Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is property of Square Enix. I do not own anything.

Heart to Heart

It was well past midnight on Destiny Islands, but Riku was still awake, sitting on the twisted tree and staring out at the dark ocean. Past the vast waters he could see a future that could have been—innocent faces swam in his mind, faces of excited children building a raft in order to explore the world beyond.

Well, they explored the world, all right. Just not in the way any of them expected.

"You're out late," a familiar voice cut into his musings.

Riku turned slightly to see Sora hopping onto the tree beside him. "Look who's talking. What are you doing up?"

"Just felt like getting out, I guess," Sora said with a little shrug.

Riku frowned and studied his friend's face a little closer. Sure, he looked like Sora and sounded like Sora, but the person sitting beside him was a little… off. Riku noticed Sora's eyes were glazed over, as if he were not quite there.

"You're not Sora, are you." It wasn't a question.

Not-Sora smirked a little. "Geez, I'm that obvious?"

"Yes," Riku replied with no hesitation. He turned to the water again. "You may have been his Nobody, but you and Sora aren't the same person… Roxas."

"Well, I know that," Roxas replied amusedly. "But you and… and Naminé might be the only other people I know who realize it."

"Other than Sora?" Riku asked quietly.

"…other than Sora," he agreed.

As they lapsed into silence, Riku thought about the fact that Roxas—who had melded with Sora—had apparently retained his full self within Sora's subconscious and was now taking advantage of Sora's sleeping state to control his body. To Roxas, it was just the normal control of his own body—to Sora, it was basically just sleepwalking and sleeptalking.

It was an altogether unsettling thought. After all, who knew what Roxas got Sora to do at night without his friend's consent or control?

"So," Roxas said suddenly. "Is your face always so… angry-looking?"

Riku blinked at the non sequitur. "…what?"

Shrugging, Roxas said, "Well, every time I see you you're always like this," here he tried to imitate Riku's expression by drawing his brows together and frowning, but they didn't quite achieve their intended effect and he ended up with a sulky, pouty expression instead.

Quirking a brow, Riku replied, "I have never looked like that and I never will look like that. Ever."

Sora's—Roxas's —face took on an annoyed expression and he waved his right hand in a gesture of dismissal. "You know what I'm talking about."

"Hm," Riku hummed noncommittally. "You know what Sora knows, right? So you should know the answer to that."

Roxas paused. "That sounds a lot like you're avoiding the question."

"Says the one avoiding mine?"

"No, I'm just—" he paused a moment and realized that yes, he was avoiding Riku's statement, and instead said, "I asked you first, alright?"

Riku smirked. "What are you, five?"

"Uh, technically I'm three," Roxas mused.

Riku was actually very tempted to snort, but checked himself at the last moment. "Technically you're part of Sora. And Sora happens to be sixteen."

"I thought you said we weren't the same person?"

Shooting Roxas an are-you-trying-to-be-difficult look, Riku answered, "Mentally, you're not. However, right now, physically, you are."

"So you're saying I'm three in mental years."

"No, I'm saying you're sixteen, mentally and physically."

"So then me and Sora are the same person?"

Riku groaned and ran his hand through his hair. "No. You two share the same sixteen-year-old body and the same sixteen-year-old mind, but you have your own separate personalities. Your personality defines you. It's what makes you different from Sora."

"Yeah, but otherwise, we're the same," Roxas said it in a factual way, but Riku could detect a tinge of bitterness in his tone. There was silence, then, "Is this supposed to happen?"

"Is what?" Riku asked, sliding off the tree to sit on the sand. He scooted forward a bit to dangle his legs over the ledge.

Roxas followed him. "This whole… me thing. The fact that I'm still awake inside Sora."

After a brief moment of consideration, Riku finally said, "I don't think there really is a way for us to find and answer to that. As far as we know, only you and Naminé have reunited with your original selves."

"Do you think Naminé has been able to control Kairi before?" Roxas asked, the other girl's name slipping off his tongue with an ease that belonged to Sora.

"Maybe she has, maybe she hasn't. We wouldn't know unless we came across her," Riku pointed out. "After all, if you hadn't come here tonight, I would never have known that you run around doing Mickey-knows-what with Sora's body at night."

"That's true," Roxas frowned.

"And even if we were to discover that Naminé can't do what you can," Riku continued, "we still wouldn't know which of you is the normal one."

Roxas stared at him for a moment. "Um, are you just laying out facts here or are you trying to make me feel better? I can't really tell with you."

Riku returned the stare with another of his smirks. "Take it how you will."

"Thanks," Roxas returned sarcastically.

"Anytime."

"I'm just going to assume you were trying to be a nice guy and cheer me up, then," Roxas said. "So I'll tell you a secret as thanks."

Riku immediately looked wary. "What kind of secret?"

"Nothing dark and disturbing," Roxas flapped his hand at Riku. "I'll tell you one of Sora's secrets."

Riku really wasn't sure to think about that. Wasn't it an invasion of privacy or something? Because, technically, they were the same person; but at the same time, they weren't.

"Are those really your secrets to tell?" he asked carefully.

Roxas thought about it—or, at least, pretended to. "Yeah."

"…"

"Same body and thoughts and all," Roxas explained. "His thoughts are my thoughts, so his secrets become my secrets. Theoretically."

"…I think that's what we call 'twisted logic,'" Riku said wryly.

