Chapter 1: The First Wish
On the most normal of the weekdays, Fukato Arakawa walked alone towards his school, Magnallum High School, located in Saint Marin, California. His footsteps light, he strut forward in hopes that only his friends would greet him, and strangers would ignore his presence. He had a smile plastered on his face as he also brightly walked. His light orange eyes roughly blended with his sandy blonde hair, which was slightly messy and swept to the side, while the back of his hair reached down to his shoulders. Some would mistaken him as a girl with short hair from afar with his somewhat effeminate features hiding some of his masculinity.
Fukato wore a plain dark gray t-shirt with a short sleeved jacket that was navy blue and black on his slim body. He had khaki shorts to reflect the heat of the day and dark gray sneakers with black socks that rose high on his thighs. He wasn't the type to be flashy, but he still dressed appropriately enough in order to keep a normal profile.
As Fukato reached Magnallum High School, he was greeted by a few classmates he shared classes with. He waved back politely, granting each one that greeted him a smile that lit up the world around him.
No matter what happens, smile. Fukato inwardly chanted. He finally waved the last of his friendly classmates and opened the door to a building that held one of the special classes he was in. The class consisted of a variety of people, from jocks to nerds, white to black, but were separated by the year. With this being his first period, he walked inside looking around to spot his friends in the middle of the large classroom.
"Hey, Fukato!" One of his friends called cheerily. Fukato went over to his group of friends.
"So Manuel wanted to have a small get together at his house before summer vacation, Fukato. You want to go?" Fukato's friend, Yuuta asked.
The short black haired male with piercing blue eyes, Manuel, nodded. "Yeah, I just thought most of us would probably be vacationing with family, so maybe we should hang out one last time before it officially starts," he added on.
The fourth boy of the current group spoke up, raising his hand lazily. "Mhm, let's do it then," his eyes glided between Manuel and Yuuta, awaiting an answer.
Manuel tapped on his chin with his finger and snapped it right after. "How about today? We're going to have finals, so you guys might spend the weekend studying, just like the typical Asians you are. Like you, Sen." Manuel laughed.
Sen, the one who agreed with Manuel and Yuuta groaned at Manuel's joke. "My bad that I study," he hung his head back before looking at Fukato. With the sheer eye contact they made, Fukato instantly understood what he was going to ask.
"A-ah! Yeah I can go," Fukato chuckled under the pressure of Sen. "What about the others?" He asked Manuel.
"I already asked them, and they said they'll come," he replied.
"Hm, okay," Fukato nodded. "Sen, Yuuta, and I need to meet with a teacher after school though. So you and the others go ahead first. We'll catch up." Fukato smiled.
Manuel nodded, acknowledging Fukato. As the first bell rang, they each got into their assigned seats and class began.
Fukato tried his best to pay attention to the lectures about savings in the banks, but the lesson bored his mind. His thoughts took a different course into his imagination. He thought about the sheer adventures he would be able to take if he were out and about within other worlds, just as his favorite video game character from his absolutely adored video franchise, Kingdom Hearts. Oddly enough, he pictured himself as an overpowered hero, even stronger than the character Sora. Fukato lost track of time as he kept delving in deeper into his fantasies.
The bell rang for second period, and almost everyone had already bolted through the door to head to their next class. Sen and Yuuta were waiting at the classroom entrance. Fukato paced to them, muttering a few "sorries" for daydreaming.
"You know… I wonder how you don't pay attention in class, and still pass the tests," Sen asked Fukato, intrigued at his effortless triumphs on the quizzes.
"I just do! Don't worry about it! I just remember things easily when I see them once," Fukato answered.
"It seems to me that you're just too lazy to even try," Yuuta stated. "You may pass the tests, but you don't ace them for sure. You wing them." Fukato frowned, recalling his Cs on his previous few tests. He'd almost receive a D on each of them if it weren't for his amazing luck in guessing.
"I-I still try…!" Fukato cried. Sen shook his head, rejecting Fukato's idea of even trying. Fukato's face saddened, pouting as he lightly punched Sen in the shoulder.
Sen hissed and chuckled, prompting Fukato to take another move. However, he saw what was going to happen and kept to himself. Yuuta continued to walk, almost ignoring the two who seemed to be bickering.
