Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Disney, or any merchandise related to it. Although, I do own the attire that the Destiny Trio and the King, Donald, and Goofy wear to the party (kind of, I think).
Cinderella Ball Match-up
Chapter 3: The Intruder
It was around two hours later when the men were let out from their room—two hours that nearly drove Sora insane with boredom. As soon as one of the butlers opened the double doors ('the gate to their prison cell' as Sora called it) and announced that the party was about to begin, the brunet boy bolted out of his chair and into the hall. Donald, too, was close to lunacy, but kept himself collected as he exited.
"Nature! I can actually see real nature!" cried Sora. He pressed his face to the thick glass, his eyes watering as he thought of sweet freedom.
Alas, his wish for such a thing was to be left in the dust at one servant's words: "If you gentlemen would follow me." The man bowed and smiled at them. "I am to be your escort for the evening. On behalf of our King, we welcome all of you and hope you have a magnificent time."
King Mickey nodded, returning the butler's smile. "I'm sure we will. No doubt about it!" he said joyfully before walking with the escort down the hall. Donald, Goofy, and Riku followed soon after, leaving Sora, lost in his own world, behind.
"H-hey! Wait up, guys! Wait for me!" he called after regaining himself, and took off after them. Stupid clothes! They're too tight to run in! he thought while tugging on the inseam. Distracted by his attire (for the fifth time this evening) Sora didn't notice his feet crossing until he was facedown on the floor. Dang it! This really sucks! Sheez!
When the group entered the ballroom, there were already over a dozen guests standing around and chatting. "Wow, so, all these people are here to see us?" Riku asked, looking from one end of the room to the other.
"Yes, sir," the butler replied. "The princess of our land is greatly admired by her people, so they would undoubtedly like to meet those who rescued her." He bowed to them, stating his leave, and exited without missing a beat. Not a second later, Cinderella came walking through the enormous doorway, wearing her infamous silver dress and glass slippers.
She looked behind her and waved, beckoning someone over. "Come on now, dear. There's nothing to be embarrassed about! You look astonishing!" said Cinderella. Whoever it was made no move to enter. Cinderella walked over to the person—nearly glided—and gently pulled on their arm. The rest of their conversation was drowned out by the roar of other, louder conversations, and though Sora strained to hear, it was to no avail.
Finally, the two emerged from the doorway, and the sight made Sora's jaw drop. It was Kairi who had refused to be seen—for whatever reason—and she looked astonishing. Her flowing gown was a creamy pearl color, and had matching heels that clicked gracefully against the marble floors. A large pink clasp held back the bangs on the left side of her face, and had an intricate design that added to her beauty. She wore a pair of long gloves that ended near her shoulders, ones that matched the rest of her outfit perfectly. Her cheeks, meanwhile, were the same color as her dress. She looked like a porcelain doll, one of absolute perfection, and the sight of her stole the breath from Sora's body.
"Gawrsh, Kairi, we could barely recognize ya!" Goofy exclaimed with a grin. Donald, the King, and Riku all nodded in agreement.
The pink princess smiled sheepishly in return, looking a bit flustered. "I don't feel like myself, that's for sure!" she said with a small laugh.
"You look great," Riku replied as he gave a bright smile to his pink-covered friend. The young Princess of Heart blushed and mumbled a 'thanks' to her silver-haired friend, feeling even more flustered than before.
"Well then," Cinderella interjected. "My father-in—I mean, the King, has requested an audience with your Highness." She nodded to King Mickey with a smile. "So, if you will excuse us." The blonde princess curtsied out of the group with King Mickey in tow. As they walked toward the throne, many of the guests moved from their standing positions on the marble floor.
"Whaddya think they're gonna go talk about?" Goofy whispered to his white-feathered friend.
"You know, important stuff!" Donald whispered back. "The stuff that all kings talk about."
"I'm guessin' you don't know, huh, Donald?" Goofy asked, looking doubtful. In response, a short string of indecipherable squawks shot from the short-tempered duck, who clammed up with a huff.
Sora laughed as he watched the two, remembering how much he missed these moments he and his friends shared. He turned to Riku and Kairi, two of his dearest friends in all the worlds. As he watched them talk and laugh, Sora took another moment to note how beautiful Kairi was. She looks like an angel thought Sora, smiling. All you would have to do is give her a pair of wings, and you couldn't tell she's actually a normal girl.
An unfamiliar voice then broke through Sora's revere. "Excuse me, Miss, would you care to dance with me?" Asked a young man who looked to be around his late teens. He bowed to Kairi with a smile. In return, the pink-clad redhead accepted with a curtsy and let herself be led onto dance floor. She looked up at the gentleman bashfully as he gave her another smile.
"Wish it was you out there dancing with her, huh, Sora?" Riku asked with a nudge to his fellow keyblade master. Little did the silver-haired teenager know he had hit the nail on the head.
