maybe someday
One step, two steps, three steps, four...
Roxas brought his leg forward, one after the other.
He was mindlessly hacking away the army of Heartless, seemingly to be in cahoots with some silvery minor Nobodies. Back and forth he went from Twilight Town to Hollow Bastion, taking the train that went from world to world in a regular pace. Time found him sometimes running along the bailey, treasure hunting with the Gullswings (as they are pros in that area), or some other odd area he'd stick his nose into. The world had been against him since that morning—no, since his best friend, Naminé, had asked him to get something he'd call clarity—the day before, to be exact.
He still had no idea as of what clarity was.
He remembered it had been a hot afternoon and he gave his friends a Sea Salt Ice Cream each. In the midst where his friends are laughing and joking at each other, Naminé had hammered him with a ridiculous notion of getting clarity for himself.
"What?" Naminé nodded when he asked, "Clarity?"
"You heard me."
His last layer of popsicle slid off the stick he was holding—which he inadvertently tossed to a nearby trash can. "Should I look for a person?"
Naminé shook her head, causing strands of blond sweep about her shoulders. "I want you to get what you call clarity."
"Huh? Do I get any more clues?"
"No questions asked, remember? You lost the bet whether or not Sephiroth would ask Tifa out last week."
"I didn't. Okay, I did. But it was damn ... unreal."
"You're too slow to get it. Once you find clarity, you'll know what Sephiroth means with being 'within five meters radius around her.'" She laughed.
"That sounds like a pain," he muttered. Tifa's punches make a huge hole on Merlin's door the other day he'd found her looking pissed off that some pissy-looking blond stole her ring to present to his girlfriend. "Think what'll happen if she used one of her skills." He could never understand why Sephiroth was willing to choose a woman with revered strength—enough to pull out a tooth with just two fingers.
"Now remember, Roxas, if you found clarity, you'll feel it. It's like magic." Naminé left him with a laughing 'lotsa luck!', waving as she did.
He knew he'd eventually reach the top floor for the fourth time that day. As he currently mulled what his clarity should be—a person with insane strength yet gullibly sweet when it comes to moogles or anything with fluffy stomachs, or a magnifying glass he'd seen at a pawn shop, guaranteed to give clarity (of sorts); he had never realized he'd rapidly decrease the number of heartless swarming over someone.
The person he happened to save was a girl around his age, blinking back at him out of her clear, violet eyes as if he was far more threatening than the enemies he'd felled before then.
He recalled what Naminé had said before departing. ...you'll feel it. It's like magic.
And he didn't know what he felt right that time—it's surprisingly confusing to feel it. To hell with magic. He could do seven or more rapid thundagas if he wanted to.
Their meeting was a mere accident; he was looking for clarity, she was already within it.
"You all right?" His voice that came out was more like a croak as he tried to appear harmless by hiding his Keyblade behind him, as he made a sheepish face. He had to admit, the tiredness of his endless slaughter-slash-hunt was taking its toll now that he'd emptied his supply of potions.
She smiled then, tucking a strand of her red hair behind her ear, having found a source of amusement. "Why shouldn't I be?" she asked. She raised a hand and a green glow enveloped him, activating a curaga. "As a thanks from me."
He grunted, letting the magic do its job, replenishing his health as he stood still. Before he walked away, she'd said something he had yet hadn't expected.
"You know, I think I could love someone like you."
That effectively stopped him dead in his tracks. He glanced back at her. "Why?" he asked.
She shook her head slowly and what came as her reply was, "It shouldn't be 'why'; the question is, will it happen?"
What he had expected was a long, threaded and patchy essay of 'because'—because he saved her and she wanted him to always save her, and that she'd make him happy in return. He was ready to politely decline that but her answer once again anchored his feet before he mustered a massive deal of strength to just simply walk away with his head filled with questions.
Why she was there in that so-called haunted mansion, he never knew.
It was days after their first meeting did their second one came.
This time he'd found her in Port Royal as he was trying to beat the crap out of a Grim Reaper. He played the hero, again. "You again?" he asked, his eyes showing genuine surprise.
A soft smile tugged at her lips as she saw in recognition of who had came from the area behind her. "Why?"
He shrugged as he let his Keyblade disappear. "I was hoping I won't meet you."
She raised her hand to his direction and what he thought was a cure—was a fira spell shot out, barely missing his head by inches and something exploded behind him. "Heartless," she said, tilting her head to the left. "But you did, careless boy."
He copied her, his head to the right as he grinned. "Coincidence."
She cured him again, even when he said he had his potions intact. Before parting, he had somewhat anticipated she just had to say something that would haunt him.
"I believe I could love you."
It was his turn to ask. "Why?"
She smiled that same smile she'd greeted him for the first time and countered with, "Why not?"
And he didn't sleep well that night. His mind reeled incessantly about her words. He couldn't clear his head off them. Why, why, why?
It was weeks after that, and he was beginning to think he was free from her and he had ventured close, at The World That Never Was this time, looking for tougher enemies. And tougher enemies he got. He was in the throes of figuring how to defeat the higher ranking nobodies' group in a least wasting way where he wouldn't have to use up healing items. Skill after skill he used, notwithstanding his aching muscles, he hacked away the nobodies. It was just his luck when he reached for an ether, there was only one left. He had already used up all his potions. (In the price of getting a lump sum of munny from the hordes.)
