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I watch you fast asleep. All I fear means nothing.
Namine woke up completely now. She was half asleep for an hour, lying in her bed, just thinking randomly and dully. She was waiting for her alarm clock to go off and play Sanctuary.
Thud-thud. Her heartbeat sped up and her vision blurred. White all over again like yesterday, only her hearing working. "I'll watch you, while you sleep. All your fears, will be nothing. With me." the same voice mysteriously said to her.
It was a mumble that had comforted her in a black night when she was... How old was she when she heard this? Namine thought harder.
Six. There. Her vision cleared and she relaxed. Her ceiling's a sandy yellow, 20 feet high with glowing stars hanging in lines all over. The main dome light was designed to glow from a faint sparkle to an illuminating bright.
This was her personal sun and moon in her room, to be there when the entities vanished from the outside sky.
"This can be your light so that you're not scared anymore, Namine." a fatherly voice had said. But it wasn't her dad. This voice was more in-charge-leader like. "Yeah, you big baby. You just have to have five hundred and twenty-six bulbs in your room!" an obnoxious voice said.
She closed her eyes and tried to picture the emerging memory. It was dark, she was in the same bed and an adult man with blond hair had kissed her forehead goodnight. A teenager was there too. But it was too dark to see even with the newly-installed lights.
Namine bit her lip in concentration. Red. No, flames. A pile of flames. And that's all. She sighed at the failure.
"What are these memories?" she thought. "Are they fake? Dad has brown hair and I don't know an older brother or cousin. I'm an only child and so is Mom and Dad."
When you walk away, You don't hear me say..." Namine flipped open her phone. Her ringtone was Simple and Clean Full Remixed. Kairi was on the other line.
"Hi ya! So when is your date? Is it now? Please tell me about it!" Kairi chirped.
"Kai, it's 7:30, I just woke up, I'm not on the date, it's not even a date." Namine dredged out.
"Ok! I don't want to keep ya then! Bye!" Kairi hung up.
Her room was a clean pink-tinted white. A ceiling to wall shelf was devoted to art supplies and books full of her sketches. Another was full of books, some about songs while a marble table held her piano and computer. Music sheets were in a huge binder on top, a stereo set behind.
Her window was gigantic, with white-laced curtains. A giant window sill for her to sit on had cushions and stuff. Besides it was a door leading to her balcony. It had lounge chairs and a round glass table. Her room had crystal vases of flowers alternately placed inside and outside for the sun. Another corner held her bed with a vanity mirror set nearby and wardrobe. Her door out was besides the closet.
Namine went to the bookcase. Kairi, as bubbly as she is, was a dedicated writer. A row occupied notebooks and printouts she had given away. "Don't let your heart be heavy after a broken day. Look at what you do and reach for the relief at bay. Cheer up, girl!" Kairi wrote in her freshman yearbook. During that year Namine and Sora were going out. Kairi moved away because her parents are in the Royal Knights. Sora became her new best friend and eventually agreed to try dating. After a month, they've never even kissed because it was too akward.
Second semester came and so did Kairi. Namine and Sora decide to be just friends. It really wasn't dating, they just spent more time together consoling each other on Kairi moving away.
He realized that it was Kairi he loved, and they were together before summer began. Namine still loved Sora, but as a friend and supported the couple. She told Kairi she didn't need the couplet poem at all because she wasn't sad. Kairi understood, and hugged her best friend that day. They had folded the page into a swan and stuck it in.
Riku was scolded after by the girls and Sora for trying to play matchmaker. It didn't help that he was the one prodding the unwanted kisses. Fortunately, the two refused, their lips never touched. Next to the swan were pictures.
A picture of Riku making kissy faces at Sora and Kairi when the two were having a moment made the first page of the yearbook. Pence was in the committee and had taken it. Next to it were tons of snapshots and printouts of them at the train, eating ice creams, movies, carnivals, group dates, 6th and 8th grade graduation, beach and more.
"These are the moments I clearly remember," Namine said to herself.
''No pictures of me being six or younger, only a handful of baby ones without Mom or Dad. It's hard to recall them, coming back only now. There should be more proof." she muttered to herself.
She set to work, going through all scrapbooks, journals, yearbooks, and momentos that could have come from her six-to-under childhood. The youngest stuff besides the baby pics were from nine. A 3 year gap. And it was weird that she noticed only now. She wasn't that oblivious. Her floor was now strewn with objects.
Finally, she got to a music box pushed all the way in the back, at a carved hole. "A secret hiding spot?" she asked. She examined it. A small, 2 fists sized box topped with ivory, gilded with silver at the edges but gold leaf and blossoms patterns surrounding an S at the top. At the front side was keyhole lock painted with gold.
Namine saw this and went to her dresser. She rummaged for a hair pin or a needle. She found a bobby pin and stuck it into the hole, jiggling it. She tried lifting the lid but it was shut together.
