A\N: This story takes place after kingdom hearts 2, and includes part of the ending from the game. It's my first story on here, so be gentle as far as comments go...thanks!

Chapter 1: Return to Adventures

Sora gazed out into the ocean. The view from under the papou tree relaxed him and soothed him. He let out a sigh. I missed this place so much, Sora thought. A year has gone by. A year of fighting the darkness, against the heartless and the nobodies, and defeating Ansem and Xemnas, the two who had tried to unleash the power of Kingdom Hearts. A year had passed, and yet…

Sora glanced sideways at his best friend Riku, the silver haired boy who was sitting on the tree looking out at the waters. He returned Sora's glance and was thinking the same thing as Sora. "Nothing's changed" Riku said. Sora shook his head, "Nope, and nothing will" he added.

Sora sat in thought for a few minutes before he asked, "Hey Riku, what do you think it was, the door to the light?" Riku stared into the sky. He shrugged, "I don't know" he replied. He looked over at Sora, smirking, then pointed at Sora's chest.

" Here? " Sora asked, with a bewildered look, examining where Riku had pointed.

"It's always closer than you think" Riku said, still smiling at Sora's confusion. "Sora! Riku!" Kairi yelled, rushing towards the two boys. When she got to them, she was panting, and she had a glass bottle with a note inside it. "Here" she said, still trying to catch her breath as she handed the bottle to Sora. "From the King?" Sora took the bottle anxiously, and opened the note that had the king's seal. He started to read it with Riku and Kairi reading over his shoulder.

Dear Sora,

Sorry to cut your stay back home short, but you're need at Disney Castle ASAP. Donald and Goofy should be arriving with a gummi ship shortly to take you here. Riku and Kairi should accompany you as well.

Sincerely,

King Mickey of

Disney Castle

Impulsively, Sora looked up at the sky and saw a bright, flickering light coming down towards them. Sora knew exactly what it was, causing a huge smile to spread across his face. Sure enough, seconds later, a gummi ship landed next to the trio. Donald and Goofy clattered out of the ship.

"Donald! Goofy!" Sora cheered and smashed into both of them, giving them each a big hug. "Gawsh, it's good to see ya again, Sora" Goofy said. "And the same goes for you two too" Riku and Kairi both smiled happily at the trio. After their happy reunion, Sora couldn't resist to ask, "So what's the reason we're going back to Disney Castle?"

"Gawsh Sora, it's for you! A lot of people are celebrating us beating Organization XIII! And the king says you're gonna be knighted!" Goofy explained, all the while examining Sora's home island.

"Riku and Kairi have to come too because Riku is gonna be honored and Kairi's a princess of heart" Donald added. Sora looked back at the mentioned two. Riku was looking off into the distance, trying not to smile at Donald's last remark. Kairi had a very anxious look on her face as if she didn't want them to go, and was looking back at Sora. Sora couldn't help but get lost in her beautiful aqua green eyes. He felt his heart racing as if in some climatic battle. Why is this happening to me? Whenever I even look at Kairi, I can't help but lose my focus completely. Sora was still in thought when Donald waved a hand wildly in Sora's face to catch his attention.

" Hey! What's with you! We havta get going!" Sora turned to see Donald with an annoyed expression on his face.

"Oh, sorry! I was just uh………just uh…" Sora looked down trying to conceal his face; he hadn't realized he had been staring at her. Kairi had seen him blushing, and she giggled.

"Come on, lets go" Riku said as he jumped aboard the gummi ship. Donald and Goofy followed behind him. Sora stood frozen to his spot, still looking toward the ground. Kairi walked up to him and stood eye level in front of him. "You……………..gonna be alright?" she said, blushing slightly herself.

"Er, yeah, come on, lets not keep them waiting" Sora smirked before he jumped on the ship, followed by Kairi. The ship took off in a whirl of light and was in the depths of space in no time.

"So, what's been going on since you guys left?" Sora asked. Goofy opened his mouth to speak, but Donald cut him off, "The king has been real busy trying to contact all the world's to see if they're back to normal. So far, it looks like all the nobodies and heartless have disappeared! We did it Sora! We finally beat all the bad guys!" Donald cheered, as he continued to pilot the gummi ship. Sora slouched back into his co-pilot seat, and relaxed with his hands behind his head. It's over, he thought to himself. No more fighting, no more bad guys, no more desperate searching for Riku and Kai-…

Sora looked back to where Kairi was seated near the back of the ship. She had dozed off, with her head rested on her hand. Sora got up and went to sit next to her. He observed her for a few minutes. A year has gone by, and nothing has changed...no, I'm wrong, Kairi's changed. Her personality is the same, but physically she had bloomed into a goddess of beauty. Sora felt his heart racing again. He got up and got a blanket out of a small cabin in the back of the ship. He sat back down next to Kairi and tucked the blanket around her. He continued to stare down at her facial features. She looks so peaceful when she's asleep...is this how a friend really thinks and feels about another friend? "Of course not, she's more than just a friend to me". Sora hadn't realized he had said that out loud until Riku, who was right behind him, gave a sarcastic grunt.

"Well, if that's not obvious enough…" Riku had a mischievous grin spread across his face, but quickly regained his composure. "I talked to her a bit after we returned to the island. You're lucky, she thought about you every day you were gone, even when her memories of you were no longer there." Riku crossed his arms and looked forward into space. "Make sure you make that up to her at some point." Riku looked at Sora, who had the same puzzled look on his face throughout the entire conversation.

"What do you mean by that?" Sora asked, still quite shocked at what Riku had just told him. Riku didn't give an answer, but instead roughed up Sora's hair, and dashed to the front of the ship. Sora chased behind in playful revenge.

Meanwhile, Kairi opened her eyes from her fake slumber and looked at the blanket that was wrapped tightly around her. She smiled and blushed madly to herself. "I hope one day he decides to take Riku's advice" she whispered to herself before really drifting off into a deep sleep.