I've been wanting to do that ever since Halloween Town, Sora thought with a low grumble. He had little time to sulk, though, as Riku was abruptly dragged away by a girl clad in green. The older keybearer mouthed an apology, which Sora barely understood, and was pulled off with a small wave. Poor Riku, thought Sora, chuckling a little. "So, I wonder if they have anything to eat here?" Sora asked himself as he turned his head left to right, looking around for some sort of butler with a platter in hand.
"I suppose you do not live around these parts?" asked the green-clad girl.
"N-nope," Riku replied. Was it him or was it getting pretty warm in this ballroom?
"So, where do you live, then?" The girl questioned, her eyes so firmly fixed on him that it made Riku feel even warmer around the collar.
What is the matter with this girl? Riku thought. It's like I'm sprouting a second head or something! She could at least blink! The seconds ticking by felt like an eternity for the teenage keybearer. He was never very good when it came to interaction with the more delicate sex, excluding Kairi. So, having to stand close to a girl he had never met before was near torture.
And it's not because she's bad-looking or anything, but this stare she's giving me is… Augh! Riku held back the urge to grind his teeth and mentally groaned. Then, an idea popped into his head. I know! When this music is over, I'll go find Kairi and dance with her. At least it'll keep away this girl's friends. He glanced fleetingly toward the group of girls gathering in the corner and noticed, without having to take a second look, that they were all staring at him. Just like their friend, whom he was holding hands with.
In a few short minutes—or forty years of distress in Riku's case—the orchestra stopped playing, taking a short break between songs. This was Riku's golden opportunity. "Kairi!" He called, loud enough to be heard above the waves of chatter.
"Riku?" Kairi replied, trying to find which direction her friend's voice had come from. She looked around, distressed, the people crowded around her making her feel like a caged bird. Are they doing this on purpose? Kairi wondered. "Riku!" She shouted. If I can't move to find him, then I'll have him find me! "Riku! I'm here!"
Shoving through flocks of people, the said boy could barely hear his friend over the squeals and moans of the obsessive girls from before. Riku's temples grew moist and his skin began to prickle. "Where's 'here'?!" he shouted with his eyes turned towards the ceiling. There was a very beautiful mural painted up there, now that he noticed it.
"I'm—not very sure," Kairi trailed off. She looked around, above the heads of the people surrounding her. Then, she noticed the intricate mural that decorated the ceiling. "I'm, uh, below the three cherubs that are playing a flute, a harp, and a drum! On the mural up on the ceiling!" she exclaimed with her hands cupping around her mouth. I think those are cherubs up there, thought Kairi as she squinted at the ceiling fresco.
Riku's head shot up as he immediately began searching for the three-cherub band. His eyes darted back and forth as he continued moving through the crowd—from what he could tell, he'd lost the hoard of girls. Why does this ballroom have to be so big? he mentally groaned. Suddenly, he felt a hand gently touch his arm and he spun into a defensive stance; had one of those hormone-driven girls caught up with him? Thankfully, that wasn't who had put their hand on him. Rather, it was Kairi standing in front of him, smiling tenderly. He grinned right back before pulling her into a hug. "Thank King Mickey," he said with a sigh of relief.
"What does he have to do with you finding me?" asked the pink-clad girl.
Riku shook his head as he pulled away. "Just a figure of speech," he mumbled. Then, a melodious sound came to his ears. Another classical music score was starting already! "Hey, Kairi, wanna dance?" Riku asked.
The girl held in her giggles, knowing full well it would offend her friend if she let them out. The way he had posed his question was amusing, as if he was asking her to dance with him at a prom. "S-sure," she replied after burying the last of her chuckles (and not noticing the confused look on Riku's face). The two teenagers took a moment of inelegance before finally starting to dance. They both knew that they lacked experience, but that didn't stop either of them from gliding around on the marble floor. Their faces glowed with laughter as they twirled again and again. One could feel the immense amount of pure bliss that the two of them shared. Kairi's cheeks were flushed, matching Riku's blushing ears.
"Hey, uh, K-Kairi?" whispered Riku, the two of them danced closer as the music slowed.
"What is it, Riku?" Kairi asked with a tilt of her head.
"I'd just liked to say…" The silver-haired teenager felt a ball in his throat as he tried to speak. "That I… I really--"
The presence of another man intruded upon the bright and joyful atmosphere between the two teens -- along with Riku's sentence. "I beg both your pardons, my good people, but may I ask a dance with you, young lady?"
Knowing full well that the mood had been killed, Riku just nodded to the older man. He could see Kairi giving him a confused look as the stranger began pulling her away, and for a second it seemed like the young Princess of Heart had a look of disgust on her face. Riku waved limply as Kairi gave him one last look, then walked dejectedly in the other direction. I can't believe I was about to tell her… And then that guy just…! But still… I was so ready to… His thoughts continually trailed off was he wandered off, unaware where he was going (which turned out to be nowhere but into a few shoulders and a wall). So when the 16-year-old keybearer rammed into a conversing, middle-aged man, he made a mental note to watch where he was going.
