-o- CHAPTER THREE –o-
message in a bottle
I found myself struggling to stay awake as I sat at my lunch table, unable to eat a thing.
"You look like Swamp Thing," Riku barked at me, laughing with his mouth full of tuna sandwich.
I sighed and rubbed my eyes. My spinning thoughts had kept me up all night, and the result was me looking not so princess-like at school the next day. My eyes were bloodshot as I gazed mindlessly at the cold macaroni on my tray, and I could feel the cotton strap of my bra hanging carelessly off my shoulder. I'd barely paid attention to a word Sora and Riku had said all lunch period, let alone any of the lessons my teachers may have tried to drill into my head. My mind was already too full; there was no room for anything else. It was starting to feel as heavy as my eyelids, which unfortunately insisted on repeatedly dropping shut again as I drifted towards sleep…
"Kairi, uh, are you alright?" said Sora's gentle voice, as he placed his gentle hands on my shoulder and rocked me awake again. Self-consciously, I pulled away from him, trying as discreetly as possible to tuck my incriminating bra strap away; back under my shirt, where the bra straps of well-behaved, well-rested young princesses belonged.
"Wake up, Swamp Thing!" Riku bellowed, less gently. His laughter continued as he pelted me with a French fry.
Taking a decisive pause to give Riku a good hard glare, I then turned to Sora and forced a smile. "I'm fine, just tired. I couldn't sleep last night."
Sora frowned. "That's a pretty nasty bruise on your arm… is that what kept you up? Does it hurt?"
I flinched in embarrassment. Damn it. I'd forgotten all about the long sleeves I'd meant to wear to conceal my sparring damages. I cleared my throat uncomfortably. "Oh this? No no, it's fine. I honestly can't even feel it."
He watched me in disbelief, but before he could utter another word of over-the-top concern, Riku interrupted.
"Let me guess, then… you were up all night writing an extra credit essay on Lewis Carroll, right, overachiever?"
I sighed, unable to be either amused or annoyed by Riku's teasing. Nothing seemed funny or cute when you were bruised, sore, riddled with confusion, about to start your period, and running on four hours of sleep. I suddenly wished I was the kind of girl who cut class.
"No," I said wearily. "I just… couldn't sleep. Simple as that."
Simple as that. Simple as… nothing, really. Nothing was simple any more. The avalanche of distressing thoughts that had circled my mind all night was still churning and nagging at me.
"Sora, do you remember Axel?" I found myself asking. I couldn't get his face out of my mind. The memory of his appearance, which had so irreversibly altered my path, was haunting.
Riku and Sora exchanged perplexed glances at my unexpected question.
"Hmm, yeah…." Sora responded slowly. "The Nobody."
I nodded. "Right. Naminé said that he saved your life. Is that true?"
It was clear from the dull glimmer in the corners of his eyes that his experience with Axel was one of many battles Sora didn't care to remember. His voice was fragile as he continued. "Yes. He did. He died protecting us from the Dusks."
I held my breath during the silence that followed. Sora shook his head with a deadened smirk on his face.
"It's funny you should ask, actually, because he mentioned you, Kairi."
Stunned, I felt my heart drop three inches in my chest. "What? Me?"
Sora nodded. "Yeah. He wanted me to tell you he was sorry for what he did to you… And I told him he could tell you himself… but…" His words fell short in his mouth, so unpleasant was the memory of watching Axel die.
But Axel hadn't died. I had seen Naminé save him with my own eyes. I had helped her even, although I didn't really understand how. I'd been so reluctant and afraid to offer aid to someone I considered a villain, and this new information made me even more perplexed. I barely knew him. I was nothing more than a target to him, a means to an end. Nobodies weren't supposed to feel things like remorse… why would he bother thinking of me with his dying thoughts?
It was strange that I couldn't bring myself to tell Sora what had really happened to Axel. Sora left Axel for dead, and for some reason, I didn't feel compelled to tell him the truth. Was that the same as lying?
There was nothing more to say for the rest of the lunch. My questions had unearthed painful memories for my two friends, and it left us pretty much silent.
The bell rang to signal the end of lunch period, and as the three of us parted ways to go to class, I felt my feet drag. Then I felt them stop. I looked around slowly, at the hustle and bustle of high school students. They were all far too busy in their own worlds to pay attention to me. On the heels of my white sneakers, I turned around, and felt a rush of excitement as I walked in the opposite direction of English class and towards the door, out of the building, off the school's campus, not looking back for a second.
-o-o-o-
I had never skipped class before. I had never been anywhere, really, except for where I was supposed to be. If I were a bad girl, I would know about all the best hidey holes; the bridges worth making out under, the dumpsters worth drinking behind. But I had always been a good girl, and consequently, I could think of no better place to hideout than my own house.
