3/10/19: Hello everyone! Tempura here with the next chapter of Re-sketch and the continuation of the introductory arc. Thank you to the people who left feedback on the first chapter. It makes me happy to see people interested, even if it's been a long time since the original version went up. (Almost four years, wow!) But I won't keep you any longer.

Enjoy!

Re-sketch

Chapter 2: The Destiny Islands

A cool breeze wafted through the open window, rustling the curtains and cutting through the heat of the mid-morning sun. Neighborhood mynah birds squawked in the treetops while cicadas and day geckos chirped in the bushes outside. It was a familiar medley of sounds—one that usually signaled the start of the day, though to Sora it might as well have been a lullaby to send him back to sleep.

A sharp tapping, however, roused him from bed. He opened his eyes slowly, stifling a wide yawn and squinting. "Gahhh…" Morning already? And he was looking forward to sleeping in a little longer. He pulled his pillow over his face, blocking out the sunlight.

Tap! Tap!

"Sora! Are you up?"

He bolted straight up, flinging his pillow across the room. He scrambled to the window, arms and legs tangled up in a mess of sheets. "Kairi?"

She stood in the yard below his window, halfway to tossing another pebble at the wall. Her eyes seemed to light up when she spotted him, but maybe it was a trick of the sun. "Were you still sleeping, Sora?" she asked, placing her hands on her hips and puffing up her cheeks.

"Err…" Sora gave a nervous laugh.

Kairi's stern expression cracked. She giggled, holding the back of her hand against her mouth. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised," she said. "Hurry up! Riku's waiting for us!"

"R-right!"

It took twenty minutes to cross the sea. Sora took deep and steady breaths as he and Kairi rowed out to the islet. The waves lapped at the sides of their tiny wooden rowboat. The summer sun glinted off of the ocean, heating the salty air and making the sweat break out across his forehead.

"You doing okay, Kairi?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she said, taking those same steady breaths as she handled her side of the boat. She was probably pacing herself better than he was.

It was day six of Operation: Leave The Destiny Islands. After spending the past week working together on their ambitious project, collecting logs and rope and putting together a passable blueprint for construction, Sora could say that it was all coming together. It had at least looked like a raft when they'd left for home yesterday, though he still wasn't quite sure how far they'd be able to go in its current state.

As they approached the shore, Sora caught a glimpse of Tidus, Selphie, and Wakka climbing up the treehouse. He spotted Riku too, sitting at the edge of the dock with one leg propped up while the other dangled over the water.

"You're late," Riku said as Sora's boat bumped against the dock.

"Sorry." Sora scratched the back of his head.

"You were right, Riku. He overslept," Kairi said. She giggled at Sora's pout.

Riku hardly bothered to hide his smirk. "Surprise, surprise."

"Yeah, well… I'm here now, aren't I?" Sora said, climbing out of the boat and holding out his hand to help Kairi. "What else do we have to do?"

"We still need to get more logs," Riku said. "You know what to do, Sora."

Sora sighed. He should have figured. "I'll go find some…"

Supplies. It was hard work looking for supplies, but Sora guessed he could call it rewarding—even if he didn't have too much of a choice. Riku was the one who'd put their plans into action. The goal was to have the raft ready to go before summer break was over, which unfortunately meant more hard labor and less goofing off for Sora, but maybe he could call this an adventure too. After all, when was the last time he'd done this much exploring on the island?

After combing the beach for about half an hour, he'd found several short logs washed up on the shore near the paopu sea stack. "Guess I'll add it to the pile," he said to himself, though he really didn't want to lug everything to the back of the island just yet. He rolled the logs one-by-one over to the seaside shack, hopefully far enough out of the way that the tide wouldn't get to them.

"Oh, man…" He wiped his forehead, hunched over to catch his breath in the shade. Now seemed as good a time as any to take a break. It was a clear day, with fresh sea air and not a trace of haze in the sky. The water sparkled cleanly as the waves washed up against the heavy sand. He cast a quick look down the beach. Maybe he could take a quick dip? No one was there to watch him. Riku and Kairi wouldn't notice, right…?

Something made him stop, though. Further down in the shoreline, a blur of color stood out in the white sand, unnatural compared to the lush green vegetation and the dark wood of the trees—and it wasn't a seal either. He stared at it for several moments, squinting in the light that reflected off of the sand. He took a step forward, a strange feeling rising up in the back of his mind.

