Water lapped against the sides of the stone walkway inside the lighthouse, where Sora lounged against the crumbled edge. His finger traced the letters in the book he had gotten from Riku. Deep down in the pit of his stomach, he knew things were bad. He knew his mother and Kairi were probably worried sick about him. He knew that it would take days to weeks for him to heal properly and that he was in the hands of a couple of strangers. Despite it all, he was striving to focus on the positive.
He recalled Riku's voice, his pronunciation of letters and words, and Sora used it in an attempt to distract himself and teach himself the language. It was tiresome, repetitive, and Sora was certain that he was getting a majority of the words completely wrong; but if it kept him from being completely alone with his thoughts as he had been the night before when it had all happened. He wouldn't complain.
Everything was still blurred and muddled in his mind. The memories of the day before didn't add up, they were fractured, fuzzy, and he couldn't help but think that there was more to them than he remembered. What he did remember was exploring with Kairi. It was something they did together whenever they got the chance and the day before was no different. They had heard about a dolphin tangled in a trap, so of course, he and Kairi jumped at the chance to help.
He remembered finding the dolphin, talking and soothing them as Kairi attempted to ignite a bit of light magic, but she was still in training and nothing but an occasional sparkle had appeared. It was after that moment that things hadn't added up. It was as if he had blacked out, and reawoken on that rocky beach, entangled in the same trap the dolphin had been in before. If it hadn't been for Riku… he wasn't sure what would have happened to him.
Sora's lips curved into a smile at Riku's name. He wasn't sure what to think of him when they had first met, just that his aqua eyes were mesmerizing. He had often heard tales of humans and their cruelty, but Riku didn't seem anything like the stories. Ever since their paths had crossed, Riku had been nothing but kind and selfless to him. It didn't make sense, but Sora was indebted to him regardless.
A familiar voice broke him out of his thoughts. A voice that seemed to be desperately calling his name… Kairi. He scrambled up on his arms, pressing his ear against the brick wall to hear more clearly.
"Soraaaa! Sora, please say you're here!" She cried out, making Sora's heart jump as a grin split his lips.
She had actually found him.
"Kairi!" He banged on the wall with his fists, wincing from the sting of the cuts along his knuckles, "Kairiiii! In here!"
He scooted himself forward, sliding into the water. His tail twanged in response, the larger fins refusing to move as he commanded so he could swim under the lighthouse. He sputtered and splashed, all at once remembering just how immobile he was.
A red head of hair burst up from the pool of water, violet eyes meeting with Sora's that went from being terrified to overjoyed in an instant.
"SORA!" Kairi exclaimed, pulling Sora into her arms and hugging him to the point of near suffocation.
Sora laughed, tears and emotion filling his eyes as he hugged her back. "Kairi… I can't believe you found me."
"You can thank a couple of guppies," she told him, not letting him go as her shoulders shook with relief. "They saw you last night and told me where you were."
"That's a relief." Sora sighed, unable to keep the smile off his lips before Kairi smacked the back of his head. "OW!" He rubbed his spikes of hair, pouting at Kairi's glare.
"Don't disappear like that, Numbskull!" She scolded him, crossing her arms and gasping as Sora flopped to the side with a yelp. "Sora!"
She dove beneath the water, her arms linking under Sora's arms and pulling him back to the surface.
"O-Over there," Sora pointed towards the crumbled walkway where the water was shallow.
"Are you alright? What happened?" She asked, helping him settle back in his seat. Her eyes drifted down his body, taking note of every scratch and wound until her hands went to her mouth. "Your tail…."
"Yeah," Sora replied with a strained voice, hissing as his tail twitched. "I got hurt pretty bad."
Kairi was unable to take her eyes off his tail. She held out her hand, tracing it along the bandages stained with blue blood. "Who did this…?"
"Um… weellll," Sora chuckled, "See, you're gonna laugh-"
As if on cue, the door to the lighthouse burst open. Kairi jumped over Sora protectively, her breath short and eyes widened as Namine's and Riku's voices echoed around them while they came down the stairs.
"Humans…" She whispered, her voice shaking as she stared up at the stairs.
"Well actually-" Sora tried to explain before Riku and Namine entered and froze when they saw Kairi.
"Get away from him!" Kairi hissed, baring her fanged teeth and protecting Sora with her own body.
Riku put up his hands as Namine spoke up, assuring them they meant no harm; but Kairi had no idea what she was saying as she held out her hand, about to summon a spell.
"Kairi, wait!" Sora reached up, grabbing her wrist. "Don't! They're my friends!"
"WHAT?!" Kairi sprang back, her widened eyes darting between the humans and Sora.
"That's Riku," Sora pointed to him, both him and Namine watching the exchange, completely dumbfounded. "He's the one that found me washed up on the beach and he rescued me."
Kairi darted her eyes to Riku, who attempted to smile at her, but was greeted with another hiss in response.
"And that's Namiinay," Sora motioned towards Namine. "I think they're related - or they're married… I didn't really get it." Shaking his head, he got back on topic, "But anyway, she's the one that patched me up." He pointed to his tail, "See? The bandages are cause of her."
Kairi was struck speechless as she looked between the group, her chest heaving as she backed up against the walkway furthest away from them.
Sora looked to his friends, smiling apologetically as he motioned towards her, "Kairi."
"What do you think you're doing?" Kairi whisper screamed at him. "Don't tell them my name!"
"Kairi…?" Namine said her name, making Kairi freeze as she whipped her attention up to her. Namine knelt down, placing her hand over her heart. "Namine. And this-" she motioned beside her, "is my brother, Riku."
"What are they saying…?" She whispered to Sora.
"I think… she was introducing herself and telling you that… Riku is either her soulmate or brother."
Kairi groaned, "Well those are two very different things, Sora!"
"Gimme a break, Kairi!" Sora huffed, "I just started trying to learn their language earlier today."
"I don't trust them." Kairi told him.
"Well, I do." Sora replied, smiling towards the others, even as Kairi looked over at him in disbelief. "They aren't anything like the stories."
"Yeah well, maybe they are just trying to gain your trust." She suggested. "Who knows what they'll do once they know they got you on their side?"
Sora sighed wistfully, looking over at her. "Just give them a chance, Kai, please. I probably wouldn't be here if it wasn't for them."
Kairi paused, her eyes drifting towards Sora's tail. "You're right…" She admitted, swimming back towards him and running her hand along his tail. "How do I tell them I appreciate them taking care of you?"
"Thank." Sora told her, noticing Riku and Namine looking over at him.
"T-ank..?" She repeated, making Sora laugh.
"No, no," he shook his head and waved his hands in front of him. Clearing his throat, he repeated it slower. "Thank."
Kairi nodded, taking in a breath as she nervously looked between Namine and Riku. "Um… T-Thank…"
Namine responded with kind sounding words and a smile that caused the slightest flutter in Kairi's heart as the tension in her shoulders faded away. She wasn't sure what to think of the humans, but they were taking care of Sora… she supposed she could give them a chance… if that's what Sora wanted.
