Summary: What was supposed to be a smooth training session for Lea and Riku turned into a crash landing. And all over a silly sandwich. LeaKu (LeaxRiku).
Canon worlds. Rated M for later chapters.
A.N.: Enjoy the last chapter of Stranded! Keep an eye towards the Author's Note at the end for an update on what's coming next.
Riku calmly walked to the gummi ship with Lea right by his side. He hadn't said a word to the redhead since, and Lea was increasingly becoming worried that Riku was ignoring his presence so soon after worrying about him.
The group from the Pridelands had approached them from behind, and the two Keyblade bearers curiously looked towards the group. It was Simba, Kiara, Kovu, Nala, and Vitani. The group was here to see Lea and Riku off.
"I wanted to thank you for keeping my family safe before you left," Simba said with a smile.
"Thank you. But, unfortunately, we cannot leave just yet," Riku finally spoke.
"Y-yeah. We sort of lost an important piece that we really need," Lea added with a nervous glance towards his companion on the right.
"You mean this one?" Vitani asked as she turned over her paw to show a bulky green piece. It was rectangular and bumpy in random places and definitely looked like it derived from the same material as the gummi ship. "Mother left it behind."
"Thank you. I'll see where this goes," Riku grabbed the piece and immediately went to go inside their ship, leaving Lea to converse with the group.
"Will we ever see you again?" Kiara asks hopefully.
"I don't know...but even if we don't, we'll never forget each other," Lea said softly. "We must leave now. We have people back home who must be worried about us."
"Good luck on your journey," Kovu wished with a smile, nuzzling with Kiara.
Lea waved a goodbye as he stumbled inside the gummi ship, seeing Riku fumble with a particular spot near the wheel. Then, the redhead heard the glorious sound of the ship starting and his body slumped with relief.
"Just like I thought. The navigation gummi was missing," Riku said as he jumped onto his seat. "Please take a seat." His paw pushed a button to take off as they slowly rose off the ground before they shot off into space.
Sometime during exiting the atmosphere of the world, Lea felt a comforting warmth flow through his body. His eyesight was overcome with the sparkling of his entire being. His paws glowed until they transformed into his two legs with feet and his lanky arms with hands. He felt his own torso and sighed gratefully as he completely transformed back into his normal human state. "Back to our old selves," he commented as he grinned at the male across from him who also turned back into his normal human form.
Lea stared at the male next to him, the glitter fading slowly away. Riku slowly opened his eyelash heavy lids, looking dazed. The redhead gulped audibly since he was so used to Riku in his lion form; he had almost forgotten how beautiful Riku was as a human.
During the middle of Lea's admiring, Riku pushed another button and took his hand off the wheel as soon as the gummi ship went into auto pilot. "Never...never do that again." Riku sounded miffed and his eyebrows scrunched to show he was upset.
Lea made a noise of confusion. "What?"
"Don't, don't you ever risk your life for me!" Riku almost yelled before he twirled around in his seat. Because the ship was still small as ever, his knees collided with Lea's. "You could have gotten hurt."
"Riku, you were worried about me?" Lea asked, pretending to play dumb. He honestly just wanted to hear the words come out of Riku's mouth.
"Of course I was! I didn't want my last memory of you to be of us fighting," Riku huffed. "And, and I'm sorry, okay?!"
"Y-you sound angry," Lea noted with a sweat drop rolling down his cheek. "Are you sure you're sorry?"
"Yes, I am. It's just hard for me to apologize to you for some reason. I don't know why. But, I'm sorry for not trusting you before. You've done impeccably well and I'm very impressed with your performance today," he coughed out. "You've made decisions that a Keyblade Master would, and I should take notes from you," he rushed out.
"I'm so flattered," Lea softly said with a grin. He was not only smiling for the apology, but also for the compliments Riku was so generously giving him. "I'm sorry too."
"But, you still haven't managed to summon your Keyblade," Riku added as a downside.
"Don't tell me we are going to train now. I'm beat," the redhead complained.
