So. We're back to Riku and Kairi now. This is once again Amalia's work, albeit me adding a couple things and editing.
Sora: Hey Eevee!
Me: What are you doing here Sora? It's not your turn…
Sora: I just wanted to see what Kairi and Riku were doing…
Me: *sigh* You're not really supposed to… ah well, just read it, I'll just have Naminé erase your memory later…
Sora: YES! Wait what?
Me: Hahaha, time for me to respond to the reviews.
Sora: Wait, EEVEE!
Reviews:
LaserLightCannon: Yeah, his eyes are something to be remembered. They're a sky blue color. Sora is sky in Japanese. I thought it would be nice if they could remember one thing. His eyes are unique and so bright,
sorax33: Poor Sora, all alone. But he needs someone, and Kay is nice. And yeah, we just kinda wanted to surprise you all. He does have a connection with Ven after all. Might as well build upon it. And thank you! We really appreciate it!
The Keeper of Worlds: Thanks! You might see some more. ;D
We don't own Kingdom Hearts, Disney, Final Fantasy, or any other franchise you might see.
Hope you enjoy!
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The town always greeted everyone warmly.
Traverse Town was very basic in structure. It looked just like any other town that anyone could find in any corner of the galaxy. But this place was where people from any world could go to. It was quite possibly the only place where there were people who knew that there were worlds other than its own. It was almost homely, but just about overrun with people of all different kinds, from different worlds across the galaxy. The town was divided into three major districts, each filled with buildings of different kinds; inns, houses, stores, and even a gizmo shop.
The first district had the most shops in it. The red roofed houses always had their lights on at night, making it very welcoming to the people who had wound up in the town by accident, or if they were worn from a long journey. It was the entryway into the rest of the town. It was this very same town that held the event beginning of all.
'The very same place that began everything. It wasn't the island, it was right here.'
The four of them walked down the street of the First District, all with heavy hearts.
"Welcome back, Donald, Goofy. And you must be Riku and Kairi?"
As if she had known they would be returning, Aerith was there to greet them in the First District. Both Kairi and Riku nodded in respond, and while Kairi smiled warmly, Riku only kept his head down, refusing to make eye contact with the older woman.
"Oh, it's nice to meet you at last. Sora has told us a lot about you … But where is Sora?" She greeted yet stopped for a moment, realizing that someone was missing.
At that question, everyone just looked away and said nothing about it. How could they bring it up? How could they say out loud that Sora was gone and they couldn't do anything to stop it? And how could they just say sorry that Sora was gone just like that? It was just too heartless just to blurt it all out like that.
Yet, Sora had sacrificed himself to save Kairi, so the least they could do right now was to respect his wish, rather than grieving over it. It was clearly known, Sora wouldn't want them to do that. If anything, he would want them to be happy, even without him around.
'That's what Sora would want, he always wishes the best for everyone even if it means that he would have to handle their pain for them. That's what makes him special, giving him the ability to touch into one's heart unlike any other. He can see the good before the bad, but what makes him standout is that he can give the light back to those who long for it, giving them the courage to hope for a better tomorrow.'
"He is … He is …" Donald tried to pull the words together. Yet he couldn't bring himself to say it to the woman.
"Oh … um … well then … why don't we meet up with Leon and you can tell all of us at once?" Sensing their discomfort, Aerith tried to lighten the mood and smiled as she offered. Without another moment of hesitation, they agreed and walked to the Third District. The distressful air hadn't lessened one bit. Without Sora, without his ever-cheerful smile, something just didn't seem right.
'It would seem like all the happiness of the world got swept away the moment he vanished. If only things hadn't turned out this way, he would still be here, by our side, laughing, even at the silliest things, his worst humor just wants to make everyone laugh out loud until they all got stomach aches or can't even breathe anymore. Without him, everything seems kinda off. It isn't the same without him. And it feels … sad …'
The walk wasn't a long one now that the door to Third District had been unlocked by Sora.
The town was as quiet as ever. With very few people walking down the quiet street, their loud footsteps echoed through the cold stone walls, creating a rather uncomfortable sound. No one had said a single word. Not even Kairi had opened her mouth to speak.
"Oh hey! You're back. So how did it go? And where's Sora?"
'I remember … that you had to believe in tomorrow, no matter how bleak the future seemed to be. Keeping hope alive gave you the strength to make tomorrow a better place. I can see you now like it was yesterday, showing that stupid grin, forcing me to smile along with you, even if my life could never be as simple as yours. Tell me Sora, what do you expect me to do now, knowing that I can never see into the heart of people like you can? Can you still hear us now? Are you somewhere close, watching us remember you?'
There was another silence.
