Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. It belongs to its rightful owners.


CHAPTER SIX: FAREWELL

SASUKE

"How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard."

— Winnie The Pooh


ABOVE ALL, THE thing that comforted me the most was the fact that everything could continue on as if nothing had happened. It didn't matter that a lot did.

It was so natural to go springing into the next journey like we used to. I had been accustomed to solving mysteries and saving worlds with them. It was almost like a second nature now. It must have been that way for them, too. There was still the inevitable pull of friendship guiding us along our paths. I was more than thankful that it had not been severed.

None of us had said a word about what happened on that pirate ship, what happened to Riku, what happened to Kairi, what happened to Kingdom Hearts, or how they had met the King in my absence. Sora said that everyone would take their turns explaining later, and I put my trust in his words. I believed that they could help clear up some of the gaps in my memory.

We didn't really remember the important details. But, we did remember going on missions. We remember the jokes, the fun, the fighting, the friends we made . . . I guess everything had just picked itself up from there. It was as if nothing had corrupted our adventures. It was as if were were still traveling from world to world for our friends, never having encountered a block in the road. Or at least, that was what I kept telling myself.

I wanted to think that nothing changed. There were no evil Riku's, no passed out Kairi's, and no shouts for Sora to help me save her. Though, perhaps that was what meant the most to me. It wasn't what happened in the end. It was what happened to my best friend.

My thoughts couldn't help but to wander over her image as the four of us walked through the town's streets. I should have been glad that Sora was able to save her. He had saved the day; he sent her home with a peace of mind. Yet, it was impossible for me to shake the feeling that things weren't done. Kairi wasn't exactly safe for some reason.

Maybe I was delusional.

The aura of the world was a light one. The people that inhabited it looked way too friendly to be real. The buildings, signs, and shops appeared as if they were built with the most pure intentions imaginable. It, in all honesty, reminded me of Sora. The way that the streets connected to each other, leading up to the bigger center of town was just like his heart. A bunch of memories leading up to his light.

That was if he remembered them. For now, it could have been a bunch of broken memories daring to never return.

I glanced ahead to where his calloused hands were buried in the pockets of his small shorts. His sock-clad feet were making little pat sounds while he walked. Despite that, his head was held high. Not once did his chin lower itself. It was the self-confidence that he possessed. At the end of the day, even for someone who had no shoes, he believed that everything was going to be okay.

We had ended up in the rear end of the town. A large building bearing signs and times sat upon the hill, a tall clock tower overlooking the civilians below. With white paints and reddened roofing, it contrasted well against the ever-setting sky. Lights of golds danced off of the building's exterior. 'STATION,' the sign above it had read. It was almost as clear as the sounds of trains moving just beyond its four glass doors.

The area had an interesting feel to it. No one lingered around the large, empty space, it clearly not mattering that it was an area for mass transportation. It was quiet; no one seemed to want to ride the train today. Even so, with the slight breeze and slowly moving clouds, I couldn't guess why they wouldn't. It was a nice day out. Yet, no one was here.

Sora stepped forward. He had a habit of walking into things first to get a feel of it before we could. Another leader quality, one could say. However, after his second step, the echoing of monsters' voices left me wishing that I had gone, too. They were coming.

The creature that spawned in front of him wasn't a Heartless. At first glance, one could have assumed it to be, but I had been fighting long enough to spot out the difference. Rather, this one was something of an entirely different species. Black clouds of darkness faded away where they appeared around the empty area. It left behind thin bodies; its slender limbs moved and danced similar to an ocean's waves. Blue lights ran along the sides of the semi-person shaped creature. Though, it possessed no eyes, only a mouth with zipper indications where the teeth should have been. Its clawed hands were kept together using buckles. A weapon no doubt . . . Whatever these things were, they didn't come on good terms.

Above all, the trait that caught me off guard hadn't been the smooth rocking of the creature's hips. It was the emblem that rested on its flat head. My hand instinctively wrapped around the pendent on my necklace. It was the same upside-down heart.

More of the creatures spawned to create a tight circle around us. Their arms swayed side to side in condescending manners, like they were trying to scare us in ways they knew how. It didn't work well in their favor.

