Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is in no way mine. I don't own the universe, the characters or the storyline. This story is written for entertainment purposes only (and to appease my muse who has taken the evil form of my demanding best friends) and I am making no money in the writing.

Author's Note: This is dedicated to Hex, who sees the same things I do when I play the game and always wants a story to keep her entertained, Regi who supports me in everything I do, and Hood, who is my inspiration since I like seeing him turn red.

0 0 0

Leon's heart was in turmoil as he watched Sora and Riku swim off in a flurry of bubbles, both yelling insults at the other as they went. Goofy and Donald followed at a clipped pace, both laughing. On one hand, Leon was pleased to see that Sora was back as himself, happy, dopey and excited about life, and pleased to see that Riku was more relaxed as well. On the other hand…it was going to be hard for him to keep from focusing on the memory of Sora and Roxas sharing Sora's body. The control Sora himself had was growing slimmer and slimmer with each passing day, and he wasn't sure how Cloud was going to take it when he saw.

Leon wasn't in denial, everyone had fear and darkness in their hearts and Cloud was no exception. He knew Cloud both feared Sephiroth and longed to defeat him. He feared becoming close to anyone…like Sora, Aerith or Tifa, only to have them cut down on the tip of Sephiroth's blade. He knew that Cloud saw the spiky haired brunet as a little brother.

Sora's heart was so strong that it would upset Cloud when he saw Sora lose control to Roxas, even if it was by his choice. If Sora's heart could not withstand his "other," Cloud's heart would have no chance, and Sephiroth would continue to exist and threaten him.

Leon's face was impassive as he swam in his friend's wake. He had expected Mickey to swim with his friends, but the mouse king swam at Leon's side, and more than once he could feel the king's eyes on him. When he saw Ariel in the distance waiting for them, he stopped to face his companion. "What is it?"

Mickey stopped as well and glanced over to see Sora laughing even as Riku's fist pumped. He looked back at Leon. "I should ask you the same thing, Leon. What's wrong?"

Leon paused. He rubbed his temples and closed his eyes. "We met Roxas today."

"What?" Mickey's eyes widened and then narrowed slightly as he came to come sort of conclusion. "I see. What happened?"

Leon paused and rubbed his temples. "Sora made a place for Roxas in his heart, keeping their consciousness separate. The link they share has gotten strong enough that they're starting to share Sora's body. Today Roxas took control for nearly an hour with only a brief…and vaguely disturbing moment where they both used it to argue."

Mickey frowned. "That's not good news."

Leon shook his head. "I know." He agreed quietly. "And it's disturbing to watch. Did you know when Sora sees his reflection, he sees Roxas' face there?"

Mickey sighed. "This is more serious than I expected but I'm not surprised. I should have known."

Leon tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

Mickey sighed. "I've seen two other cases where the nobody located their other and joined with them aside from Sora and Kairi. Both were like Kairi, acceptin' their nobody and bondin' with them entirely."

Leon nodded, though he was surprised to find there were more cases like Sora's and Cloud's. "So what went wrong?"

Mickey gave him an ironic look. "Were you honestly expectin' Sora to suppress someone else's consciousness?" He asked. He paused. "…and…Roxas wield the keyblade as well. You can't expect him to be the same as everyone else…but this is more complicated than I thought."

Leon nodded and followed Mickey as he swam forward and joined the group. "Sora…" Mickey looked at the young keyblade wielder. "…we need to talk."

Sora nodded and glanced at Sebastian. "I don't think I'm going to have time to stay after all."

Inwardly Leon cheered. He wouldn't have to sing or dance, but he could tell by the look on Sora's face that he was really disappointed. Obviously Ariel saw it too, because she put a hand on Sora's shoulder, not seeing Riku's face darken. "Aww, Sora. It's all right." She giggled. "We'll save you a spot in the next one."

Sora perked up instantly. "Okay. I'll be back." He promised, blue eyes gleaming. Turning, he swam away and led them to the large undersea gorge before glancing at the king. "What's up?"

Mickey hesitated. "It would be better to talk somewhere else. Somewhere neutral." He glanced at Sora. "How did you get over here?"

Sora shrugged. "A portal in the castle in the World That Never Was."

Mickey nodded. "Sounds good."

Sora smiled. "Sure." Holding up his keyblade, Leon felt a curious rush of water sliding over him before he fell to his knees in the graveyard.

Cloud, he could see, was obviously pleased to have his legs back, but Leon felt differently. It had been nice to have that powerful tail, it had felt good to shoot through the water like a torpedo. He had felt powerful and strong, and he knew why Sora loved it so much. Of all of them, Sora was the only one who had remained standing, and he cupped the back of his head as he smirked at Riku. "I guess I can't make you dance."

Leon smirked. "You won the race?"

