Author's Note: This is my answer to ninja.butterfliie's contest, and my frustration with the lack of worthy fanfiction in the Kingdom Hearts sub fanfic-dom. I started reading Avatar: The Last Airbender fics because there was absolutely nothing worth reading.

You want to know what's worth reading? Check my LJ.

Think on it.

This is a 5-part story, just like Eyes On Me. This is also a contest entry and within canon.

Copyrights: Characters and main storyline are the copyright of Square-Enix and Disney. This within-canon storyline is mine.

XXX

What's Left of Me
«1 – The Things That Started in the Past»

"Naminé? Naminé…? What's happening to me?"
"Who are you? And that's not my name. I'm Kairi."
"Kairi…I know you. You're that girl he likes."
"Who? Please, a name!"
"I'm Roxas."
"Okay, Roxas, but can you tell me HIS name?"
"You don't remember my name? Thanks a lot, Kairi!"
"…"
"O-kay, I guess I can give you a hint. Starts with an 'S'!"

XXX

"Who are you? And that's not my name. I'm Kairi."

"Kairi…I know you. You're that girl he likes."

"Who? Please, a name!"

"I'm Roxas."

Roxas. Roxas…who the heck is Roxas? I've never heard of him before, and I don't think I've ever met him. How does he know me? How does he know who I am? How does he know him? How does he know who Sora is? This…this makes no sense…

Kairi blew a hot jet of air out of her mouth, blowing her bangs up and out of her eyes. She tapped her pencil on the paper packet, glaring at it but not reading it. The teacher at the head of the class was lecturing as she paced back and forth in front of the white board; the floor creaked with every other step. Teenagers were fidgeting in their seats, tapping their pencils like she was or doodling in the margins of the handout. Tidus was dozing, his head falling forward and jerking back up every few seconds.

"…impressions are more powerful than ideas, because impressions are what's immediately felt first…"

No one could understand this new school curriculum. Since when did anyone need philosophy?

"…simple ideas come from thinking through impressions; complex ideas are a combination. That's how people come up with the idea of mermaids…"

She sighed and rested her head on her hand; she could feel the pressure on her elbow but ignored it. Pain was a welcome distraction from Miss Trepe, the new young blonde teacher who was currently the object of affection of at least half the boys in the class. She turned her head slightly to see Wakka gaping at the teacher; last time she checked, he held that same posture thirty minutes ago at the beginning of class.

"…impressions are more powerful than ideas. They're the first experiences people have; they're the most vivid, the most forceful, and impress themselves on the mind much stronger than ideas…"

Kairi…I know who you are. You're that girl he likes.

I'm Roxas.

She could've asked him to clarify himself, instead of demanding if he knew Sora's name. Not just any person would know who she was, and how she was connected to Sora. Why didn't she ask him?

But I wanted to know that boy's name. Selphie thought I was making him up. But I wasn't. And Roxas proved it. Sora's real. But who's Roxas? How'd he know? I don't understand; I've never met anyone named Roxas but he knows me. He knows me.

"…how we perceive the properties, inherent characteristics, of objects around us, as well as the external world. Always our impressions come before our ideas of the impressions…"

Roxas…who are you? I've been wondering. I can't keep you out of my mind. How did you contact me? We're complete strangers, and you weren't even looking for me. You were looking for someone else…but you found me. And you knew me. You knew me and Sora. But how?

"…impressions. The desk you sit at may be beige, but when one turns off the lights, that beige color disappears. So is that property of the object inherent? Can you really…"

Why am I even thinking about this? I don't know you. You…it's Sora. You led me to Sora, at least. I can thank you for that. What's wrong with me? I don't know you, and I can't stop thinking about you. It's Sora. I should be thinking about Sora. Sora and Riku. I should be thinking about them. But I want to know…how you knew us. Do you know Riku, too? No, no, I shouldn't. I'm not even talking to you. I'm talking to myself. What's wrong with me? What the heck is wrong with me-

"…Miss Kairi? Miss Kairi!"

Kairi jumped and turned to Miss Trepe, who was adjusting her glasses as she approached her seat. Kairi looked around quickly and saw that all the students in the classroom were staring at her.

"Y-yes, Miss Trepe?"

The teacher stood at her desk and bent over, leaning against her desk with one hand as she went face to face with Kairi. "Are you feeling all right?"

"Y-yes. Why?"

"You were slapping yourself, Miss Kairi. Is there something bothering you, something that obviously demands more attention than class?"

"I-I-I…"

Her face burned as Kairi tried to look away. It was hard to avoid the glare, though, and Kairi took a deep breath and said, "No, I'm sorry. I was…yes, I'm sorry. I was trying to…stay awake…"

Somewhere across the room a student snorted and a handful of teenage girls giggled. Kairi slumped in her chair, wishing she could sink through the floor and hide from shame.

"All right then. I expect more positive and mature behavior from you, Miss Kairi. And turn to page 5; I've read page 1 twenty minutes ago."

Humiliation stacked on humiliation. Meekly, she turned the pages and folded the stapled corner. She stared at the black letters on the cheap school paper, trying to make sense of "impressions", "ideas", "properties", "external world", and the like but she felt lost. She had no idea how any of them connected or what half of them even meant. She sighed and bowed her head as Miss Trepe returned to the front of the classroom.