His eyes widened. Wait. Was that a…?

"Hey!" He broke out into a sprint, stumbling over to the motionless body sprawled out at the edge of the shore.

Hikaru wasn't one to dream. But she was dreaming, she realized, when the emptiness of sleep changed into something cold. She was dreaming in a world that was nothing but an endless expanse of white—of the ice beneath her bare feet, and the howling storm that devoured the sky.

There was someone in front of her. She couldn't see them through the blizzard, but she knew she had to follow. She pushed forward, one step at a time with her arms raised to shield her face from the storm.

The ice cracked. She gasped, her voice lost as the world tipped around her and she fell through the water.

Then she woke up.

The first thing Hikaru noticed was the warmth of her bed—a sharp contrast to the damp chill that sunk deep into her body, down through her muscles and bones. The next thing was the gag-inducing taste of salt in her mouth. She grimaced, scrunching up her face as she turned her head. Her fingers twitched before closing around the sheets, and she forced open her sore, achy eyes.

"You're awake!"

Hikaru jolted. Pain exploded through her body—her back, her shoulder, her chest, and especially her head. She coughed, clutching her stomach as bile rose up in her throat.

"Whoa, whoa!" There was a murmur of voices. People. Multiple people. "Should we get the doctor?"

Doctor? Hikaru gasped, sucking in the sterile air. She regretted it immediately. The back of her head throbbed with every movement, like it was about to split open. Her eyes were bloodshot and teary, but the coughing subsided with a few more wheezes. She lifted her head slowly.

It was a small room, thick with the smell of antiseptics. Everything seemed white and bland, from the walls to the floor to the open curtains hanging by her bed. A number of machines and monitors hung at either side of the bed, beeping erratically. But it was mainly the three people standing off to the side near the closed door that caught her attention. They were around her age, she guessed, though she didn't recognize them in the slightest. Two of them were boys: one had brown hair styled into a mess of spikes, while the older one had shoulder-length silver hair and piercing eyes a shade somewhere between blue and green. The third person was a girl, with short auburn hair and a round, youthful face.

"Take it easy," the spiky-haired boy said. He looked a little startled. "The doctor said you had a concussion. You must've hit your head. Are you okay?"

"Where… am I?" Hikaru's voice was barely a rasp that grated against her throat. She coughed again, trying to hold back the churning in her stomach.

"Here." The silver-haired boy was closest—he moved to pour her water from the jug sitting on the bedside table. Hikaru took it gratefully, swallowing it down and letting the sweet liquid wash away the taste of salt and bile. The heaving in her stomach subsided. Gods, I hate that feeling, she thought with a shudder.

"You're in the hospital," the girl said. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I got hit by a truck…" Hikaru winced, a hand going for her chest as a sharp pang rocked her body. She noticed the bandages that covered her hands, the IV hooked up to her arm, and the hospital gown she wore instead of her own clothes. "What happened?"

"Sora found you on the beach," the silver-haired boy said. "You were unconscious. We brought you here about an hour ago."

"Unconscious?" Hikaru repeated. It took a moment for the word to process in her brain.

The silver-haired boy nodded slowly. "You're not from around here, are you?" he asked. "I don't think we've ever seen you before."

"I…" Hikaru felt her head throb. She rubbed her eyes, massaging away the lights and colors blinking behind her eyelids. "I don't think… Where is 'here'?"

"The Destiny Islands," he replied.

Destiny Islands? She sorted through the jumbled mess in her head, running through all of the places she'd visited. Islands… She didn't know of any islands near Hart's Haven. She didn't know of any islands on Polaris at all.

But, wait. If she wasn't on Polaris, then…?

Hikaru felt it—a spark of panic. "Which star is this?" she asked, looking up so quickly that pain shot down the back of her neck.

It was a simple question, but something she said made the room go quiet; the only sound came from the machines monitoring her vital signs and the murmur of voices outside in the hall. The three strangers exchanged glances.

"Star?" the silver-haired boy repeated. Something flashed in his eyes. He leaned forward, grabbing onto the railing of Hikaru's bed. "Wait, are you… from another world?"

