KAIRI

I shook my head as I followed Riku and Sora into the kitchen. They were at it once again. I always found it funny how they tended to turn everything into a competition, usually concerning me. I knew that sometimes they fought for my attention, but I didn't mind. The really amusing thing is, the winner never seems to have any authority over the looser. Like now, when they're racing to the kitchen. They didn't seem to realize that even if Riku won, that didn't mean Jaelyn would fall madly in love with him. And if Sora won, that didn't mean he'd be able to separate the two forever.

Honestly, guys are so strange sometimes.

Judging by the facial expressions when I entered the room, Riku had won. He looked more smug than usual, and Sora was trying to cast him glares when Jaelyn wasn't looking at him.

Currently, Jaelyn was making a speech on violence.

"People will play with fake swords, not even realizing what a curse it really is," she told us. "What a curse beating you opponent is. The people who really do kill people have to live with the guilt for the rest of their lives."

"Then Riku's blessed," Sora said. "Because he's never had the "curse of winning.""

I smiled, but Jaelyn's icy expression towards Sora wiped my own face clean. "I'm serious," she evenly stated.

"Yeah, Soray," Riku agreed, backing her up. "Killing people is no joke." I had to bite back a second smile, because I knew Riku way too well to believe that he meant what he said.

"Finally," Jaelyn said, sounding relieved. "Someone that agrees with me."

"Oh, I've always felt this way," Riku lied. "Not even swords, but just pushing and shoving is imitating something much more dangerous."

"That's exactly how I feel!"

Riku gave Sora a tiny, secret smile as if to say "she's as good as mine" but Sora wasn't about to give up, and I knew that plainly. I knew also that the wheels in his head were turning, trying to think up a way to reveal his friend as a liar. Maybe not right now, but eventually. Some day soon.

"We have a lot in common, I guess." Riku tried to sound casual.

Jaelyn nodded. "Yeah, we do."

"So, you still want that tour of the islands?"
The girl looked apologetic. "I would, I really would, but I'm kind of tired. How about tomorrow?"

"Sounds fine. I'll come and meet you here in the morning."

"OK. Nice meeting you." She turned to me. "You, too, Kairi. We'll have to get together sometime and hang out."

"Maybe after your tour," I said through my smile. Then she went to find Sora's mother so that she could get a bed to sleep on.

Sora smacked Riku on the shoulder once she was gone. "What was that?!" he demanded. I couldn't tell if it was a playful punch or not.

"Hey! Chill out, Sora. You'd have done the same."

"Not to your cousin! Don't mess with her mind, Riku."

"I won't!"

"Too late, you already started."

Riku held up his hands in defense. "OK, listen, there's gotta be some way we can work this out. So I'm happy, and you're happy." Sora's glare didn't lessen.

Riku glanced to me, almost like he was trying to send Sora some secret message. Sora looked at me like he was trying to decide something. I guess Riku had succeeded in sending his message, whatever it was.

"Don't hurt her," Sora said finally, giving in.

"Me?" I asked in surprise.

"No, no. Jaelyn. Don't hurt her, Riku. Especially not now, right after her parents died. She's… emotional right now."

"I'm not gonna hurt her," Riku promised. "Really, what kind of a guy do you think I am?"

"The kind that lies just to impress someone."

"I won't lie anymore, then. Feel better? I'll just stand by the "violence is bad" thing, but I won't make up any new ones. K?"

Sora looked to me. "I have a bad feeling about this."

I turned to Riku. "Just have her home by 10 each night," I joked. He laughed.

"10?" Riku asked. "You need to give me midnight, at least."

"Not funny," Sora said, even though I knew he was more than happy to take a break from the serious conversation. "Now it's 9."

"11, then."

Sora shrugged. "OK. Then she's in time for lunch at noon."

Riku smiled and hit Sora jokingly. "Yeah, right."

"Hey, I thought you were anti-mock-violence!"

"Don't make me separate you two," I warned.

"C'mere, girly!" Riku lunged at me. I let out a startled yelp, but then caught on. It wasn't the first time the guys had invited me to rough house with them.

Riku tried to grab me, but I shoved his hands away and slapped him on the shoulder.

"You hit like a girl," he observed. "You'll never do any damage that way."

"Oh, yeah, tough guy?"

"C'mon, Sora," Riku nodded to me. "Let's take out the trash."

"No!" I yelped. Sora grinned and approached me from behind, and the two of them grabbed me and carried me outside. Once we were at the ocean, they plopped me down into the water. Where, needless to say, it was wet.

"Hey!" I splashed them a few times, and soon an all-out water war followed. The rules were simple: get everyone else as wet as you can without getting salt water in their eyes or mouth. Times like these were when I felt like the happiest girl on earth. Times like these were what made me realize that every day is a gift, especially every day with friends like Riku and Sora.