'I guess not. Because I know you so well. If you really are here, you wouldn't even let us grieving over any loss, not even yours. You were never good with reading people's mood. All you ever know is to bring the smiles back into the people who don't have them, regardless the situation. As long as there is light inside that heart, you're willing to help them in anyway possible.'
"Tell me what happened." Leon finally spoke up.
"Alright …" With heavy hearts, they agreed. Recollecting the events that happened during Hollow Bastion, Donald and Goofy started telling every single detail about their fight there. How they managed to save Riku and Kairi. And then how Sora was willing to sacrifice himself to save them.
"So, the darkness is flowing out of that Keyhole?" He asked, trying not to push Sora's disappearance into matter. The others only nodded.
"No wonder there are more and more Heartless everywhere …"
"Is there a way to turn a person back?" Kairi suddenly spoke up. "From being a Heartless, I mean."
All eyes turned to Kairi. At first, they were all shocked. No one had ever talked about that. But exactly why hadn't they asked questions about it was the real question.
"We don't know." Aerith finally said. "No one has ever thought of that before."
"Then there is still chance."
Kairi stated happily. The young girl smiled cheerfully, hoping that it would lift everyone's spirits. Yet it didn't manage to do much. Except for Donald and Goofy, who nodded happily at her statement, Leon, along with Yuffie and Aerith only looked away. They didn't speak a single word about it. Yes, it was true that they hadn't got a single clue about it, but they didn't want to raise the young girl's hope up only to find out that it was hopeless doing so.
'At that moment, it would seem like all hope is now lost. But that isn't true. Even if everything seems gloomy, even if tomorrow's sunlight will never come, it gives us no excuse to drown ourselves in the dark. There will be a bright future where we can all be happy again. Miracles can happen if you believe in it hard enough. And there will be a day when the light will reach out to those long for it. They just need to have faith.'
"Sora will be alright. We just need to have hope in him."
"That's right!"
"I know Sora would never disappear on us. We just need to believe that he is alright."
Donald and Goofy nodded in agreement. It was the least they could do for Sora right now. They needed to believe in him. Even if they didn't even have a slightest clue of where he was at that moment, they still had to believe that he was alright. They just had to believe that he would be alright on his own. After all, what other choice did they have?
'Hope can be a cruel thing. As long as you cling to it, you dream. But when reality knocks you down again and again, you can do terrible things in the name of that dream. A glimmer of hope, dangled before you in the form of an absurd belief. It is no wonder that a person wants to believe in such dream. After all, it's what their hearts desire the most. It can be hard to fight back against your own wishes. But one must know, even hope can torment.'
«««
Moving around would prove to be very difficult with all of the powerful heartless around. With more of them appearing, the residents were barely visible anywhere within the Town. They were now too afraid to even step foot out of the safety of their little homes.
The sound of footsteps once again echoed through the empty street. Cyan eyes watched the city silently, not a single sound was heard except the wind.
"I was an idiot," Riku murmured under his breath as he traveled down the district all by himself. At a moment like this, all he wanted to do was to spend time by himself, to rethink about everything. Yet, he didn't want to think of anything else but grieving over what he should had done. He should have just trusted that Kairi would be alright. He should has just trusted in Sora, his very best friend. If he had a chance, then he would simply go back in time and fix everything.
'But what Kairi said earlier, makes me never to want to have that wish in the first place.'
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"But why would you want to wish for something like that?" Kairi asked as she heard him talking to himself.
"Kairi!" Alarmed, Riku turned around. His eyes looked at her and then to the ground. Turning away, he tried to pretend nothing had happened.
"What's wrong? You need me for something?"
"Riku … Do you regret helping me?" She asked quietly, yet it was enough to get Riku's attention.
"What?! Of course not! What makes you think that?" Riku replied quickly.
"Then why did you wish that you hadn't done that in the first place? Riku listen … please … I know you're grieving over what you did, but please stop. Stop looking directly at the problem, but take a step back. The real reason why you have done all of this, is because you wanted to help me, wasn't it? You wanted to help a friend, and you were willing to go through all that trouble just for it. Why should it be something you are ashamed of? Are you ashamed of helping me? If you wish that none of this had happened, then it would simply be like you were standing on the sidelines, watching everything without actually doing anything. It would be like watching a friend getting hurt and doing nothing in return, abandoning them without even a care in the world. Do you want to be like that? It's not the Riku I know. It's not the friend I used to have. He would simply go on and find his own way to resolve the problem, regardless of what will happen to him later on. And guess what? You're still him. Because you have done the exact same thing. You tried to find a way to help me … even if it meant costing your body …"
"…"
"Alright, I'll give you time to think about it. Just try not to do anything crazy to yourself again. Okay?"