"Um…" Hikaru hesitated. Yeah, it kind of seemed that way. But at the same time, it didn't make any sense. How could she have just wound up on another world without an airship? "I mean, I was on Polaris when…"

"Polaris?" the spiky-haired boy asked. "You mean, like the North Star? The one in the Little Dipper?"

"You're from a constellation?" the silver-haired boy said.

Hikaru opened her mouth to speak, but she didn't even know what words she was searching for. Her head began to spin. She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, rubbing her aching head. "I… I don't…"

"Guys." The auburn-haired girl spoke with enough firmness in her voice to make the two boys stop. "Don't push her. She's not feeling well."

"S-sorry…" The spiky-haired boy scratched his head sheepishly. The silver-haired boy stepped back too, crossing his arms and only looking the slightest bit guilty in comparison.

The girl nodded. "You probably have a bunch of questions," she said, speaking more gently as she turned to Hikaru. "My name's Kairi. These are my friends, Sora and Riku." The spiky-haired boy and silver-haired boy nodded respectively. "Don't mind them, they just get carried away sometimes. What's your name?"

"I'm… Hikaru." Yes, that was right—she wasn't sure why it took her a moment to remember. Her name was Hikaru Stonewall, she thought, retracing the constants in her muddled thoughts. Her parents were Luna Kannazuki and Liam Stonewall. Her brother was Akihiko. And she had a younger brother, Tatsuya. And an older sister, Yui…

Something throbbed in her hand, an echo of a crushing grip and the sting of nails digging into her skin. The red sky. The rumbling earth. The crash of lightning so loud it shook her down to the core.

"Don't let go."

Her eyes widened.

What happened to her family?

"How did I get here?" Hikaru whispered. Her eyes flickered around the room, to the unfamiliarity of it all. The place. The people. Even the clear blue sky that stretched outside the window. Nothing was right. She clenched her hands hard around her sheets again.

"We're not sure," Kairi said. "You washed up on shore, so you must have been in the water. Do you remember anything?"

Images flashed in Hikaru's mind, memories or her imagination, she couldn't tell. Red auroras. Her mother's terrified expression, followed by the impact of something against the back of her head. And then it was just… floating. Floating through nothingness. Or maybe she'd been floating on waves? Hikaru frowned. But what sea? There was no sea on Polaris. How had she gotten to the sea in the first place?

"This is kind of like what happened to you, Kairi," Sora said after a moment. "Do you think you two might be from the same world?"

"How would we figure that out if Kairi doesn't remember?" Riku asked.

"Maybe Hikaru knows something. We can try asking…"

"Let's give her some time to rest, guys," Kairi said abruptly, glancing over in Hikaru's direction. Hikaru hardly noticed. She sat absolutely still except for her trembling hands.

"Oh, right!" Sora scratched the back of his head. "Sorry. Well… Nice meeting you, Hikaru."

"We'll check in later," Kairi added, placing her hands against Sora's back as she pushed him out the door. "Come on, Riku!"

Riku lingered behind a moment longer, his mouth opened in some unspoken question. He closed it, however. "Hope you feel better soon," he said simply, bobbing his head and heading out.

When the door swung shut, Hikaru was still shaking.

The doctor released Hikaru a few hours later on the pleasant note that there didn't seem to be anything wrong with her aside from a minor concussion and a few cuts and bruises. And since she was awake and talking now with no sign of bleeding inside her head, she was free to go. Free to go, however, meant free to go with the police—not that Hikaru argued when she had no idea what was going on. She needed to get out of that suffocating room.

The police officer came to her room just after the doctor left. The woman asked a few questions about personal information—receiving only disjointed, distracted answers in response—then she escorted Hikaru to the car parked outside the hospital. Trudging through the sliding entrance doors, Hikaru didn't notice much at first, her mind still struggling to make sense of all that had happened to her. But then she felt a rush of hot and humid air that prickled at her skin and almost immediately started to sweat.

She squinted, shielding her eyes from the sun beaming down from the sky as she tried to focus on the world outside of the hospital. "Oh…!"

It was not what Hikaru had been expecting. Between the buildings, there were trees, green and dense with leaves. The ground was hot and sunbaked without a single trace of ice or snow. Insects buzzed in the air and fluttered between vibrant flowers that sprouted from patches of grass outside the building, while colorful birds sung from their perches on the rooftops.

This… is definitely not Polaris.

