The Lost Princess
Chapter Thirteen – Now You Know
Riku climbed up the stairs in the tower where Xemnas was hiding. The old, wooden stairs creaked loudly under his feet as he ascended up the tower, and he had no doubt that Xemnas already knew he was there. He sighed heavily as he reluctantly pushed open the door, but he only got about two steps inside of the room before he saw the oddest thing. Xemnas was reading the newspaper.
"Riku," he said as he tossed the paper down onto the table. "Look."
He frowned and moved forward, glancing down at the paper. The headline read "Lost Princess of Radiant Garden Found", and underneath it was a picture of Kairi from when she was younger. No current images were being released yet. Riku read about how the Queen was holding a ball in the young woman's honor on Saturday night.
"We're going to be having a party ourselves that night," Xemnas said. "And then, my curse shall be fulfilled."
Riku looked up at him sharply before looking at the picture of the smiling girl on the page. She didn't know, when that picture was taken, that her family would soon be torn away from her in a bloody siege sparked by a dark curse.
And he had helped it happen.
Riku stared at the gates. People were roaring and pushing that them, determined to get inside. They held torches, and other manner of weapons. Still, the gates were exceedingly strong, and they could not pass.
Master Xehanort would not like that, he decided quickly. Xehanort had found him as a young child on the streets and had given him a home. He owed it to the man to help him.
Riku crept forward, and a few of the people directly in front of the gates stopped moving. They watched as he reached up (for even as a child, he had been tall for his age) and pushed open the last locked that remained shut on the gate. Then, as the crowd started flooding in, he moved out of the way.
As he watched the men charge at the palace, yelling and roaring in hate, Riku felt guilt pass through him. They would have gotten the gate open eventually, that was true, but he knew he had just done a terrible thing.
VVVVVVVVVVV
Sora shivered as he held his jacket tighter around his body. He had forgotten how cold it really was in Radiant Garden. It seemed like years since he had been there, even though it had only been a few months.
"Odd," he muttered to himself as he walked down the snow covered streets. "Usually the snow's mostly gone by now." There was less snow than the last time he had been there, but still more than he really liked.
With a sigh, he went through the servant's corridors of the old, dusty palace. Without so much as a glance at the familiar, worn furniture, he tossed his suitcase on the couch and kept walking.
His footsteps echoed around him as he walked through the halls. For the first time in his life, he truly felt alone. Even when Roxas had gone to Destiny Islands, he had still felt like there was another presence there with him. Some people would have called it creepy, but he thought it was comforting. Now the halls felt empty.
Sora made he way to the ballroom and before he realized it, he found himself standing in front of a large portrait. He sighed again and brushed the dust off of the painting of Kairi. He eyed her before saying, "I found you Princess. Just like I promised myself I would."
VVVVVVVVVVV
Laughter escaped Kairi's lips as she attempted to tug a pair of her pajama pants away from Goofy, who was being rather stubborn and insisted on not letting go. She was supposed to be getting ready to go somewhere with her grandmother, but instead she decided that she'd rather play tug-of-war with her puppy. She had been ignoring him a lot lately. Roxas took care of him most of the time now, but she was glad that the blond had dropped her puppy off.
There was a stern cough from the door and Kairi jumped, losing grip on her pajamas and tumbling to the floor. She groaned and rubbed her sore behind before looking over the top of her bed to see who was at the door. Just like she expected, her grandmother was standing with a firm look on her face.
"I'm sorry," Kairi mumbled as she got up. "But I've been neglecting Goofy lately and—"
"Hurry and get ready, there's much to be done, my dear," the old woman said before quickly leaving the room.
Kairi sighed and flopped onto her almost uncomfortably comfortable bed. She loved her grandmother, she really did, and she was glad that she found her, but Kairi wasn't cut out to be a Princess. Not in the way she was expected to be. Who could blame her though? She had spent most of her life living in a run-down orphanage.
She pushed herself off of the bed and moved over to her wardrobe. She flicked through the expensive clothes for a moment before she found the dress Sora had given her. Kairi sighed and stared at it, it was definitely the cheapest of all her clothes now, but it was her favorite. Well, it was the favorite of her clothes, but only second to one thing. She reached farther in and pulled out a short-sleeved, zip up hoodie that was much too big for her.
