At first this was going to be part of a different oneshot but I decided the scene didn't it so I wrote it out by itself and it ended up evolving into a fully-fledged vignette of its own for a pairing that I don't actually like. Yet somehow I'm still quite proud of it. I would love to know if you like it too, so please review... :)

Pieces Scattered

Sunset was such a vivid time of day on the Destiny Islands. The twilight colours burned like a raging fire, setting the sky ablaze over the cool, dark sea. The best place to view this spectacular phenomenon was from the play island. The beach faced the west and was bathed in candlelight orange every evening.

People would often have left the play island by the time the sun set, although nowadays people didn't even come to the island. Tidus, Selphie and Wakka all had more important and more mature things to do. It was just the private haven of Sora, Riku and Kairi.

It was about time to leave before the water got too dark to sail across. Sora searched up and down the beach for the only other person he knew was still here. He looked up and spotted her sitting on the trunk of the paupu tree. She was radiant, sitting there with a background of a sky on fire. He smiled and just admired her for a while. However, he would have to go and talk to her eventually. His mind ticked over and he suddenly had an idea. He looked around until he found was he was looking for: a large flower with pink petals. There were two of them growing side-by-side, their tall stems sagging slightly with their weight. He plucked one and made his way through the shack to cross the bridge.

The paupu tree was the best seat in the world to watch the sunset from. Kairi simply admired the vibrant colours painting the sky. She wondered if it would ever be possible to use magic to pluck those colours right out of the sky and onto a brush to paint with them. Out of her periphery she saw pink petals and turned towards them. Sora grinned at her, proffering the flower.

"A flower for you, princess," he said light-heartedly, bending one knee.

Kairi giggled and accepted the gift happily. "You know I'm not really a princess, right?"

"A Princess of Heart is basically a real princess," Sora said, taking up a perch beside her. "And even if you weren't a princess, I'd still want to treat you like one."

Kairi blushed and turned away, preoccupying herself by caressing the soft petals. "This was really nice of you. Thanks."

They sat together in companionable silence. Sora watched the sunset and snuck glances at Kairi while she admired his gift to her.

"Hey, Sora," she piped up after a few minutes, "all of the other Princesses of Heart were real princesses, weren't they?"

Sora looked up as if he might find the answer in the sky. "I'm not really sure, to be honest. Why? Do you think you were a princess back on Radiant Garden? Are you getting some memories back?" he asked excitedly.

Kairi shook her head. "I still don't remember that time before I arrived on the Islands. I don't really mind; this world is really the only home I think I need. But sometimes I wonder what my life would have been like if I had been able to stay in my homeworld. What if I had been able to help stop the darkness from taking over? What if I grew up knowing my friends and family from that time and never met you or Riku or anyone on the islands?"

"That would be awful!"

"For you or for me?" Kairi asked, giving him a sceptical glance.

"Well, for both of us… At least, assuming that you like it here." Sora looked down at the sand.

"I wasn't saying that. I was just wondering if things could have been different. Should they have been different?"

"I don't know," Sora moaned, scratching the back of his head. "I don't really get all of this destiny stuff. The way I see it, the past happened and you can't undo it; you can only be thankful for the good things that came of whatever happened."

"But what about the good that didn't happen?"

"There's no point worrying about it. After all, it didn't happen."

"Still," Kairi murmured, sliding off the trunk to walk across the sand to the edge of the islet. "I'd at least like to know the part of my old life that did happen – the pieces that are actually part of my past."

Sora watched her despondently for a while. Then an idea struck him. He smiled and hopped off the tree. He grabbed her hand – the one holding the flower – and engulfed it completely in his. Kairi glanced at it for a moment before looking into Sora's eyes questioningly.

"Then come with me next time," he grinned. Kairi was speechless, unsure what to make of that until Sora added: "Maybe if you see some of what's out in the universe you'll find some of those lost pieces and we'll put them back together."

Kairi smiled. "Yeah… from now on we'll do things together."

She looked down at the long drop just beneath her feet and the waves lapping at the edge. The tide was going out and the water would soon be shallow. She tugged on his hand and they were so in synch that they both leaped off the edge in perfect time. They landed in the clear sea water with a splash, backs scraping the sand below. Their hands were still locked, even as they broke the surface. They shook the water out of their hair and eyes and Kairi lifted the flower. It was gone. The only thing left was the stem.

Sora and Kairi both looked around for it wildly. Suddenly Sora laughed and when Kairi looked at him he pointed out to sea. The flower was still intact, petals and all. It floated on the water's surface, bobbing with the waves as the tide dragged it out to sea, towards the sunset.

"I wonder what will happen to it," Kairi said.

Sora shrugged. "Who knows."

Their feet were only barely able to touch the bottom so they treaded for a while, watching the flower float on to wherever the tide would take it.