Orderly rapping on the door jarred a groggy Sora from dreamless sleep.
Footsteps thudded across floorboards, and the front door creaked open.
An unfamiliar voice behind the door spoke, "Good morning, sir. My name is Riku Lockhart, soldier of the royal army under our glorious monarch, King George III."
"What brings you here?" Cloud Strife, the local tavern keeper and Sora's father, answered.
"I have been sent here seeking housing in your establishment. If I'm not mistaken, you own the Destiny Inn just next door?" Riku replied.
"Indeed." Cloud's voice rang out proudly. "What do you need housing there for?"
"As a member of the British army, my fellow soldiers and I have been sent over by King George to protect the colonies." Riku stated.
Sora's heart stopped beating for a moment; who was this young man, and why did the king suddenly decide the colonies needed protection?
"We do not need assistance, we have taken care of ourselves thus far." Cloud retorted, trying to maintain civility.
Sora's bones chilled, worrying his father would engage in an altercation with the strange person at the door.
"I am well aware, sir; however the Quartering Act passed in parliament on the twenty-fourth of March states we must find accommodations while protecting the colonies." Riku responded, his voice rising slightly.
"What is all the commotion out here?" Another voice rang out as it entered the hallway. Sora's mother had been woken by the discussion in the hall.
"Aerith, this is Riku Lockhart of the royal British army. He seeks to stay at the inn by order of the Quartering Act." Cloud explained.
"Good morning, madam. You must be this man's lovely wife." Riku said cordially.
There were more footsteps as Sora assumed Riku had strode past his father, and suddenly Aerith exclaimed, "Oh my!" Sora guessed Riku had kissed his mother's hand in greeting, as she always reacted that way when a gentleman greeted her.
"Well, I don't see a problem with lending him a room at the inn; not many travelers have come by since the war ended." Aerith said.
"If he's not going to pay, he's not going to stay." Cloud replied firmly.
"Oh, but I will pay if you wish me to. Or I can exchange some service for my housing: perhaps work at the inn?" Riku added quickly.
In the corner of the room, Sora heard creaking as his sister Kairi woke from her slumber.
"What's going on?" She groaned as she rubbed sleep from her eyes, and Sora hushed her.
She frowned, slipping out of bed and creeping over to the door.
"Kairi, wait!" Sora hissed, but Kairi's persistence and curiosity got the best of her.
"Kairi, we have a guest in the house and you're hardly decent!" Aerith scolded.
"Sorry Mother, I was too curious to see the commotion." Kairi said innocently.
"You must be their daughter; Kairi, is it?" Riku asked, kissing Kairi's hand as well. She giggled in response.
Now Sora's curiosity tickled him, pushing him to investigate.
"Is Sora still sleeping? It is getting late, he will be late for school." Cloud said disapprovingly.
Afraid Kairi would inform their parents of his eavesdropping, Sora quickly tugged on his breeches and buttoned his shirt. He padded across the floor into the hallway, where he received his first glimpse of Riku:
The boy was probably not much older than Sora, maybe by a year at the very least. Despite his age, he stood at least a head taller than Sora. The boy's long, silver hair pulled back into a ponytail. His eyes shone a shade of green Sora had never seen before and could never imagine belonged to anything natural.
"Hello, who might you be?" Riku asked.
"I'm Sora," Sora replied, holding out a hand to shake.
"Riku." Riku shook Sora's hand firmly, his eye contact intact.
"Hurry, Sora, you don't want to be late to school." Aerith instructed. "When you get home, show Riku the tavern."
"Yes, Mother." Sora dashed into the kitchen, grabbing an apple off the counter. He bit a large chunk out of it, slipped into his shoes, and snatched his slate off his writing desk. He wrenched open the door, bid farewell to his family, and stepped out into the cobblestone street.
He traveled past the Destiny Inn and Tavern, a two-story building passed down from Cloud's father to him. Someday, Sora would own the establishment.
