Life was short, honestly.

A realization like that wasn't really able to fully impact someone unless he was faced with a position that left him with a more eye opening perspective about life.

A month was only four weeks… A week was seven days… A day was only twenty-four hours and for about half of those hours a person never truly experienced due to sleep.

Without even knowing, a person's life could slip by him so quickly and uselessly.

How could life that once passed by incredibly sluggishly now begin zoom right in front of a person's eyes?

It was almost scary how a month that once felt like an entire lifetime now only seems like a dream.

His time on the Kingdom Heart felt like a distant memory that was questionably real even though he'd only left a week ago.

Riku's eyes glanced out to left where the large and clear window left a wide view of the palace's rose garden in view from his spot on the second floor of the building. The day was a typical light grey one and Riku could see the gardeners tending to the many bushes and flowers as they always did.

Just watching left him with a bit of emptiness in his stomach.

Work for them was exactly as it had been when he had been gone.

They had still worked out in the gardens, tending to the roses, clipping the plants, and making sure everything remained neat while he was away, they had done it before he left, and now that he was back, they were still doing it.

He knew that that hadn't been entirely the case.

When he first showed up on the port in one of the Kingdom Heart's smaller boats, he'd immediately received assistance and he was brought back to the palace where he shared a reunion with everyone he'd missed.

He and his sisters cried while they all hugged and then he and his mother cried while they embraced on another for what seemed to be the longest time ever.

News of his whereabouts in the Bailey had met with Radiant Garden apparently, and they'd been searching for in the Twilight Sea, but Riku reassured them that the ship had only been stuck in a storm and he'd been the only survivor.

To keep things consistent, he also lied and claimed that a group of sailors found him and after making their rounds in the Olym Republic and Traverse Port Island, they set him back to Radiant Garden.

They all bought into his story and although he kind of suffered from some guilt from his lies, he knew it was better they hear it that way than what truly happened.

His father had gone touring the rest of Lumin while he was gone and was expected to return soon, a fact Riku felt secure with.

He knew he'd more than likely be ignored with his suggestions to his father on the policies, but it was worth a shot.

All week he'd been keeping his head in his books, trying to look at every aspect of bias and unequal laws that could be overturned, though it was difficult because his resources all appeared to be written in a rather unjust way.

Other than that, it was as if everything had become normal once more.

His mother allowed him as much time off from his actual studies until he was comfortable again, and considering how much Riku loathed his tutor, he knew it'd be a long time before he was 'comfortable' again.

Riku licked his lips as he rose up from his seat, the chair leaving a rather loud squeak against the tiled floor of the vast study room, and moved to place his book back on the shelf with the others.

At one point he knew he'd need to get more informed on the situation in Traverse Town… But so far he was already taking in a lot of information as it was and he knew if he took in too much his brain would explode in on itself.

He made sure to tell Aqua to take care of Kairi like he would have since his best friend respected his choice to go back but had no intention of doing so herself.

Riku had to admit with a bit of sadness that he probably would have made it off the ship without crying if it hadn't been for Sora.

The sound of the wooden door at the further end of the room being opened with a slight creak that audibly seemed much louder in the silent area broke Riku's train of thought and he immediately turned his attention over to see the newcomer in curiosity.

A servant, a new one that must have been hired when he was gone as her face wasn't familiar prior to his time on the Kingdom Heart, smiled at him nervously as she clutched the front of her dress anxiously.

Riku offered her a reassuring beam in return in an attempt to show her she had nothing to be apprehensive about, but it seemed as though it only made her more timid seeing as she instantly broke eye contact with him in favor of staring at the floor,

"May I help you?" He questioned lightly, his hand brushing over one of the books from the shelf before he brought it down to his side to fully face the young woman that nodded shortly,

She cleared her throat while twiddling her fingers uneasily, "Her Majesty has requested your presence within the White Room, Your Highness."

Slightly thrown back by why his mother wanted him, Riku found himself standing a bit dumbstruck for a moment before he blinked a couple times and nodded at the servant in response with a quick, "Oh, okay."

He exited out of the study room gradually after the worker had gone.

His steps down the floor left a sinking feeling in his stomach still.

Never would he have thought that he missed walking on a moving ship where you could feel the boat rocking in a flow with the ocean below it.

The first day back he went to sleep in his bed, it was as if his body couldn't forget the never ending motion of the ship and his mind subconsciously recreated it while he laid down. However, there was one thing that his mind failed to make up once more, and that left Riku with an odd sense of loneliness…

It was odd how he'd gone practically all his life without sleeping with someone to hold in his arms or sleeping in someone else's arms, but a few weeks of it left him feeling like something was missing while he slept in his large, spacious bed all alone.

Even up until now, the palace was so much bigger in comparison to the ship he'd taken residence on for those few weeks.

It was bigger… And lonelier.

At this point he couldn't even talk to anyone about his time on the Kingdom Heart less his lie be found out. Kairi hadn't come back with him so he had no one to speak to about it.

It almost felt as though the time back on the ship hadn't been real. He was the only one who knew about it in all of Radiant Garden after all…

Though he knew that no matter what he felt, it had all been very much real. Everything from the beginning to end, through all the anger and pain along with happiness and confusion, everything that he experienced was real.

