The dream was always the same. There was a girl standing in the middle of a dried up land surrounded by abandoned Keyblades. She wore a hood so I couldn't see her face but I could tell she had long black hair. She gripped a keyblade in her hand, one I was familiar with but couldn't place while in this unconscious state. She was looking down at the ground beneath her feet and didn't move, not even slightly.
"You've come," Was the first thing she always said to me. I would hesitate to respond, as if unsure of what to say but finally I would speak.
"Where are we?" I always asked her. For the longest time, it was silent.
"The Keyblade graveyard," She would tell me. There was never any emotion in her voice.
"Who are you?" I'd ask. Finally, she turned and looked over at me but I still was unable to see her face, the hood and darkness together hiding it from me.
"My name is Nashira. Who are you?" The question always caught me off guard. Not because I thought she should know, having called me or because it should've been obvious. What caught me off guard was that I didn't know. Not even a nagging feeling in the back of my head that told me I did have one, it had just escaped me at the moment. There was emptiness that I couldn't understand.
"I don't know," I said slowly. "Do you know who I am?" I questioned. She shook her head. She walked towards me until she stood only a foot away. She lifted a gloved hand and pointed a finger right at my heart. "Is...My heart missing?" I asked. She shook her head.
"No, not your heart. Your soul. It has been shattered." She informed me.
"Shattered," I mimicked and looked down at my hands, and clenched them.
"Yes," She continued and lowered her hand to her side. "Shattered and then reformed into seven pieces and before we could reform your soul back together, they disappeared." She told me. I looked up at the hooded face.
"What...shattered my soul?" I asked quietly.
"Darkness. Darkness shattered your soul."
And then, the dream would end with me being swallowed into a hole of darkness. People often fear what hides in the darkness, but I know. I know what is in the darkness and it is nothing. No creatures, no watching eyes, no frightening sounds. Simply, nothing. Somehow, that was worse.
I was lost in the darkness with no chance of escape.
Until, I saw a light. It called out too me and suddenly I was no longer swallowed in darkness, but in light. And for the first time two years, I opened my eyes.
"Nuraya," There was a voice, calling out. Who was calling out too? Was it calling too me? Or, was it calling for someone else? "Nuraya!" The voice continued. I covered my eyes, hiding from the blinding light engulfing me. The voice was getting insistent now and I was positive it was calling for me. I slowly removed my arm from my eyes and blinked them open.
It was difficult at first to adjust. So much so that my eyes burned. I snapped my eyes shut, blocking out the pain. "You're finally awake," A voice spoke, a tone of relief in their voice. I didn't speak for the longest moment, trying to get a good feel of my surroundings despite being blind.
"Who are you?" I finally called out, tired of trying my already tired mind with useless efforts to distinguish where I was.
"My name is Merlin. You've slept for a long time, Nuraya." He spoke and I groaned as I moved my hand over my forehead, the full effects of waking up for the first time in who knows how long finally taking effect after his words.
"Nuri," I corrected him after a moment.
"You remember?" He asked, sounding surprised. I shook my head, trying and failing once more to open my eyes.
"Only that I like to be called Nuri," I informed him. There was silence and then shuffling about the area.
"I see. Well then, can you open your eyes Nuri?" He asked gently and I shook my head, hair tickling my face.
"No, the light burns." I answered, moving my hand from my forehead back over to my eyes, cutting off the light and giving my frying eyes some solace.
"Here," Merlin said and I felt him move my hand and place something over my eyes. I blinked my eyes open and took in my surroundings. Whatever he had put over my eyes had dimmed the effects of the light so that I could actually see. I was in a rounded room with things cluttered around all over the furniture. I looked at Merlin, an old man in all blue with a long white beard. He smiled kindly at me. "Is that better?" He asked gently and I nodded.
"Where am I?" I asked, wobbly getting to my feet but managing to stand up on my own. How long had I been asleep?