"We deserve a good rest," Riku agreed. He then frowned as he looked over the redhead. "That's the last compliment coming out of me today. I don't want you to get too cocky. You still have a lot to learn."
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
After Lea's comment, there was a hint of a smile on Riku's lips before he turned towards the wheel once more, turning the piloting from "auto" to "manual". There was so much Lea wanted to say now that he knew Riku showed some amount of care for his well being...There was the matter of the strange Rafiki trying to have them be "together" and the explanation of Upendi. Also, their reflections combined as if they were one, similar to how Kiara and Kovu's reflections have.
What brought a blush to Lea's face, however, was the intimate moment they shared in the forest. It was something he really wanted to discuss with Riku, but maybe it wasn't the right moment to do so. The redhead didn't want to potentially ruin the kindness Riku has graced him with now...
"Another day," Lea promised himself with a nod.
"We're finally back," Riku announced. He landed the gummi ship safely onto the grassy land of the Mysterious Tower. He went down the stairs of the ship with Lea right behind him, the both of them carrying their duffel bags they had prepared prior to the trip.
Lea saw Kairi and Sora running over very quickly from the open door of the Mysterious Tower. Riku didn't expect the two to suddenly tackle him into a hug, one friend on each side. "Riku!" Sora cried as he held onto his arm. "Where have you been?!"
"Sora, are you crying?" It was similar to that time that Sora had finally found him at the World that Never Was. The brunette sniffed as he looked up at his best friend. It caused Riku to sigh softly and pat his friend's back comfortingly. "I'm okay. The ship just crashed, that's all."
"We were worried about you! We were going to try to find you!" Kairi angrily said with a few tears near the corner of her eyes. "You have to tell us what happened!"
"I will, I will. I'm sorry for worrying the both of you."
Lea smiled at the care the three had towards each other. A friendship like that was something he wished he could have again. Something full of laughter and love. It was too much to ask for however. He felt slightly out of place there, and went to walk past the the three of them.
"Where are you going?" Lea heard Riku call after him. Surprised, the redhead turned around. The corner of of the silver haired male's lips lifted up slightly. "Aren't you going to tell Sora about the adventure we had?" Was this Riku's way of trying to say that Lea was part of their group? Maybe that he and Riku were...friends?
"An adventure?" Sora lit up like a child. He moved his hands about erratically and ran to Lea with an excited face. "Tell us!"
"Aww, I want to go to other worlds, too. You're too lucky Lea!" Kairi said with a pout.
"C'mon, let's go inside so Lea can tell us everything," Sora laughed as he ran to the Mysterious Tower with Kairi jogging behind him.
Lea felt a reassuring pat on his shoulder. Riku fully grinned at him and for the first time, his teeth were shown just for him. The silver haired male nudged his head in the direction where Sora and Kairi went. Lea felt a relieved smile tug at his lips when Riku said, "Let's join our friends, Lea."
Friends. Perhaps Kairi was right about him being lucky after all.
A.N.: Sorry to end it like this, but as you were all expecting or not expecting...I WILL BE MAKING A SEQUEL YASSS. This means a new world and new adventures with Lea and Riku, and a growing bond between the two! This story developed on the rockiness of their relationship while the sequel will highlight the bud of their new relationship.
Here's the catch. YOU GUYS GET TO PICK THE WORLD! Just comment a suggestion of a world you would like me to write about and I will choose one based on what's suggested! One thing though: no worlds where the protagonist is an animal since I have already done this already and make sure it is Disney no matter what...I will not be doing non-Disney worlds.
To AkuaNoMizu: Oh no...I remember you telling something like this to me. I didn't think this was still happening even now! That's terrible. I hope this person stops bothering you because this is borderline online harassment...agh. I hope changing your name will solve this...Is there anything I can do to help? :(
To Ignie: YOU EVIL GIRL STOP. Yes, these two adorkable idiots deserve each other after everything. And Lea deserves a little bit of love...or a lot. HINT HINT WINK.
To gaara'sGurl101: Yeah, they realized it all right. Thankfully, it ended a good way despite the troubles the two of them went through.