Further down the street, he waved to his friends: Hayner, Pence, and Olette.
Olette, a slim girl with chestnut locks cascading down her shoulders, was the first to notice Sora running down the street. She waved to him, and called out, "Good morning!"
Olette stood outside her house, sweeping the threshold while Hayner, a tall, athletically-built boy with a wild mess of hair the color of straw, leaned against the door in attempt to finally win Olette's heart over.
Pence, a bulkier boy whose dark hair stood up like tall grass in a meadow, stood by snickering when Olette turned down Hayner's every advance.
"Good morning, Sora. Will you please convince Olette to spend the day with me instead of cleaning?" Hayner motioned to Olette, who promptly smacked Hayner with her broom.
"He has been trying to force her to skip out on chores all morning." Pence added.
"What about you, Hayner; do you want to wear the dunce cap again today for being late?" Sora retorted playfully.
"You're one to talk," Hayner stepped down from the threshold and jabbed Sora in the ribs with his finger.
"Why don't we race to school to see who shall be the later one?" Sora suggested.
"Sounds like a fair challenge. First to slap the door wins. The starting mark is Olette's porch. Pence, you tell us when." Hayner instructed.
"Alright, on your marks..." Pence began.
Hayner and Sora crouched to the ground.
"Get set..."
Sora shifted his foot for a more effective kickoff.
"Go!"
The two boys' feet smacked against the cobblestone, lungs grasping for air as they dashed past merchants, farmers, and sailors.
Sora glanced over, seeing Hayner lagged behind him, but not by much.
As they reached the schoolhouse, Sora imagined himself with a burst of energy, and his palm slapped the door.
Panting, he slumped against the wood. Hayner's hand smacked the door seconds after Sora's.
"You had...a head start..." Hayner huffed, doubling over.
"You're...imagining things..." Sora panted.
The school bell sang out just as the two boys caught their breath. "Seems like neither of us are late." Hayner observed.
"Well, except - " Sora nodded his head toward a figure in the distance: Pence.
Laughing, Hayner clapped a hand on Sora's back and ushered him inside.
Gasping for breath, Pence arrived at the schoolhouse just as the teacher appeared. She scolded Pence for his tardiness, and sat him in the corner. She plopped the dunce cap on his head. Sora and Hayner hid their snickers.
"So a soldier came to your door this morning and told you he needed a place to stay?" Hayner mused, inspecting the hunk of bread he had taken for lunch.
"Apparently there will be more soldiers in the city soon," Sora added, biting into some cheese.
"What reason could they be here for?" Hayner wondered.
"Well, Riku said they were sent over by the king to protect the colonists." Sora explained.
Hayner jumped to his feet. "What does the king think we are? We've done so much without him, why does he feel the need to aid us now?"
"Hayner, someone will hear you," Sora hissed.
"That never mattered to me," Hayner declared, "who does he think he is?"
Hayner plucked a daisy out from the ground and placed it on his head. He pursed his lips into a pout and said, "I, King George, hereby send my best men over to keep watch over my beloved colonies as if they were incompetent children!"
Pence snickered at Hayner's act, but Sora shifted uncomfortably and glanced around the field to see if anyone had noticed.
A sudden jab to his shoulder brought back his full attention. "Sora, you don't really think that we could live peacefully under King George's rule forever?" Hayner challenged.
"I suppose not..." Sora mumbled. "But you shouldn't be so open about opposing the king, not with these soldiers around."
"We're strong, we won't let them soil our lives." Hayner assured, flashing a crooked smile.
Sora returned home just after noon to find Riku preparing supper with Aerith.
"Hello, Sora, how was your day at school?" Riku smiled.
Sora set his slate aside and answered, "Fine, thank you."
"I begin work tomorrow, and I hear you'll be joining me." Riku announced.
