Oh thank God it's finally done. Note to all writers out there: never write a birthday-present plot bunny the day before someone's birthday and completely rewrite it on their birthday. Especially not when you have laundry and a metric ton of reading to do that night. (Although I should also tell you that it's damn well rewarding getting it done, if you have to take the opportunity as it arises.)
As hinted above, I found out that today was the lovely Sakura-Scout's birthday and was determined to actually get something written for a friend's birthday—especially since I told her about it before I wrote it, haha. In honor of her birthday and the wonderful contributions she's made to the RiShi pairing love, I wrote a whole oneshot using references to her own work (with her permission), in particular the "marshmallow" series in "Shadowed Land and Imaginary Tide" (which you should read if you haven't), while combining it with a plot bunny I'd already had for a scene included in "The Beginning and End of Everything" that she'd asked to have written out. I promise, though, the blatant SoKai just kind of emerged on its own—I'm really intrigued by the idea of what a "mature" Sora acts like, and apparently I think mature!Sora actually realizes he needs to get a move-on with Kairi.
As is referenced in the work itself, the following is set during KHIII, sometime after Sora completes his quest for the Keyblade to Unlock Hearts and frees Xion and the others, but before the final confrontation with Master Xehanort. (While I'm talking about this, if you want to talk theories, bring 'em on and drop me a message somewhere.) Blatant, BLATANT RiShi and some SoKai, unbetaed due to time constraints.
Of course, special thanks to Sakura Scout for the use of her headcanons and for being one of the few users who stuck with me from the very beginning of my fanfiction days—whether or not she ever realized it, she's been mentoring me since I was a sophomore in high school, and for that, I'm most grateful. Enjoy, love!
"You did not."
"Wha'?" Sora pushes himself all the way upright from lounging in the dirt, desperately chewing and trying to swallow the rest of the melting chocolate mess he was eating. Beside him, though, Riku starts snickering, his hand shaking and dipping the marshmallow-topped end of his stick in and out of the campfire.
Xion is almost indistinguishable from the silhouette of the Dwarf Woodlands forest behind her, with her black clothes and inky hair, but Sora can see that she has her hands on her hips as she glares at Riku—with a glint of amusement and something else, as Kairi called it the last time she had teased Xion about it. "You are not making s'mores again."
"'Again?' What's so bad about s'mores?" Sora's getting pretty used to be left in the dark in conversations anymore, now that all of his friends found and rescued their other friends, which was great and all, but it's never not annoying—especially with these two and how often they slip into inside jokes and vague references.
Speaking of which… "I thought they were called 'sch'moes,'" Riku says offhandedly, smirk emerging as his marshmallow catches on fire yet again.
Xion's eyes narrow, and she stalks around the side of the campfire opposite Riku to sit by his friend with a huff, ignoring the proffered finished s'more Riku holds up for her. "At least hand me a stick so I can make a s'more, then."
"Don't do it, Sora," Riku barks just as Sora reaches behind him to grab the branch Riku had laid aside especially for Xion. "She'll catch your clothes on fire, trust me."
"That was your fault." When Sora leans forward cautiously, waiting for a contradictory order, Xion is grinning once more, and Sora can clearly see the light of that something else in her eyes. "You shouldn't have been right there when I was lighting the fire. Besides, I thought you'd be impressed that I could make a fire that big on my first try."
"'Impressed' isn't the word I'd use. Hey, Sora, pass that over to Xi, would you…"
"How about you two start making sense," he grumbles, but he does as asked and hands Xion the bag of marshmallows.
"Sorry, Sora," and at least Xion sounds sheepish, even if she doesn't look it as she lifts her eyebrows at Riku.
His best friend, on the other hand, is smirking ever wider. "While Xion and I were travelling together, I was going to be nice and teach her how to make s'mores—"
"And he failed miserably," Xion says lightly, delicately poking a marshmallow on the end of the stick she grabbed when Sora wasn't looking.
"Hey, you were the one who completely destroyed the graham crackers." Riku's smirk has stretched into a smile, though, and his entire body shifts, facing Xion completely, and Sora feels the corners of his mouth curling upward when he catches it.