Was that how it was going to end?
From a distance he could see the Nobodies closing in on him.
What about what he was supposed to search for?
His eyes couldn't see clearly and the only known exit point was painfully far from where he was.
What about the girl?
Of course, he'd never find her there. No normal girl would. She could be somewhere safe, away from that place. Just when his thoughts were randomly inching to her, he realized that he had never asked her name.
What a loss.
There he slumped down, rendered useless as he was deprived of healing items, leaning onto a brick wall as he stared into the endless night and letting his pain slowly eat him away. He couldn't pinpoint exactly why he was thinking about her at that time.
If he asked now would she hear him?
"What's your name?"
And he thought he was hearing things when her faint voice answered somewhere. "I'm Kairi."
"What?—"
He heard it this time, clearer, and her footsteps coming closer. "Kairi." He wasn't dreaming—she was there in the flesh, red hair, eyes darker than blue, and pink outfit—a perfect contrast in that World. Shit. He'd brought a huge mob with him. He wasn't even looking really presentable either.
"And you?" she asked; paused when she saw him up close with her eyes wide when she recognized him. "—Oh."
"It's you," they both said at the same time; her voice lighter and more laughing, and his with disdain.
He eyed their surroundings, looking for a safe route for her to escape. None. They were cornered and the enemies were dancing slowly towards them. "Why are you here?" He growled through his teeth when she didn't answer. Instead, waved a hand and the air melted beside her--no, it seemed like it was peeled off by a black wispy substance.
"Axel, you there?" she called.
An older redhead, almost the same color as hers (albeit his was dangerously styled in spikes), walked out almost instantly with his black coat blowing slightly. "What now?" he asked, yawning as he scratched the back of his head.
She pointed down at him, and he was still looking agonized. "You get him somewhere safe, kay?"
"Sure, sure." Axel hauled him up with ease as he put one hand across his back, whistling as he did.
"W-wait, Kairi!" he managed to call despite struggling against Axel's hold. "Are you trying to throw away the life I've saved?"
She smiled at him—that familiar smile with a hint of laughter in her eyes. "You ask so much."
"Why...do you live and die for that whom you did not know?"
In other words, why love and sacrifice yourself for me?
"Because life itself has made it so," she answered, smiling still—only this time her smile amplified, showing perfect rows of white teeth.
The black mouth of the Betwixt and Between in the air zipped up and as they were separated, he swore in his half conscious state.
When he came to, he noticed he was lying in the beds of a Hollow Bastion's inn, remembering a scent memory of fresh cedar wood polished every day by the workers there. His strength had returned and he walked out slowly to meet a clear sky when found himself missing her. She was nowhere to be seen. Tired of looking at nothing for nothing, he looked up as he hid his face in his palm.
A half whisper of "Why?" escaped his lips. "Why did you stay back?"
Had she really given up her life then?
Of all the times he'd found himself reduced to nothing, this was the time he'd felt much worst, and let warm moisture from his eyes well. A cool hand touched his cheek and gently brushed away a rolling drop of tear. "Because," a voice spoke. His eyes widened as the voice registered in his mind. "You forgot this."
He moved his hand away, and he saw her right in front of him, holding a full bottle of ether. "Ka...Kairi?"
She was smiling, and her smile grew to laughter when she pointed to her own eye. "Uncool," she said, before resuming her fit of giggles.
He rolled his eyes inwardly, rubbing off excess tear. "Riiight."
"U-huh." She nudged his side. "So you haven't told me your name yet. Kinda unfair if you know my name and I don't know yours."
"Roxas," he said as he tried to snatch the bottle from her which she evaded by twirling and hiding it behind her.
"Mkay. So Roxas, do I get to keep this?"
"No, you can get one from a shop."
"But I want this one."
His stared lingered for several seconds on her, giving her a good amount of time to stash away the ether. "Why?" he asked finally.
"Couldn't help asking, could you?" She laughed again and he laughed along with her. "For memories, of course. So that I'll remember how stupid you can be for not using this thing. It'll at least make sure you'll be able to run to a safe spot."
"Hey."
"True facts." She patted his head as she continued laughing. "And you're not the only hero. Do you always work solo?"
"Depends. When my friends aren't busy, we'll go toge—" – he stopped walking – "hold on."
"What?" Her eyebrows shot up behind her bangs as she looked at him in confusion.
"I gotta show you to Naminé. C'mon!" Roxas kicked up a cloud as he ran to an alley which he knew his friends would be hanging out at.
"Wait up, Roxas!" Kairi increased her speed and ran up to his side. "Seriously, I'm gonna make you pay for the inn fee if you leave me again."
-- -- --
It was a long period of time after that when a young blond with eyes that of his mother's looked up at his father, with words spilling out from his mouth, "Why does she love me?"
The older blond patted him on his back, giving his son an answer gained from a moment of understanding. "Because why not love when you have no reason not to?"
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an. I really hope you all enjoyed that. Review when you get the chance. :D