanon. Fingers crossed, y'all!
As always, criticism is welcomed!