"I see..." Sora wondered if Riku would be handling tasks Sora normally couldn't perform, but he remembered having extra help at the inn would be much needed. He smiled back at the boy. "I look forward to it."
"Sora, take the lantern and show Riku to the tavern." Aerith instructed.
"Yes, Mother," Sora replied obediently, striking a match to light the lamp. He nodded his head toward the door, beckoning for Riku to follow.
The Destiny Inn was a tall, white building with dark shingles. The windows on the second floor each had wooden shutters, none of which were in use as the inn was vacant. To the left of the main doors, a long fence stood to allow a place for travelers to tie up their horses. A half-full water trough stretched alongside the fence, and at the end of the trough stood a rusty pump. This was also the main source of water for the entire inn.
Inside, the tavern was dark, as the lamps had been extinguished by Cloud earlier. Solid oak tables and chairs lined the main floor, and at the far end from the door lay a polished oak bar with eight stools propped to it. Stacked barrels of assorted liquors created the wall behind the bar. Shiny silver taps jutted out from each barrel. The staircase leading upstairs rose next to the bar. Sora lifted the partition that separates customers from behind the bar and retrieved one of the keys that dangled on a board just under the counter.
When he returned from behind the counter, the two boys climbed the staircase, which creaked under their weights. At the top of the stairs, a long, dark hallway stretched. Lining the hallway were five doors on each side. At the very end of the hall was Cloud's office, the door shut tight. Not even Sora had a key to that door.
Sora turned to the first door on right-hand side, and handed Riku the key he had retrieved. "This room is yours; do not lose the key."
Riku took the key, gently inserting it into the door and turning it. The door creaked open, revealing a small room that contained only a bed with a single wool blanket and straw-stuffed pillow on top of a cotton sheet, a dusty wooden side table on which an old oil lantern sat, and a writing desk and chair that stood in the corner. A chipped (and cleaned) porcelain chamber pot sat underneath the bed.
"Thank you," Riku said, examining the room.
"It isn't much, but I suppose beggars cannot be choosers." Sora chuckled again.
"I could not ask for more," Riku assured. He flashed Sora a fleeting smile, and Sora's heart warmed.
"Riku, how old are you?" Sora wondered.
"I am fifteen; what about you?"
"I'm fourteen," Sora replied, "I shall turn fifteen in just a few days."
"How old is Kairi?"
"She is thirteen."
"She is at the age where girls begin to prepare for marriage," Riku noted.
Another odd pang of jealousy hit Sora like lightning. "Yes, but she is not promised to anyone."
"I see," Riku mused, "she seems to be a very sweet girl. It is no doubt she will find someone who will love her very much."
Sora wondered if Riku was proposing himself to be Kairi's betrothed. More inexplicable jealousy flooded him.
"Well, goodnight," Riku offered the boy a parting smile, which broke down Sora's jealousy.
"Yes, goodnight."
Sora and his family rested by the fireplace: Cloud, with a tobacco pipe between his lips; Aerith, tending to needlework; Kairi, playing with a doll on the floor; and Sora, absently sketching letters in cursive on his slate.
"What do you think of Riku?" Kairi wondered aloud.
"I think it will be interesting having him around," Cloud admitted, keeping his true intention well buried.
"He's quite charming, don't you think?" Aerith mentioned.
"I suppose so..." Cloud mumbled.
Sora recalled the boy kissing his mother and sister's hands, and some bizarre thought deep inside him wondered what it would be like to have a boy like Riku greeting him by kissing his hand.
"He's very handsome, too," Kairi added.
Cloud's head snapped toward Kairi. "Don't say such things; he's not here for romance, he's here to keep watch on us."
"Let the girl dream, Cloud." Aerith scolded.
"Father, Hayner said the king was sending soldiers to tend to us like nursemaids; is that true?" Sora asked.
Cloud removed his pipe for a moment, blowing smoke into the air. "I cannot answer that, but know that Riku's arrival means drastic change is coming, whether good or bad."