Gatekeeper Chapter 21: Dragons And Fake Boys Aplenty, a kingdom hearts fanfic

Twenty-One

"Get up Satoru, you're not dead."

I felt a too-firm kick to the side. My training had taught me how to suffer in silence, so I merely rolled over and got to my feet.

Riku glared down at me.

I waved cheerfully, making his expression even darker.

"I get it. You won. Sara's your girl. Now shut up."

I frowned and crossed my arms. He rolled his eyes.

"Whatever. You saved Sora, huh? And the Organization wants you for something. That makes you my ally." He grabbed my collar and yanked me forward, glaring at me through the cotton. I shivered.

"Listen well. If I have any reason to believe you're playing me, any at all, your body'll be found in a ditch."

I nodded, too scared to breathe. Riku would never do that to me, right?

"Hell, if I get any sort of bad feeling whatsoever, you won't be alive to speak about it." He smirked, "Not that you would anyway."

Wow. What a dick. I pursed my lips and pried his hands off of me.

To my surprise, he pulled a notebook and a pen out of his cloak. "We'll have to communicate."

I pointedly motioned to my bound arm. He sighed and held the notebook steady so I could write.

I made sure to be extra sloppy.

WHERE START?

"We follow Sora. Sara's safe with the King, I know it. So we stick with Sora."

I began to write, but he yoinked the pen out of my grasp.

"I don't care. Let's move."

I sighed, glaring at him as he strode away.

"Dick." I muttered, hurrying to follow him.

000

"A heartless!"

Riku caught me as I rushed forward. "Don't be an idiot. It's an optical illusion."

How immature would it be if I referred to him as Dicky McDickface? Have I overused that?

"Y—you're a…a girl?" I smiled at the look on Sora's face when he realized that 'Ping' wasn't as masculine as she attempted to appear.

The secret to pretending to be of the opposite gender is casual-ness. You need to look natural. And pretend you're mute.

Riku snorted. "Only an idiot would be tricked by something as obvious as a girl pretending to be a boy."

Ironic. Janice's emotions cut in.

No kidding.

"I think it's working!" Mulan grinned up at the red rat thing. I picked up the pen and braced the notepad on the rock we were hiding behind.

LOSE THE SALAMANDER AND SHE MIGHT HAVE A SHOT

Riku turned away when he read it, but I heard the chuckle.

"I don't know…those two would fall for anything."

"I'm right here!"

000

THIS IS SAD

"I hear ya there," Riku mumbled, handing me another pretzel. I gnawed modestly. Back at the Academy, we never knew when our next meal was. Riku on the other hand (being a total rich kid) always carried snacks with him.

In an almost fond silence we watched chaos ensue in the camp below us—Sora was in a headlock, the duck was pouncing on someone, and Mulan and Mutant-Dog-Man-Bear-Pig were standing wide-eyed like the useless tools they were.

"Please!"

OH BOY

"No kidding," He popped another pretzel into his mouth. In my mind, I flashed to the movie night. Him with his arm around me, watching the screen uninterestedly, popping a Skittle into his mouth. It seemed so long ago. Like, twenty chapters or something.

He met my gaze. "What?"

DIRT ON FACE

"Thanks," he rubbed his cheek where I directed him to.

"Whose side are you on? I just got slugged!"

"Want some more?"

"Soldiers! Get back in line!"

As a fairly attractive (on a scale from one to Riku, he was maybe a six) Asian patrolled the line, I noticed little splotches of black forming on the ground outside of camp. I tugged on Riku's sleeve and pointed.

He shook me off, "Jeez, give them a chance. They're better than you think." I pulled a little harder and bounced. He smacked my hand away.

I cradled it, grimacing. That was a lot harder than I expected. Figures. That's what happens when you disobey the authority.

"You're weak!"

"Sheesh, you're acting like Sara. They'll be fine."

To my surprise, they were. All they had to show for it was a lack of breath.

000

Riku was a lazy ass. All throughout the labors, he just sat and watched. I (on the other hand) got up close and personal from an invisible spot.

I rubbed my shoulder; still sore from dragging rocks away from the wall (it made it easier for them to destroy the barrier, thus making them seem awesome).

"You deserve it, I told you not to go."

I frowned, about to mentally ream him out when I noticed the smoke. I tugged on Riku's sleeve and pointed.

Once again, he brushed me off. "Chill man! You're such a girl."

I stomped my foot and waved my hand.

"Fine. Sheesh."

Sora and his gang beat us there, clustered around a bleeding Captain Six-On-The-Sexy-Scale.

WHO DID THIS?

"That Hun dude." Riku sighed. "Come on; let's just keep a better eye on them before they get hurt." He looked at me pointedly. I put my hands on my hips.

I HAVE

In response (because he knew I was right), he yanked my talking devices and put them away.

Dicky McDickface.

"Shang, if you track down the villagers, we'll deal with the heartless."

The poor man was practically unconscious. Sora and the others made a break for the summit. Riku and I barely hid in time.

"Help What's-His-Face. I'll take care of the heartless."

Before I could remind him that I'm better, he was gone.

Well fuck him.