Noticing the new threat, Sora, Donald, and Goofy summoned their weapons. Flashes of light came and went; their items of defense were left in their straining grips. It brought about a certain nostalgia. It had been so long since we fought together. Who was to say that it was too early to pick up where we had left off?

My hand spread in attempt of calling my own weapon. There was no flash of light. There was no surge of heat, promising to leave behind the Keyblade that had fallen into my possession. No . . . there was nothing. Just like my first time around—like I had been sent to re-live from the very beginning—my Keyblade wasn't coming to me.

It was the first time in who knew how long. Upon first receiving my weapon, it took days . . . weeks for me to summon it at will. It meant difficulty protecting myself. No weapon meant that I couldn't fight. I was back on square one, and I couldn't figure out why.

Sora, seeing that I was struggling on my side of the circle, took a step in front of me. "Sit this one out. We've got it," he commanded.

I wasn't normally one to listen when he told me to stay put. In fact, I hated it. But, he was right about this one. He was growing just as nervous about the situation as I was. We had never laid eyes on the silvery creatures before. There was no way to tell how they would react. For all we knew, they could be too strong to fight, Keyblade or not.

Goofy was the first to spring forward. The momentum of his shoulder slammed the knight's shield against one of the creatures. It was all it took to get it to fade away into a fit of gray smoke. They weren't that experienced with protecting themselves. And with that new knowledge, Donald and Sora charged into the fight as well, using offense whenever they could.

The creatures moved like ballerinas. They were like snakes gliding along the playing field. One of them twisted itself in their air before swiping its sharp legs at Donald, seemingly in slow motion. Luckily, the duck had jumped back in time to dodge it. The creatures were better at offense and stealth than they were at actually protecting themselves. One could imagine getting hit with one of their sharp ends would leave a wound deep enough to hurt.

Sora used his Keyblade to defeat a few. Although, with every one that they took down, two more spawning in its place. It was an endless cycle, and judging by how off balanced they were fighting, the boys still hadn't exactly recovered from their slumbers.

I had been too caught up in the boys' fight, too busy analyzing strengths and weaknesses to notice what was behind me. The creature let out a wail; my eyes went wide once they landed on the sneaking monster. It hovered in the air behind me as if gravity didn't exist—a new play that I had no idea how to get out of. It pulled its long arm back to swipe its claws at me, and I braced myself for what was to come. However, nothing ever did.

Instead of the flexible creature, there was something else when I reopened my eyes. Or rather, there was someone else. A short person donning a black cloak had took the creature out while I couldn't. He left no time for further examination of himself. He had raced into battle with the boys, defeating creatures with a Keyblade much similar to Sora's.

Donald's eyes went wide. "Your Majesty?" he croaked.

Had it been the King that just saved me?

The cloaked person helped take out the monsters. It proved an easy task for him; he took out the slithering creatures as if he had been fighting them for years. His fighting style was sleek and graceful . . . perfectly fit for someone of royal status.

There was no doubt that it could have been him. It didn't take one to meet him, to come face to face with him, to know that he was someone of high ranking. The atmosphere had picked up the moment he began to fight. Almost like he was something that they feared, the slithery creatures were no match for him.

They withered away in clouds of what once was. There was no regeneration. There were no more bodies to be spawned into battle. After the remaining few were gone, he area was quiet once more, no longer containing the dangerous threats. All that was left was the King.

He stood with his back turned to us. Small height, round ears . . . just like Olette said. Every description that I had gathered upon him was correct so far. He was the person that everyone was looking for.

He held up a gloved finger to silence our racing minds. "You gotta board the train and leave town! The train knows the way. Here."

His other hand dug into the pocket of his cloak. Part of me had expected something grand, something to show us the answers that we'd been looking for. Though, as he pulled out an orange sack, passing it on the the reluctant Sora, I knew it was everything but that. The small sack rattled with sounds of metal within. He had gave us a pouch filled with munny.

Sora parted his lips to question the King's intentions. However, there was no one there to ask. The King sprinted down the hill leading back into the awaiting town. No goodbyes, no promises to meet again, no instructions on what to do next; he was gone before any of us could get a gasp on the situation.

I let out a heavy sigh. He chose not to stay—not to answer the questions that had been bundling in our minds.

"The King . . . was that really him?" I asked my three friends.

