Just Believe
The water sparkled under the sun with the splendor of shimmering diamonds. Waterfalls spilled from shrubbery-topped mountains while flowers bloomed in velvety reds, gentle lilacs, and sharp turquoises, breathing life throughout a misty green landscape crowned with a soft rainbow.
Naminé thought Neverland was truly a work of art; a masterpiece crafted by a connoisseur of childlike wonder and imagination. While piecing Sora's memories back together, she'd seen glimpses of this place, but only in person could she relish the paradise it truly was. She stood on a giant rock taking in the landscape, from the Indian camp to the Mermaid Lagoon.
"Guys, I think we broke her," Lea whispered, crossing his arms. Xion bumped his side with a playful smile.
Roxas watched as Naminé's hair lapped through the gentle breeze. He stepped forward to stand beside her. "So, what do you think?"
With her hands clasped close to her chest, she found the willpower to tear her eyes from the view and smiled. "It's breathtaking."
A few months passed since Sora almost single-handedly returned them to the land of the living, and all they'd done since was eat ice cream on the clocktower every day. Roxas, Lea, and Xion often poked fun at the wild adventures they shared during their tenures in Organization XIII, but over time Roxas had noticed how quiet Naminé became when the conversation shifted gears to experiences she had no personal attachment to. After everything they'd done for her, she deserved better than that. He decided they would make new memories—ones that would be hers and hers alone.
"Well, we could stand here all day if we wanted to," Roxas said, crouching down near the edge of the rock. "But how about we go for a bit of exploring? We've got a whole day ahead of us."
"I don't know if we'll be able to cover everything in just one day," Xion said.
Roxas cast Lea a knowing look before grinning. "You'd be surprised."
"You're not thinkin' of calling her, are you?" Lea scratched the back of his head.
"Her?" Naminé repeated as Roxas stood.
"Just a friend of mine," he answered vaguely.
Before Naminé could ask, a faint chime rang overhead. A tiny glow came into view, the feminine frame of a fairy swooping down like a bee buzzing towards a giant.
"Hey, long time no see!" Roxas said.
With a tug pulling her lip, the fairy placed her fists against her hips. She hadn't forgotten those times when Roxas ignored her appeals for help in the past.
Roxas chuckled nervously. "No hard feelings?"
The fairy sighed and offered a smile and a twirl to assure there were none.
"Yooo, it's my favorite little glowstick chick," Lea said. The fairy zipped towards him, kicking his nose. "Hey!"
She huffed, crossing her arms and poking out her chest as she turned her head.
"Geez, what's her deal?" Lea asked.
Xion giggled. "Something tells me you deserved that one."
An eccentric crow echoed in the short distance, alarming them of a boy in green soaring towards them. He stopped uncomfortably close to Roxas, inspecting him from head to toe.
"You're new. Found some lost strays, Tink?" the boy asked.
"Tink" flew towards the boy, chiming her response in her usual lively fashion.
"These two helped you out?" the boy asked. Tink shook her head fervently, pointing at Lea. "Ahh. So, that one's nothin' but an ol' codfish, huh?"
"A what now?" Lea asked.
"Hope we're not bothering you," Roxas interrupted. "I'm Roxas, and these are my friends, Xion, Lea, and Naminé."
The boy moved uncomfortably close as he inspected the blonde carefully, making Naminé go stiff. "Hello..."
"Naminé, huh?" He beamed. "What a pretty name. Strange, but pretty."
Naminé blinked. "Thank you?"
Tink went wide-eyed before glaring at the girl.
"Call me Peter Pan," Peter said. "The jealous one here is Tinkerbell."
Tinkerbell scoffed at the accusation.
Naminé recalled seeing him while diving through Sora's memories. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Pan."
"Just Peter," he corrected. "So, what brings you weirdos to Neverland?"
"This guy's flyin' around in green tights and we're the weird ones?" Lea whispered to Xion.
"I was hoping we could get a little help from Tinkerbell," Roxas said. "I wanted to show my friend here how to fly."
"Fly?" Naminé gasped.
"Aww, flyin's easy," Peter said. "All ya need is faith, trust, and a little bit of pixie dust! Show 'em, Tink."
Naminé watched in awe as Tinkerbell showered her with sparkling fairy dust (albeit, begrudgingly). Tinkerbell did the honors of soaring over Roxas, Xion, and Lea too.
"This stuff's not gonna give me a rash, is it?" Lea asked.
"That oughta do the trick," Peter said, crossing his legs afloat as Tink dipped down behind Naminé. "Now, all you gotta do is fly."
Naminé closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before launching into the air. So she thought, at least, until she opened her eyes to realize she was only on her tippy toes.
"Am I doing something wrong?" Naminé asked.
