I have to say that I did not write this story, and it used to live on FFN some time ago. However, the author took it down because she did not feel that it coincided with her other stories. Therefore she has graciously allowed me to use it on my own account. I think it's really cute, and it's a shame that no one has gotten to read it in a while. I won't give you her name, but do please enjoy this.
I don't own Kingdom Hearts. I don't even own this story! :D
Her eyes shot open, darting around her surroundings wildly, searching for something familiar. Instead, she found thousands of people gawking at her as she lay on the floor of a large stage. Bright lights blinded her from all angles, and about five people dressed in matching blue and yellow outfits stood around her, nervously glancing at one another.
A boy lept up onto the stage, dashing over to her and kneeling by her side.
"Yuna, are you all right?"
"What?" she asked, then emitted a small squeak. Her voice was so different! What had happened? Her body felt like it had been run over. She massaged a small lump on the back of her head.
"Yuna. That's your name. Don't you remember?"
"No... I don't understand."
"It's me, Tidus! Oh no, I think you were hit with... Sin's toxins. You can't remember anything. And we were sure he was gone..."
"Er, Tidus? Where am I?" She paused for a second, then asked a better question. "Who am I?"
The Tidus boy helped her to her feet. She almost fell, having to quickly adjust. She was about three centimeters lacking from her normal height, and her hair was much shorter. As she examined her hands, she realized she was now tan instead of her usual pale color. She felt stronger, oddly. Her clothes were some sort of skirt and shirt with a tail, and her boots reached her knees.
The crowd, she saw, appeared worried as well, most of them standing in their seats to get a better look at the stage. They were in shock.
"There was a strange light, and you fell," Tidus explained. "I'm not sure what happened, Yuna, but it's not good. I'm taking you back to your room."
"Um, just one thing," she said, trying not to be rude. "My name's not Yuna."
Tidus froze. "That's crazy. What else would it be?"
"I think... Well, I've always been called Rinoa. It's nice to, um, meet you."
She woke with a start, eye lids still heavy. She felt like several Ronsos had knocker her to the floor. Around her stood three oddly dressed people, two boys and a girl. They seemed to be in uniform, and they were all scrutinizing her.
"Um... who are you?" she asked, voice barely audible. It was quiet, timid, not a singing voice.
"Someone go get the SeeD leader," one of the boys said. "Tell him his girlfriend just collapsed or something."
The youngest of the group, a girl of about ten, ran down the long hallway toward an elevator that she could barely see around the other two. She seemed to be in a long, carpeted hallway.
"Rinoa, are you okay?"
"Um, Rinoa?"
"Yeah, that's you. Do you have amnesia or something?"
A man in black leather with white fur around his jacket sprinted down the hall, the little girl tagging along behind him.
"What happened?!"
"We saw this bright light," the tallest boy said," and when we got here, we found Rinoa on the ground. We're not really sure how..."
The man sighed, shaking his head. "You're dismissed." He bent over her and drew her up into his arms. "I'm taking you to the Infirmary. Tell me what happened."
"Well, I was about to begin a performance when suddenly I was knocked out. Then I woke up here."
"Are you feeling okay?" he asked, stepping inside the elevator and pressing the arrow for down.
"I don't know." She was at a loss for any more words than that. Speaking in this new voice just didn't sound right. In fact, a lot of things weren't right with her. She was much thinner, a little taller, and pale-skinned. Her hair was long and dark brown instead of light, and her clothes were made out of something that felt incredibly comfortable.
The man said nothing to her response, carrying her across a great lobby and around the corner. There were many more people wearing the uniforms from before standing around and watching, whispering to each other as they passed.
"What is this place?" she asked, beginning to feel worried.
"Don't talk. You need to be examined first."
Suddenly, the force of the impact caught up with her, and the world began to spin, A lump caught in her throat. Where was Tidus? Where was she? Who was this man carrying her now? All the questions didn't help her vertigo, and brought hot tears to her eyes.
"Who are you? Where am I?"
"Squall Leonhart. You're in Balamb Garden, and you're a SeeD member. Don't you remember anything?"