"Riku!"

Stopping his steps, Riku turned back as he watched Fuu approaching him with a rather fretful expression planted on her face.

The young princess had grown so much more than Riku had remembered over the course of a month. He came to learn that when he had been thought to be dead when he never made it to Traverse Town, it had been figured she'd be the next heir to the throne and she'd already become engaged to a young noble no older than Riku and they were to marry whenever her time to ascend to the throne approached.

Of course, with Riku's reappearance, the plans were halted though he was still guilty over the fact she'd been tied down so quickly because of him.

"Hm?" He questioned curiously the moment her steps came to a stop.

Her dress that fit tightly over her body caused her to release a heavy breath while she watched him impatiently, "Can you please confirm this with me now, because the others refuse to listen to me. Pirates kidnap princesses, right?"

The amount of pirate stories Riku found himself telling his siblings since his return was incredibly ridiculous, even he knew this.

How many times he spoke of Sora like he were a legend was a bit excessive and even he was a bit embarrassed about it.

He could tell his younger sisters were slowly becoming interested in pirates, especially Fuu who took in his stories of romantic adventures with pirates and thieves with open ears and an eager mind.

Riku took a moment to dwell on her question, his lips perking into a bit of a smile as he shrugged his shoulders. "Well—"

"Yes, they do."

The prince found his eyes widening in surprise at the unexpected voice that seemed to be so incredibly close, but it was impossible…

Fuu blinked her eyes, her head tilted past Riku's body to gaze behind him in confusion and Riku felt his heart come to a halt as he heard the sound of footsteps continue from down the hall behind him.

"Tell her, Riku. You should know more than anyone about that kind of stuff."

He didn't want to turn around.

If he did and everything was only in his head… He didn't know what he'd do.

This would have to be the first time his brain did something like that, and he had to admit he'd need to see a doctor because feeling sad about parting ways was one thing, but having hallucinations was another thing all entirely.

But the voice was unmistakable and Riku just—

A hand was placed on his shoulder and the fringed haired prince found himself turning around ever so slowly to come face to face with Sora, a sight that made him bite his tongue and make his heart skip a whole beat.

Sora looked entirely oblivious to his shock and used his free hand to flip back some of his hair, "Look like you just saw a ghost, Princess." Sora greeted with a small smile to his face.

The last time he saw Sora had been right before he'd been helped onto the rowboat of the Kingdom Heart so he could get himself back to Radiant Garden without jeopardizing the lives of the crew.

He'd managed to make his goodbyes with everyone completely tear free, only choking a bit when he embraced Kairi and came to terms with never seeing his best friend ever again, but then when he came to face Sora with Snow in his hands, he felt his heart break ever so slowly.

The expression of acceptance that Sora wore in regards to his decision to go didn't meet with his green eyes that he allowed to show Riku every bit of emotion he felt to his departure.

They exchanged a few words privately as everyone left only the two of them some space alone, and before Riku knew it he had tears clouding his eyes as Sora told him to stay safe and that he hoped Riku wouldn't forget about him.

It wasn't the words he said that brought him to tears; it was the way they were said.

Sora genuinely hoped that Riku wouldn't forget about him and the tone he had said it was nearly heartbreaking, but Riku kept his decision to go back to Radiant Garden steady despite it all.

The two of them hugged for what felt to be a long time, and in a quick spur of the moment action he gave Sora a kiss on the lips that had been instantly returned.

But now, Sora just somehow miraculously showed up in the palace of all places… Completely unharmed? It wasn't real. It was impossible.

"How did you…?" It felt as if his breath left his mouth in a hushed whisper and Riku could only watch up at the brunette in complete and total awe and bemusement.

Sora's smile quirked into a bit of a smirk, "I'm a trained predator, remember?" He questioned in a rather joking manner that made Riku shake his head as he swatted Sora's hand from his shoulder.

"Are you stupid or what!? You have to get out of here! If you're seen and you get caught, you realize you're headed straight for the gallows, right!?" Riku worriedly informed with a scowl arising to his face, he glanced around the halls anxiously before he came to a realization that Fuu was still standing there watching Sora in what appeared to be admiration.

"Yeah, I realize that but seeing you is worth the risk." Sora insisted with his hands slipping into his pockets leisurely.

Riku groaned before he turned back to Fuu, "I think you should go back to the others and go talk with them. I'll talk to you later."

Slowly, his sister tore her eyes from Sora's face to watch at her brother almost as though she was in a daze and Riku resisted the urge to repeat himself in a more forceful tone.

If he didn't know any better… He'd say that she was smitten…

Fuu nodded shortly before giving a small laugh into her hand as her eyes darted back to Sora joyfully, "Yes, of course. But, I never got your name, sir?" She politely asked Sora as he quickly responded,

"Sora."

His younger sister seemed to accept his name with a happy nod, "Goodbye, Riku, Sora." She waved with a smile to her lips before she rotated on her heel and began walking back down the hallway.

"See you later, Fuu." Riku called down to her as she disappeared down the corner. He sighed and glanced back over to Sora, his eyebrows once more furrowing in frustration, "We need to get you out of here before you're seen. How did you even get in here, honestly? Did no one see you!? Guards are all around!"

