A/N: Hello everyone! Sorry I've been such a stranger, but you are all probably used to that at this point... I disappear for months, years, then pop up again to post something random. Anyway, in honor of Sokai Day 2019, I wanted to go ahead and share something I've been thinking about since playing KH3. Please note this will be spoiler-y if you haven't finished the game. Let me know what you think! Hope everyone is doing well.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts.

I'll Save You

Sora looked like a different person, dressed from head to toe in a school uniform Kairi didn't recognize and surrounded by strangers she didn't know the names of. His grin was the same, wide and blindingly happy. The spikes of his hair were all in the same pattern. Even his eyes were still as blue as the ocean they used to swim in.

"Bye, Sora-kun! Say hi to your girlfriend for us!"

Oh. And there was that too.

Her violet eyes watched him walk down the side with his hands behind his head, carrying a bag, his face lit up like the sun. Sora was walking toward her. All she had to do was reveal herself and then she could…save him.

Kairi bit her lip. She'd come to this realm to save him. Learned his schedule, observed his new life, and waited for the best opportunity to introduce herself. She had been certain she would be able to touch his heart and return his stolen memories if she was only given a chance. That chance was now, but she found that she didn't have the heart to do it.

Sora's life now was so much easier and carefree than it had ever been. He was a regular boy with loving parents and so many supportive friends. He had a girl he loved that loved him back that he could actually be with. He knew nothing of heartless or Keyblades or wars. He knew nothing of the pain of losing someone you love. Kairi wasn't sure she could forgive herself if she plucked him from his only chance at a normal life.

Kairi's chest stung. Sora had sacrificed his existence for all their friends and for her. He'd died for her. And she was sure if she brought him back, Sora would do it again without a second thought if he felt he had to. That's how tragically good he was. It wasn't fair. It never had been.

Sora was closer now. Kairi continued to hesitate. She hadn't seen him so happy since before he first got the Keyblade. When they had been planning to make their journey on their silly raft.

With tears in her eyes, she turned away. Sora deserved so much more than to be a sacrificial pawn in a war that would never end. He deserved peace, happiness, and goodness. Kairi couldn't guarantee him that.

"This time…I have to let him go…"

Kairi took one last look at him, peering at his form from behind the wall she was hiding against. She willed herself to watch him as he walked past her for the last time. Well, that's what she would've done if her hat hadn't blown off her head and into his face.

Sora gasped, grasping the straw brim. "Where'd you come from?" his familiar voice questioned as he examined the hat in his hands.

In an instant, his eyes were on hers and the world around them seemed to stop.

Kairi held her breath, heart pounding.

Sora dropped his arm, hat still in his grip.

"Is this yours?" He held out the hat to her.

Kairi nodded quickly, stepping forward to retrieve it from him. She tugged at the skirt of her lilac sundress, trying not to get sucked into his beautiful gaze again. "Yes. Sorry. Thank you for catching it."

Silence.

She dared look up to find Sora with tears running down his face. "S-Sora!" she yelped, placing a hand on his arm before she remembered herself and flinched away from him.

Sora looked confused, comforted, and miserable all at once. "Why am I…? Do I…do I know you from somewhere?"

Kairi fidgeted. How could she lie to those honest eyes? "We met a long time ago," she answered carefully, "You probably don't remember and that's okay." Sora frowned. "I-um, I have to go."

Before she could get more than a step away, Sora had grabbed her arm. "Wait. Please. I want to remember. Could you tell me how we met?"

His voice was as sweet as honey and as addictive as sweet wine. How Kairi had missed it. And how it hurt her to push him away. "It's better that you don't remember, Sora. Please let go of me."

She felt his grip lessen and pulled her arm to her chest. If he touched her again, she wasn't going to be able to ever let him go again. Daring to look at him again, she found a different expression on his face. One she knew all too well.

"If you can't tell me I'll remember on my own. I promise. Then I'll find you again." Before she could argue, he held up his hand to stop her. With a grin, he added, "My friends mean too much to me to just forget them, and somehow, I know you were important to me."

There was nothing she could say. Kairi was speechless and fighting back tears of her own. She watched him wave and swear his promise that they would meet again. Then she watched him walk away with a smile on his face.

She squeezed her eyes shut and fell against the wall behind her. It wasn't fair. It was like fate had a vendetta against him.

"Sora, I just don't want you to suffer anymore."