"Now, Bishop Berkeley did not believe in the material world…"

XXX

It wasn't supposed to happen but it did. They lived in two different dimensions; his was artificial, built on data taken from the real world, the real universe where she lived. He was a bundle of 0's and 1's and a mere memory in the real universe. She was a real physical being who lived amongst other real physical beings. Somehow, in some way, the impermeable barrier between the two realities was breached, and he was able to contact her. Their minds touched.

"Who are you? And that's not my name. I'm Kairi."

He was trying to reach Naminé, but it wasn't her who answered. It was somebody else.

"Kairi…I know you. You're that girl he likes."

Sora's girl. Somehow he reached out to her.

Kairi. You're that girl he likes. You're Sora's girl.

The tram jumped as it rolled over the rails and his mind jolted, the train of thought broken. He looked up, his eyes focusing on the sunset shining through the tram's windows. He wondered if it was the last sunset he'd ever see.

Sora…you're lucky, you know that? My days…they're numbered.

Maybe…maybe if he gave some thought, he'd make something of his last days. He knew there was something more he wanted, something he wanted to do before he disappeared from reality forever. He wanted someone to remember him.

Axel. I've got to find Axel.

XXX

"So you're okay now, right? Kairi? Kairi, are you okay now?"

She smiled gently, hefting the book bag on her shoulder to ease the strain on a pressure point. "I'm fine, Selphie. I'm all right. I guess…I guess I was just…thinking too hard during class."

"What were you thinking about?" the younger girl asked curiously. "Wakka told me you were sitting there staring at the desk, slapping both sides of your face like this."

She patted her cheeks, making little slapping sounds. Kairi giggled as Selphie hit herself a bit too hard and squealed in pain.

"Was I really making that much noise? I didn't know," she said lightly.

"He said Miss Trepe was really mad."

"I can't blame her."

"So, what were you thinking about? Tidus said you were in a complete daze when you were doing that."

"I was thinking about…"

She let her voice die as Kairi started thinking. What was she thinking about? Her eyes fell to the sidewalk as she recollected her thoughts but instead her mind wandered and she heard her black shoes grating the sand into the concrete. Somewhere the waves were crashing on the beach and her mind briefly flew there.

"…Kairi?"

"What? Oh, I'm sorry, Selphie. I guess…I guess I was thinking about…him."

"Sora?"

Kairi nodded slowly but she knew she wasn't thinking about him. She had been thinking about that other boy, the one who said he was Roxas. She was wondering how he knew her.

"You really like Sora, don't you?"

"…yes. Yes, I think I do."

Kairi was sure of her feelings, but curiosity was pulling her away from Sora. Curiosity wanted her to know who Roxas was.

Who are you, Roxas? Can you hear me? Can you answer me? Who are you? I…I think I want to meet you. Can we meet? Can we have a face-to-face? Can you tell me more about Sora? Can you tell me where he is? Can you-

The world rolled under her feet and Kairi stumbled, her book bag sliding off her shoulder. Books, papers, and her pencil bag spilled out on the sidewalk and Selphie quickly bent over to pick them up.

Kairi was immobilized, though. She stared down at the mess at her feet and her friend shuffling the workbooks and papers together. Her knees locked together and her hands were tingling.

What was that?

She suddenly staggered and her head spun. She grabbed onto one of the lampposts lining the street and held onto it tightly, waiting for the dizziness to pass.

"Kairi? Kairi, are you okay? You want me to go call for help? Kairi? Kairi! Oh my god! Stay right here; I'll go get help!"

She sank to the ground, hugging the lamppost tightly, begging for her mind to stop spinning. Her heart pounded and her stomach roiled violently; she closed her eyes tightly, curling into a little ball and hoping the wave of nausea would pass.

For the briefest of moments, Kairi felt it. In the midst of the pain she felt it brush her mind. A sense of presence stole through her, a familiar thing, and she immediately reached out for it. Then it was gone and she gasped as she went flying into pain again.

"…Kairi! Kairi!"

Selphie was running back. She could hear others running with her.

"What-what the heck just happened?"

"Oh man, oh man…"

She opened her eyes slowly, saw Selphie kneeling down next to her while Tidus gathered her things and shoved them back into her book bag. Then Wakka was at her side, helping her to her feet. She grabbed onto her friend, and Selphie pressed against her from the other side to help her stay standing.

"Kairi, man, what happened? Did it have anything to do with what happened back in school-"

"Wakka, just shut up."

"I was just asking. She could've been hurting during school, ya, and never said anything."

"Well she would've told me-"

"Just shut up, you two. Let's get her home."

Kairi sighed, sagged against them as she took a weary step forward, then another step. Her head was pounding mercilessly and she couldn't focus on what else they were saying.

The presence was back. Kairi took in a sharp breath and grabbed for it. Then it was gone, but it left behind something, an impression. It was telling her something.

I'm coming.

XXX

Author's Endnote: I hope this starts off a lovely contest entry. I worked on this story for over a month and I hope it's worth all that time I could've put into other more important things, like school, college, and Gravity of Love.