Riku grinned. "No he didn't."

Leon inclined one eyebrow. "Then how were you going to get Riku to dance?"

Sora grinned and ran a hand through his hair. "If I told you, I'd have to kill you."

Leon smirked in reply and glanced at Riku. The boy was whipped. Both of them knew that if Sora had asked, Riku would comply…and everyone but Sora knew it. Riku resolutely ignored Leon's gaze and glanced at King Mickey. "Not that I'm not happy to see you, Mickey…but what are you doing here?"

Mickey glanced at Sora, whose gaze was fixed curiously on the mouse king. Donald and Goofy were wandering around, both looking slightly uneasy. "Gawrsh. I never thought I'd see this place again."

Sora smiled slightly, but there were shadows in his blue eyes. "I want you to see something." He led them outside and pointed up. "Kingdom Hearts…it's still there…and there has to be a reason for that."

Mickey looked at Sora and Leon could see that his old friend was concerned. "What do you mean?"

Sora shook his head. "I don't know." He replied, shoulders slumping a little. "I'm just…not so sure that the Organization had it wrong. This…" He motioned violently up to the heavy moon in the sky. "…is STILL happening. There has to be a reason for it! What if the Organization wasn't wrong?" Leon's heart clenched as he saw Roxas emerging from Sora again.

Obviously the others saw it too, because Mickey drew in a sharp breath, Goofy blinked and Cloud's eyes sharpened to an almost predatory quality. Roxas gestured violently up at the moon. "You can't say this is wrong!"

Mickey looked as troubled as Leon felt, and Cloud looked furious. He glowered at Roxas. "Give him back his body."

Roxas sneered at Cloud. It was disturbing to the extreme seeing Sora's face twisted in such a cold grimace. "Get bent."

Sora appeared a moment later. "Cloud…it's not what you think." He paused and chewed lightly on his bottom lip.

Mickey held up a hand, stopping Cloud from snapping off a reply. "This is gettin' out of hand. Sora, something has to be done with Roxas."

There was a flash of something as Roxas reacted to Mickey's words. Fear, panic, a fierce defiance, resignation. All swirled in Roxas' clear blue eyes before he closed his eyes and Sora came back to himself. "I'm not going to push his consciousness down." Sora replied quietly. "That's not just cruel, it would be WRONG."

He motioned up to the sky. "None of us ever asked what happened to the hearts, but there HAS to be a reason they're all going there. It's like they're waiting there to be claimed again."

"That's not possible." Donald argued. "The Heartless CAN'T use the hearts and when someone's heart is taken away…"

"That person becomes a Heartless too." Goofy finished.

Sora looked frustrated and nodded. "I know, but it still seems WRONG to me! The hearts aren't GOING anywhere, they're just hanging there. The nobodies are sure that they're not meant to exist but maybe…" He stopped dead and Leon saw his face go white. "Maybe…I…"

"Sora!" Riku's voice was sharp. "What are you saying? Stop being stupid."

Sora's eyes narrowed. "I'm not being stupid." He looked too worked up to be properly hurt by his friend's words, but Leon could see that Sora would remember them later. "I WASN'T MEANT TO EXIST."

Roxas took Sora's place and looked distinctly uneasy…as uneasy as Cloud looked and Leon felt. Mickey looked away. "That's just silly, Sora." Donald argued. "Of course you were meant to exist! You have the Keyblade!"

"So?" Sora demanded a moment later. "So does Roxas!"

Roxas frowned. "Sora…"

Mickey paused. "So…what you're sayin' is that…" He frowned. "…Nobodies are the ANSWER."

Sora nodded quickly. "Yes!"

Goofy sighed. "I don't understand."

Sora began to pace again, his eyes on the heavy moon. "The Heartless steal people's hearts and when they do, the person becomes another Heartless right?" He waited for nods before continuing. "But when we cut them down the heart doesn't just go on or whatever because it has nothing to go TO. The original is already GONE."

Leon rubbed his temples. "So what you're saying…is that the Nobody created when someone becomes a Heartless…is what is supposed to get the heart once it is freed."

Sora nodded. "Exactly!" He said excitedly. "Roxas can wield the Keyblade because when I turned into a Heartless…HE was the one who was supposed to exist! Which means I…" He stopped and looked down.

Cloud's face was a mask. "Sephiroth was NOT supposed to get my heart."

Mickey looked as uneasy as the rest of them felt. Riku looked so pale his skin was nearly translucent. "I'm not sayin' you're wrong, Sora but…"

Roxas took over. "Sora, maybe that's true for others…" He paused. "…but not for you. Or Kairi. Or Cloud."

Sora's frustration showed. "Why not?!"