"Come on, Hikaru," the officer—Hikaru realized she'd been too distracted to catch her name—said. She nodded over towards the police car parked in the first stall. "We can't leave the mayor waiting."

Hikaru sat in the back without a word. The officer said something as she climbed into the driver's seat, but Hikaru was hardly paying attention. She stared out the window as the car pulled out of the parking lot.

She didn't recognize this town. Not at all. The land was steady here, just a stretch of gently sloping hills dotted by houses and compact buildings that seemed to share a theme of red tile rooftops. The roads were made of hard-packed and well-worn dirt rather than asphalt, and bushes grew along the sides of hand-crafted wooden fences. In the distance, a tall mountain loomed, flat at the top almost like a volcano, the sort she'd seen when she'd lived in Pherkad. But where Pherkad was a world of dense jungles and powerful rivers, this was something different. Something quaint and peaceful.

She turned around in her seat, looking in the other direction, away from the vast mountain that rose up above the town. It was hard to see at first—the sun seemed so blinding here, even compared to the way the sun could gleam off the snow in Hart's Haven. But she saw something glittering down below the town, something that reached to the horizon. It took a moment before she realized what it was.

It's… an ocean.

She didn't realize that the car had come to a stop until the officer opened her door. Hikaru turned away from the windows, away from the sparkling sea, and instead looked up at the building that stood before her. It was a large estate, with neatly mowed grass and bushes decorated with fragrant white flowers. A stone path cut through the front yard, leading from the road to the house.

Hikaru hesitantly followed the officer up the path, looking around, her head spinning almost as much as her body. It smelled so… so good here. Gardenias and plumerias and other flowers she didn't even know the name of. It was all grass and leaves and damp earth, melding with the faint smell of charcoal and smoke. Someone barbequing down the street?

The officer knocked on the front door and rang the doorbell. "Don't be afraid," she said, making Hikaru turn. "The mayor is a nice man. His daughter is too, though I know you've already met her."

Daughter?

The front door opened a moment later, and a head of auburn hair poked out to greet them. "Hello—oh, Hikaru," Kairi said, her eyes widening. "You're out of the hospital already? That's great! How are you feeling?"

Hikaru was too surprised to respond; she opened her mouth, but no words came out. The officer, after a moment, spoke instead. "We're here to speak with the mayor."

"Right, of course! Right this way." Kairi stepped aside to let them in. Cool air met them in the hallway, a soft contrast to the pleasant warmth outside. The murmur of a radio or a television drifted from one of the rooms to the left. "Do you want anything to drink?" Kairi asked. "We have some lemonade in the fridge."

The officer declined. When Hikaru realized Kairi was looking at her expectantly, she shook her head as well.

"Okay. I'll be out here in the living room if you need me."

"Thank you, Kairi," the officer said, and she guided Hikaru to the end of the hallway where a set of double doors stood ajar.

It was a home office, filled with shelves and papers and a few seats set before a cluttered desk. A man—the mayor, Hikaru assumed—sat behind the desk, sorting through a massive pile of papers. He was an older man, the dark hair on his head and in his beard starting to turn white. He nodded his head when Hikaru and the police officer stepped inside and gestured for them to sit. Hikaru did so with some hesitation, folding her hands on her lap and fighting the urge to look around.

"Hello," the man said, looking to Hikaru. His voice was soft and gentle. "My name is Alecks Tealsea. I'm the mayor of the Destiny Islands. Your name is Hikaru?"

"How did you…?"

"My daughter Kairi told me," Mr. Tealsea said. "The young lady who visited you at the hospital? She said that she and her friends found you on the outer island. Can you tell me what happened?"

Hikaru made a noise in her throat. "I'm… not sure," she said, looking down and rubbing her arms where the cuts under the bandages began to itch. "Something happened… I think there was some kind of storm. I was with my family… Did you find anyone else?" she added, her stomach churning as she spoke. "My mom, or my uncle, or my brothers or sister?"

"I'm afraid we haven't found anyone else," Mr. Tealsea said. "We're not sure how you ended up here. There haven't been any storms lately. Can you tell me…? Well, before I get into any of that, let me tell you that I've made arrangements for you to stay here for the time being, until we can find more permanent accommodations. Kairi will help you settle in, and if you need any help, just ask either of us."

"Thank you," Hikaru said softly, her eyes still trained on the ground.

