Where Sky Meets Sea
Kairi had nightmares more often than not. They were always about the same two things: her death, and Sora's. Reliving the trauma that she couldn't prevent, over and over again. While she could fight and train during the day, the night provided no escape from the memories that still haunted her.
Heart racing, covered in a cold sweat, she woke up reaching for Sora as he slipped through her fingers. Wrapped around her was one of his old hoodies, a gift from his mother during the long months of his absence. It covered the scar on her back, which ached dully at times like this. Rolling over on her side helped a little, but doing that always made her feel open, exposed. A shudder ran down her spine, and she sat up, the blanket slipping down to gather around her legs.
The Mysterious Tower was creepy no matter the time of day, but being alone in this room, filled with shadows dancing across the walls like the shadows of the people who had kidnapped her, was a little too much. The kitchen/living room combination Yen Sid had conjured up at least had a warm, cozy fire. She went to it now and grabbed the whistling blue kettle out of the cupboard to heat up some water for tea.
Cup in hand, she curled up on the couch by the fire and watched the flickering shapes dancing around in it. Here was a horse, there was a dragon. Her head was nodding when a sound from behind her made her drop her tea and whirl around, her Keyblade appearing in her hand.
"Kairi?"
She relaxed and let her Keyblade disappear. It was Sora, his hair messy from sleep and his eyes wide from her sudden reaction. He was taller now, and thinner, too, his face more angular, though whether that was because he'd grown or because he hadn't had enough to eat while he was gone was hard to say.
"Sorry," she said, bending down to pick up the broken pieces of the teacup. In an instant Sora was kneeling beside her, helping her clean up the mess. His reflexes were still as good as ever.
"No, sorry for startling you," he said. Their fingers briefly touched when they went for the same piece, and a jolt of warmth and heat went through her. She pulled her hand back, only for him to gently grasp her wrist, not at all like how Xemnas had grabbed her wrist and twisted it painfully. Her body's panic responses were all still out of whack, though, and she tensed. Sora gave her an apologetic look as he released her hand.
"Sorry, I just… noticed you're bleeding," he said with a frown. A few moments later, the glow of green light reflected off his face as he healed the cut.
"Sora, you know we're not supposed to use magic outside of battle," she said. "You have to keep your magic reserves up."
"I did use it during battle," he pointed out. "You drew your Keyblade to defend yourself from what you thought was a threat." There was a heavy look in his eyes as he fished a tissue out of his pocket and picked up the remaining broken teacup pieces. "The war's over, but you're still fighting."
"I know. I can't sleep."
"Neither can I."
It had only been a few days since they'd gotten him back, and he still hadn't opened up about what all had happened while he was gone. But Kairi heard him, sometimes, as he slept. The walls were thin, and when he wasn't shouting at some unseen enemy, he was crying out in a way that made her heart ache.
Whatever he'd seen, whatever had happened to him, was all because of her. Because he'd exchanged his life for hers. Those nightmares wouldn't be haunting him if he'd done the sensible thing and left her for dead.
But Sora wasn't exactly sensible. He followed his heart, and his heart had led him into the abyss. But it had also led him back to her. He'd come full circle.
They swept the floor, just to be safe, and she offered to heat up more water. Several minutes later, and they were on opposite ends of the couch, Sora with hot chocolate and Kairi with more tea. She watched as he blew cool air across the surface of his drink and then tested the liquid with the tip of his tongue to see if it was cool enough to swallow.
Despite having so much to say, Kairi found herself speechless around him. In a way, it still didn't feel like this was real. After the initial smiles and tears and hugs that had made up their reunion, silence had followed them. Maybe because words weren't enough to say all that needed to be said.
"Thank you, Kairi," he said presently. "This is really good."
She nodded, then wondered how long it had been since he'd even gotten to drink hot chocolate. It was such a simple pleasure, but even simple pleasures took on a whole new significance after dying.
"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked, his eyebrows furrowing.
"I just… thought about you not getting to drink hot chocolate while you were gone, and…" She set her tea down and fiddled with the sleeves of his hoodie, still keeping her nice and warm. "After everything you've been through, it's a silly thing to think about, but…"
"It's not silly at all," he said, and his face was perfectly serious. "I missed this. A lot."