"No," she cried, "I don't know what you're talking about!"
Rinoa-- or Yuna-- or whoever she was-- lay in a comfortable bed, waiting for the Tidus boy to come back. A girl named Rikku was pacing the floor in front of her, scratching her head and shooting weird questions at her every now and then.
"Do you remember almost getting married to Seymore?"
"No, sorry."
"How about the day you became a summoner? You met Tidus that day. How could you forget that, Yunie?"
"Um..."
Someone knocked twice, then entered the elegant bedroom. It was the Tidus boy, and two other strange people.
"Hey, Yuna. You wouldn't happen to remember Lulu and Wakka, would ya?"
"No, I'm afraid not. I don't..."
She was beginning to question her very existence. Were the last eighteen years of her life just a dream? Was she really this Yuna girl, having never been Rinoa Heartilly and never met Squall? Was everything she knew a lie?
"I have a theory," one of them, presumably Lulu, said. "It may be possible that this girl is not Yuna."
"Well, who is she? She looks like Yuna. And sounds like her." Tidus examined her just to make sure.
"Tell me," Lulu directed at her, "what is your name? Tell me about where you come from."
"I'm Rinoa Heartilly," she began. "I lived in a place called Dollet for most of my life, until I met Squall. now I live in Balamb Garden as a SeeD member. We get paid by different people to perform various missoins for them. But I'm new."
"Who is Squall?"
"My... fiance. Squall Leonhart. A year ago, we defeated an evil sorceress together with our friends."
"Tell me about you."
"Well, I... I'm a SeeD, like I said. And a sorceress as well."
"A sorceress? Hm. Could this sorceress that you defeated corrupt time in any way?"
"Yes. That's what she was famous for."
"It's solved, then."
Dried tears on her cheeks, frowning slightly, she sat still on the cot and let the man examine her. She was still a little upset about the whole ordeal.
"Well, everything seems fine, Miss Heartilly. I really don't understand what's wrong."
"What's wrong," she sniffed, "is that I'm not Miss Heartilly. And I really wish Tidus were here..."
"Er, Tidus?"
His words seemed like a knife in her heart, and she couldn't keep more tears from rolling down her cheeks as she burried her head in her hands. I just found you again! How could this have happened?
The man from before stepped forward. "Look, I'm not sure what has happened, but--"
"Squall! We got a problem!"
She looked up in time to see another man dash through the open door and double over from exhaustion, panting. "Listen, we just got a messge from Laguna in Esthar. He says that something or someone who looks a lot like Ultimicia has been sited near the coast. One of the portals opened up near the city."
"Ultimicia?" the man said, leaving the small room in which I sat to go to the other.
"Yeah. We need to go stop her."
"I seem to have a bigger problem." He pointed behind him at Yuna/Rinoa.
"What?"
"Something's happened to Rinoa's memory. She thinks she's some girl named Yuna."
"Ugh, dammit, we don't have time for this!"
"But we need to fix it before we go after Ultimicia."
Yuna/Rinoa suddenly felt a lot of anger toward this man. He was cold and unfeeling for her situation, as if she were just a pain in his side, annoying and useless. "Maybe you should just go without me! Do you even care what happens to me, or this Rinoa you keep talking about?!"
Squall came to her and grabbed her shoulders firmly. "Rinoa, or Yuna, or whoever you are! I'm not sure what's going on, but you need to be quiet!"
All the anger instantly left her. He was a frightening man.
Sighing, he let her go. "I'm sorry... but you're not helping. Something's going on, and it may have to do with this sorceress."
"Maybe she's playing with the time stream again," the other man offered.
"Yeah, but--"
Two more people burst in at that moment: two women. One of them looked a little older than the other three. The other was short with brown hair that curled up at the end.
"Squall, what's going on?" the older woman asked.
He briefly explained the predicament to both of them, leaving Yuna/Rinoa alone in the room.
The woman, Quistis, came to her.
"What's your name?"
"Yuna," she answered, all her tears dried and gone.
"Where are you from?"
"An island called Besaid, in Spira."