"You're very welcome, Hikaru," Mr. Tealsea replied. "Now… Can you tell me more about your home?"

"Here it is," Kairi said, pushing open the door. It wasn't a large room, and it was only sparsely decorated—a guest room of sorts, fitted with a clean bed and an empty closet. The air smelled stale and dusty, like no one had been inside for a long time.

Hikaru looked around slowly, taking it all in without really seeing. "My room is right next door," Kairi said. "If you need help, just knock."

"Thank you," Hikaru said, but she just stood in the doorway, her legs numb.

"We need to get you some clothes too," Kairi said. "Maybe we could go shopping tomorrow—or whenever you're feeling up to it."

It took a moment for Hikaru to register what Kairi was saying. She blinked rapidly, rubbing her eyes. "Oh, um, clothes? Yeah, tomorrow sounds good."

Kairi still seemed concerned. "Are you feeling hungry? Or do you want to rest?"

"A little hungry," Hikaru said softly, her voice almost a squeak as her throat tightened. She wasn't really, but she could feel the empty pit in her stomach. She figured that she had to eat something eventually.

"Okay, I'll go get something," Kairi said. "I'll bring it up here if you like, or you could come down to the living room to eat."

Hikaru ended up accompanying Kairi downstairs. She sat down on the couch in the living room, feeling a bit more than awkward as she looked around. It was a large house—not extravagant, but larger and definitely nicer than any place Hikaru had ever lived in. The floors were wooden, covered with soft carpet in some places, with neat cream-colored couches and a coffee table that was covered in newspapers—the Destiny Islands Bulletin.

The Destiny Islands. Her eyes wandered to the windows, where fan-like leaves waved in the breeze on the other side of the glass. Outside, the air was warm and humid. It felt like a tropical summer, not the cold and frigid winter that Hikaru remembered last. It really was a world away from Hart's Haven.

But how had she gotten here in the first place? Hikaru could only remember flashes here and there—a scream, a shriek, maybe a throb of pain. The thing that she really remembered was a sense of rising panic, her heart pounding and her breaths coming in short gasps. And darkness.

And yellow eyes. Hikaru shuddered at the thought.

Kairi came back with two bowls of instant noodles and a pitcher. "Here," she said, handing over one of the bowls and pouring a glass of lemonade. "So, how are you feeling?"

"A little better," Hikaru murmured, her shoulders drooping as she fidgeted. The physical pain had mostly dulled to a constant throb, but that was the least of her concerns. She didn't recognize this world in the slightest, and the only belongings she had were her wallet, her pocket watch, and the clothes she'd been wearing when she washed ashore—clothes that were hardly fit for island weather. Having a place to sleep was one small reassuring thing in a sea of uncertainty. Kairi was really nice too, letting her borrow her clothes (even if they were a little too small).

"It's good to keep your energy up," Kairi said, sitting down next to her. "I know how exhausting waking up alone in an unfamiliar place can be."

"You do?" Hikaru asked. But then she remembered something Sora had said earlier: "This is kind of like what happened to you, Kairi."

"Yeah, it's kind of weird…" Kairi blew the steam off of her noodles before slurping up a mouthful. "They found me on the beach too, when I was just a little kid. But I don't remember anything about what happened or where I came from."

Hikaru hesitated. "I'm sorry," she said. She wasn't sure what else she could say about that. But at least… I'm not the only one, a tiny voice said in the back of her mind, followed by an edge of relief. Immediately she gave herself a mental kick for even allowing herself to think something so awful.

Kairi shook her head. "It's not that big of a deal. Everyone here has been really nice, and if there's anyone you want backing you up, it's Sora and Riku. Even if they can get kind of carried away." She giggled. "So, you remember things, right?"

"For the most part," Hikaru said. "The end's a little hazy, but…"

"We could talk about it if you want," Kairi suggested. "Maybe it could help jog your memory—"

A loud pounding at the front door made Hikaru jump. "Kairi! Kairi, are you home?" the muffled voice came.

"Hold on!" Kairi called before she looked to Hikaru apologetically. "Sorry, that's Sora. I should have guessed he and Riku would come by. I can tell them to come back later, if you want."

"It's… It's alright," Hikaru said, struggling to calm her panicked heart. She didn't want to be hassle or keep Kairi from her friends. She lifted her bowl to her mouth and watched as Kairi went to answer the door. A few moments later, the two boys came waltzing into the living room. Riku was holding a box of pizza.

