Time had gone slowly. That was for sure. Things had gone from non-stop adventure, back to their normal routine. Just... like that. To have it all come back so suddenly? It was relieving but, unsettling at the same time. For a couple years he, as the keyblade master, had traveled from world to world, fighting the heartless.. searching for his friends, trying to protect the ones he had, just so much stuff... so much that shouldn't have really been piled onto a teen his age. But nonetheless it had happened, and he had learned to like some of the parts that came with it. He had grown accustomed to his new life. Being ready to face new worlds, challenges, dangers, people, just... anything. But now, things were back to the normal, quiet, serene life on the islands. He wasn't ungrateful that he had his friends safe again, his island back and safe, as well as thriving, but.. things hadn't gone back to normal completely. Now everyone was asking him, "Can we spar?", "How do you do this move?", "Tell me the story about... again!", "What happened next!", just... any questions. He hadn't really had a problem at first, but they were poking and prodding where he didn't want them to. What they didn't understand, was that some of it hadn't been easy. No, most of it hadn't been easy. Not to mention there were many parts that were painful beyond comparison. It was... just like he couldn't say no to them. He had a couple times, only to have them get mad at him, or his own guilt get the best of him for some reason or another.
The golden brown haired teen was happy to have endless time with Riku and Kairi, of course, but it seemed like that time wasn't so available sometimes. The island had found out about Riku's struggles, betrayal and then what he had done to help restore Sora's memories, but one thing that people were most bugged, or 'weirded out' about, was the fact that there were kind of two Sora's. The one that they had known and grown up with, and then had regained to their home as a hero... and then this boy, this blonde, who randomly popped up out of nowhere after a while. Things had already been told about the boy, but... they hadn't expected for him to just.. pop back into existence. It had caused worry first, people first thinking that Roxas was taking a piece of Sora again that he needed, but somehow, one unexplainable way or another, they both seemed whole now. Both had their own memories. They didn't share them. Roxas had the memories he had made on his own during his short life, and then Sora had his many years. They were like... twins. That was the best way to describe it.
It was just another thing to grow accustomed to. Just like the fact Sora was a universal hero, Kairi was a princess, Riku was a friend who had betrayed the ones he loved and then saved them, but had also fallen to darkness. It... was complicated. The complications were ones that only the trio could understand. The others... just hadn't been there. So how could they even begin to understand the pain, fear, everything that they had gone through? The emotions, physical and mental pain.. One could only understand such things if they were there or had experienced it themselves. Thats all that there was to it.
Today, it was quieter. Just a bit brighter maybe... and just a bit more comfortable. The cinnamon haired teen laid back on the sand, a leg crossed over a straight, outstretched one as he had his hands behind his head, bright azure orbs hidden behind their lids. It wasn't too hot today... it was warm. Just right. The crystal clear, gentle waters rushed softly up and splashed slowly against his feet before receeding back, only to repeat the cycle endlessly. A soft and content sigh escaped the pale pink lips as his chest slowly rose and fell, the teenage form being lost in a light slumber that was once a frequent thing on the white sandy beaches of his home world.
Being lost in sleep, he had no idea of the blonde that watched him from one of the tree houses that was built high in one of the many strong, large trees that grew upon the island. He leaned against the wooden rail, glaring down at his 'other half', or what other people now called his 'twin', as he slept peacefully on the beach. He didn't like this place. It just... was too quiet. Too simple. Even if it was supposed to be his 'home' too, since it was Sora's. 'I'm not him... I'm nothing like him.' The boy thought bitterly to himself.
Roxas had become his own self again, a couple weeks ago.. maybe more. He couldn't tell very well in this place. Days slugged by, and it was hard for him to keep track. Things were just so weird here. Well... weird by his standards anyway. He found it annoying... The people of this island world, always stared at him like he was an alien.. or freak or something. He knew he wasn't just like them... he was a nobody and always would be, but... those constant glares, it just was starting to get on his last nerve. But.. one thing, one good thing he had found himself thinking of.. or rather person, had been none other than Axel. He... missed the man? Was that the right word? Nah. Maybe he didn't miss him but... just the familiar company? Yes. That had to be it.