She smiled at the last part and left, leaving Riku alone with his thoughts. Yes, she got him, again. Everything was going all wrong around him and now he had no one to blame for it. Kairi said he shouldn't be blaming himself, and it wouldn't be doing any good if he did either. Yet, it still wasn't too late to try to fix everything. He could still stop the Heartless and Ansem from destroying the world. He could still atone for the crime he did. There was still time. He had to stop the darkness from spreading before it was too late. He had to.
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'Even Kairi tried to make me sound like I'm some kind of hero, I'm still nothing but an idiot.'
He thought to himself while walking down the Second District. He walked in slowly, just looking at his surroundings, when suddenly he saw a man dash out into his path. The man's face was panicked, and it didn't help when he tripped over his own feet. He had been chased around by the Heartless. Wasting no time at all, Riku jumped into action. He summoned his Soul Eater and went between the man and Heartless.
"You're alright?" He asked, casting him a side glance as he readying himself to fight.
"Y … ye … yes …" He said barely.
"You should take it easy. Go. I'll hold them back." He said.
Without a word, the man nodded and ran. With shaky legs, he escaped without even daring to turn around and see what happen next. Within seconds, he disappeared between the quiet streets.
"I guess it just you and me, Heartless."
"Foolish boy!" A voice rang. A voice that was too awfully familiar.
'It can't be …'
Riku gritted his teeth together. Why here? Why now? Why did it have to be right now?
"You …" He whispered.
"Stop resisting. Accept the darkness. You have no choice."
Dark mist surrounded him.
"I thought it was you, Ansem."
A figure appeared before him.
"You don't seem surprised." Ansem asked, amused by his reaction.
"I knew you were going to ambush me sooner or later," Riku replied simply, not letting Ansem out of his sight.
"If you were expecting it then I'll make this short and sweet. It's time you return to the darkness."
"Not a chance!" Riku raised his sword and slashed out.
"Foolish boy. Do you think you can really do me harm? Your time here in the light stops here. You don't belong in such light. It's time you go back where you ought to be." Ansem blocked the sword with nothing more than his own arm and threw Riku back.
"Nooooo! Don't you dare!"
Scream echoed throughout the Second District.
«««
The underground waterway was deserted and dim, but the murals on the walls gave off a soft glow. The painting of the sun seemed to gaze down on the three of them with a mysterious warmth. As Kairi walked closer, the sun began to shine.
"Wow … it's so pretty." Kairi gazed at it, and her eyes widened. A beam of light fell into her hand, and the sun changed into a crescent moon. "Is this a Gummi?" asked Kairi.
"Yeah. We'd better hurry up and take it back to Cid." Donald replied.
'The man in the First District.'
"Alright." Kairi nodded.
"Say guys. When we close the keyhole, where do you think we should go and look for Sora? Do you think we could find him?"
"Don't worry, we'll find him. I know we'll." Kairi said with a brightly smile.
"How do you know?"
"Because I gave him my lucky charm back when we were on the island. He'll come back."
«««
"Kairi!" She didn't look up. She merely smiled. Sora tilted his head curiously to one side and came closer. "Whatcha doin'?" "This?" she answered, raising a long piece of thread with a series of white and yellow shells hooked into it. "I'm making a necklace of thalassa shells. In the old days, sailors always wore thalassa shells. They were supposed to ensure a safe voyage." Sora grinned. "Don't worry, Kairi," he said confidently. "With or without them, we'll be just fine." Kairi smiled slightly while pulling the thread through the last shell, connecting them together into a star. "You don't believe in fairy tales, Sora?" Sora only smiled back. "But well, I believe in them and I still want you to have this." She handed him the newly made charm into his hand. "This is my lucky charm. It will bring luck to you when you need it and promise the reunion to those you hold dear."
"Hey Riku! We got a piece of the Gummi we need. Now we can go and close the keyhole."
Kairi called when they re-entered the second district through the alley way. Yet, there was silence and no one could be seen in sight.
"Riku?" Kairi looked up when she didn't hear anyone reply. "Riku?!" She called again.
"Maybe he just ran off to somewhere." Donald said.
"Well … as silly as it sounds, Riku would never run off to somewhere without telling anyone, or at least in situation like this, unless it's an emergency of course." Kairi laughed lightly as she tried to hide her worries.
"Riku! Where are you?! Riku! Riku!" She called out his name one more time. "Riku!"
She shouted. The girl looked around again but found no one. It was then when she started to lose hope.
"Aw … Don't worry Kairi, I'm sure Riku is just around here somewhere."
"Oh no, Heartless!" Goofy called as the Darkballs surrounded them. Kairi took a step back, afraid.
"Step back Kairi!"
"Fools! Do you really think you can win against the darkness."
Ansem walked out from the shadows.