Sora gave a chuckle the instant that Riku grabbed his hand and began leading him down the corridor, "I come to see how you're doing and you just want to get rid of me. How polite of you, Princess."

"Oh, hush. I'm trying to help you, you insufferable bastard." Riku curtly countered, and he felt a sense of happiness flood over him.

He hadn't realized exactly how much he missed the banter both he and Sora shared. He hadn't realized how much he missed holding Sora's hand in his…

Honestly, he never saw himself in a situation where his emotional well being involved being friendly with a pirate.

"No, seriously, Princess everything is fine. Stop worrying about me so much. I just popped up to see how you were doing is all." The pirate captain remarked, his steps grinding into the tile below to stop Riku from advancing forward.

Riku gave a grunt when his steps were forcefully halted and he turned to give Sora an irritated stare, "You can't be serious."

"And yet I am. Honestly, how are you?"

The stare Sora upheld made Riku bite his tongue as he quickly glanced his eyes away, "I'm doing okay, I guess. Still trying to get back in the groove of adjusting to my old life."

His response made the pirate captain quirk a brow, "Old life? You were here about five weeks ago weren't you?"

Laughing, Riku shook his head in embarrassment as his cheeks grew warmer, "Yeah, but…" He trailed off, his eyes briefly contacting with Sora's, "It feels way longer for some reason."

"What do you mean?" Sora curiously asked, causing Riku to slump his shoulders with a heavy sigh, "I don't know, to be honest. It feels like a big piece of my life just got cut out and I can't remember any of it. This whole week has blown by so fast and before then seems like it didn't even happen… And yet here you are, standing in front of me as real as anything else in this place."

With a nod of understanding, the curly haired male folded his arms over his chest, "You're just taking time to readjust. The pirate life really captivated you."

Not entirely sure if his words were meant to be a joke or not, Riku shrugged his shoulders with his eyes dancing back over to Sora in an effort evaluate what he wore.

"All in all, aside from me feeling kind of thrown back and dazed, it's been alright… What about you? How's the crew? Kairi? Everyone's okay?" He sent him a beam of happiness resulting in Sora giving him a crooked grin in return.

"We've recently come to the conclusion that the Dark Meridian isn't in the Radiant Isles, since you know, our results on the island from before came up short because Captain Cid had his sources completely screwed over." Sora explained though it was said with a cringe.

"We leave this area for quite a while this afternoon, so I just wanted to see you off before we left."

Sora's eyes considerably softened as he watched at Riku with a growing frown to his lips, "I'm glad that you're okay and you're happy."

His words made Riku sigh, "Calling me truly happy is debatable, I think…"

"You're not happy?"

"Not as much as I thought I'd be." He groaned out with a hand sliding through his hair, "I'm with my family and I'm happy to be with them, but I just feel so… I don't know… Out of place, like I said before… I don't feel like I'm fitting in all too well, but I've been trying."

He paused, almost inwardly deciding if he should say the next part that was probing the back of his brain, "When exactly do you guys plan on coming back here? Near Radiant Garden, I mean."

Riku turned his attention back to Sora to see how he was fairing and the pirate captain simply tilted his head to the side slightly, "I'm not exactly sure. After we find the Meridian I'd say, which could take a couple months or so."

Taking in the answer, Riku nodded, his blue eyes meeting with Sora's blue ones.

A beat of silence passed over the two of them right before Riku knew exactly what he was going to ask, and he knew for a fact that Sora knew too.

"Can I come along?" He questioned,

Sora's expression of neutrality didn't falter and he instead licked his lips, "Are you sure about that?"

"Well, as long as you come back to Radiant Garden in a couple months, I don't see any problems with that." Riku quickly replied with a more positive tone to his words.

Once more, Sora was quiet and Riku grew a bit uneasy that he was about to be rejected.

If he was, he didn't know what he'd do with himself within the confines of the spacious and empty palace all alone.

To go to sleep in a bed with nothing more but the covers and pillows surrounding him for more nights seemed like a rather scary endeavor for the first time in years as did having to face the day without knowing someone would be near him at the sound of a short call.

Again, the prince offered the pirate a passive look, "So, can I come along?" He repeated, this time a bit more powerfully,

"I don't know if the pirate life is for you,"

Not expecting that kind of response, Riku found his eyes widening in surprise and his stomach beginning to sink, however Sora's lips quirked upward into a smirk, something that made Riku hold in his breath for a moment before the younger male spoke, "But I'm sure we'll be able to make some adjustments for your sake, Your Highness."

His teeth gleamed into a toothy grin as he nodded his head curtly, "So, whatever you want, Riku."

Noting the teasing in his voice, Riku couldn't stop himself from laughing as he walked up to Sora and threw his arms around the taller male's neck right before he felt Sora's own arms wrapped around his waist to bring their bodies closer,

"Thanks, Princess."

Guys there you have it the last chapter to this story. Thank you to all of you who stuck with me through this entire way through all of the errors as well. I guess this is where we part ways with this story...or do we? *wink wink* *nudge nudge*