Armistice
x
x
The lull of the island, and the quiet content of its denizens, was too much for him to bear.
How could he? For someone who was used to day after day of ceaseless fighting, coming back to the calm, tranquil, peaceful Destiny Islands
(home)
was like plunging himself head first into arctic water.
"Sora?"
He snapped out of his trance, blue eyes meeting Kairi's concerned face. Smiling uneasily, he flexed his fingers, before realizing that they were gouging the wood of the paopu tree that he rested against.
Quickly relaxing his hand, he quirked his lips up into a facsimile a smile again.
"Yeah?"
Kairi bit her lip, eyebrows furrowed in a frown. "You look," she paused, trying to find the right word, "off, Sora. Ever since you came back. Something wrong?"
He shook his head, pasting a sheepish smile on his face.
"Nah, I'm al- "
A rustle in the trees nearby caught his attention, and instinctively he called on the Keyblade, almost crying out in sweet relief at the familiar feel of metal against skin. Kairi yelped, and then laughed in surprise as Selphie emerged, flushed and out of breath.
"Sora! It's okay." Smiling teasingly at the boy, she jumped off the tree, landing lightly next to him and running forward to meet Selphie.
Sora nodded, dismissing the Keyblade, already missing the weight of the weapon.
Everything was alright. Why did that thought sound so depressing?
-.x.-
That night, he couldn't sleep, wondering what the hell was wrong with himself. Shouldn't he be grateful that everything was over, that he could sleep soundly at night again without the fear of attack? Shouldn't he be grateful that he, Kairi, and Riku were together again instead of strewn half way across the worlds?
Peace, wasn't that what he was fighting for?
Nodding decisively, Sora scolded himself once more, he had emerged the victor, and peace was his prize. There was no need for him anymore, the story had ended, the princess was saved, and the light was triumphant.
Settling back into the comfort of sleep and his pillows, Sora jerked back up.
That was the problem.
There was no need for him anymore.
-.x.-
The next day was unusual for Destiny Islands, it was gray and overcast instead of clear and sunny.
Sora had stood alone at the water's edge for at least an hour now, staring and contemplating, fending off Kairi and Riku's questioning stares as best as he could. He was worthless, useless now that all the saving was done.
He would never be able to go back to his previous life after the adventure that he had tasted, he wasn't about to become obsolete again.
Summoning the Keyblade out of habit, Sora idly traced shapes and patterns on the sand, not realizing until Kairi stood opened mouth by his side, eyes filled with revulsion and horror, what he had drawn.
"Sora, why would you draw that?"
He quickly glanced down, and was surprised that he had rendered almost flawlessly the shape of a heartless, over and over again in the sand.
That was when he knew he had to do something to keep himself sane.
And as he stared down at the childish scribbles, he knew exactly what it was.
-.x.-
Sora stood before the opened gates of Kingdom Hearts.
-.x.-
a/n: Re-edited a few words in the beginning, and that's about it.