The shadows rose from below, consuming the entire floor. Was it a floor? I wasn't even sure. The ceramic artwork inlaid on it took my thoughts to the answer 'no'. There was a silhouette of a woman in the very middle which was surrounded by white feathers and a glowing blue light. Parts of a strange symbol could be spotted behind her figure. The 'floor' was large and circular and it stood like a pillar in a never ending darkness. A darkness that was spreading over what I was standing on.

I heard a small sound of fear escape my lips as I watched the darkness grow and grow. Taking a few steps back, I came to the edge of the circle. Panicking, I tried to decide what to do. My choices: Let the shadow claim me as well as the floor of art, or jump.

"No…Sora!" I shut my eyes as my feet gave way and I fell into oblivion.

I shot up, hitting my head into the tree branch above me. Groaning, I put a hand to my forehead, feeling the already growing lump. I used the bent tree trunk to get to my feet, my head pounding where I had hit it. I closed my eyes when the breeze hit my face and my hair moved with it. The smell of the sea soon followed, eliminating the last fragments of my nightmare. All that remained was the pain.

"Leora!"

My eyes snapped open and I looked around. Kairi was running across the bridge to meet me. The tips of her bright red hair danced around her face as she ran.

"Oh, hey Kairi," I greeted, leaning against the branch to look like nothing was wrong.

"Hi." She stopped to catch her breath. "What are you doing out here by yourself?"

I shrugged. "Just thinking. Once the raft is finished, we'll be leaving our home. There's a lot to consider, you know?"

She nodded in understanding. "Speaking of that, we're going to start building the raft soon. Do you know where Sora is? Riku's starting to get mad."

I thought for a moment. "The last time I saw him, he was sitting on the beach," was my answer.

"Oh! I should've guessed it. How about we go get his lazy butt so we can help Riku?"

I shrugged for the second time. "Sure. I have nothing better to do." I pushed myself into motion, ignoring my head 'ache'.

Together we walked down to the beach in silence. Sure, Kairi and I were friends, but lately it seemed like we were growing further and further apart. We rarely had anything in common anymore. In fact, she could usually be found chatting and giggling with Selphie, another friend of ours, while I enjoyed the company of Riku and Sora.

As we approached the beach, we found Sora lying near the water. He was apparently sleeping, but when we got a bit closer, he bolted up. Momentarily reminding me of the same thing I did just moments ago, Sora laid back down. I stood where I was as Kairi made her way to stand over the boy and look down at him.

"Whoa!" he exclaimed, sitting up again. Kairi giggled when Sora spoke again. "Gimme a break, Kairi." He flipped onto his hands and knees to look at her.

"Sora, you lazy bum, I knew that I'd find you snoozing down here."

I scoffed quietly at Kairi's words. She had no clue Sora was sleeping on the beach until I told her.

"No! This huge black THING swallowed me up! I couldn't breathe, I couldn't – OW!" Sora put a hand to his head.

My eyes widened slightly. Could it be that Sora and I had the same dream?

"So, this is where you three disappeared to."

I turned, watching Riku walk over with a log hoisted on his shoulder. I smiled and shrugged. "You don't expect us to work all day, do you?"

"Hm, if you guys worked at all, I'd fall for that excuse." He smiled despite his words.

"Whoops," was my only response.

"Leora…from the moment you got here, I started thinking about the different places out there. This raft…" He stopped, seemingly at a loss of words.

"Gosh, Riku, I'm really sorry. I didn't know this meant so much to you. I'll do whatever you need me to do." I nodded once, as if that proved my point.

Riku smiled again. "Thanks Leora."

Kairi's words broke into our silence even though she was still chatting with Sora. "But you know…I wouldn't mind going to see it," she said, turning to face Sora, who was still sitting in the sand.

"I'd like to see it too. Along with any other worlds out there. I want to see 'em all!" the brunette boy replied.

Other worlds? I thought. How many could there be? I scanned the horizon as if searching for some sign of another world existing. Except for our small town across the waters, nothing was in sight.

"So what're we waiting for?" Kairi asked in excitement, pulling me from my reverie.

"Hey!" Riku finally made his presence known. "Aren't you guys forgetting about us?" He approached the two of them and I followed. "So, I guess I'm the only one working on the raft," he mentioned, tossing the log at Sora, who failed at the catch and fell over.

I chuckled lightly, watching Sora struggle with the piece of wood. To be honest, I adored Sora. Even in his most dimwitted times. I felt a strong connection with him, but was always too embarrassed to admit it to anyone. It was my little secret…

Riku rounded on Kairi. "And you are just as lazy as he is!"

She giggled. "So you noticed. Okay we'll finish it together. Let's race there!"

"Huh?" Sora questioned, rolling the log away from him with one hand while still remaining on his butt.

"What, are you kidding?" Riku asked, slumping down next to Sora.

Kairi smiled. "Ready? Go!"

Both boys shot up at the same time and started the race. Despite their exhaustion and the hot sun, neither one of them could refuse a chance at dominance. I watched with a small smile, and then followed.