"Relax, you're safe. You're in my house right outside of Traverse town. Imagine my surprise when I see you lying on the floor, still sleeping soundly and coming seemingly out of nowhere." He chortled. I nodded but it didn't sink in. How long was I asleep? I finally echoed the question flopping around in my head.
"How long was I asleep?" I murmured and his smile dropped, suddenly becoming nervous.
"Well, Nuraya-Nuri, you were asleep for about two years," He informed me and my eyes flew wide open.
"What? No, no way, there's no way a person can sleep for two years." I responded, disbelief evident in my voice. He shook his head.
"Well, you weren't so much sleeping as you were…comatose. In the Darkness. No one knew where you were, only that you were unconscious and somewhere you wouldn't be hurt." He told me and I shook my head, unsure.
"It doesn't make sense to me." I grumbled and he pat my shoulder, giving me a sympathetic look.
"Don't worry yourself sick, Nuri. You have plenty of time to make sense of everything. Now, why don't we go see the others? I'm sure they'll be surprised to see you," He told me and I scrunched my eyebrows up but allowed him to lead me out of the hut anyway.
"Others?" I echoed and he nodded.
"You don't remember but you have many friends here, Nuri. Come." He said gently and helped me across the water. He walked with me through the city, helping me stay standing as I was still wobbly. Finally we got to the First district as It's called and when I looked beside me, Merlin was gone. I pursed my lips. How did he do that?
"N-Nuri?" A voice sputtered out beside me and I whipped my head in the direction of the shops. A girl with short black hair in a pixie cut, in all black, with big kind eyes stared at me in what appeared to be shock. I was unsure of what to do expect stare. She took another step towards me. "It's really you," She said in awe, and stopped right in front of me. She reached out to touch me and I pulled back, giving her a cautious glance.
"Who are you?" I spoke and she stopped her hand mid-air.
"You…you don't know?" She asked and I shook my head slowly.
"Not a clue," I answered, analyzing this girl. She was built with muscle and could take me in a fight easily. But her kindness and casualty with me makes me think we were friends.
"Nuri!" More voices called and I looked up, a group of people running down the stairs to greet me, Merlin standing next to one in particular-a man with brown hair and a sword. I narrowed my eyes at Merlin accusingly.
"You ditched me," I said and he laughed sheepishly.
"Sorry, Nuraya-Nuri, I went to get your friends." He responded. I kept his eyes for a few moments longer before flickering them to the newcomers. A girl with long brown hair tied and wearing a pink dress, a buff guy with blond hair and a toothpick between his lips and a girl who seemed extremely familiar to me. She had jet black hair that fell to her waist and wore all black and similar to the girl who I first met, she had kind but mischievous eyes.
"You're awake," She spoke softly and approached me. I took a step back. I don't care what that wizard in blue told me, I didn't know these people. How could I be sure they were friends? She stopped walking towards me and looked back at the others. They all exchanged unsure glances.
"Her memories are gone," Merlin murmured. Once again, several looks were shared. I crossed my arms in a somewhat defensive position. The girl with the long black hair walked towards me until she stood right in front of me. I didn't move but I was getting jittery. If she took another step closer, I'd run.
"My name is Tifa. I've known you for a long time, Nuri. I know you don't remember anything, but I can help you." She said gently, as if she were talking a wounded animal. I gave her a skeptical look.
"How can I trust you?" I asked lowly.
"You can't," She said evenly and extended her hand. "I've got no proof to give you any reason to trust me. You're just going to have to make a gamble, Nuri." She told me calmly. I bit my lip, thinking it over. I didn't know these people, however I did feel a spark of familiarity with this girl, Tifa. I believe I know her. Finally, I placed my hand in hers uncertainly. She smiled reassuringly and then turned to the others. "Aerith, Yuffie, can you help me?" Tifa asked and the short black-haired girl nodded, grinning and the girl in the pink dress smiled, coming towards us.
"What do you need me to do?" The girl in pink asked calmly.
"Go back with Merlin and have Fairy godmother make some new clothes for Nuri, she has been in these for two years," I looked down at my attire. I was in a short and revealing white dress that though probably worked two years ago, was by no means appropriate now. And the white flats I wore were worn and dirty as well. New clothes was probably a good idea.
