Here's chapter thirty – five. Thank you reality deviant, Dullahan0, RedRat8, ultima-owner, OrionGold, Aburg76, Joachim Armster, and Parks98 for reviewing last chapter!
Chapter Thirty - Five: Closure
Sora yawned and stretched. He'd deposited Shirou in the boy's room when Kairi woke him, then moved to wandering the halls. His mind whirled, his thoughts refusing to settle, and he allowed his legs to carry him.
"Couldn't get back to sleep?" a voice asked.
He shook his head and turned with a crooked grin. "Got a lot on my mind."
Kairi moved to him, smiling. "So what are you guys going to do now?"
Sora shrugged. "I think we'll stay a few days. I still need to kind of," he paused, searching for the words, "figure out some things. Get my thoughts sorted, I guess."
"Good. It'll be nice having you around for a while."
Sora looked at her a moment. Then a smile slowly crossed his lips. "Yeah. It'll be nice to be around for a while."
-Shirou glanced at Leon uncertainly.
The man was eyeing the young guardsmen and women with a critical eye. "Alright. Pair up."
The recruits moved.
Leon coughed dryly.
One slid towards Shirou and smiled awkwardly. Blond hair hung about her face, her guard uniform too loose, a wooden sword in her hand. She looked a couple years older than him. "Name's Gwen."
"Shirou."
"Distance drills," Leon said. "Yuffie and I will be walking around to check your work."
Shirou shot Gwen a questioning look.
"That's like, you go back and forth but you try to keep the same distance between us. So you don't get hit, and stuff."
Shirou nodded and brandished the borrowed wooden sword.
Gwen grinned and slid into a fighting stance.
Leon said, "Begin."
Gwen moved.
Shirou copied the movement, and the two circled each other for a moment. Gwen took a step forward. Shirou moved back in response, eyeing the space between them, her sword still in his peripheral vision. Gwen continued to lead them back and forth, around in circles, occasionally springing back and forcing Shirou to catch up.
Yuffie called, "Careful, Rick! You're getting too close."
Gwen glanced briefly away.
Shirou took the opportunity to step into her guard.
She whipped towards him, blinking.
He waited.
She grinned, then stepped back. The two continued until Leon called, "Okay, that's enough."
Gwen relaxed. "You're pretty good at this. But I guess that comes from being a Keyblader, right?"
Shirou shrugged.
"So, hey, what's it like? Getting to travel the worlds and fight Heartless and stuff?"
Shirou blinked. "It's normal."
Gwen snorted. "Geez. Not fair. You're younger than me and already out fighting. I have to wait until Leon says I'm ready to take my final test before I can become a full guard and actually fight things."
"We have an exam, too."
"Yeah, but it's not the same."
"Shirou!" a raspy voice called.
Donald and Goofy stood near the gate. Goofy waved.
Shirou shot Leon a questioning glance.
Leon nodded. "Go ahead. I'm sure you'll get plenty of training later."
Shirou nodded, returned the sword, and hurried to the two. "Where's Sora?"
Goofy said, "He and Kairi are talking." He winked conspiratorially.
Donald tapped his foot and shot Goofy a disapproving look.
Shirou shifted, glancing between the two.
Donald cleared his throat. "Come on, Shirou. We said we'd take you on a tour of Radiant Garden."
"Yeah," Goofy agreed, "there are a lot of things to see besides the castle!"
Shirou nodded and hesitantly followed the two.
They walked through the streets of Radiant Garden. Shopkeepers still sold their wares, and they'd wave to them as they passed. The defense system scurried across the ground, inactive for the moment. Donald rambled, pointing out various spots. Occasionally a Nobody would appear, startling some passersby or activating the defense system before scurrying away.
"And here," Donald said, waving importantly, "is where we fought off an army of Heartless."
A wide, open expanse stretched before them. Stairs led from their point on the wall to the ground. A large memorial stood in the area's center. Flowers and grass had been planted in patches around it.
Shirou glanced at them. "You guys fought an army?"
"Yep," Goofy said. "That was back when we were dealing with Organization XIII. They were a group of Nobodies that were supposed to be Xehanort clones."
"Xehanort clones," Shirou repeated.
Donald said, "Xehanort was trying to put pieces of his heart into other bodies to create the X-blade."
"Yeah," Goofy agreed, "but he couldn't always get it to work, so he brought memories of himself out of other worlds to help fight with him."
Shirou blinked. "That can happen?"