"Hey Hikaru," Sora said, waving cheerfully. "You feeling okay?"

"We brought dinner," Riku added, setting the pizza down on the coffee table.

"Ugh, you should have called," Kairi said, placing her hands on her hips. "I already made something."

"We can eat both." Sora grinned as he plopped down onto the floor.

They all moved to sit on the floor around the table. Hikaru felt a little uncomfortable sitting with the other three—Kairi at her right, Riku at her left, and Sora across from her. Speaking with one person was usually alright with her, but she was so used to following Akihiko everywhere that being a lonely stranger among friends made her uneasy.

Maybe I should have just gone to bed, she thought, her shoulders sinking.

"So, Hikaru," Kairi started, still busy finishing her noodles while the boys started on the pizza. "What did my dad ask you about?"

Hikaru hesitated before giving a shrug. "Stuff," she said, though she realized by the curious looks the others gave her that they wanted a more substantial answer. "He asked about my family, and my home," she continued. "And if I remembered what happened."

"Do you remember?" Sora asked, taking a swig of lemonade.

"Um… Sort of," Hikaru said. It was hard to piece together the images in her head and the echoes in her ears. Screaming, trembling, the pull of wind towards a tumultuous sky. Even with what she did remember, nothing made any sense. Red auroras? Living shadows? "It's all a mess. Everything happened so fast, I… I'm not really sure…" I'm not sure if it actually happened, or if it was a bad dream.

"What about your home?" Riku asked. "Can you tell us anything about that?"

"Ah…" Hikaru paused. How could she say this? "I don't… really have a home." She looked down at her noodles, stirring them around before taking a slurp. It settled uncomfortably in her stomach, filling a hollow craving but at the same time weighing her insides down. "My family, we travel a lot. All over Ursa Minor."

"You go to different worlds?" Riku's eyes seemed to light up.

"Yeah…" Hikaru nodded, rubbing her hands. "My mam never likes staying in one place too long, so we're always traveling back and forth on the airships. Before I ended up here, I was on Polaris—that's where my uncle lives, in a town called Hart's Haven."

Hart's Haven: a place where fresh snow coated the shingled rooftops, chimneys sputtered fireplace smoke into the white air, and the valleys kept the town hidden like a closely guarded secret. Hikaru and her family had spent eight holidays and most of her early life in Hart's Haven, and barring this past summer when they had returned to lay her father's ashes to rest, they were by far her favorite vacations.

Hikaru decidedly kept the last part to herself. "It's a really old town, and it snows for most of the year," she said instead. "There's a place called Glacian Castle that's further in the valley, and that's even older—my brother and I used to go hiking up to Shiva's Saddle to see it when we were younger—but it's falling apart and no one can go inside anymore. Beyond that, it's just wilderness and ice to the edge of the world…" She paused, staring at the clear broth pooled at the bottom of her bowl. "On clear nights you can see the auroras and all the stars—the Ursid Sea, it's called," she added. "No matter where you are in Ursa Minor, you can see the other six worlds…"

"No wonder we found you in that coat," Sora said. "No one here would wear anything like that."

"Your world sounds wonderful," Kairi said. "I've never been in snow before."

"It's pretty, but cold," Hikaru said. "Hart's Haven is… a nice place." As much as she had been dreading this past visit, she had to admit that she wished she was back there now. Or somewhere else familiar. Somewhere with some of the many memories of her family.

Like the winding canals of Kochab, where they'd found Tatsuya two years ago, lost and hungry with nothing but dirty clothes and a half-remembered name. Or that time she and Akihiko snuck out at sunrise to fly falcon-shaped kites from the cliff-side villages of Yildun, and Akihiko nearly slipped off the rocks and made her swear not to tell Mam, or they'd both be in for a world of hurt. Or how long ago, back when Yui would actually talk to her, the two of them ran away from home in search of that place where the edge of Polaris met the sky.

And then a time, standing at the edge of the Ibex Oasis on Anwar, watching the stars emerge at twilight to shine against the sleek mirrored surface of the pools. Hikaru and her mother, staring at a stars in the water, and then the words that made Hikaru's heart ache even now.

"People have always watched the stars," Mam had said. "They don't know that the stars are watching them, too."

"Hikaru?"