But that was nothing but an excuse. He missed Axel. Not the familiar company, well not just that anyway, but he missed the man himself. But for the moment, he had no means of getting off this damned world. He couldn't open any portals here.. He felt trapped, and it frankly, pissed him off. A sigh escaped his lips before he walked back to the wooden wall of the tree house and leaned back against it, sliding down the smoothed surface, to sit on the wooden floor, leaning back as he closed his eyes, ignoring the sight of his 'twin' waking up down on the white sands.
Deep blue orbs were finally, slowly, revealed from under the light colored lids as the sun continued to beat down brightly upon them. The teenage form had stirred, then stretching as a small grunt escaped the pale pink lips. It really was perfectly warm today.. making things more comfortable, relaxing... boring. It was days like these that got to him. It was just such an immediate change.. it felt that way even now, weeks later.
Sitting up, he sighed and looked out upon the clear blue sea before him. The sea that he had mised so... He'd noticed that his other half didn't seem to be too happy or comfortable with his current surroundings. He couldn't blame the boy, he was getting quite a bit of unwanted, not to mention unneeded, attention about who he was, and just so many other questions that the islanders asked him.. and then he had that on top of getting used to his surroundings and trying to accept the people, or at least get used to them. He seemed to have the look of homesickness on his features quite a bit... not to mention that since Roxas was a part of him, Sora could feel that same feeling. It was one he had himself, felt before. Missing Destiny Islands... as well as his friends. Thats how Roxas was feeling now. Missing his home, which he guessed was Twilight Town, but he could feel he missed his friends there too.. not to mention Axel. Even if the two no longer shared memories, or a body, they still had a connection between them. A strong one.
Wiping at his eyes a bit, he stood, brushing himself off of the sands that had gotten stuck, or into his clothing. A smile found a place on his lips faintly, his eyes scanning the area of the island. He hadn't yet seen Kairi this morning... or more importantly... he hadn't yet seen Riku. His mind had fallen upon their time together, stuck in the world of darkness after defeating Xemnas. It had been their time together for the first time in a really long time to just... talk. Relax.. and just be happy to talk to each other. But that night, the air had been thick with their emotions. That night... he could swear that Riku could feel what he had. Which... had been that what they had? Wasn't just a friendship. It was... something more.
He wasn't really sure when it had become that way. Of thinking about Riku that way... but.. it felt.. right. It didn't really feel 'new'. Had it developed when he had so worriedly searched for his friend after he had been locked in Kingdom Hearts? No. He was sure it had been before then... had.. he felt like that the whole time? He had heard before, that sometimes the heart and body decided things, before one's mind could figure out and contemplate the feelings. He was just kind of scared... Should he, or would he confess such feelings to Riku? How would the other react? Would he hate him? Be disgusted? Or would Sora be lucky enough to find that Riku felt the same? Such questions often made Sora feel like he was being taunted.
Slipping his hands into his pockets, he walked up the beach to the small shack, which he soon stepped into and walked up the steps that led to the bridge that led to the small island that he and Riku often used to spar on. Upon getting up to the bridge, he walked across it. The small island had always been one of Riku's more frequent hang-outs, it was even now. As he got to the small island, he smiled as he saw his friend sitting upon the bent palm tree, staring out at the sea rather blankly. He snuck up behind his friend, hoping to surprise him, but just as he was about to pounce...
"Hey."
The sudden smooth tone of Riku's voice and the slight turn of his head, just enough for him to see one of those beautiful aqua orbs moments after saying his surprise greeting, Sora had fallen back after nearly jumping out of his skin. He didn't know why it had startled him so... but that smooth voice could knock anyone dead. He finally sat up to see Riku now fully turned, sitting on the palm so that he now faced him. Sora pouted, holding back a smirk. "Oh come on! I can't even sneak up on you now?" Riku just smirked, chuckling softly. "Come on Sora, you should know that you can't especially now." It was true. With both of them being much stronger now, their senses were sharper.. but still. Sora had to whine and tease him about it a bit. "I know.." he said, smirking slightly as he stood to come and sit beside his childhood friend.