Goofy nodded his head more than a few times. "Yep, I know it was!"

"Now we know he's okay!" Donald cheered.

"Why wouldn't he be?" I asked.

Sora shook his head, obviously remembering that I had missed out on a large part of their adventures. "The King was locked in the realm of darkness after you disappeared," he explained. "After you left, we defeated Ansem. The King and Riku were closed inside of the doors. But . . . we just saw him . . . So, if the King is here, that means Riku must be, too."

My eyes grew in size. "What? Riku's here?"

"He's gotta be!" Donald added.

The new information was music to Sora's ears. He crossed his arms over his chest in accomplishment. The hem of his shirt had raised up with the movement, exposing the lower half of his abdomen like a cropped top. It almost made me laugh.

"Well, I'm going to go look for him," he announced.

My response was hesitant and shaky. "Is he still . . ."

Lately, there was no good memories of Riku stored in my heart. No good recent ones, to be exact. Whenever his name was said, images of him granting me pain and stress flashed through my mind. How he had drugged me into a peaceful slumber was constantly on repeat. The Riku that existed now was no longer my friend, as far as I knew.

I kept telling myself that it couldn't have been him in the act. There was some logical reason behind everything that proved Riku was still who I thought he was. Yet, a part of me couldn't accept that wholeheartedly. I had been close to being scared to death the last time I was around him. The muscle beating in my chest wasn't allowing me to just get over that.

"Of course not." Sora gave me a wide, knowing smile. "Riku was lost for a while, but he came back. I knew he would. Ansem had taken over his body back there. He helped us close the doors to the realm of darkness . . . He was really worried about you, you know."

My gaze traveled down to my shoes. Riku was worried about me?

I supposed it made sense at some time of the story. But, the image of his sea green eyes glaring at me as if he couldn't stand it was burned into my mind. I knew that it was Riku. The Riku that I knew helped Sora until the very end. So, where in these worlds was that Riku? Was he out there, cold and lost upon the seas of oblivion? Did my Riku even exist anymore?

Changing the subject to keep myself from thinking about it, I turned to the brunet. "What's next?"

"I'm taking you home. We're going back to the islands; Kairi's there waiting on us," Sora said before turning to Donald and Goofy. "What are you two gonna do?"

The duck and the dog both sent the boy a look. "Gawrsh, Sora. Do ya have to ask?" Goofy mumbled.

"I'm sure there are people out there who are waiting for you two to come back home." I offered a small smile.

Not much was known about their lives before all of this took place. Not much was known about the world that they had been born into. There were no tales of friendship, childhood, or home that they told. It made me wonder if they actually had something to return to. I had been so caught up in the fantasy of going home with the boys and Kairi that I had let my other two friends slip from my mind.

This adventure could be the last of us. Once we all went back to the way things were, were we guaranteed a reunion? Were we promised to remain friends throughout the distance that connected our worlds? I wanted to believe so, and if I were to ask Sora, he'd tell me monologues about how our hearts would never be separated. Though, up until now, I had realized just how important Donald and Goofy's constant presence was to me . . . just like Riku, Sora, and Kairi.

Goofy look down to the duck in agreement. "Daisy'll be happy to have ya back, don't ya think?"

"Who's Daisy?" Sora questioned.

"His girlfr—"

"Don't tell them that!" Donald cut him off with a ruffle of his white feathers. "I'll never hear the end of it. It doesn't matter, anyways."

I felt my expression soften. "Donald, you have a girlfriend?"

As rare as a blue moon, Donald began to grow soft. His dark eyes eased up into a gentle stare. His muscles relaxed opposed to the previous tension set upon his small shoulders. Like he was blushing, he turned his head to survey the train station, his eyes avoiding us at the mention of his significant other.

It was a sweet gesture. Still, Sora and I couldn't help but to throw our heads back in laughter. The thought of the grumpy duck having someone to care and love was more than shocking. He had always came off as the loner type—the type not to fall for someone no matter what the cost was. Despite that, he was here, growing shy and nervous just talking about his girl. His girl . . . which he apparently kept a deep secret from us. It was endearing and hilarious at the same time.

"Hey, what's so funny?" The duck screamed and stomped his feet, making us laugh even louder. "Cut it out!"