"This isn't a normal box or diary lock. It needs an actual key..." Now she racked her brain for any keys that she owned that never had locks to match with. "If it's in my room, I should have the key right? I think the box belongs to me too... " She told herself. "Leaf and gold. Maybe an S? On the key."
Wait. At a two day testing before she and Sora were together, she was fingering a pendant. At the second day, she didn't and couldn't play with it when she was nervous. A key pendant. That was it!
She and Sora got together after the test in a study session and she gave it to him. A sign of trust because she had it forever. After, he and Kairi started dating, they were too lazy and compromised to keep whatever they had as special frienship stuff. Sora's blue Pooh Bear plush was still at her windowsill, smiling and holding out a flower. He won it at a carnival, it was the first doll to be there.
After that, the sill became her friends window. Riku's yellow Paopu fruit plush was there along with Kairi's Pink Tiger Sweet dolll. Other things from Selphie, Tidus, Yuna, Wakka, Rikku, Paine, Olette, Hayner, and Pence was there matching their favorite colors.
And Sora still has her key. She didn't realize it because she had three years to get used to it being gone.
It's 11:19 now. She's been searching for hours. She was so engrossed! She hadn't even eaten breakfast yet.
"Sora should be awake by now, even in a Saturday." She grabs a jacket and some blue jeans and steps out the door.
Ding Dong! Ding! Ding! Ding! Dong! the doorbell sounded impatient.
Sora rubs the back of his spiky-haired head and scratches his stomach.
"I'm glad for Saturdays since Mom and Dad leave early and I get to sleep in. So this person better be important. I'll slam the door if it's another salesman." he thinks to himself.
It was. Well, important, not salesman. He had opened the door to Namine. "Hey Nami. What's up?" he mumbled out and gave a yawn. She had 2 pieces of toast in a hand and was drinking what looked like a banana-strawberry smoothie.
"Sora, I know it's sudden but this is urg-are those pig p.j.s?" she asked inspecting the flying pigs-patterned pajama set. She holds her hand in front of her mouth, a sign of her about to laugh.
"Don't you dare!" Sora growled.
"I'm trying (inhales) not to (inhales more) uugh-AHAHAHAHAHAHA!" she laughs out doubling over. Sora banged his head repeatively in the doorframe until she stopped, which was three minutes later. She had dropped the toast and drink. There was enough passerbys to see the scene.
Now with a red forehead, he turned to face Namine again. She was red-faced, but looked better. "Ok, what do you need? Ow," Sora said rubbing his forehead worse, a glowing cherry red.
"Your forehead looks like it's blushing when Kairi compliments you," she points out.
"Does not!" although he does start blushing at the mention of Kairi's name.
"Don't be embarrassed, it just means you love her."
Sora looked thoughtful. "You know what? You're right. I'm just getting used to saying it. But that's how I feel. I love her so much, I can't deny it."
"I'm glad she has someone like you, Sora. I want my best bud happy," Namine said. She then felt a twinge. She had recently been wanting affection like that, but not from Sora. From someone else, really.
"Anyway, do you still have my key-pendant? I need it." Namine continued.
"Sure. But does that mean you're mad at me and don't want to be friends? What did I do?'' He looked more funny pouting in pink p.j.s . He picked up the bottle and tossed it to the recycling bin near the door.
"No, Sora. I just need it. It's a key, so there's a good chance that it unlocks something, kay?'' she said with a mocking eyeroll.
Sora signaled her to come in and she followed. "For your diary, huh?" he asked turning around to give a grin. Namine punched his arm and he gave an "Ow!" before going upstairs to his room. She waited in the hall.
Whenever she comes to his house, she feels like she's cold. Sora's house was warm and colorful with Sora's ribbons and trophies. She liked the wacky family pictures the most. Her parents weren't workaholics and they did things together, but just not as often. The pictures were bought paintings, and she had no pets. Sora's parents were tv-like, his mom always baking.
As if Sora had heard her thoughts, he yelled from upstairs "Go help yourself to some chocolate chip cookies Nami!'' Indeed, there was a jar full of baked goods. She took two and ate quickly. They were perfect.
Sora came back with a tiny satin bag. "Easy there. It looks like you still haven't had breakfast. Have it with me, will ya?" he said taking out silverware and a pancake mix. He makes the batter and pours it to a skillet. The hiss of it cooking gave a good smell.
"Sit down, here's some milk,'' he offered. Namine took the offers as Sora shakes out the key and hand it to her. "Thanks. You took good care of it, huh?" She fingered the elaborate goldkey, tracing the cursive S.
Sora set down a plate of pancakes in front of her. He sat down and started to guzzle his stack with maple sauce.
"You seem a bit mad at the sauce. Give it a chance to live in a bottle with its saucy friends." Namine said forking pancake into her mouth. Sora took the bottle and made it dance.