I strolled forward…and promptly remembered my communication method hidden in one of Riku's many pockets.

Oh well, it's not like he'll tell anyone.

"Hey," I knelt beside the bleeding man. "My name's Sara. I'm here to help you."

His eyes narrowed, "A…g—girl…"

I pulled my hood away from my face. "I'm a warrior. Just like you. I've been training since I was a child. You'll need to trust me when I say I'm Sora's guardian."

"The…the boy?"

"Sit tight," I pressed a potion into his shaking hands. "Drink this. I'll scavenge for survivors."

000

"Come on!" I screamed, holding the flaming frame in my bare hands. "GO!"

The frightened family scrambled out, cradling their young child protectively. They wouldn't even let ash touch them. The other villagers I rescued immediately came to their aid.

"A girl?"

"She saved my daughter—pulled her right out of the ground."

"She dug me out from under a roof. She's stronger than most men."

"Look at the way she's just holding that fire!"

"She's a gift from the ancestors!"

"I wanna be like her when I grow up!"

"Me too!"

"No, me!"

I pried up another felled wall. A young boy blinked his ashy eyes in surprise.

"Time to go little fella."

He scrambled out. I dug through the cold powder for his parents.

The father was unconscious under a burning beam. I scooped some snow into my hands and hefted it up. A local villager dragged him out.

The mother was half-buried, too weak to dig her way out. With ease, I scooped the snow off of her and carried her to the villagers.

I love how small these Asians are.

"Any more?"

"N—no." They looked at their decimated village. I immediately felt a pang of guilt for tearing it apart.

"Sorry about that," I nodded toward the destruction. "I guess I didn't really help with the rebuilding."

"It's because of you that we're all alive. We owe you our lives."

I took a step back from the advancing crowd. "Well, uh…"

"Can we get your name?"

"Yes! The name of our savior!"

"The girl from the ancestors!"

"Hero!"

"Gift!"

"Savior!"

I held out my hands, "Uh…look, I gotta go. There's more of those bad guys. Set up a hospital ward and hunker down for a while."

"Your name!"

"Gift us with your name, girl!"

I sighed, realizing they wouldn't let me through without satisfaction.

"Sara Cho."

"Sara."

The whisper spread throughout the crowd. My face burned as I slipped through, trying to ignore the chanting of my name.

"Sara."

They followed me to the remains of the gate, repeating my name over and over again. Even the little ones joined in—the ones that couldn't talk. Shang waited for me.

"Stay with them," I commanded in my most authoritive voice. "The zombies will come back, no doubt."

"Zombies?"

I waved him off, "Never mind. Just help!" I pulled my hood back up, rubbing the ash off my face with some snow and tearing for the summit.

000

I caught up to Riku, slicing through a zombie that was about to bite his ass (literally).

He nodded his thanks. I just slashed another and lunged with my sai.

Battle was easy. I could kill. I bounced about, twirling and leaping and striking with the grace of a cobra. That was my thing.

The only part that threw off my groove was my head. In my head, I just heard that chant.

"Sara."

Why? Why did they care? I'm just a girl.

It's called hope. When all was lost, you were there to pull them out of the fire. You gave them hope. No doubt you'll be in their stories for years to come.

Shut up Janice.

I put my sai away and pulled out my sword. I was slightly off-balance with the hill and my awkward grip, but it could've been worse.

Together we fought at the top of the hill, just out of sight of Sora. So many pushed through and flowed down the hill, too many. But we couldn't go down that hill. They would see us.

"Brats!"

We both perked up at the snarl, used to being referred to as that.

On a scale from one to Riku, this guy was a negative Riku. Draped in fur with beady black eyes and corpse-gray skin…it was a wonder that this guy didn't start knowing on my head and screaming for brains. (Do you get the hint? He's a zombie)

"Oh boy." Riku murmured. All around us, zombies flows over the top and poured to the battlefield below. There was nothing we could do though; the corpse was rushing at us with his sword drawn. That eagle of his pushed off…

"ArgH!" Riku covered his face as a talon ripped through his cheek.

The hook tore through my skin like a hot knife through butter. Spots swam before me, and I could feel tears begin to slide down my cheeks. Pulsating stings shot through my central nervous system like there was no fucking tomorrow.

I kicked his oh-so-fine ass, knocking him into the snow face-first. Then I launched a throwing knife at the bird, grinning as it hit his wing and threw him off course. Then I cut my right arm free.

I dodged the first blow, undoing the knot in my sleeve. I couldn't bear my chest to Riku for obvious reasons, so I had to do this.

Have you ever done Jazzercise? There's this one exercise where you hop to each side really fast. Well, I was doing this to avoid the blade as I struggled to get my stiff, splinted arm through its sleeve. Finally, I managed to place a sai in my palm and close my fingers around it fairly tightly (for the pinkie that wouldn't move, I manually curled it).

I slashed. I lunged. I parried with my left and stabbed with my right.

Dodge, slash, jump, parry. Parry, stab, lunge, leap. Roll, kick, bite, jump. Cartwheel, leap, lunge, dodge. It became a song, with my actions being the steps and the clashing of steel being the music. Jump, dodge, slash, lunge. Stab, slice, pain, retreat. Kick, fall, roll, wiggle. Jump, slash, flip, punch.