"Yep." Goofy paused to scratch his head. "I think the young one was really the past him, though. I think he's the only one who actually still had the trust of the worlds' hearts. You know, because at that point he hadn't done anything bad yet."
Donald cleared his throat. "Anyways, that's over now, and Roxas is trying to make things better."
A Nobody appeared at the top of a building and glanced down towards them, then disappeared again.
"So," Shirou began, thinking of Xion and unsure how to phrase his question, "what happened to the memories?"
Donald and Goofy exchanged glances. "Well, gawrsh," Goofy said, "I guess they just disappeared."
"Oh."
"Ah," Donald said, "don't worry about it. He wasn't very nice."
Shirou considered the words, then jumped when Donald said, "Come on! Let's go down there instead of standing around."
Shirou hurried after them.
They bounded down the steps and to the stairs' exit. The flowers waved along a narrow cobblestone path. Shirou hesitated at the entrance, then took the lead. The wind stirred as he approached the monument.
The stone structure wasn't particularly ornate; it towered above them, but had few features. It more closely resembled a broken piece of stone, and Shirou might have believed it such had it not been carved from a cleaner block below. Words sprawled along the circular base, and Shirou read enough to gather that they told the story of Radiant Garden's fall and restoration. Shirou touched the monument. "Why's it like this?"
Goofy said, "Because it reminds people here of what they got back."
"Got back?"
A voice interrupted, "It's their way of healing."
"Roxas!" Donald exclaimed.
The Nobody approached them from the town entrance, casting his own glance towards the monument. "We had something in the Organization, once. It helps to remind others of things both lost and gained, but it also helps them move past it."
"Why?"
Roxas furrowed his eyebrows, and for a brief moment his expression reminded Shirou of his mentor's. "I'm not sure. I'd imagine because it gives some sort of closure. The individuals or events are honored, so they don't have to linger in people's hearts. Or maybe just having something tangible feels more comfortable." His expression morphed into something more difficult to read, and Shirou tapped into his magic.
Donald distracted him before he got the opportunity to focus. "What are you doing out here?"
"Keeping an eye on things. There isn't much for me to do at the castle." He snorted. "I don't think I'll be staying long, though."
"Why's that?"
"Most people here can't forget what Nobodies did to them, once." He gave the monument a dry look, and his lips twisted into a smirk. "Or maybe it's because our hearts are still fragments compared to theirs. I'm sure a lot of people would prefer if our kind faded back into nothingness."
"Hey, now," Goofy said, "that's not fair. Sora made sure everybody knew about the Nobodies having hearts."
"I know." Roxas's shoulders sunk. He added, almost too quietly for Shirou to catch, "But I don't know if I can blame them." He straightened and moved past them.
Shirou watched him go, then shot Donald and Goofy a curious look.
Goofy said, "Figuring out a new heart must be tough."
Shirou absently touched his chest.
They stood in silence a few moments. Donald broke it by saying, "Let's just keep going. There's lots more to see." He and Goofy moved past the memorial.
Shirou hesitated. He left his hand on the memorial a few moments more, the wind tugging his clothes and hair. Then he moved, hurrying to catch the others.
-Shirou paused at the door.
Sora's voice drifted towards him. Kairi's mingled with it, though he couldn't make out the words.
He hesitated, then steeled himself.
Xion asked, "Are you sure this is something you want to do?"
He was focusing so hard on the door he hardly noticed she'd appeared. He still nodded and finally pounded on the door.
The voices drifted away. Kairi called, "It's open!"
Shirou entered.
Sora and Kairi sat across from each other, a careful distance between them, but Sora seemed more relaxed than when Shirou had last seen him. His mentor flashed him an uncertain grin. "Hey, Shirou. What are you doing here?"
Shirou glanced between the two. Suddenly his request died in his throat.
"Shirou?" Sora's expression fell. "Is something wrong?"
Shirou scuffed the floor. "It's nothing."
Sora frowned.
Kairi said, "Shirou, it's alright. Whatever it is, we won't be upset."
He glanced aside. Something inside him rebelled. This was selfish. His mentor was happy. He shouldn't be asking something for himself.
But if he could get closure, he silently argued, couldn't he help Sora better? He could worry about his own problems for a short time, and then never have to worry about them again.
"I want," he stopped and balled his fists. He worried his lip and tried again. "I want to visit my home world."
Silence hung over the room. Shirou couldn't turn to look at his mentor.
Kairi's laugh caused the fragile tension to melt. "Maybe something we said influenced him, after all."