"Its quiet today." He said as his smile grew fainter. Riku was the only one he could really be himself around. His 'new' self. He wasn't always grinning, laughing, and being the kind of 'island idiot' that everyone remembered him to be. It was the same for Riku he was sure, because he'd actually told him this once.. not to mention it was kind of obvious. He acted so differently around the others, and he could tell that he didn't want to. They had both tried to be themselves around the others, but it hadn't come out so good. Everyone just.. couldn't understand that they'd changed.
"Yeah.. and quiet means boring. More than usual." The silver haired teen had replied with a faint smirk. No one had really been out on the island, playing today.. which was kind of a relief, but just as Riku had said, boring. It just made things boring.. more so anyway. "Being back... really does have its pros and cons." Riku blinked. "Did you really think that we could just go back to our lives without any problem?" "..Actually, yeah. For a while I did. I just hadn't understood." He said, shrugging. "Now you do though, and its just as unsettling for you as it is for me, right?" He asked, looking to his cinnamon haired friend. "You got it.."
The two shrugged, falling silent for a while. They'd both become much more quiet, and that was something for both. No one probably would've thought that Sora, the bright, bubbly, non-stop kid, would become this way, and they probably thought Riku couldn't be any more so. Not really anyway. After a while, Sora jerked from his thoughts as something was thrown onto him. He snapped up into a sitting position, having laid down on the trunk of the tree a while ago, blinking as he took the wooden sword that Riku had thrown onto him.
The silver haired teen stood in front of him, an almost devious look upon his features. Maybe it'd be better described as playful? Either way, Sora knew what was coming next. "Wanna spar?" The keyblade master jumped down from his place on the trunk of the palm tree and took his usual position across from him. "You bet. Just don't come cryin' back to me when I whip you." He said with a grin. "Yeah yeah. We'll see if you can back your tough talk up.." He said, eyes narrowing playfully. Both got into their ready positions. It wasn't long though, before Riku shot forward towards Sora, taking the head on approach, slashing his wooden sword hard against Sora's as he pulled his up to block. Sora was pushed back slightly, his eyes narrowing as he smirked, holding his ground. "Pretty good... but... not... good.." He pushed back hard against Riku and jumped to the side and slashed at the other. "...enough!" But Riku was swift, as Sora had swung at him, he jumped back from him, avoiding the attack.
The two kept it up for quite a while, swinging, slashing, stabbing, blocking, and dodging the other's attacks. It had gone on for nearly an hour actually. It was close to the time when the sun would be setting. Both teens were panting, completely out of breath, and beads of sweat rolled down from their foreheads. Both had landed quite a few attacks and had gotten each other slightly battered. Nothing to really hurt the other though. "This'll be... the final blow." Sora rushed forward and jumped up, sending one more mighty slash at the other, but Riku dodged to the side just enough and then knocked Sora on the back to make him fall forward. Sora's eyes widened slightly as he started to fall to the ground. He turned just enough to try and grab something to stop him from falling, and what he got?
Feeling his back hit the ground, he flinched, a slightly pained grunt escaping his lips. He was surprised, his eyes widening as he felt a weight upon his body. He blinked as his eyes fell upon Riku who was upon him. He had grabbed Riku's hand, dragging him down with him. The two's eyes met, a light red blush appearing on both male's cheeks as they looked at one another. Neither moved for a moment... unsure what to do, and slightly shocked at such a position. It was a while before the awkward silence was broken, or at least Sora's shaky voice had tried to break it. "A-Ah... uhm... S-Sorry R-" He was cut off as his eyes widened further..
'W-Wh-What?'
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End of Chapter.
Hope you liked it!
I found this one easier to write. More to do... and 3rd person is just /so/ much easier. :3
So anyway, please comment and review, I'll have the third chapter up later. :D