Riku lay limp in the snow, hopefully allowing the numbness to sink in. The bird circled, returning. Shan Yu caught me on the broken arm, knocking the sai out of my weak hand.

I swung my foot, catching his knee. I felt something pop and looped my leg in-between his, yanking back. He hit the ground and I planted my knees on my arm.

It was the same with Meerkah. Punch, punch, punch, punch, punch. I kept punching until my left hand went numb.

And here's how I know I'm insane.

I grabbed my broken arm, and slammed it into his bleeding face. Another spurt of red hit my face, but I gritted my teeth and smashed it again.

SLAM!

His face was getting harder to recognize, his struggles getting weaker.

I was beating someone to death with a broken arm.

That damn bird ruined it. Its irritating little claws caught my back, yanking me off the messy pile of meat and into the snow. I growled and got back up.

They were already tearing down the hill, the last of the heartless behind them.

"Fuck!" That guy was a monster! Sora didn't stand a chance!

I hurried back to Riku, flipping him over.

He was unconscious. I noticed a lump beginning to form on his forehead.

Heh…oops.

The ground began to rumble.

"Huh?"

A clump of snow slammed into my shoulder.

I looked up.

The mountain was coming down on us.

"Oh God!"

I spun around, looking desperately for a place to escape to. I only had one working arm and an unconscious man-boy. There was only one thing to do.

I fell to the ground, covering Riku's face and neck with my scrawny body.

"So you have to kinda save me from a bunch of bad people who want to harvest all the power I have stored, which you can totally help yourself to anytime you need a pick-me-up."

"Please let this work," I whispered, squeezing my eyes shut as the start of the snow hit me…

One pick-me-up, coming right up!

I couldn't feel a thing. The snow kept falling and falling, burying the two of us alive. But nothing came out of it.

I'm not sure how long I stayed like that, on all fours, arched around Riku's head. It seemed like forever before the ground stopped shaking. Yet I didn't feel it.

Riku's breathing got fainter. I noticed the snow pushing on his chest.

He was being crushed!

I had to work fast. I looped my bad arm under his right arm, wrapping it around his torso. I yanked.

Nothing.

With another growl, I pulled.

He slipped a little.

I put my feet into it, using my good arm to dig.

Slowly, he began to slide out.

"Come on," I hissed, scrambling. My feet sunk into the snow. I groaned and wriggled, thrashing my upper arm violently.

And then there was nothing for my hand to grab.

We were just an arm's length under the top!

I pulled, trying to loosen the snow above us. It was slow process, way too slow.

I pushed Riku's head out first, easing his limp form to the surface. Using him as an anchor, I tugged myself up.

Air never tasted so sweet. I gasped and gulped, unaware of the strain recently put on my body.

Ignoring my exhaustion, I crawled over to Riku and pressed my ear to his mouth.

Nothing. He wasn't breathing.

I tilted his head back and cradled it, pinching his nose and prying his mouth open.

I paused.

Oh my Cthulhu.

I have to kiss him.

A million thoughts swarmed my head. What if he wakes up? What if my breath is bad? What if he's mad? What if he dies?

My mouth ran dry as I leaned forward.

The moment I pressed my open mouth to his, I relaxed. It was nothing like our make out on his back porch. I got nothing out of this. I breathed out three times and pressed into his chest eight.

Three…eight…

He wasn't waking up.

"WAKE UP DAMN YOU!" I slammed my fists onto his chest with all my might.

His eyes shot open and he recoiled, gasping and choking for air.

As he thrashed with the oxygen, I let exhaustion take hold, slumping into his warm, nice-smelling chest…

000

We both regained consciousness at about the same time.

I tried to stand, to hide the weakness, but my legs gave out.

"Easy," Riku chuckled and wrapped one of my arms around his shoulder, hunching down so my feet barely touched the floor. "Come on."

His other hand slipped under the bottom of my bodice, just at the small of my back.

Oh my…is he touching your butt?

Come to think of it, his fingers were pressing into my…

Oh my Cthulhu…he IS.

I reflected on this all the way down the mountain.

Thankfully, the village was barren. They must've left for the celebration of the death of Shan Yu.

I stared up at the mountain again.

I didn't like the guy, but that really was a bad way to die. I wouldn't wish that on anyone. Not Hook, not Sensei, not Janice, not even the guy who burned the mall down.

"Get that potion…please."

It was the desperation in his voice that drew me to respond. I wriggled out of his grasp and picked one up from the pile of medical supplies. He nodded his thanks and downed it.

The purple gash on his face melted together, disappearing without a trace.

He tossed the bottle aside. "You need one."

I shook my head. It's not like it would help anyway.

"Look at you; you can hardly stand as it is!"

I made a grabbing motion, pantomiming writing on something.

He pulled out the little notebook and pen.

FOOD

He nodded, "I hear ya there. Let's get some grub before checking on the sap."

Even though it was at the extent of my favorite person in the universe, I had to crack an exhausted grin at that.