"And you're the one who gave me terrible directions," Xion counters, giggling. If Sora's not mistaken, the firelight isn't the only reason her face seems red, and she never does make eye contact as she rotates her marshmallow. "Not to mention you were kept catching the marshmallows on fire when I told you not to—"
"Better than catching me on fire. Anyway—" Riku breaks whatever spell nostalgia cast over him and Xion and glances over at Sora— "it was a complete and total disaster, in case you couldn't already tell."
Sora laughs and ducks his head, but his laughter dies away when he looks up and finds Riku and Xion just gazing at the other across the fire all over again, the space between them soft and warm and comfortable despite the silence... Quietly he pushes himself off the ground, promising to return with blankets, and turns his back to them to give them their privacy, resolving to tell Kairi what he'd seen—and trying not to think about how much he wished Kairi were here with him all of the sudden.
Of course, he forgets about all of that when he comes back and Xion's licking the remnants of her toasted marshmallow off her fingers a little too slowly and dramatically while Riku watches a little too closely…
Sleep comes no more easily tonight than it had since he left the Realm of Sleep the second time.
He never admits it, but at night all Sora's fears come back to him when he closes his eyes, golden eyes and Kingdom Keys melded together under a heart-shaped moon, X-shaped scars and silver hair and dark cloaks… Sora's up to sixty-eight Meow-Wow's jumping over the fence—which he's kind of proud of, he's never been able to stay on any train of thought this long, he thinks—when there's a rustle of moving clothing behind him.
His body stiffens, but before he can do anything, the rustle moves away—toward Xion. On instinct he rolls over onto his side as quietly as possible, eyes open enough to see his eyelashes but not much else as he searches for the intruder, heart racing. The small noises stop suddenly, and Sora forces himself to take a deep, steady breath before opening his eyes—
—and instantly has to restrain the urge to smack himself in the face.
It's just Riku, still awake on watch, and of course Riku would never let anyone hurt his friends while they were asleep—Sora can attest to that himself. Feeling stupid, Sora closes his eyes again, wrapping the blanket a little tighter around himself…
And then it occurs to him that he still doesn't know why Riku's up.
Curiosity peaked, Sora opens his eyes halfway again, and again he immediately wants to close them and forget he saw anything, but for a different reason. Riku's crouched beside Xion's still form, another blanket draped over her, and as Sora watches, his friend gently pokes the edges of the blanket under her arms and legs, even reaching down to her feet to wrap the cloth around them.
For His Majesty's sake, Riku was tucking Xion in.
That really should be the extent of it, Sora thinks—he doesn't need to see anymore, Riku would murder him if he got caught, and that's really all the cuteness he needs for now, thanks—but then Xion stirs, and Sora can't look away from the scene playing out in front of him.
"Ri-ku?" she says softly—Sora can't see from here, but he's sure at least one of them is smiling, he just is. "What're you doing?"
"Making sure you're warm enough," Riku answers, voice low, and his hand glides over Xion's face—brushing her hair back?—before pushing another part of the blanket under her shoulder. "You were shivering, so I brought you an extra blanket."
There are no extra blankets, just the three flimsy ones Sora managed to pack before they left Yen Sid's tower on this expedition; even half-awake as she is, Xion knows this. "Sure you won't need it?"
"I've lived through worse." Riku pulls his hand back, albeit hesitantly. "Don't worry about me, alright?"
"It'd be a lot easier if you'd take care of yourself." Point to Xion, Sora thinks.
Riku groans, lowering his head and resting his forehead on hers—Sora rubs his eyes quickly, but he's not dreaming this up. "It is way too late for you to be lecturing me."
"Or too early."
Riku laughs shortly, and for a moment the two of them stay like that, Riku leaning against Xion as they take in the other's presence. Sora swallows thickly watching them, shrinking into the blanket a little more with every second. At last, though, Xion frees her arm from the blankets and reaches out to Riku's cheek—and in the dim firelight Sora can't see anything in detail, but he can see Xion pull Riku down to her and hear the sound of their lips parting when Riku leans back, and Sora stops breathing for a moment in shock.
"Thank you, Riku," he hears, and maybe even I love you, if his heart understood them correctly.
"You're welcome." I love you, too. "Sleep well, Xion."
And Riku walks away as quietly as he came, back to his post away from Xion with Sora between them, and yet their peace encompasses everything around them; not long after, the world falls away around Sora.
(He dreams of Kairi.)
(And now, onto SoKai day bunny-hunting!)