"C'mon! Anybody can do it," Peter Pan said. "You just gotta believe. Right, Tink?"
At that, Tinkerbell shoved Naminé's back, sending her off the edge of the rock.
"Naminé!" Roxas cried.
Naminé screamed. She felt suffocated as she braced for her fatal impact with the sea.
Then she stopped.
When she opened her eyes, her hand was gripped in Roxas's as they gently flew ahead. Naminé wiped her eyes and sighed.
"That's right, you're able to do this," she said.
"And so can you," Roxas said. "You just have to believe."
"Believe." The word tasted foreign as she shut her eyes. "What exactly am I supposed to believe in?"
Before Roxas could respond, Peter and Tinkerbell arrived at their side, the latter scowling that Naminé was still kicking. "Aww, don't say that, Nam," Peter said. "There's plenty to believe in!"
"How about you start by believing in yourself?" Roxas interjected.
"But, I..." Naminé hesitated. "I'm the source of so much hurt. All I've ever done is cause pain."
She looked ahead to the endless sea as Roxas guided her.
"I manipulated Sora's memories because I didn't want to be alone anymore. Xion probably wouldn't have lost her life if I'd never told her what to do. Even you, Roxas... I told you... that you were never supposed to exist. I'll always be a witch. So, how can I just let all of that go?"
"That's not true," Roxas said.
Naminé shut her eyes again. "But I—"
"C'mon, give yourself more credit than that," Roxas interrupted. "You did what you had to. You brought Sora back and we all know we would've never been able to live normal lives if it weren't for him."
"But I still—"
"Maybe you took Sora's memories apart, but you were also the one who brought them back. You dedicated an entire year to it. If you hadn't contacted Terra when everyone was in danger at the graveyard, who knows what would've happened to them? And you did everything you could to save Kairi when she was trapped at the Organization's stronghold." He smiled. "We owe you a lot."
Naminé sniffled. "That's kind of you to say."
"He's right, Naminé," Xion's voice came overhead. She and Lea dipped down beside Roxas. "If anything, we owe you our lives."
"Heck, I dunno if I ever would've been able to help Sora in the realm in-between if it weren't for you and Riku," Lea said. "Don't be so hard on yourself."
"See?" Roxas asked. "You're not a bad person. And you're not a witch. You deserve happiness just as much as any of us. To be free."
Naminé hardly comprehended it. To live her own life rather than follow orders or work for a grander cause—the feeling was unfamiliar. No longer was she shackled by the anchor of responsibilities, nor was she the prisoner of her own guilt for past mistakes.
She deserved to be free just as much as anyone else. She'd been another pawn in Xehanort's hand. A victim of his wrath. Some things couldn't be helped, but they were in the past now. Now, she could look towards the future.
"Okay. I can give it a try."
Xion offered a hand. Naminé took it graciously and clutched both of their hands as they flew over the sparkling sea.
"Quit worryin' so much, Naminé," Peter said. "That stuff's for adults. Here, it's all about having fun!"
Naminé couldn't remember the last time she'd had fun. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath and exhaling. Freeing herself from her fears, doubts, and insecurities...
Suddenly, she felt light as a feather. When she reopened her eyes, she was no longer holding Roxas and Xion's hands.
"I'm... I'm flying?" Naminé stammered. "I'm flying!"
"That, you are, madam!" Peter said, breaking away to land on a nearby mountain. "Take it away, Tink. Give 'em the ol' grand tour, would'ja?"
Tinkerbell saluted as she led the four of them past the soaring seagulls towards the clouds and the vastness of Neverland: through Skull Rock, dodging the sharp edges and daggers that spiked up from the ground; over the open sea and the fishes bouncing atop the water with eager greetings; through the Indian camp, spinning around the totem poles standing tall and proud; over the lagoon where mermaids combed their luscious hair.
Naminé briefly closed her eyes, feeling her hair flap against the current. After letting in a gentle inhale through her nose, she reopened her eyes to see what looked like an endless horizon of sea ahead of her. The only thing brighter than her smile were the sparkles glittering across the shimmering surface. She twirled with both arms reaching out, her fingers outstretched, feeling every crevice of Neverland's breath fulfilling her with the newfound liberation she'd finally achieved. Adrenaline coursed through her veins, the twinkles of fairy dust carrying her and her friends through the spaciousness of the sky.
Naminé dipped down, her face shining with exhilaration as she grazed the surface of the water with her hand, Tinkerbell by her side. The previously moody fairy casted her a smile.
This was what freedom felt like. She understood why Roxas wanted her to come there. To experience the wind fondling her hair. The carefree feeling of gliding over whatever hurdles came her way. Up there, in the sky, she was a bird. Soaring without a care.
Free from her cage and chains.