"Logic, schmogic. Do you want to hear the secret or not?"

"Not."

Riku learned two things in the next ten seconds. One, Roxas was a fast learner of the Sora Evil Pouty Puppy Face. And two, that he—Riku—could never say no to that stupid Sora Evil Pouty Puppy Face even when everything in his body was urging him to run screaming for the hills.

"Fine," he finally gritted out, "you can tell your stupid secret."

With a triumphant smile, Roxas revealed, "Sora writes letters."

"…um," Riku stared blankly at the other boy. Okay, so it wasn't something he really expected hyper, active Sora to do in his spare time, but was that really a secret?

"Not now," Roxas clarified. "After I joined with him and he started traveling the world again. He wrote letters to you and Kairi about all his adventures and how he was sure he'd find you guys. He really wanted to see you two again. Now that I think about it," Roxas said, frowning at the sky, "those were some really sappy letters. He's pretty sappy, too—all of them are still hidden in his room somewhere."

Riku sort of felt like laughing at Roxas's comment, but he was too surprised by this new revelation. He knew Sora was a cheesy, sentimental sort of guy, but he never expected him to actually write down all his mushy thoughts on paper—and on paper addressed to him, to boot.

Letters to Kairi, he could understand. But letters to himself, Riku, the guy who gave into the Darkness and became the jerk of all jerks to Sora?

That was confusing.

Roxas noted the look on his face and said, "Uh, you seem a little more surprised than you should be."

"It's…" Riku paused for a moment to consider his next words. "After Naminé restored Sora's memories… I didn't expect for him to still consider me as close a friend as he once did."

Roxas digested this information. "Is it because of what you did before he went into Castle Oblivion in the first place?" he asked, recalling memories that were once Sora's, but were now his, as well.

Riku nodded. "Yeah. At that point, I figured I'd be lucky if he even wanted to talk to me anymore. I messed up, and I knew it. I never really expected to come back to the Islands in the first place… never expected to be able to leave the Darkness."

"Sora helped you return," Roxas pointed out. "He wouldn't leave you behind. I think, out of everyone, you should know best that Sora doesn't give up on his friends."

Riku turned to stare over the ocean quietly, but Roxas could see the maelstrom of thoughts that swirled behind the older boy's eyes.

Roxas opened his mouth to say something else, but a small feeling in his spine caused him to smile sadly instead. "Guess this is my cue to leave."

Riku turned to him in surprise. "Sora's waking up?"

"Yep. He can't sleep forever, you know," Roxas pointed out.

"But it's past midnight."

Roxas shrugged. "Might be the noise. Or maybe he just has to go the bathroom. Who knows. I—"

"Roxas?"

A moment passed, then Roxas spoke again quietly, "Yeah, losing my hold. We'll have to finish this conversation some other time."

"Guess so," Riku said reluctantly. "…Roxas?"

"Uh-huh?"

"…thanks."

Roxas smiled, "Anytime."

Then Roxas's—Sora's—eyes slipped shut and his body began to tip forward. Riku caught him quickly, though, and pulled him back so he couldn't slip into the water. A few seconds later, Sora's eyes fluttered open and slowly focused on his friend's face?

"Riku?" he groaned, sitting up. He looked around. "What am I doing out here?"

"You were sleepwalking," Riku replied simply. Well, it wasn't exactly a lie.

"Sleepwalking across water?" Sora asked skeptically. He was pretty sure he had fallen asleep at home on the Main Island, not on their little Play Island, which was where they were at the moment.

"No, you rowed your boat in your sleep," Riku replied casually. "You know, you're pretty coordinated when you're asleep. Unlike when you're awake."

"Hey!" Sora said indignantly, but there was no real anger behind the exclamation. He turned to look around. Scratching his head, he said, "This is weird, though. I wonder what I could have been dreaming about to make me come out here."

Riku shrugged, "Who knows? You talk a lot in your sleep, though. I never knew that."

"I do?" Sora whirled to face him, eyes wide. "What'd I say?"

"Nothing much," Riku replied. "Or, well, nothing embarrassing."

"Oh," Sora frowned into space as he contemplated this new development. He was probably considering whether or not to tie himself to his bed so he couldn't walk far, Riku guessed. Not that ropes would keep Roxas at bay, but… well, whatever made Sora happy.

"So, Sora."

"Hmm?"

"When were you planning to tell me about those letters you wrote me?" Riku asked, trying to keep his face straight.

"Letters I—" Sora's face instantly turned a bright red that was visible even in the darkness of the night. "Who told you about those? Were you in my room?"

Riku couldn't help it—he began laughing. Loudly.

"Riku! It's not funny! How'd you find out? RIKU!"

It was well past midnight in Destiny Islands, but the air was filled with the sounds of Riku's laughter and Sora's indignant yells. Amidst it all, Riku couldn't help but think that this was the closest they had ever been to the way things used to be—to a long, long time ago when their faces were still innocent and their only goal was to build a raft in order to explore the world beyond.

Now that they had reached that goal, they knew beyond a doubt that there really was no place like home.

Home.

…I'm home.

A/N: I needed to get back into a fanfic writing mood, so my friends requested I write a humorous Riku and Roxas story. I wrote it, but somewhere along the way the two decided to run away from me and make the story all serious. I hope you all enjoyed it, anyways (I'm sorry)!