"Alright," Pink girl said and turned and headed off.
"What should I do?" Yuffie asked eagerly.
"Could you and Leon get a letter to King Mickey or Yen Sid and tell them that Nuri has woken up? I'm sure they'll be glad." Tifa instructed. I didn't know how I felt about her telling other people about me, but I figured she didn't really need any backup considering how tight her grip was unintentionally. The girl, Yuffie I presumed, nodded and headed off in the opposite of the girl I now realized was named Aerith, the guy with brown hair following after her at a much slower pace.
Tifa turned to me and smiled. "I think first you need to clean up and have something to eat and then we'll talk about everything alright?" She said. I didn't know what else to do besides nod so I did just that and allowed her to lead me into the second district and into a brightly lit hotel. We walked into one room and she opened the bathroom door and started running bath water. She returned to the main room and handed me a simple white towel.
"Here, take as long as you want. Aerith will return with some clothes for you soon." She said warmly. I nodded robotically and headed into the bathroom and closed the door behind me and locked it. After a few seconds, I reluctantly decided to do as she encouraged and set down the bath towel on the counter and pulled off the worn old white clothes and let them fall to the ground. I stepped out of my flats and into the steaming hot water. It was nice against my chilled skin and I let myself lay back in the water and let out a sigh of contentment.
There were soap bottles all around the sides of the bath and with a little deliberation (poisons were everywhere) I decided to use them. I shampooed and conditioned my long, ratty blonde locks and then washed it out, my hair floating around me. I washed my body with strawberry smelling soap and then got out of the tub and wrapped the towel around my body. There was a knock at the door.
"It's Tifa!" Tifa called and I walked to the door and opened it. She held out a bag too me and smiled. "Aerith got you some new clothes! Go ahead and put them on." She told me and then closed the door. I locked the door once more and put on the clothes.
The clothes are completely white. My shirt is longer on the right side, curving up a little and showing a little skin on the left side. In addition, little bows are seen on the straps and the right side, attaching to my skirt. I am wearing a short pair of white shorts under my skirt. There is also wears a frilly white garter. Over these, there's a longer, frilly skirt, cut diagonally down to the left, which only reaches my knee at its lowest point. The frilly skirt isn't completely connected and uses the shirt's right bow to keep themselves attached. I put on the shoes, white heeled boots that I walked surprisingly well in.
I stepped out into the main room where all three girls stood, conversing and they all turned to look at me at the same time. Yuffie clapped and Aerith and Tifa smiled. Aerith stepped forward. "I hope you don't mind they're all white, it's kind of always been your color." She told me apologetically and I shook my head.
"No, it's fine. It seems…right." I answered her. They exchanged looks once more. That was going to get old really quick. Yuffie suddenly held out a bag and with closer inspection it held food. A burger, fries, and she handed me a drink as well. My stomach grumbled suddenly and I paid no heed to their laughing as I dug in. Who knew sleeping for two years could make you so hungry. I ate everything, to the last French fry. I finished off the soda and turned to the others. They were watching in awe.
"I've never seen you eat so much," Yuffie commented, her mouth hanging open. Aerith giggled.
"Well I guess two years without food can make you hungry," Tifa smiled.
"I'm sorry Nuri, but I have to go," She said softly. My eyes widened in surprise and I gripped her hand. She was the only person here who I had even an inch of some flicker of familiarity with. She could just leave so quickly. She sighed. "I have to find someone, Nuri. I only came to stop by after I heard he'd been here but he's already left and I have to keep looking for him. He needs me. You can trust Aerith and Yuffie. I promise." She told me carefully but I tugged her hand tighter, glaring at her.
"I don't know them." I said flatly.
"You don't know me either," She reminded me and I loosened my grip on her hand ever so slightly.
"I don't," I agreed reluctantly and then looked up and met her rust colored eyes. "But…I know that I know you." I told her and she ruffled my hair.