Sora laughed uncertainly. "More likely one of the guard recruits. They're always interested in other worlds."
"The memorial," Shirou corrected, frowning. "It's supposed to give closure."
Understanding lit Sora's eyes. "Got you."
"We don't have to leave right away."
"It's fine. We—well, we were probably going to have to leave soon, anyways."
Shirou shot him a surprised glance.
Sora sighed, suddenly deflating. "I'm probably going to have to apologize to Aqua. Somehow. I'm not looking forward to that."
Kairi nudged him. "You're probably thrilled about this excuse to avoid it, aren't you?"
"Yep."
Shirou blinked, glancing between the two of them.
"We'll leave tomorrow morning," Sora told him. "That way we can spend a little more time with everyone."
Shirou nodded. Unsure what else to do, he turned and left.
Xion paced beside him, a troubled look on her face.
He glanced behind him, then hurried out the door and whispered, "Xion?"
She looked at him and fixed a smile on her face. "I'm fine! Just thinking."
Shirou frowned, and opened his mouth to press, but Xion chose that moment to disappear.
-Sora stood near the Gummi ship. Some of the guard recruits had taken Shirou aside, extorting promises from him and talking animatedly. Leon stood a few paces back, watching with a faintly amused expression on his face, while Yuffie leaned in to give Shirou some advice of her own.
Donald, Goofy, and Kairi stood in front of him. Donald said, "Don't be so reclusive next time."
He smiled sheepishly and rubbed his head. "Sorry. I'll try not to be."
Goofy added, "Make sure you come visit!"
"Right."
Kairi moved towards him. She smiled, then pulled her hands from behind her back and revealed her charm.
Sora patted his pocket. "How did you—?"
She laughed. "I made another one, as a reminder." She passed it to him. "The first one was a promise that you'd come back after fighting Xehanort's Heartless." She pressed her hand over it. "This one is my promise that we'll always be here, and don't you forget it. Okay?"
The charm, once Sora started looking, resembled Aqua's wayfinder more than Kairi's old good luck charm. The stained glass 'shells' were still connected with leather straps and drooped a bit, but each piece radiated with an individually colored light: purple, blue, red, green, and yellow. "Thanks, Kairi." He closed his fingers around the charm.
"I made one for Shirou, too." She lifted a similar charm.
"I'm sure he'll love it." He cast his gaze beyond them. "So, did Roxas already leave?"
The three exchanged glances, then shrugged. Goofy admitted, "I don't think he feels very welcome here."
Sora's shoulders drooped. "Right." He supposed it saved him from having to admit he hadn't interrogated his apprentice about Xion yet.
Shirou hurried over to them.
Sora asked, "Ready to go?"
Shirou nodded, amber eyes flickering with determination.
Kairi lifted the charm and draped it over Shirou's neck.
He blinked, examined it, then shot her a questioning glance.
"For good luck. And to remind you of all the hearts you've connected to." She offered him a kind smile. "You have friends here."
He started, eyes widening, then gave a tiny, uncertain smile and nodded. He tucked the charm beneath his shirt.
Sora waved, then led the way onto the Gummi ship. His heart tugged when he sat in the seat and his throat tightened. He cleared it and started the ship. "So," Sora said, lifting off and trying not to look at the retreating forms below, "where do you plan to go once we get there?"
"To the site of the fire."
"Right."
They flew in relative silence after that. Sora glanced at the worlds about him, trying to remember the best path. They steered through the worlds for a long time. Shirou examined the charm when Sora glanced back to check on him.
The familiar world finally came into sight. Sora slowed and furrowed his brow. The world seemed mostly the same from outward appearance—same massive structure, same color, same shape. But a warning screamed in Sora's heart that he couldn't place. He frowned and touched his chest.
Shirou asked, "Is something wrong?"
"It's nothing." I hope. He moved to land.
The world distorted before his eyes. Multicolored lights flared around him, turning to a plane of dark blue, images flickering around the Gummi ship's window. Static buzzed in his mind. His heart thrummed. A voice—vaguely female, resonating, encompassing—pressed against the inside of his skull: I've found you.
And suddenly they were dropping towards the world.
"—irou. Shirou!"
Shirou blinked open bleary eyes.
He lay sprawled across the floor of the Gummi ship. Sora crouched over him. He sat back with a relieved sigh. "Good. Everything okay? Any lightheadedness? Pain?"
Shirou shook his head, but sat slowly. "What happened?"