Sora pointed a finger at him while he clutched onto his stomach. "Your face!" he wheezed out between giggles.

His face was growing redder than Donald's around his cheeks. His eyes were squeezed shut, his brows were pulled into a comedic grimace, and his frame shook with laughter. For the first time since we woke up, he was actually having a laughing fit. No . . . it was more than that—the first time in who knew how long.

His giggles, wheezes, and cries were contagious. Donald and Goofy shared a look. Before any of us could figure out how crazy we all looked, we burst into laughter loud enough to raise the dead. Goofy leaned on Donald for support. I had nearly collapsed to the ground in rounds of gasps, struggling to relieve the pressure on my stomach. Howls and choking noises echoed throughout the area; we were close to dying because of one little sentence.

Times like this were too hard to take seriously. Every once in a while, you had to let loose. Everyone deserved a break now and then. So, it was what we did, filling the space with the laughter of reunited friends.

Once his laughter had trickled down to occasional chuckles, Sora stood up straight, shooting us a bright grin. "So, what do you say, guys?" he started. "Let's stick together for one more journey. To . . . where again?"

"We have to board the train," Goofy reminded him.

"Oh, yeah!" Sora beamed, causing Donald to sigh beside him. "C'mon!"

Like a gun going off to start our new chapter, we ran up the steps into the train station together. I knew that I was a sucker for sentimental things, and I knew that things like this would stay in my heart. This moment, running off to start a journey with the three felt way more important to me that it should have. It was promise of us being together once more, laughing, cracking jokes, standing tall and being brave like we had before. For so long, I'd been wondering when that luxury would be granted to me again. If I even deserved it. But, here and now, I knew it wasn't coming to an end. This was just the beginning . . . and we all knew it.

There was a sense of excitement that washed over me. Something within told me that this time around would be different, nothing like our last time. Things had changed. There were so many new things that we had to learn, new things that we had to go against, new things that we were bound to experience. And something told me that this part of our story was going to be better. I just hoped that my gut was right.

The inside of the train station was filled with the sounds of coal-powered cars gliding along the train tracks. The color scheme was familiar to the rest of the town; golds, yellows, browns, and oranges decorated the space in an almost sunny aspect. The aura that lingered screamed friendliness . . . as if this place was inviting us to dive deeper into its secrets.

The first train to reach the station was different that the others. Painted in shades of dark purples and blues, gold stars created patterns on its exterior. Golden orange lights flash mysteriously along the length of it. The train was shorter than the others. It couldn't have fit more than thirty people inside. More importantly, as if it had been sent from the King himself, the door opened when we stepped further into the station. It was the train that we needed to take.

"Hey, wait up!"

We turned toward the source of the noise. Three teenagers burst through the station doors . . . the ones that we had encountered earlier in the alleyway. Their shoes created echos that bounced off of the bronze-y walls. Gasps of air escaped their mouths, their chests heaving up and down from running. They had been looking for us, I guessed. Only the heavens knew for what.

The blond boy kept his composure. His friends, on the other hand, bent over to place their hands on their knees, gathering the air back into their lungs. My eyebrow rose in question; I moved away from my spot beside Goofy to see what was going to happen.

"Hey, Sora . . ." the blond trailed off.

Sora looked just as confused as we did. "What?"

"Nothing, but . . ."

The smaller boy, Pence, but the boy off, clearly seeing that his friend wasn't going to go through with his sentence. "We came to see you off," he explained. "It just seemed like something we oughta do."

Reaching a hand up to scratch his cheek, Sora nodded. "Oh . . . really? Thanks."

There wasn't enough time for anyone to say more. A piercing horn rang throughout the station, indicating that it was time for the passengers to board their trains. They had caught up with us the minute we had to take our leave.

"You should hurry up and get your tickets," Olette offered.

Sora, whom seemed very confused and nervous all of the sudden, nodded his head yet again. He said nothing as he stepped over to the ticket counter. However, he stopped when Olette let out a tiny gasp. She dug into her shorts to retrieve her own bag of munny. A small drawstring sack . . . it was identical to the one in the brunet's hands.

She stared at hers, then at his. "They're the same . . ."

Had it been a coincidence?