She flinched when she felt a hand tap her shoulder. Riku was staring at her—they were all staring at her. "You okay?" Riku asked, lowering his hand. "You were zoning out a little there."

"I'm fine," she said, looking down and blinking back the tears that began to sting at the corner of her eyes. Her cheeks heated up. This wasn't something she wanted a bunch of strangers to see. "Just… Just tired."

"That's understandable," Sora said. "It's been a long day, I bet."

"You know, you're welcome to stay here as long as you need to, Hikaru," Kairi said, leaning in a little to get a better look at her face. "So don't worry about anything. In the meantime, we can try to figure out how to get you back home to your family."

"Yeah!" Sora nodded. "And if you ever need help with anything, just ask us."

Hikaru stared at Sora, Kairi, and Riku. They all had bright smiles and kind eyes that conjured a certain feeling in her chest. It was looking at a light through a fog—for a moment, she wondered if she was dreaming. "Thank you," she said softly. "So… What can you tell me about the Destiny Islands?"

The day went by fast. Too fast for Riku's liking, when it felt like hardly any time had passed at all. There were still so many things he wanted to talk about. Hikaru was a strange girl—quiet and scatter-brained, kind of jumpy, with an odd accent and an outrageously bright head of red hair—but he could have listened to her stories into the late hours of the night. Her words were like pictures, glimpses through another set of eyes that gazed at worlds far beyond the confines of these tiny islands.

But it couldn't last—not tonight, anyway. Kairi was the one to call it quits after ten, when Hikaru's words slowed down and she could no longer hold back her yawns. "I guess that's enough for tonight," Kairi said. "We should let Hikaru rest, right?"

"Yeah, sure," Sora said, leaning back and folding his hands behind his head. "Don't need to push yourself that hard."

Riku opened his mouth to protest, but after one look at how drained Hikaru seemed, he grudgingly conceded. The questions could wait until tomorrow, though he knew he wasn't going to be getting any sleep in the meantime.

Kairi rose to her feet, gathering the dishes and oily pizza boxes and ducking out of the room. Riku and Sora remained in the living room, waiting in a silence that grew steadily more awkward. Hikaru just sat there at the table, seeming even smaller than she had before as she glanced to Sora, then Riku, then directed her attention away towards the window. Riku didn't know what he could say except more probing questions about her world.

"Wanna take a look outside, Hikaru?" Sora asked. "Maybe you'll see your stars." There was such a nonchalance in his demeanor, an ease in his words that may as well have been oblivious to the awkward tension.

It seemed to work, though. Hikaru didn't even have to consider it. "Sure," she said, something sparking in her expression like the very beginning of what could have been a smile.

The two of them stood up, and Riku did too a moment later, holding back the smallest of frowns. Why hadn't he thought of that himself?

It was a cool night outside, a relief from the bright heat of the afternoon sun. A soft breeze rustled through the grass and the leaves, filling the night air with a sense of calm. The stars were out and shining, obscured here and there by wispy clouds and bleached out around the nearly full moon.

Night was Riku's favorite time of day. It carried a quietness and solitude that seemed to put the world at ease and helped him focus his thoughts. It was also the time when he could catch a fleeting glimpse of the vast universe and all the stars that dotted the sky. He stepped forward across the stone walkway, one hand resting in his pocket, his eyes drawn upwards in a search for seven stars.

"I don't see it," Sora said after a few moments, as if reading his mind. He had his hands behind his head and a thoughtful look on his face for once. "Sorry Hikaru. Haven't seen a lot of stars lately. Wonder why."

"Who knows," Riku said. "But there are plenty of stars still out there for us to see."

Seconds passed, and Hikaru said nothing. Riku glanced over his shoulder to look at her—and blinked when he saw the look on her face.

She wasn't looking at the stars. Though her head was tilted upwards to the sky like them, her wide-eyed stare had found its focus on the moon. "What… What is that?" she said with a whisper, like her breath had been taken away.

"Huh?" Sora followed her gaze. "That's the moon. You've never seen the moon before?"

Hikaru shook her head, never taking her attention away from the silvery disc. The way the light shined in her brown eyes made her look like she was crying. But there were no tears—just an innocent and overwhelming sense of awe.

Huh… Riku crossed his arms, holding back a chuckle. How weird.