I sighed, tiptoeing across the soft carpet of my living room, staring at the evidence of my perpetual good-girl-dom stacked neatly along the mantel. Proudly displayed above the fireplace were my junior dance team trophies, my annual academic gold stars, my Volunteer of the Year award. I stared at the crisp row of pictures of me, smiling in a white dress as I stood next to my adoptive father, cutting countless ribbons at town events.
I felt sick to my stomach, staring at those old pictures. I was Destiny Islands' golden girl. A mysterious arrival from another world, foster-parented by Mayor Miyake himself and adopted by the whole community with open arms. Why had I never wondered before where I'd come from? Only once I had stepped through that portal, once I had tasted the Darkness, did I feel like something was missing.
I sighed. I couldn't keep thinking in circles like this. I wandered into my bedroom, similarly decorated in my good-girl glory, and threw my tired body on top of the pink down comforter. Sleeplessness caught up to me in mere seconds, shoving away my head full of thoughts, and I was soon passed out cold.
-o-o-o-
I woke up startled. The room was dimmer than when I'd fallen asleep. When I recognized the shifting pink and purple hues of the sunset outside, I realized I'd been passed out for hours. Cautiously, I exited my house, hoping I wouldn't run into Mayor Miyake and potentially have to explain my absence from school.
I managed my escape without difficulty, and decided to head for the play-island where I assumed I would find Riku and Sora.
I arrived on the island and tethered the row boat to the dock. It was quieter than usual. I supposed people must have had a lot of homework that night. Nonetheless, I noticed Sora's boat at the dock, so I began scanning the beach for signs of him or Riku. As I strolled along to investigate the island more thoroughly, I stubbed my toe on something hard and cylindrical jutting out of the sand.
"Damn it," I muttered, still a little groggy from my nap. I bent over to inspect the culprit of my injury, and slowly pulled out a glass bottle from where it was half-buried on the beach. Squinting, I noticed the rolled up parchment inside. Squinting harder still, I recognized that it was sealed shut with an emblem shaped like the familiar face and giant ears of a friendly mouse I'd once met.
My heart stopped.
"Oh my god," I whispered. I looked frantically from left to right, clutching the bottle in my hands. I had to find Sora. I started scurrying around the island, and at last I heard the familiar voice of my two best friends.
"Nothing's changed, huh?" the voice of Riku echoed over the palm trees.
"Nope," Sora answered. It was coming from the small plateau off the edge of the island. "Nothing will."
I shot off running towards them as fast as I could. My heart was racing as I jogged, squeezing the bottle for dear life. Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god. This was it. A message from the king. Something was happening, just like I knew it would. Just like Naminé had warned me. The king would need Sora, and Sora would need me.
The rickety wooden bridge that connected the island to the plateau rattled beneath me as my feet trod forcefully along it. I spotted them there, resting by the gnarled old palm where we used to muse about the world outside our home.
"Sora! Riku!" I chanted, kicking sand around as I skidded to a halt. Bent over, I struggled to catch my breath.
"Hey, what's up?" Sora asked, the usual edge of concern in his voice.
I held out the bottle triumphantly, still breathing hard. "Look."
I immediately felt Sora and Riku go tense. "From the king?" Sora questioned, furiously uncorking the bottle and pulling out the letter.
Finally, they would have to admit that I was right. I hovered over Sora's shoulder, and silently the three of us read the words written in King Mickey's whimsical scrawl:
Hey fellas! And Kairi, too. I know it hasn't been that long since we made our goodbyes. I hope everything on the Islands has been swell. It was a real treat to spend some time with you there, and I wanna thank you again for keeping quiet about everything that happened between the worlds. The people don't need to know. The peace is important. We need people to feel at peace now more than ever. We can't afford a panic. I can't say too much in this letter, world order ya know, but what's important is that I need you. All three of you. I'm sending Donald and Goofy with a vessel as soon as possible. More information to follow.
All my best,
Mickey
"Geez, how does that guy always manage to be cheerful and super-ominous at the same time?" said Riku, sighing as he concluded the king's message.
"The letter doesn't say much…" Sora lamented.
Riku shrugged, a slight grin on his face. "You know Mickey. That guy's a master of ambiguity. Can you think of a single time he ever came clean about his plans from the get-go?"
Sora frowned. He was obviously distracted. "I guess not." Sighing heavily, his gaze moved towards me. He locked eyes with me for a moment, and I saw so much sadness in him I couldn't even bear to say I told you so.
"Well, whatever it is, he needs us." Sora looked pointedly at me again, nodding. A silent apology. "All of us. So we've got to go."
I reached out instinctively, taking Sora's hand. "We'll go together," I said.
Sora nodded. "Together."