Nonetheless, Sora turned to the man behind the counter. He was balding at the top of his head. Gray hairs hung around the areas that hadn't shed completely. Wire-rimmed, red glasses sat atop his crooked nose, making it easier to see with his squinted eyes. I could see his protruding belly underneath his too-small uniform shirt from where I was. He looked kind enough. Hopefully, he wouldn't say that it was too late for us to buy our tickets.

"Four tickets, please."

Sora handed the man the coins that covered the cost. He simply smiled in return. His wrinkly hands counted the munny before he turned to his computer, leaning in closer as he typed a few things into the machine. He made small talk that I couldn't hear. I could see Sora smile, though, telling the man goodbye after he was handed four tickets.

He walked back over to where we stood. Gaze fixated on the purple train, he let out a sigh. It was a heavy one. It wasn't one of excitement, but of a sense of dread that he didn't have minutes earlier.

"I can't help feeling like we won't see this town again . . ." he muttered.

"You're thinkin' too much." Goofy chuckled.

Sora shook his head, a ghost of a smile tugging at his lips. "Yeah, you're right."

I couldn't relate to what he was saying. This world held the same feeling that I had for any other world that we had visited. It felt like we had done our usual accomplishment of planting permanent ties to it. The setting sun, stone streets, and peaceful inhabitants . . . I couldn't say that we would be seeing the last of it. We left our mark—our reason to return. And as we walked over to the awaiting train, it was clear that we did.

It was all in the way Olette, Pence, and Hayner had followed us. We were in their thoughts at least, so we could come back. They were our reason to. Wasn't that was Sora said to us long ago?

The four of us turned to face the three. It didn't matter to them that we just met moments before. They still held grim expressions on their faces, like they were seeing a close friend leave home.

Hayner was the first to speak, his golden eyes landing on mine, and then Sora's. "Hey, Sora," he called out. "You sure we haven't met before?"

Sora scratched his head. "Positive. Why do you ask?"

"I dunno." Hayner shrugged his broad shoulders.

I glanced up at Sora, searching for a sign that he was conflicted with his memories. However, what I saw was not conflict. Tears had began the slow trail down from his eyes. His face twisted in shock; his hand reached up to touch the liquid staining his cheeks. He didn't know why he was he swore that he had never met them, he had been reduced to tears upon leaving them.

Hayner stepped forward to rest a hand on his shoulder. "You okay?" he asked.

"Y-yeah," Sora answered, using the back of his hand to wipe away his tears. "Don't know where it came from."

The blond playfully rolled his eyes. "Pull it together,"

"Right . . . See ya."

I was the first to step inside the train. Donald and Goofy soon followed in after me, Sora right behind them with an unreadable expression. As soon as we were in, the door shut. The metal groaned as if slid into place with the lock. With a final click, everything was set to go.

Hayner, Olette, and Pence were standing outside of the train waving to us. We waved back through the windows. Those were our final goodbyes; the train picked up movement, leading us out of the station. Who knew when we were going to see those three again.

I let out a sigh before collapsing into one of the empty purple seats. Donald and Goofy sat down with me, but Sora stayed by the door, watching the vibrant sky while the train drove ahead.

His attention was focused on the blues, oranges, and pinks swirling across the clouds above. He seemed deep in thought; it was the best for us to leave him alone. But, I couldn't help but wonder why he was acting the way he was. We had been to many worlds in our days of travel, yet, he had never cried leaving any of them. What was it about this one that made a difference? What was so special about Hayner that made his defenses come crumbling down?

I could do nothing but ask myself those questions as the boy dug into his pocket, and began to finger the blue crystal ball that he pulled out of it. He held it up against the sunlight. That was when the tears started again. Just one this time—he let it continue its lonesome road down his cheek.

He quickly wiped it away, his eyes never leaving the clue crystal. "You know . . ." he started, and the three of us looked at him in both curiosity and sympathy. "I'm sad."

"We'll be back," Donald reassured with a smile.

Goofy nodded. "Yeah. We can visit those guys again."

Sora sighed in understanding. That was all there was to do. We rode in silence; not a word was uttered after that brief conversation. Perhaps it was because that mood had forced us to run out of things to say. Or maybe it was because we knew things were better off unsaid. Either way, things had felt a lot sadder than it did when we walked into the train station.

That one thing was for sure.