They let her have some time by herself, leaving her to turn in circles in the middle of the yard as she watched the whole sky. Riku and Sora retreated back towards the front door, taking seats on the porch steps. They could still see the stars from there, but Riku found himself staring at the distant horizon, where the stars met the dark ocean water. When it was like that, it was hard to tell where the ocean ended and the sky began.

"Do you think we'll make it out there?" Sora asked after a several long moments.

Riku didn't answer at first. "What, Sora—you having second thoughts?" he finally said, glancing at him and hardly bothering to hide his smirk.

"No, of course not!" The way Sora pouted, it made him look like a little kid. But then he shook his head and allowed himself a laugh. "Just wondering what's waiting for us out there. I'm always up for an adventure!"

An adventure. Right. Riku rolled his eyes, chucking a playful punch into Sora's shoulder. Leave it to this guy to think of it like a game. But Riku knew it was much more than that. "Maybe you should channel some of that energy into helping with the raft."

"Hey, I help," Sora said. "I got the logs today, right?"

"Yeah, all three of them." Riku countered, and he started to laugh. Sora laughed too.

Soon. We'll get out there soon and see it all, Riku thought. A different sky.

"Outside this tiny world… is a much bigger one."

Kairi stifled a yawn as she stepped out of the bathroom in her pajamas, the edge of her polka-dotted pants dragging across the carpet. Boy, today had been eventful. It's already midnight… Glad it's summer. The past few hours had really flown by. The living room was clean, Sora and Riku had gone home, she'd just finished a nice relaxing shower… Now she was ready for a good night's sleep.

Toweling off her hair, she paused outside of Hikaru's room. The door was slightly ajar, so she gave a light knock and peered inside. "Bathroom's open."

"Okay." Hikaru was sitting on the window bench, staring out into the night with her legs pulled up and her chin resting on her knees. She didn't look up at Kairi's intrusion.

Kairi frowned. "You okay?" She walked over, sitting down next to her.

Hikaru fiddled with something—some kind of charm or trinket—and kept her eyes low to the ground. "Yeah, I'm… I'm fine. Tonight was fun. I hope I wasn't butting in on anything."

"Of course not," Kairi said. "It's nice having a new face around. I'm just glad you enjoyed yourself." She smiled. "I hope I'm not bothering you, though. I can go if you'd prefer."

"No, it's alright." Hikaru managed a small smile herself, but it was strained at the edges. "I guess it's just too quiet. Thinking too much about…" She trailed off.

"I can find the radio if you like," Kairi said. "I think we mostly have classical music, though. But it's better than nothing, right?"

Hikaru blinked. "I… No, that's fine," she said. "You don't have to go through the trouble. But thank… th-thank you, Kairi…" Her voice cracked. She turned away quickly and coughed, wiping her eyes and sniffling.

Kairi hesitated. She reached out, placing a hand on Hikaru's back to gauge her reaction before pulling her in for a hug. The next thing she knew, Hikaru was crying, struggling to hold back her sobs. For a moment, Kairi was caught off guard. She patted her on the back, struggling to think of something to say. "It's… okay," she finally settled on, even though it didn't feel adequate. Because what could she say in a situation like this, to a person who was still basically a stranger? Faced with uncertainty… The only thing she could offer was a little bit of reassurance and support.

The sort that Dad and Riku and Sora had given her when she'd first arrived.

"It's okay, Kairi," the mayor—the man she considered her father—had said, placing a hand on her shoulder when she'd begun to cry all those years ago. "Don't worry. We'll figure this out together." It had been too overwhelming for a five-year-old girl to handle, too overwhelming for anyone. Where she was from, why she was here, even who she was… Questions that she didn't have the answers to.

Eventually Hikaru calmed down, her sobs turning into quiet breaths, her body turning limp until she was all but slumped against the cushions of the couch. "Sleep is good, at least," Kairi said softly, a faint and somewhat melancholic smile crossing her face. She stood up carefully, turning off the lamp and letting the night take its hold. Then she slipped back to her room for some shut-eye with the memories of her first night in the Destiny Islands swimming in her head.

A/N: And so ends chapter 2. Old hands might notice we're retreading some familiar ground, but I like to think it's an improvement on previous drafts; sort of essential, given some of the things I've changed. I hope you liked it! Feel free to leave a review and let me know your thoughts! Feedback is appreciated. See you next time!

Thank you for reading!