"Look! We're little sauce people and belong in a bottle. Eeheeehee! We're sticky and delicious and aren't alive and belong to Sora's stomach! Here we go!" he said in a high pitched voice before squeezing the bottle's contents to his mouth without pancake and flourished with a belch.
"Eeww Sora! That sauce can't be good for you," Namine said with an eye closed. She was eating the last piece now.
"Hey, at least good young Saucy goes swimming in the ocean after the toilet,'' he said satisfied. He was eating another pancake.
"Flat out ew. So changing subjects, why are you wearing pink pig p.j.s?" Namine replied, sipping milk.
"Don't tease me. Mom was doing laundry and forgot to put my clothes in the dryer last night. I wasn't going to sleep nude so she gave these. They used to be Tifa's. She gave me hell laughing all night." he said darkly. Tifa was his older sister that was a senior in college.
"I remember that it looked good on her. You, you're a different story."
"Shpeeken ob redumbering, do but a mate wut cokshas?" Sora said with a mouthful of pancakes.
"Huh?''
"Dun kayin (gulp) I'm saying that speaking of remembering, you got a date with Roxas?"
"It's not a date"
"Kairi said it is."
"It isn't."
"But I trust her and she said it is."
"It isn't a date, it's just a study se- Oh my god, what time is it?" Namine asked frantically. She was already putting the plates in the sink and zipping her jacket.
"12, why?''
"I gotta go, I need to walk home, get my stuff," Namine said going to the door, latching the necklace on.
"Oh, your date."
"Not a date! Study session! Thanks for the breakfast. Bye Sora! And shame on you for sleeping so late!" Namine said slipping onto her shoes and running down the porch.
"Ok Nami, see you later. Don't trip on the-"
"Ahh!" Namine shrieked. Her face was on the ground, an innocent garden gnome lying by her ankles.
"Gnome. My turn! Ahahahahahahaaaaaa!" was the last thing Namine heard as she ran to the train stop.
Sora looked after her smiling until she dissapeared in the street turn. "Some things never change." And he shut the door.
"Vexen, there's no risk at all, I promise. We're just doing homework, like normal kids." Roxas said backing away.
"You insolent fool! You're not in charge yet and you're already being troublesome! " Vexen roared. "What will the Master say about this?"
Roxas stood his ground but now was the the one doing the offense. "Nothing. It's already done. I'm bringing her here, and I'll keep her safe. For being the Chilly Academic, you're too heated up. Cool down Vexen." He took his sunglasses and strides out. Vexen throws a vase at a wall.
Namine adjusted her short pigtails, shaking out the water. She was running the moment she had stepped out the train and immediately turned on the shower for water. She didn't even want to remember her spaz moments waiting for the train that attracted attention. While waiting, she had stuffed her art items in her backpack.
She then took a quick shower, scrubbing hard on her scalp with shampoo, the soap relaxing her very little but she was still hurrying picking her clothes.
"Why did I have to fall asleep before choosing my outfit last night? " she hollered. " Honey, what is it? Do you need help?" her mom asked poking in. She looked like an adult version of Namine. "I'm fine Mom! Please just tell me when a guy named Roxas comes.'' Namine said. Her mom nods and closes the door.
She flung an easter dress and a winter coat to her bed. Her hands finally landed to a simple black tank-top and denim capris. She ties a thin white jacket around her waist and put on baby blue bangles and hairbands. She wanted to look right.
Pausing at the mirror, she readjusts her pigtails and fixes her bag. The clock ticked 1:00 on the living room digital. At the exact moment, a sleek, shiny, black limo pulled in. Someone in dark denim jeans, a white sweater wearing a pair of dark sunglasses stepped out. He had sideswept gold hair and was now ringing the doorbell.
Oh! It was Roxas on her doorstep. Namine opened the door, letting him in. He looks to good to be true. 'Is he really here? Is it possible?' she can't help think.
"As promised. One p.m. sharp. Are you ready?" he asked.
"Yes," Namine says as she grabs her bag."Bye Mom! I have my cell so you can call!"
"Bye hon! Have fun!" her mom predictably said.
"You sure are serious on your word. How'd you manage one sharp?" she asked Roxas.
Roxas chuckled then said "Oh, we just waited around the corner until time to pull in." Namine raised an eyebrow.
"I know, I'm such a dork in keeping promises." he said with hands raised.
They got out, Namine locking the door behind her. The limo was so fancy inside, the velvet seats being the least expensive. "Namine, this is my caretaker and chaffeur today, Xigbar." Roxas said.
"Hi there Namine! Remember me, Uncle Xiggy?" the man in the driver's seat said. He turned around to Namine, scaring her a bit. His right eye had an eyepatch, the left side of his face having a ragged scar from jaw to cheek.
"Nuh-nuh-no..." she stuttered. "Oh well. Have you been a good girl? Unlike this bad prince here. Nyahahahaha!" he laughed.
Roxas smiles to comfort her and signaled Xigbar to start driving.