"Squall," she called behind her, "do you remember Ultimicia's time compression ability?"
"Of course."
The woman was thoughtful for a long minute. "It's possible that a past version of her traveled into the future... Still, that wouldn't cause something like this to happen. This Ultimicia's most likely weaker than before." She began pacing the floor, silent with thought.
"There must be something else, some other power," the other girl, Selphie, said.
When no one offered their opinion, Yuna/Rinoa spoke. "Sin."
Lulu explained her train of thought to the others.
"This sorceress may have performed some sort of time-related feat."
"And our Sin is infamous for sending people into different time periods," Wakka added.
"Yes," Lulu said. "If they happened to try their tasks at exactly the same time..."
"Then the result could be an identity switch," Rinoa/Yuna concluded. "That must be what happened to Yuna and me."
"So our problem is," Tidus said, stepping away from the wall on which he had been leaning, "how do we switch them back?"
"Rinoa, you said you're a sorceress as well," Lulu said. Rinoa/Yuna nodded. "Then you should be able to switch yourself and Yuna."
"I'm afraid I'm not that powerful." She stared at the floor.
"Hm. Then what needs to take place is another event like what happened earlier. But how to go about this?"
"Maybe if I could somehow contact Squall in the other world? He would know what to do. Maybe Ultimicia is back..."
Tidus came to stand by her side. "Could they provoke her into using her power?" When Rinoa/Yuna nodded, he continued, "And on our end, we could do the same to Sin at that exact moment, and then--"
"Where is Sin?" Rikku asked.
"My guess is, he's not far off. If he was just in Besaid, we could easily track his location and catch up. The problem it, what if we can't beat him?" Wakka asked.
The other three stood thinking for a few minutes. Then Lulu said, "He may be weaker than before."
"Yeah, and if we did it once, we can do it again!" Tidus said.
"Um, I've never fought a 'sin' before," Rinoa/Yuna said timidly.
"Don't worry. If everything goes as planned, you won't have to. But if not, then..." Tidus scratched the back of his neck.
"Let's not dwell on it," Lulu told him quickly. "We need to try and contact the other world. If you would explain, Rinoa."
"Well, Squall and I have a strong bond. We've learned it can reach through time. So maybe..." A distant look washed over her eyes as she remembered the time after Ultimicia was defeated, when her dream became real, and she could not find Squall. But then... suddenly, she was there. "Maybe if I picture myself at our meeting place, he'll know to go there and find me."
It was then that Tidus remembered...
All he had to do was whistle.
"So, this Sin can send people through time?" Zell asked.
"Yes, but he's never done anything like this before."
For the past few minutes, Squall had been standing in the corner, silent, thinking. He was, for some reason, reminiscing the time right after Ultimicia's defeat, where he had walked forever and never found Rinoa. But when he dreamed, he saw the place he had promised to meet her. He went there in his mind, picturing ruins of Edea's house and the view of the ocean. He could amost feel the breeze blowing his hair back, and hear Rinoa's voice...
I'll be here...
He jerked his eyes open and glanced around the room, certain he had heard her voice. Her real voice. Yuna tended to be a little louder and just used Rinoa's voice differently. He was sure it had been Rinoa. But it was still impossible.
Or maybe not.
"Everyone, follow me," he said, startling those who were still lost deep in their minds. "Someone get Irvine. We're taking the Ragnarok to Edea's house." He sprinted out into the hall, the others close behind.
Outside, Yuna/Rinoa slammed into a man that turned out to be Irvine and, the group complete, they were ready to leave.
"Hey, Squall, why are we going to Edea's?" Zell asked as they made their way to the extension in the quad that had been made for the Ragnarok.
"Rinoa's there," he said as they ran, "and maybe Ultimicia, too."
"Wait a minute!" Yuna/Rinoa called, "What's going to happen?"
Everyone began climbing into the ship ahead of him as he stopped to speak to her. "Is there someone waiting for you on the other side?"
"...Tidus."
"If you two have a strong enough bond, you'll find a way back." He let himself smile, just a little.