Kairi let out another sigh as she flopped backwards onto her bed and held Sora's shirt to her tightly. She was starting to really miss him, even though it had only been a few days.
Goofy barked and tried to jump onto her bed, but he ended up falling backwards instead. She giggled a bit before reaching down and picking him up. He nuzzled into her stomach, before sitting on Sora's shirt and letting out a whine.
"You miss him too?" Kairi muttered. "Me too. He really did bring me home, and I know he cares about me. I've just been so busy."
Goofy barked again and she pushed herself off of her bed. She sat up and grabbed some clothes to put on. She decided to herself that she'd talk to him later. After all, he was only at Naminé's house. It wasn't like he was that far away.
VVVVVVVVVVV
Parties sucked, that much Kairi came to know. She had wanted to go to Naminé's house to attempt to speak to Sora, but she was preoccupied for the entire day. She followed her grandmother around for the entire day preparing for the 'small get-together' for that night. As far as she could tell, a 'small get-together' meant a ball with well over a hundred people involved. She hadn't seen the newspaper article until later on that day, when it was too late to attempt to run away.
At one point of time, she had felt like shrinking away into a closet and never coming out. This was way too much way too fast. She felt like her grandmother was expecting too much of her. She was remembering more and more every day, but the thought that she was a Princess was still new. She had been a poor, orphaned nobody for ten years, it wasn't something she could easily shake off.
Goofy snored on her bed, kicking his legs as he dreamed. She smiled a bit as she eyed her dog. It was good to see that he hadn't changed much. Then again, he was a dog.
She jumped onto her bed (Causing Goofy to raise his head and stare at her oddly before going back to sleep.), and bounced for a moment before reaching out to grab the phone that was placed on her nightstand. She had her hand on the receiver and was about to pick it up to call Naminé's house, when a loud knock echoed from her door.
She sighed and called out, "Yes?"
The door open and one of the maids came in and said, "You must start getting ready for the ball, you're highness."
Kairi gave her an odd look before twisting around to look at the clock in her room. She turned around and said, "It's not for five more hours."
The maid's eyes widened and she said, "Only five? Oh, we are behind! Come miss, we'll get you ready!"
Kairi groaned as she followed the maid away. She didn't know what would take five hours, but she sure wasn't looking forward to it.
VVVVVVVVVVV
The first thing that Kairi had gone through was an embarrassing situation (for her) of being stripped down by the maids and practically thrown into the bath. Once she was in the warm waters, the maids scrubbed at her hair quickly and poured strong, floral scented soaps into the water before telling Kairi to scrub quickly. She felt like she was in an old time when their maids would bath women of a high class.
Once she was deemed clean enough, a robe was thrown onto her and she was pulled away into another room and pushed into a chair where people started pulling at her hair. A few of them tutted about how her hair should have been longer and more elegant, but there was nothing she could have done about that in the past. Kairi had always managed to keep herself relatively clean, but long hair would have made it a lot harder to do so. So these picky women would just have to live with the fact that her hair wasn't down her to her waist. Despite that fact, that managed to get her hair up into an elegant bun.
Afterwards, she was moved to another room where several women worked on her makeup. She had never before had so many layers of something that wasn't just soap and water on her skin.
Then, finally, she was off to put on her dress. While she absolutely loved the dress itself, she hated the thought of wearing it. The reason was simple, and it was one that kept ringing through her mind as she looked at herself in front of the mirror as her shimmering crown was placed onto her head.
She had never felt so fake in her life.
Still, Kairi smiled to the maids and everyone else, but kept her frowns to herself. Time had gone by so quickly, that soon Kairi found herself waiting outside of her grandmother's ballroom.
She peaked through the curtains that led from the ballroom to the grand patio outside. Her indigo eyes took in all the happy people dancing, laughing and talking. Déjà vu passed through her as she distantly remembered the last time she had seen such a sight. It was the last thing she had done with the rest of her family before they were murdered.
Kairi swallowed nervously when she saw several photographers in the crowd, waiting for her to appear. She almost missed Radiant Garden, because along with the lesser technology that was available to the public since the revolution, the laws against freedom of journalism were strict. It was a terrible thing, yes, but she really didn't want to deal with photographers that just wanted a picture of the long-lost Imperial Princess of Radiant Garden.