"Rough landing." Sora's expression turned pensive. "I think the world called us here."
"The world?"
"Yeah. The entrance was different, and the world spoke to me before we crashed."
Shirou blinked, and stared wide-eyed at his mentor.
Sora turned towards him with an awkward smile. "But on the bright side, the Gummi ship seems to be alright!" The smile dimmed. "But I think when we get to the site of the fire, I'm going to go and see if I can connect with the world's heart."
Shirou nodded. "Is it bad?"
"I don't know. I couldn't connect with the world's heart when I was here before, so the fact that it contacted me is weird. I just want to find out if something's going on."
The two left the Gummi ship and traveled through a short crop of woods before reaching the city. They moved along the sidewalks. Few people passed them where they were, but the church reared beside them. The hair on the back of Shirou's neck rose. He slid to the opposite side of Sora and opened and closed his fist, half considering summoning Vir. His heart rattled in his chest. He took a deep breath and closed his fist.
Sora rested a hand on his shoulder. "You're here now. Okay?"
Shirou nodded, but the tension didn't ease until they'd left the church behind.
The buildings towered around them as they moved. More people filled the streets. Cars buzzed along the road beside them. Shirou glanced about them, and suddenly it hit him how little he actually knew about his home world. It seemed he was visiting a new world with his master, rather than returning to the place he'd been born.
Sora stopped suddenly.
Shirou nearly ran into him, then stiffened. Darkness swamped his heart, even without his magic activated, and he shivered.
Sora asked, "You feel that, too?"
"Yeah." He scanned the park. "This is where the fire was, isn't it?"
Sora nodded.
Shirou took a few hesitant steps into the park. A few kids played, watched by nervous parents, but other than that the park seemed empty. Trees and grass had been planted where once there were buildings, but they wilted.
Shirou took another step forward, and something crunched beneath his foot. He leapt back, and it took a few moments before his brain registered he'd stepped on a stick, not bones or debris.
The darkness pressed around him, suffocating him. Heat filled his lungs and licked his back and face. Fire spread across the ground and burned away the grass to reveal a graveyard.
One of the kids screamed, and Shirou jerked towards them.
A hand landed on his shoulder.
He jumped, nearly summoned Vir, and glanced to his side.
"Hey," Sora asked, "you alright?"
Shirou shot a glance towards the kids.
One had fallen and scraped his knee. He scrambled to his feet, yelling at his friends.
Shirou swallowed.
"We don't have to do this, you know."
Shirou shook his head. "I'll be okay." He stepped away.
Sora worried his lip. He glanced to the side, then back to him.
"Go check on the world. I'm fine."
Sora hesitated a moment longer, then turned away reluctantly. "I'll be close by, alright?" He pointed towards bench near a copse of trees.
Shirou nodded and watched him go. Once he'd left he took a deep breath and walked through the park. They're just trees. This is just grass. Nothing's burning. He took a deep breath and slowly sank into the grass. He trailed his fingers through it. The fire's over. It's done. I can't go back.
Something cloying crawled up his throat, and it felt like darkness stained his fingers. He shook his head and dug his nails into the dirt.
Now that he sat here, he wasn't sure what to do. A memorial had already been made, it seemed. He considered his options, and finally said, "I'm sorry." For a moment it felt like several eyes stared back at him, and he continued. "I'm sorry I didn't save you. I'm sorry I got to live and you didn't."
The next words caught in his throat. He considered not saying them, and just leaving—getting Sora, and fleeing the world. He didn't deserve to say this.
He shook his head. His eyes stung, but he continued, "But I don't belong here anymore. I'm a Keyblade wielder." He took a chunk of dirt in his hand and stared at it, then opened his palm and let the wind scatter it. "I'm going to move forward, because it's all I can do. And I'll try to save as many people as I can, so you guys can rest easy."
His heart lightened. He cast his gaze about the park. "It's a nice memorial." Maybe he could get Sora to help him remove the darkness clinging to this place.
A female voice asked, "Who are you talking to?" A black-haired girl stood a short distance away, hair in pigtails, arms crossed with a frown on her face.
Shirou considered his answer, then admitted, "The people who died here."
The girl gave him a strange look.
"I was rescued from the fire."
"Oh." Her eyes widened. "So you were with Kirei for a while, weren't you?"
"The priest?" A shiver ran down his arms and back.
"My former guardian."
"Oh." He paused, then offered, "Sorry."