Soon, the trio entered their second period class that they shared together, and sitting near each other too, chemistry. They were sophomores mixed in with a few juniors and other sophomores in the class. As class began, their teacher Ms. Dawn instructed them to get into their seats. The three sat side by side in the center of the classroom which was filled with many posters of chemical reactions, formulas, and the periodic table.
Intently listening to the lecture about how chemicals reacted when heated, Fukato jotted down notes and stared directly towards the board which showed a few chemical mixtures. A sudden flow of immense fatigue hit him hard. He was barely able to keep himself up, before collapsing onto his notebook. Why… do I feel… so tired?
Fukato slowly cracked his eyes open, his vision blurred. He could faintly see a figure clothed in white standing across from him on what looked like fragmented stained glass. He heard a voice speak into his ears.
"What do you wish for? What is it you so desire?" The voice asked. All Fukato could assume was that the voice was coming from the figure he could barely see. He should his head and rubbed his eyes with his arm, attempting to clear his vision. His eyes darted around and back up to the white figure.
What do I desire? What is it that I want? Fukato lowered his head, deep in his thoughts. His answer delayed, silence carrying time by. He looked up at the man with fierce determination. "I want to make my dream game true. I want Kingdom Hearts to be real!" He declared without hesitation.
"Then so be it," a glowing gold paper appeared in front of Fukato with a white feather in his hand. He read the fine text.
"By way of sanctioning for attaining your wish, your very existence shall be recalled as that of a Wishmaker, covenanted towards me, your Wishgranter, Vyros. Shall you one day encounter another, may you strive against them with all your will to live. Shall you conquer your encounters, may you be granted another wish. Whence you've ended your journey, may you be set free with life's answer." Fukato took a breath to understand the entirety of the contract before looking at the last line. "So by sanctioning this covenant, may you begin a new journey to find your one true answer." He lightly brushed the feather against the ephemeral contract, letting the letters of his name appear on it with ease.
As soon as Fukato finished writing, the contract disappeared and he looked up to the man named Vyros, as he came to assume from reading the document. "Let your true journey… begin," Vyros bowed before fading away in light, leaving behind a confused yet speechless Fukato hanging about.
"W-wait!" Fukato called out. But before he could reach out towards where Vyros had disappeared, light also engulfed him.
Fukato opened his eyes, letting light from a nearby window seep into them. His eyes fluttered open as he groaned tirely. Both Sen and Yuuta were quietly mumbling to him.
"Hey, you awake now?" Sen asked. Fukato grumbled a jumbled mess as he slowly sat upwards stretching out his limbs. He yawned.
All Fukato could do was look at Sen. Sen in turn pulled out his phone and showed him the time. It was 9:38 am, which meant that it was almost time for second period to end. Fukato's eyes widened.
"Yeah, you slept through class, you lazy bum," Sen commented snarkily. He grinned as he rested his chin on his hand.
Meanwhile, Yuuta, on the other side of his seat, merely sat and watched. He then decided to get in on the small talk. "Luckily enough, we covered for you by hiding your face the best we could," Yuuta assured Fukato, patting his shoulder.
Fukato pouted. "That doesn't really make me feel better," he replied. He then recalled his dream, wondering if it was all fake. It felt surreal. It was too real to just be a dream. "I wonder what all that was."
"Wonder what what was?" Yuuta inquired. Fukato turned to him, almost looking away as to not answer. But he felt as if he could share it with the two.
"I had a dream…" Fukato started.
"Uh huh?" Sen mockingly listened.
"And there was this guy standing in front of me and he…" Fukato continued, almost wanting to punch Sen in the face knowing where he was going with his reaction.
"And what?" Sen blinked rapidly while nodding with a smirk.
"And he let me make a wish," Fukato clenched his teeth as he controlled himself enough not to slam Sen into the table.
Yuuta nodded. He snapped his finger, knowing exactly what to ask next. "So what did you wish for if this guy gave you this chance?"
Fukato hummed. "I wished… for Kingdom Hearts to be real," he quickly muttered, embarrassed over the wish he had remembered making.
"Eh?" Yuuta and Sen's jaw dropped at the same time. "That's all you wished for? Out of all the things, you wished for that?" The two said in unison.