"What else did you miss?" she asked. She wanted to make it all up to him somehow.
He took another sip, then set his mug down on the coffee table. "Lots of stuff. Hot chocolate, sea-salt ice cream, skateboarding, our friends… but mostly, I missed the sea."
"The sea, huh?"
He nodded.
"Well, once we're back home, I'm sure you'll be able to see it." Come to think of it, it had been a while since she'd been to the sea back home, too. It was painful trying to visit, because that was where Sora had disappeared. Maybe now that he was back, going there wouldn't hurt so much anymore.
"Maybe," he said, "but being gone for so long showed me that seeing just isn't good enough anymore."
She tilted her head. "What do you mean?"
"I wanna know if there's a way to stay with the sea for good," he said, his gaze steady and even.
She gave him a curious look. "What do you mean?"
"The sky always tries to reach the sea," he said, holding his hand out, "but she keeps slipping right through his fingers," he finished, making a grasping motion.
Oh. He wasn't talking about the sea. He wasn't talking about the sea at all.
She stared at his hand, long and elegant and graceful. Her fingers twitched, and she reached for him, twining their fingers together. The warmth from their contact spread up her arm, and as nice as wearing his hoodie was, it didn't even begin to compare to holding his hand.
"She's here now, isn't she?" she asked, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.
"Yeah, but… the sky's afraid of losing her again."
Like she suspected. His fears mirrored her own. "Is that why he can't sleep?"
"Yes," he said softly.
"Then… would it help, if he could hold her in his arms as he did?"
Sora blushed, and she ducked her head, wondering what had gotten into her. She was about to apologize for being so bold when he spoke.
"Yes. Please."
His soft please made her heart flutter, and she found his hand again. "Okay."
She led him to her room, and he shyly asked if this was really okay before she insisted it was. Still, even she was a little nervous. Sora, in her room, in her bed… what would her parents say? What would their friends say?
Well, if it helped him sleep, they couldn't fault her for that. He needed his strength. He needed his energy back. And if she could make up to him what he had suffered for her, it would be worth whatever teasing or gossip or scolding their friends and relatives might dish out.
She climbed into bed and held the covers up, and Sora joined her. When he had settled in, he wrapped his arms around her. Not so different from their other hugs, really, and just as nice. She snuggled into his embrace and inhaled deeply, taking in his warmth and scent.
"Better?" she asked.
"Yeah. A lot better."
Her fingers curled around his shirt, and she leaned against his chest and listened to his heartbeat. He was alive, and his heart was telling her that over and over again like it was the best news in the world.
His hand went to her back and gently stroked it. Warmth spread up and down it, and a quick glance told her he was using healing magic again.
"It's okay," she said. "It's already healed."
"No, it's not. Maybe it looks healed, but it's still hurting you."
She pulled back a little to search his eyes. "How'd you know?"
He rested his hand over his chest. "Because my heart still hurts, too. The pain gets worse when I think about what happened… when I can't sleep..."
She rolled over, her back facing his chest. He understood, and a few moments later, she felt his arms go around her again. That was the way to lessen the pain for them both. His chest to her back as he held her safe in his arms. Gone was the feeling that someone could ambush her from behind, because Sora had her back. Gone too was the ache in his chest, he told her later, because his light was in his arms and warming his heart. And for the first time in months, they both slept through the night.
When she woke up the next morning, Sora was still with her. For one night, at least, the sky and sea had breached their long separation. For one night they had met.
When his eyes fluttered open, he greeted her with a sleepy grin. "Morning, Kai."
She returned his grin. "Morning, lazy bum."
Sora had changed, and so had she. It was an inevitable part of growing up. It was to be expected after they'd both fought in a war, died, and come back to life.
But there was one constant through it all: the bond between them. It had changed, yes, but it had gotten bigger and deeper. Its heart was still there, and as long as that heart lived, the sky and sea would always find a way to meet.
A/N: Today is my friend Alja's birthday, so I wrote her a SoKai fic to celebrate! I wanted to say a big thank you to her for all her support this past year. Happy Birthday, and I hope you (and everyone else) enjoyed!