"Wait…" He mumbled, looking around. "Where's Sora?"
Around the time Riku had found Kairi (or technically, the other way around), Sora, Goofy, and Donald had found buffet tables set up along the wall of the ballroom. "I can't believe how different the food is here from Destiny Islands! Like this-this… what is this?" Sora asked as he held up a small square sandwich.
"That is a 'croque-monsieur,' my young sir," replied a well-dressed servant.
The brunet keybearer looked from the sandwich to the butler slowly. "A what?" he asked again.
"A 'croque-monsieur,' my good sir," replied the servant again.
"A… 'crock-mon-sewer'?" Sora asked with unconstrained disgust on his face.
The butler's eye twitched. "It is a grilled ham-and-cheese sandwich, young man," he said, swiftly thrusting his hand out. "And if you do not wish to eat it, then please hand it over."
Taking notice of the apparent irritation on the gentleman's face, Sora shook his head nervously. "N-no, that's okay. I'll take it. It actually smells pretty good!" He said with a shaky laugh. Then, he moved down the table to get some other things to eat, which had the added benefit of putting some distance between himself and the servant (probably the best move he'd made all night). "That guy reminds me a lot of Donald," he whispered to himself as he glanced over at the quick-tempered servant.
"What was that?" questioned Donald, whose beak was filled with a different assortment of food (similar to the plate he held, which was barely visible).
"Oh! Nothing!" the brunet keybearer responded in an instant. Personal note: Never talk about Donald when he's actually around, he thought to himself.
"Sora! Hey, Sora!" Riku suddenly called, walking briskly out of the crowd.
"Hiya, Riku! What's up?" Sora replied with a sloppy grin.
"Well, I was dancing with Kairi a while back and—"
"Oh yeah, I saw! You guys looked great! I didn't know you could rumba so well."
"We were waltzing, Sora."
"Oh, right! Knew that."
"Yeah. So anyway, Kairi and I were dancing and having a great time when suddenly, this guy shows up and asks Kairi to dance with him."
"What's wrong with that?"
"It was in the middle of the song, and I noticed the people around us weren't too happy with the guy's attitude. So, obviously, something must be up with him."
"Aw, c'mon, Riku! Lighten up! We're at a party, so let's have some fun! Don't worry about some guy who wanted to dance."
"I know, it's just—"
"I found you, mon cheri!" came a shrill cry, making both young men turn. To Riku's horror, and Sora's confusion, the green-clad girl came rushing out of the crowd toward them. "I am so happy to see you again! We must have another dance together!" she said, gushing with excitement as she pulled on Riku's arm.
"U-um, Miss, I think it's best if we-- I mean, I don't really--" stammered the panicking silver-haired boy. Unfortunately, he had no means of escape, and was once again dragged away into the sea of fancily-dressed townspeople. The last words Sora could hear from his friend were: "… Keep an eye on Kairi!"
"Okie-dokie then," replied the brunet boy. He stood there watching the crowds of people dancing, his body numb with confusion.
"So, Mademoiselle, how are you enjoying this ball?" asked the intrusive man.
"It's wonderful. I love the music, and the people are dressed so nicely here," Kairi replied. If she had to guess, it had been a full twenty minutes since she had started dancing with this man, and if her feet weren't killing her, her back was. Also, Kairi was getting a bad feeling as she continued to dance with this stranger, as if some higher being was telling her to get away. But all these people are blocking off every exit. If I try to run away, I'll run into people and might ruin their evening, she thought miserably.
"Mademoiselle, do you mind if I called you Kairi?" the man asked with a detached grin.
"What? Oh, um, sure," replied the pink-clad princess. She tilted her head down, trying to think of a way to escape this dreadful and eternal waltz. Her eyes darted back and forth, looking but not truly seeing anything. Kairi knew she had to get away, but how? Suddenly, she felt herself being pulled out of the crowd. The pushy man had begun to pull her to somewhere different, somewhere quieter. He was taking her to the garden.
A/N: I apologize for the hiatus. I didn't mean to be gone for months from this fic! I just lost track of time with schoolwork and stuff. Also, I had a major case of writer's block while in the middle of writing this chapter! So, forgive me! And please stick around for the next and final chapter! Also, a 'croque-monsieur' is a sandwich that was first made available only in French fast food joints (and the reason why I put a French food in this is because Cinderella is hinted to be in a French town; the 'maidens to prince introduction' scene of the movie). Another quick note is that all the music that plays in the background of the fic is classical. No lyrics, just orchestra. I recommend Vivaldi's "Spring" for the scene between Riku and Kairi. CYA