Roxas bit his lip. "Because your hearts were held by PEOPLE." He replied quietly. "You possessed Kairi's heart, she held yours." If Roxas noticed how his words hit Riku like a punch in the gut, he didn't show it. "And…Cloud…"

It was obvious that Cloud wasn't comfortable with Roxas, because he looked rebellious. "Tifa. Tifa held my heart. Brought me back." He replied quietly.

Roxas nodded quickly. "Exactly."

Sora frowned. "But YOU!"

Roxas growled. "Sora, shut up! I found my heart, remember?!"

Sora opened his mouth but Mickey cut him off. "Actually Roxas…" He paused. "…I don't think you have." He began to pace. "Maybe you're right, Sora. Maybe the Nobodies ARE the answer to restoring the hearts, but Roxas is right as well. Maybe you were BOTH meant to exist, as a balance."

Riku's eyes were dark and he ran a hand through his hair. "Someone to guard the darkness and someone to guard the light."

"But Roxas' heart…" Sora whispered and Leon could see the anguish in his eyes.

Leon frowned slightly. "His heart might be held by someone too."

Roxas' eyes grew sharp. "Axel." He whispered. "AXEL!" The longing was evident in his voice and it made Leon's heart hurt to hear it.

Sora looked stricken. "But…" he looked at Riku, whose face had turned an alarming shade of gray. "…I'm not…I mean…" It was obvious that the thought of being with Axel upset Sora. It was funny in a twisted sort of way.

"Sora, calm down." Riku ordered. His arms looped around the boy's waist. "Calm down. You have to calm down. Nobody's going to force you into anything you don't want to do." He soothed but there was a fierceness in his voice that betrayed his protectiveness. Nobody was going to try to force Sora to accept Axel for Roxas' sake, Leon could hear the threat in Riku's whispered promises.

"Maybe that won't be a problem." Mickey said with a slight smile. "Sora, do you still have the reverse keyblade?"

0 0 0

Riku glowered. "No. Don't even consider this, Sora. You can't do this."

Sora stared resolutely at the black keyblade in his hands. Truth be told he had forgotten about it entirely. "What is it?" Cloud demanded, frowning at Riku. "What are you talking about?"

Sora stared at the blade in his hand. "This keyblade isn't like the others." He said quietly. "The others lock hearts away from the darkness. They protect. This keyblade opens them." He gulped. "The last time I used it…was for Kairi. Her heart was in mine and I had to free it." He left the rest of the sentence unsaid…the way that Roxas' heart was in him now.

"AND THE IDIOT TURNED HIMSELF INTO A HEARTLESS USING IT!" Riku raged. "Sora, don't even THINK about doing this! What if you can't get back this time, hmm? What then?!"

Sora bit his lip. Like the idea had never occurred to him…he just wished Riku hadn't been so vocal about it. "I've thought about that, Riku." He admitted. "And I think it's worth it."

Sora could see the frustration in Riku's eyes was reflected in Cloud, Leon, Donald and Goofy. Mickey looked surprisingly calm, though his gaze was anxious in a different sort of way. Sora let out a long sigh. "I'll be okay." He promised his best friend.

Riku glowered at him. "How do you know?!" He demanded. "How do you know? How do you know that you won't STAY a Heartless this time? How do you know I'll be able to find you? How do you…"

"Riku." Sora put his hand over his friend's mouth and Riku instantly went still. "Please stop."

Anguish filled Riku's gaze. "Sora…"

Sora flashed Riku his best smile. It was a smile he had used many times in the past, the same falsely reassuring smile he had used the last time he picked up this particular keyblade. "I know you'll find me." He said confidently to Riku.

Riku opened his mouth again, but Sora leaped out of his reach and spun the keyblade in his hand, positioning it over his heart.

"Sora, wait!" Leon called even as Cloud lunged forward as if to stop him. Sora didn't give him the chance. He shoved the keyblade into his chest.

The darkness that surrounded him was not unfamiliar, but felt eternal. Sora could feel himself falling but after a moment no longer had the sensation of falling. Falling implied he had a body, had some sort of stimulation. All he felt…was nothingness.

The darkness wrapped around him like a blanket, smothering…but Sora did not panic. He felt strangely detached from his emotions, as if emotion was pale, insipid. All that mattered was the darkness.

"SORA!" Who was Sora? Why was someone trying to break into his darkness? "SORA!" A different voice than the first, slightly closer but no less strong. In fact the voices brought to mind hearts. Strong, capable hearts. He turned to the sound. The darkness roiled with the anticipation of the hearts.

"SORA!" Another voice, the same name. THIS voice cut through his darkness with a shaft of light like a blade. THIS voice was silver and true and reminded him that color DID exist. It was bright and piercing and made his eyes hurt. His eyes…he could feel his body again, could feel weight as something different than the darkness engulfed him. "SORA!" He was surrounded by a silver light shot through with streaks of a bright turquoise. The turquoise reminded Sora of something…something…the light solidified into a thick rope. Without thought Sora grabbed it.