"Trust me, Nuri. You can trust them. They're your friends, you just don't remember them yet." She told me and then stood up and gave Aerith and Yuffie a nod as a goodbye.
"Be safe, Tifa." Aerith said calmly and Tifa nodded once more and then took off.
"She promised to tell me what was going on," I muttered, looking down at my pale hands. Yuffie extended her to hand to me and smiled.
"I'll explain, if you want." She told me and I nodded hesitantly. She took my hand and led me out of the hotel, taking me on a tour of the city and then we sat down in the first district and she started to explain.
"From what I know of your earlier past before Traverse Town, you were born on an unknown world but ended up on Destiny Islands where you grew up with your friends Riku, Sora, and your sister Kairi. Well, from what you said none of us really know if she's your sister or not, but you told us you two washed up on the shore together holding hands so everyone assumed. Your adoptive father was the mayor." She told me.
"Sora. Riku…Kairi," I murmured.
"Do you remember them?" She asked and I shook my head.
"No, but…like Tifa, they sound familiar." I answered. She nodded and went on.
"Your friend, Riku, always wanted to know what was out there past the island you all lived on. You told me you were never really all that interested in false fantasies but always played along with the others plans. However when you turned ten, these beings called heartless appeared on Destiny Islands through a door. You tried to protect your friends but found you could do nothing. Then, an object called a keyblade materialized in your hand and you were able to fight the heartless. Then a man named Yen Sid told you the heartless had come because of you and told you that you would have to leave to protect your island. So, you left and you came here to Traverse town.
"You lived here for four years and trained to become a keyblade master. However two years ago…two years ago you had a…accident." She said carefully. My eyebrows knit together in confusion.
"What kind of accident?" I asked curiously and she bit her lip.
"Merlin said we shouldn't tell." She said unsurely and I scowled.
"I have a right to know," I hissed. She sighed.
"Your soul shattered," She whispered.
"W-what?" I asked in surprise and she turned and looked at me.
"Your soul shattered Nuri, into eight pieces to be exact. Then, the eight pieces disappeared and you were covered in darkness and you were comatose. Your body disappeared in the darkness and we didn't see you for two years until today when you just randomly showed up at Merlin's." She said with a laugh but she sounded worried.
"What…does it mean now that I'm awake?" I asked slowly and she shrugged and looked up at the stars.
"None of us know. Maybe you gained a piece of your soul back." She told me and I nodded.
"So um…how did my soul shatter?" I asked.
"We don't know that either. None of us saw what happened. We only saw the eight fragments disappear and you lying on the ground comatose and then disappearing in darkness." She said with a shrug.
"But…why my soul? Why not like my brain or my heart?" I asked and she giggled and smiled at me and shook her head.
"Well I don't think your brain would look like a broken stained glass mirror and your heart doesn't look like that." She answered.
"How do you know?" I asked curiously. She grinned, like she'd been waiting for me to ask that question.
"Allow me to explain the ways of the universe to you."
What did I just ask for?
Hello! I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of Shattered. Now I need to inform you of a few things. One, Nuraya or Nuri, looks almost exactly like Namine with only a few slight differences. I can't tell you why because it'd give way too much away but just know she does. The few differences are she looks a bit more mature in the face and her hair is a couple of shades lighter and way longer. Second thing is, I have an obsession with Dead Fantasy now and I love Namine's costume in Dead Fantasy six so Nuri's costume is that. Her keyblade is a surprise though.
Thirdly, Nuri and Nashira are the only OC's that I will be putting into this. Why, you may ask? Because Kingdom Hearts already has so many characters it makes my head spin. I'm going to try to fit Nuri into the story in a way though that she actually seems to have a point and I have a plan but I want to know how you think I'm doing along the way. At this point I don't really expect too much on Nuri cause the entire chapter she was completely out of it and stunned but I'd love to hear theories, constructive criticism, anything! Thanks for reading!
Note: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I wish I did, but I sadly do not. I only own Nuri and Nashira and their plot in the Kingdom hearts world.