"He was a jerk. And a phony." She huffed and glanced aside.
Shirou tilted his head. "What are you doing here?"
The girl whipped back towards him. "Nothing!" she squeaked.
Shirou frowned and tapped into his magic. A natural, prickly wall seemed to surround her heart, but he could still sense unease and anxiety beneath it.
The girl twitched and glanced about.
Shirou abruptly cut off his magic. He glanced towards where Sora sat, debated, then eventually said, "I don't live around here anymore. Could you show me around a little?"
"Why?"
"Because I'd like to learn a little bit more about where I came from." He hesitated, then added, "And you said you weren't doing anything."
The girl snorted. "Alright. I guess I can give you that."
Shirou stood and extended a hand. "My name's Shirou."
The girl eyed it, then hesitantly shook it. "Rin Tohsaka."
-Sora settled onto the bench. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He activated his magic, allowing the tendrils to reach towards the world. Okay, I'm here. What did you mean before? Is something wrong?
For a moment he believed he wouldn't get a response. Then: I have heard about you, Keybearer. I remember your kind from eons ago.
A distant part of Sora's mind acknowledged Aqua had been right about this world being sentient. He continued, What have you heard?
The world continued as if he hadn't spoken. Those like you believed themselves so far above everyone. They thought themselves protectors of the worlds, and yet they brought destruction in their wake.
The Heartless.
And the wars. And now you have dared to bring such a weapon here?
I just sensed corruption. I didn't mean to cause offense.
You have done more than that, Keybearer. You have tainted my memories.
Sora paused, trying to process the words.
The world continued, I created a much better method to protect my denizens. They wouldn't bring the corruption. They could ensure the population's survival. A pause, then the world continued in a too-friendly voice, Would you care to meet one?
I—
I'm sure you'd recognize him. But he would not recognize you.
Sora jerked, his eyes suddenly forced open. The air warped before him. Wind stirred. The grass compressed. Blue-and-white light burst outward from a human form.
Sora's eyes slowly grew wide. The skin was darker, the hair white, the eyes silver instead of amber. He was older, more built, but Sora recognized the face.
Do you understand now what you have done, Keybearer?
Sora stared into the blank eyes, heart pounding in his ears, his breathing shaky, his mind reeling to process what his eyes recognized. "Shirou."
There's the end of this chapter. Review responses:
reality deviant: Good background reveal chapter. – Thanks!
Dullahan0: Very nice chapter. Loved the heart to heart talk. – Thank you!
RedRat8: It is rather interesting how Shirou and Sora grow over the time they spent with each other…. We see that both of them are hurt and yet bit by bit they are starting to overcome their despair. – Yep! That's one of the fun things about writing their relationship: seeing how these two (currently) broken individuals can help fix each other.
ultima-owner: The chat they had did clear stuff up. – Indeed!
OrionGold: How long are we going to have to wait before the Holy Grail War? I like what you're doing so far but I feel like this story is going slow for awhile now. – Now that we're at this point, I can actually give you a questimate of that! The actual preparations for the Grail War should begin in about 5-7 chapters, including this one. The Grail War itself should begin 11-13 chapters from this point—again, including this chapter.
Aburg76: Nice way you had Shirou meet Kairi and how she revealed a little bit about Sora's past. Nice interaction between Shirou and Sora like that part at the end classix – Thanks!
Joachim Armster: This chapter was really heart warming and the previous chapter was good build up to it, but i do regret that to get it we have to let the past events stay shrouded in some darkness and it would have been interesting to get a full account from sora on what he went through as this almost seems like dodging the issue a bit even if its a step forward for both of them. – Haha, that was something of the intent, so I guess it's good it came off that way! To be fair, you'll probably still get to see some past events from Sora's point of view later, but for…different reasons. It is also interesting to see shirou grow due to sora's suffering in ways he didn't because kiritsugu was never there and never shared…. Although i feel as though he isn't quite done with that either given shirou's propensity to say what he thinks is the right thing rather than how he really feels in this. – Shirou definitely still has a ways to go—and probably won't ever entirely lose the 'I need to do something to make up for my survival' mentality—but he's trying to take a step towards healing thanks to Sora.
Parks98: Great chapter glad we got some background info and character development. Though I do wonder how this will develop shirou since we all know that shirou will never be a normal human. – Thanks! You get to see a little bit of how his development changes in this chapter. As for other ways he develops, well…you'll have to wait and see.
Any thoughts, questions, or other comments? Drop a review!