"He's not there, is he?"
Kairi jumped a bit and turned around as her grandmother approached her, wearing a similarly styled dress, but it was changed to suit her age a little better. Kairi smiled warmly at her before turning back and looking at the crowd before saying, "No he—who grandma?"
The old woman chuckled at her granddaughter's clueless expression before saying, "A certain young man who discovered a certain musical charm?"
Kairi felt a wave longing pass through her, but she kept her face straight. Still, the pain showed across her eyes as she pretended that she didn't care that Sora wasn't there. "Oh, no. I imagine he's probably out spending as much of his money as fast as he can. I hope I can see him later though."
Her grandmother sighed and walked up beside Kairi so she could see the ballroom. She placed a hand on the younger woman's shoulder and said, "You were born into this life of glamorous parties and glittering jewels, but I wonder if it's enough?"
"Of course it's enough," Kairi said in a shocked tone as she dropped the curtain and faced her grandmother, her dress swishing around her as she moved. "I found everything I was looking for. I found where I belong. I found you."
The former Queen moved forward and hugged Kairi tightly as she said, "And you'll always have me, but as I said, is it enough?" She paused for a moment before adding, "He didn't take the money. He said he had a change of heart."
Kairi jerked away quickly, and her indigo eyes widened with shock. She opened her mouth to speak several times before managing to say, "He didn't? But I thought—even after he told me—I guess I..."
There was a pause as she turned away and walked towards the French doors behind her, holding her necklace tightly in her hand. She felt tears welding up in her eyes, but she blinked them away, refusing to let them fall.
"It's up to you to make your own decision, my dear," her grandmother said. "Just remember, whatever you're decision is, I will always be here for you. You will always have a home here."
Kairi took in her words as she stared up at the darkening sky. She bit her lip before turning quickly and saying, "Grandma, can't you—" Kairi stopped in mid sentence when she realized that her grandmother had left the room. Slowly, Kairi turned around again as she thought.
Happiness crept through her. He hadn't taken the money, and for some reason, that meant more to her than anything else. As much as she was certain he cared for her, she had been having doubts ever since his cold attitude towards her before. The fact that he didn't take the money was proof enough that, in the end at least, he wasn't just using her to make a better life for himself.
A happy laugh escaped Kairi's lips. There was really no choice to make once she thought it through.
VVVVVVVVVVV
"Naminé! Roxas!"
The two blonds in question had been enjoying each other's company in the gardens, having abandoned the ballroom quite a while ago. Naminé was sitting on a finely carved, white stone bench, and Roxas was sitting on the grass at her feet. Both were smartly dressed, and Kairi couldn't help but find them adorable.
"Hello Kairi," Naminé said to her with a warm smile. "Roxas and I were getting a little tired of being in such a big crowd, so we decided to find Goofy and take him for a walk." She pointed to where the dog in question was prancing around a fountain happily. "What brings you here? You didn't even make an appearance inside yet, and you ran here?"
Kairi nodded as she caught her breath. She breathed in deeply and got straight to the point, "Where's Sora?"
Naminé's smile fell off of her face, replaced by a confused look. Roxas tilted his head and shot her an odd look, but Kairi clearly saw a saddened look pass across his eyes.
"What?" She asked them after a moment of silence.
"He left," Naminé replied slowly.
Kairi blinked, and this time it was her turn to look confused. She tilted her head (The same motion that she had adopted from Sora and Roxas.) before asking, "What do you mean, he left?"
"We thought you knew," Roxas said. "He went back to Radiant Garden. He kept saying it was the best thing he could do for you." After thinking about it for a while, he had been positive that Kairi had known Sora was leaving, but it looked like he was wrong.
"But he—I thought he hated Radiant Garden?" Kairi asked, her mind still not quite grasping the larger picture yet.
"He does," Roxas said hesitantly. He couldn't stop the bitterness from creeping into his voice as he spoke to her. He knew it wasn't a fair accusation, but in a way, it was her fault that Sora had left. "He left because he cares about you."
"What?"
Roxas hesitated again, and he felt the bitterness wash away at her expression. What had happened was sinking in now. He knew it was because he could see the tears building up in her eyes. "He left a few days ago. He told me, more then once, that 'princesses don't marry kitchen boys' and 'she's better off without me'. That in itself should say more than anything else, Kairi."
