Memories
.straeH modgniK nwo t'nod llits I
I still don't own Kingdom Hearts.
Namine, Riku, Kairi, and Sora were sitting at the area that was attached to the island by the bridge. Ever since the Nobody had joined the group, they had accepted her rather openly. Riku was cautious, given how he had seen what she had done to Sora previously, but he warmed up to her when he was certain she wasn't going to rearrange any memories.
This day, Riku and Sora were sparring with their Keyblades, as they often did, while the girls watched, Namine drawing while Kairi was cheering the pair on. Eventually, the boys stopped, ending the battle on a draw before they settled down by the girls. The entire group was just sitting there talking for a while before Riku suddenly decided to reach into a pack he had nearby and pull out a set of playing cards.
Namine saw Sora tense up at the cards, which surprised her. He couldn't possible remember what happened at Castle Oblivion. She had made sure to sever all the links for those memories. To her relief, he relaxed after a couple seconds, before Riku began dealing them out for a game of Go Fish.
"Sora, what's wrong?" Riku asked, concerned for his friend.
"Nothing," Sora said, glaring at the cards in front of him. They were blue-backed, with a white lining, and the image on the back was a crown.
"Are you sure?" Kairi asked, her concern evident.
"Yes, why?" Sora asked, his eyes almost burning holes into the cards.
"You summoned your Keyblade," Namine answered, pointing at the weapon in his hand.
"And, you're glaring at the cards pretty intensely," Riku added.
"It's nothing," Sora responded, dismissing his Keyblade and relaxing when Riku took the cards back and returned them to his pack, "I just don't like using cards."
When he said this, he gave Namine a weak smile before turning back to Riku to talk. Namine, meanwhile, panicked. She knew him better than anyone other than Sora himself. She had been through his memories and had replaced, then repaired them herself. He hadn't hated cards before. She would have known about it. That could only mean…
Namine ran. She had to get away. If he remembered that, he might remember the rest. She didn't know how he would react. The last time, he had said that he wasn't angry at her, but he didn't have his real memories at the time. He hadn't ever dealt with something like memory erasure in his life before he met her, so she had absolutely no way of knowing how he would react to being essentially turned into a puppet. Once she got far enough away, she stopped to look at the sun setting along the horizon. Why couldn't those memories stay buried? She had been good. She fixed his memories despite her desire to be with him. She had even refrained from even mentioning anything pertaining to the other Nobodies and what happened at Castle Oblivion. Why did the universe hate her so much it had to bring back those memories just when she had finally been accepted into the group? It was as if all of reality wanted her to be miserable for the rest of her life. To make matters worse, she had started hoping that she would be able to actually be with him without all those lies. The universe had offered her a chance at his heart when Kairi and Riku got together and he didn't get upset at all. But now it was all for nothing. Now that he knew what she did to him, he would probably never want to be with her that way. They'd probably be acquaintances if she was lucky, but, she doubted even that would be possible with her luck.
"I never did say 'Thank you' did I?" she heard him ask. Turning, she saw him there, a calm smile on his face.
"Of course," he continued, "You didn't stay to meet me when I woke up."
"What do you mean?" she asked. Maybe, if she waited long enough, she could make him think it was just a dream.
"Namine, we both know what I'm talking about," he said, his eyes softening, "Why didn't you stay?"
"I couldn't," she responded, her eyes filling with tears, "I wanted to. If I had stayed, I would have had to tell you all the terrible things I did to you. I didn't want to hurt you, and I was scared. I thought it was for the best."
"But you did hurt me, Namine," he said, "You hurt me a lot."
"I know," she replied, turning away from him, "I couldn't fight them away, so they used me to make you a puppet. I'm so sorry, Sora."
"That's not how you hurt me," he commented softly, "You weren't there. I woke up in a place I didn't recognize, with only Jiminy's Journal having a single note, telling me to 'Thank Namine.' That was all I had. You weren't there to explain the meaning of the note, and you weren't there for us to be true friends when I got up."
"I'm sorry, Sora," she repeated, "I honestly thought you would be better off without me around."
"I wasn't," he replied, his own eyes misting over in tears, "I spent so much time feeling empty, as if I was missing something important to me, yet I couldn't figure out what it was. A year was gone from my life, and I felt that the missing time wasn't as important as the missing part of me."
"Sora," she interrupted, tears streaking down her cheeks as she wrapped her arms around him, "I never wanted to hurt you. I just wasn't strong enough to tell you what happened. I can't tell you how sorry I am, or how much I wanted to be with you."
"I couldn't believe it when we met again," he continued, his voice breaking as he spoke, "It just felt right. I felt that I had finally been put back together. It started coming back to me, then. Bits and pieces, but I knew we had met before. When they all came back, I couldn't believe it. I was so surprised, but it let me know why I felt whole again. Kairi and Riku noticed it. I wanted to tell you, but you seemed so happy with how things were, I couldn't break it to you. I couldn't bear to see you feel that guilt again. I just can't help but be so thrilled to see you every time we're in the same place. I'd fight the entire Organization XIII again just to keep you safe. You're the piece of me I've been missing, and now that I have you back, I don't want to ever lose you again."
"W-What do you mean?" Namine stammered, not believing her ears. She could barely breathe. He missed her as much as she missed him.
"I love you, Namine," Sora said, leaning in closer and gently pressing their foreheads together, "and I'm never going to let you get away from me again. I wouldn't be able to handle it. Not again."
"Sora," she said, her tears replaced with tears of joy, "I love you, too."
Having said all they needed to say, the pair leaned closer and kissed. After so long separated, the two were finally united with no deception and no secrets. As the sun set on Sora and Namine, it promised a new day for them tomorrow.