She smiled back, Rinoa's smile.
Tidus, Wakka, Lulu, Rikku, some girl named Paine, Rinoa/Yuna, and a few men who spoke an odd language were crowded into the bridge room of an airship large enough to be Balamb, headed for Macalania Woods. Tidus kept insisting this was where they had to be.
"I know I'll find her there," he repeated, willing the ship to move faster.
Rinoa/Yuna could empathize. The meeting place was lodged into her memory now, stubborn and vivid as if it were new. She kept it in focus, knowing Squall would not forget his promise.
He'll be there. He's waiting for me.
Underneath the airship, a stunning view of a sparkling forest could be seen in the twilight. A small lake with an old oak in its center relfected the crescent moon in the sky. Nothing stirred.
"That's it!" Tidus pointed. "That's the lake. Bring the ship down gently. I can climb down the escape ladder."
When the others gave him a questioning look, he said, "The answer is in that lake." He appeared so determined that no one objected.
The ship slowed and began to lose altitude. Tidus opend a hatch in the floor and tossed a rope ladder through the hole. Strong gusts of wind blew his blond hair back as he gazed down at the lake.
"Eh, I can't get any closer," the captain shouted over the wind.
"That's okay. This is perfect." He hoisted himself over the edge, gripping the rope, and offered his free hand to Rinoa/Yuna. "Come on. This is it!"
Without hesitation, she took his hand and began the descent. The ladder spun in the wind from the ship and was hard to hold onto. Once or twice, she slipped, but Tidus was always there to catch her.
At the bottom, there was still a few feet between the rickety ladder and the ground. Tidus jumped, then caught Rinoa/Yuna as she slipped off the last rung.
"Careful." He took her hand. "Follow me." He waded into the water that crept up their sides as they went. It rippled, sending the reflection of the moon in all directions.
He took her as far as the water would allow without covering her head.
She watched, transfixed, as he put two fingers in his mouth and emitted a high-pitched whistle.
I'll be here...
She began to change.
The Ragnarok's ladder unfolded, and Squall, pulling Yuna/Rinoa behind him, dashed out, headed for Edea's still-ruined house. Picking his way around the rubble, he found to the spot where he had promised Rinoa.
They sky was dark, lit by nothing more than tiny stars and a crescent moon. Squall gazed up into the sky.
"Rinoa!" he called into the darkness.
I'm here, just like I promised. So you can stop searching.
A shooting star streaked through the night sky.
Suddenly, Yuna/Rinoa's vision became nothing more than darkness. She grabbed her head and fell to her knees, feeling herself slipping.
Her surroundings flickered and died. She was in complete emptiness, Zero World. She called out Tidus' name and heard a response.
A whislte.
She shoved two fingers in her mought and blew, just as Tidus had taught her, returning the signal. A boy stepped out of the darkness and came to her, smiling.
Tidus.
She ran to him, and he caught her, pulling her into his arms as she began to cry.
"Never again..."
She looked up.
A girl in blue with dark brown hair was gazing past her at someone. Yuna turned to look and saw Squall.
They walked slowly, as if disbelieving, to each other.
Tears blurred Rinoa's vision of Squall, smiling, just like the night of the celebration, the happy ending. A star streaked through the darkness overhead. She pointed, returning the smile. Finally, although she couldn't remember how, she was in his arms, trying to keep from sobbing on his shoulder.
At some point, they each glanced up and studied each other. There was a mutual agreement between Tidus and Squall. A thank you, and a good-bye.
"How kute. A little reunion. Well, playtime is over for you. Prepare for ultimate destruktion!"
Tidus and Yuna, startled, watched Squall and Rinoa fade away with the dark voice of what they assumed to be Ultimicia.
"Well, what do we have here?"
They both jerked around, eyes coming to rest on..."
Seymore.
"No..." Yuna whispered, "you were sent!"
"You believe that? You didn't think I'd come back to finish you once and for all?"
Tidus bared his teeth, holding Yuna protectively.
All four of them had a challenge to face, one such as they had never known before.
But they would face it alongside the person they loved.
And just might succeed.