"He's gone?" she repeated in a quiet tone.
"He's gone."
Kairi sank to the grass below her, not caring about getting stains on her pale colored dress She put her face in her hands and shook her head violently. Naminé was about to lean down to comfort her, but Kairi's head snapped up and she said, "That—that idiot! When I get a hold of him…" She trailed off as she looked back up to the sky.
She stayed seated on the grass for quite a while, and she knew that, while Naminé wanted to sit with her, the blonde was getting bored. Roxas had begun picking at the grass, and Goofy was busy staring at a white duck (Whom Kairi had dubbed Donald when she discovered him.) in a pond not far from them, having abandoned the fountain.
"You guys go out, and have fun, I'll catch up later," she said suddenly, not wanting them to waste their night sitting with her.
"You sure Kairi?" Naminé asked hesitantly. "This party is for you, you know."
"I need some time to think," Kairi replied while glancing up at Roxas. He eyed her for a moment before nodding and pulling a reluctant Naminé back towards the ballroom.
Kairi sat on her own, piecing together how much it would cost her to get back to Radiant Garden, and how to convince Sora to come back with her once she got there. Each idea she formed would quickly become filled with unknown factors and roadblocks, but she knew they would be worth it.
He had found her again after so many years, and she intended on returning the favor. After all, they had shared a paopu fruit even before really knowing each other. Their destinies were intertwined, and she knew that she would go crazy without him.
'So much for being an independent woman who doesn't need a man in her life,' she thought idly as she continued to scheme.
The sound of footsteps behind her caused Kairi to look around. She saw a young man with silver hair standing before her, and couldn't help but find that he looked extremely familiar for some reason. She opened her mouth to speak, but he quickly cut her off by saying, "Sora's in danger."
Kairi stood up quickly and took a few steps away from the mysterious young man and asked, "What?"
"There's not much time, but you had to know," he said quickly. "The person who, in the long run, is the cause of the destruction of your family, well…he's still alive. We all thought that he was dead, that you had destroyed him, but you didn't. You only destroyed half of him. Now the half that's still left wants to finish what the first half started. He wants you dead, but he wants you to suffer first."
Kairi tried to keep up with the confusing story, not quite understanding how she could have destroyed a person at all, let alone half of one. She took a few more steps away from him and asked, "Why should I believe any of that? It's just pure madness. Besides, if it was true, how do you know all this?"
He hesitated before saying, "My name's Riku, and I know all this because I've working for him. I—I know what he's doing isn't right though. You have to understand, I was as manipulated by him as much as your father was. I owed him everything."
"You—"
Riku cut Kairi off quickly and said, "Yes, I worked for the man who, essentially, murdered your family. You can yell at me, hit me, and punish me later and I won't complain. I deserve it, I know I do. Now though, there's something more important to deal with. Xemnas wants you to break for what you did to him. He wants your heart to be ripped to pieces, and to do that, he's going to take away the things that you love most, one by one."
The entire story was madness, and Kairi certainly didn't know this young man, but she knew she had seen him before. There was something about his story that struck the whispers of a memory inside of her. She remembered a man with silver hair grabbing her leg, and then she remembered seeing bright light, but nothing else was clear. Just like with those creatures in the water when their ship was attacked.
He admittedly worked for a person that he said killed her family, yet she felt herself inclining to believe him. It didn't make sense, but her heart told her to believe him.
Finally, what he was saying hit her. She visibly winced and said, "Sora's in danger, and it's because of me…"
VVVVVVVVVVV
Author's Note
I have officially spoiled Birth by sleep for myself. I regret nothing. Actually, that's not true. There's one part in the secret ending that makes me rage and makes me want to send much hate mail to Square Enix. I'll leave you with that though.
Since I know someone would ask, Sora got back to Radiant Garden quick because there were no setbacks on his trip. He got back fairly quickly.
Shire Folk, DAN88, Trainalf, catharsis25, 11xNaNx11, Topaz Tsubasa, and Chasingfireflies…you guys all make my day! Seriously.
So I said that I was going to update on the 11th, but I lied. It's 10:41 on the 10th were I am now. Oh well, it's January 11th somewhere out there. Ew, I'm old.
Krystal Lily Potter