Fukato dipped his head. He glanced away to avoid the disappointed eyes that both Yuuta and Sen were making. As his luck proved, the bell rang for third period. Fukato grabbed his backpack and bolted through the door, getting ahead of the two, whom were laughing behind. He wanted the day to pass by as quickly as possible.
Oddly to Fukato, it did come to pass sooner than he expected. The last bell rang for dismissal and he exited his sixth class, Spanish 2. While he wasn't great at it, he was particularly keen on learning the language, even if he wasn't adept in speaking it.
Fukato had to meet with Yuuta and Sen again, much to his dismay, to meet with their second period teacher about retaking a couple of tests that they had missed due to a school trip. He managed to find the two quickly and they headed towards their Chemistry class without delaying any further. Despite their constant jokes at him for making such a wish, he was able to ignore it without utterly destroying the two.
Arriving at the class, Ms. Dawn sat the trio down spread out the classroom. She handed them the tests that they needed to take. "You three have the next 20 minutes to finish all 3 tests that you missed. There aren't many problems on them, but do it as quickly as possible." They nodded. Ms. Dawn sat down at her desk, inputting final grades and writing down notes to remind herself of.
Fukato had no problems with the tests, as he found them easy to deal with. The others didn't fare well. Sen was scratching his head trying to remember what he had studied for them. But he couldn't recall any information that would help him. Yuuta casually guessed over half the problems and turned them in. As soon as the three finished, they sprinted out the doors and into the hallways.
"Time to go to Manuel's house!" Fukato announced jolly. Sen and Yuuta followed closely behind, ready to calm the boy.
The three walked blocks just to reach Manuel's house. It took them about 20 minutes before they got there. From outside, it looked quiet. But they knew that they were in the backyard. Manuel's house was large. It was 2 stories tall and had a moderately sized front lawn.
Fukato approached the fence. Seeing as it was locked, he got out his phone to call Manuel. "Manuel?" He said.
On the other side, Manuel answered. "Oh? Are you here?"
"Mhm! We're here," Fukato replied. Sen and Yuuta inched closer to Fukato.
"Yeah, we're here, so come out here and get us!" Sen yelled.
"Yeah yeah, I'm on my way," Manuel muttered, slightly annoyed. "Jeez, just wait up a bit, will you?"
"Hai," Sen returned to his aloof state and Yuuta went back to texting. Fukato hung up on the call and looked around.
Something caught his eyes — something that wasn't right. It was the fact that there was a dark portal like thing in front of them. Yuuta and Sen yelped in surprise as they just noticed it appearing from nowhere.
"W-what is that?" Sen questioned.
"Isn't that-?" Yuuta began to ask.
"A corridor of darkness…," Fukato finished. He peered inside it, seeing nothing but black. It was sickening seeing so much of the dark color inside swirling out. While feeling it was better not to approach the portal, Fukato felt compelled to step forward to see if it was real. Sen and Yuuta freaked out.
"H-hey! Why're you getting closer to it?!" Yuuta screamed.
"Yeah, Fukato! Can't we just… you know… not go near it?!" Sen added.
"I'm just curious!" Fukato shouted. Suddenly, a hand cloaked in white reached out from within grabbing ahold of Fukato's wrist. It pulled him in swiftly.
"Fukato!" Both Sen and Yuuta managed to grip onto his other arm. But the strength the one arm held was too mighty for the three to resist altogether, so they were pulled in too.
"Wahhhhhh!" The trio screamed.
Fukato awoke to sounds of light flickering on. He opened his eyes warily looking around, seeing a familiar setting he's seen far too many times. Seeing his two friends on the ground with him, he shook the two awake.
"Hey! Wake up!" Fukato panicked.
"Ungh…" Sen rubbed his head in pain. Yuuta gripped his shoulder and got up to his knees. They looked around, taking in the view. With the neon sign "Accessory Shop", a board with "Item Shop" and a large set of doors to the right boarded up with a couple of long wooden planks, they had a good feeling on where they were.
"Are we…?" Yuuta asked, concerned on their position.
Hokuro nodded, affirming every suspicion the group had. They were in Traverse Town.