"Huh?!" Kairi's eyes went wide as she backed away even more.
"You! What have you done to Riku?! What have you done to my friend?!" She shouted behind Donald and Goofy.
"Hum … the boy only received what he deserved."
"Give him back!"
"Don't worry princess, you'll be uniting with him soon enough."
Donald and Goofy pulled out their weapons. The Heartless surrounded the trio, blocking away any escape route. Ansem grinned evilly before snapping his fingers, ordering them to attack.
"I'm not afraid of you! I'll fight to keep my friends safe as well." Kairi said proudly.
The Heartless went before them, attacking restlessly. Yet without the power of the Keyblade, the creatures proved to be too much for them to handle. Ansem smirked at this, and with the mage and knight defeated, he walked towards Kairi, who was now kneeling next to the unconscious Donald and Goofy, shaking them.
"Now it's your turn, princess."
"I won't let you hurt them." She stood up, keeping herself between Ansem and both Donald and Goofy, as if trying to block his path from getting closer to those two.
A large black patch appeared right underneath Kairi's feet. Black tendrils reached up from the ground and wrapped tightly around her body, steadily climbing higher and higher. It had almost completely engulfed the girl's little frame. Kairi struggled, trying to pull herself out the dark pit. The black shadow tendrils beginning to wrap around her. The cold, icy feeling… Suddenly it felt like the ground was shaking beneath her. Kairi felt like she would fall at any moment.
The darkness began to close in around her… She could hardly see… The whole world was going black…
A bright gleam of light suddenly pierced through the darkness. It got brighter and brighter, until all the darkness was forced away and Kairi was blinded by the white light. And then the strange feeling was gone. The white light dimmed. Kairi opened her eyes and gazed around her. She was holding some kind of large key.
"What's this ...?" She whispered.
"A Keyblade?!"
She ran her hands down the intricate object.
In the meantime, Ansem was beyond furious. He should know well that the darkness had no effect on her. Now her courage to stand up to protect others had given her the abilities to wield the keyblade. His darkness had helped to let her light shine even brighter.
Perhaps the closer you get to darkness, the brighter the light becomes too.
"Grr! I'll deal with you soon, princess." Was his last words before he vanished.
Kairi only stood there and looked. At least the man took the Heartless with him. These two should be safe for now.
"So now you have a Keyblade too?"
She turned around, only to find Leon looking at her. She looked down at her hand, which held the Keyblade.
It was a pretty looking Keyblade, covered in flowers. She might grow to like it…
She answered Leon. "Yeah, I guess so…"
"Good. Then that means we can still put a stop to this mess. Where did Riku go, by the way?"
"Oh, um… Ansem… he did something to him. I don't know where he is. I hope he's alright."
He smiled at her. "Don't worry, he seems pretty strong. He should be fine."
Kairi smiled, nodding. "Yeah, you're right. Thanks." She took out the Gummi they found earlier. "So I should give this to that Cid guy right?"
Leon laughed before he answered. "Yes. He should be in the first district. I lead you there once Donald and Goofy wake up."
As if on cue, the knight and the mage started to come to, and they slowly got up.
"What happened… ACK!" Donald's eyes widened at the Keyblade in Kairi's hand. "Y-you have a Keyblade?!"
Goofy smiled. "Garwsh Kairi, that's neat."
Kairi sheepishly grinned as Leon smiled. "Well, what a surprise. Come on, we should get going."
They nodded, and they went back through the doors to the First District. There weren't any Heartless, and Kairi felt relieved. She wasn't in the mood to fight any.
Golden light flooded the streets as they stepped into the district, giving it a nice and warm feeling. Here, it was safe.
Cid was waiting for them just outside of the doors. "Hey kid! How ya doing? I heard you got a Gummi you wanted me to install?"
Kairi handed him the part, and he held it in his hand, examining it. He grinned. "Another Warp Gummi. Well I'll be. I'll get this installed right away."
"By the way, you're headin' to Hollow Bastion right?" Cid didn't wait for an answer before he continued. "Be careful. The Heartless are pretty strong there; I should know."
Leon spoke up from where he was leaning on the wall. "It used to be our home, but it was overrun with Heartless."
"Eventually, we had to hightail it outta there before it got any worse."
Kairi was a bit saddened that their home had been invaded by the Heartless too. Maybe if they could beat that Ansem guy…
"Kid, don't be getting too cocky, ya hear? I just finished installing the Gummi, so whenever you're ready, you can head out."
She nodded. "Thanks!"
"Be careful."
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And yep, that's the end of the chap.
Please leave a review, and if you have any questions, you're welcome to PM either me or Amalia. We both have about the same information about this story, so either person is fine.
I hope you enjoyed, and thanks for reading! :D