The turquoise of exotic, cat-like eyes in a face framed by thick silver hair. The face smirked at him, young, fierce and proud as he exclaimed over the pirate treasure they had found.

He pulled himself farther up the rope. The same face, slightly older now, smiling at him as he asked to explore other worlds, have REAL adventures…and do it together.

The turquoise eyes blazed with indefinable emotion as the silver haired boy…no, only a fool would call him a boy…demanded a paopu fruit for the winner of a race. There was a grim tilt to the boy's mouth, a hardness in the eyes that he had never noticed before…like the stakes were far greater than his nonchalant tone made them out to be.

A pang shot through his heart as he was forced time and time again to fight the silver haired teen, the pang became a fierce ache as he closed massive doors, locking the boy in a world of darkness and despair. "Sora…" The voice whispered, and he never noticed before how the sound of his names on the silver haired boy's lips had always sounded more like a caress than a statement. Sora…his name…was Sora.

Sora found himself in Riku's crushing embrace, his eyes slowly opening as a drop of moisture fell onto his cheek. "Are you…crying?" He asked groggily.

Riku shuddered against Sora. Sora's heart began to hammer in his chest as he looked up to see aquamarine eyes swimming with emotion…emotion he had never seen before. "No you idiot." Riku replied quietly. "Your spiky hair got in my eyes."

Sora smiled at that. "Whatever you say, Riku." He replied peaceably, utterly content to remain in his friend's arms.

"Does this mean that Riku holds Sora's heart?" An ironic voice asked, sounding wickedly amused.

Sora looked up sharply, not sure if he was going to yell denials or agree, not sure what EITHER reaction would do to Riku, and met a pair of blue eyes in a cherubic face framed by spiky dirty blond hair. "Roxas…" He whispered.

Roxas grinned at him. "Sora." He replied lazily. "Nice to see you face to face." Sora reached for him but Roxas dodged his touch. "Not a good idea, Sora." He admonished. "Don't want to have to do that again because you felt the urge to rejoin."

Sora flushed. He hadn't thought about that. "Sorry." He said sheepishly.

Roxas smiled and shook his head. "Don't be…" He ran a hand through his hair. "…look…" he sighed. "…thanks. For…you know…letting me go."

Sora smiled at his Nobody. "You weren't mine to keep." Turning, he glanced at his friends. "This…" He nodded to the blond. "Is Roxas."

If Roxas noticed or cared about the openly amazed or even hostile gazes fixed on him, he didn't show it. Instead he drifted toward the red lit tombstone that would lead them to Axel. His fingers traced the stone, face deceptively impassive. Sora felt his heart clench, and then his face flame as he suddenly realized that he was still clasped against a firm chest. He could feel Riku's heart beating against his hands as he stared up into Riku's cat-like eyes. "Um…Riku?" He asked, his mouth dry.

Riku gazed down at him dreamily, and Sora's heart skipped a beat as he realized that he had never seen that exact look on his best friend's face before. "Sora." He replied with a slight smile.

Sora licked his lips and could have sworn he heard Riku's breath catch. "…you're still holding me."

Riku blinked once, then seemed to shake himself awake, because his face flamed red and he hurriedly released Sora. "Sorry. I…uh…" He ran a hand through his hair.

Sora laughed. "Don't worry about it." He said, his heart still pounding unnaturally hard. "And um…" He paused. "…thanks, Riku." He smiled. "For bringing me back."

He was already walking toward his Nobody and didn't hear Riku whisper his name, looking stunned as he stared at his feet.

Roxas shook his head as Sora approached. "I'm glad I'm not part of you anymore."

Sora frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Roxas laughed. "It means that you looked like you were freaking out over there when Riku was holding you, and NOBODY'S heart is meant to beat that loudly. I could hear it from here."

Sora didn't quite know what to make of this. He had conflicting emotions, one told him to vehemently deny the accusation that he was freaking out, and the other called for him to demand to know what the secretive smile on Roxas' face meant. He acted on neither, choosing to remain silent instead. Sometimes silence was safer. They stood staring at Axel's tombstone for a long moment before Roxas spoke. "Sora…do you think its normal for Nobodies to fall in love?"

Sora shrugged. "I dunno." He replied quietly. He sighed. "Rox…you know you ARE meant to exist don't you?"

Roxas threw him an ironic smile that reminded him of Axel. "Sure, Sora. I know."

Sora nodded and left his Nobody standing thoughtfully beside the tombstone of his lover. Even as he made his way over to the group of his friends, he saw the two dusks appear beside Roxas, though to his knowledge the boy hadn't called them. They still had a problem but maybe…maybe the Nobodies were the answer.