Chapter 2: Once Again
Sora wakes up to find himself in a strange room. The reddish brown haired woman turns around from her perch at her desk.
"Oh good. You're awake. I was starting to think that you would never get up. You must have hit your head pretty hard when you came down. You were out for days."
"Sora you lazy bum"
"Yeah. I must have" Sora sits up in the bed and rubs his head. His hands find a small lump on the crown of his head. "Were am I?"
"That depends on how much detail you want on that. It's a vague question at times. Though judging how you got here you may want to know what world your on." The woman spreads her arms out as a welcoming gesture. "Welcome to the Destiny Islands." The woman presses a hand to Sora's forehead, pulling back the light brown spiked strands falling across his face. "He looks just like you."
"He looks just like you."
"Who?"
The woman waves away the comment with her hand. "Just a friend. But you can't be him. He would be at least 20 by now. Don't worry about it kiddo."
Sora tugs nervously at the laces that ran halfway up his shirt, his face a mask of worry and pain. He turns his eyes away from the woman. "It must have been painful for you. How long has he been gone?"
The woman laughs and pats Sora on the head, pressing a few of his spikes down flat against his head. "Your pretty smart for a little kid. If you must know… it's been six years since we've seen each other. I sometimes imagine him running up to me and holding be tightly. He's kiss me lightly and tell me 'I'll never leave you again.'" She smiles sweetly and playfully pushes Sora's head down with her index finger. "You need some more sleep. It's almost night and I'm probably boring you with the ramblings of an old maid." She pulls the covers up to his chin and tucks him in, then pulls a wicker chair up to the bed.
"What was his name?"
The girl looks mildly surprised at the question, but smiles and leans over the bed to kiss him on the forehead. "His name… Is Sora."
"Where's Sora?
We must find him..."
Sora wakes up to find the woman asleep at his bedside, her head resting lightly on the edge of the bed. He quietly slips out of the bed and places a star shaped key chain in her open palm. He carefully draws back her soft brown hair and kisses her softly on the cheek then quietly sneaks out the door.
"Kairi"
Sora kicks up small puffs of dirt as he runs down the long stretch of beach towards the dock. The night wind picks up blowing him slightly off balance. The Keyblade appears in his hands in a soft glimmer of light, he lifts it to the sky and closes his eyes. The wind picks up as a beam of light extends from the blade, resting on an unknown star.
"Sora!… Sora wait. You are Sora right? Only Sora would have my good luck charm." Kairi runs down the beach waving her hands over her head. "Sora? Where are you going? Are you leavening me again?" As she draws closer to the boy he can see tears streaming down her face. "Were you going to leave without telling me that you were alive?"
"Kairi…" Sora drops the blade, as it falls it breaks apart into a million glimmering fragments.
"He looks just like you."
"I didn't want to see you cry when I left. I guess that's inevitable now." Sora hangs his head, avoiding Kairi's eyes.
"Maybe our journey meant nothing after all."
Kairi pulls Sora into a tight hug. "Why?… Why do you even have to leave? Sora…Why?"
"Sora?"
"Sora... Why?"
"Your Highness? But why?"
Hours seem to pass like minutes, as they stare at each other silently. Sora sits on the edge of the dock, looking out into the ocean. The sun begins to raise before Sora breaks the silence. "When I sealed the Kingdom of Hearts I had also sealed Riku and the king in there, along with what had to be millions of heartless. Lately there has been an outbreak of heartless near where the end of the worlds used to be. The worlds are once again connected and new warp holes have opened all over the place. I'm afraid that we may have missed a world, and not just any world, but a world that holds the door to the darkness. Right now I'm looking for this world. Where there is light there is always a shadow, where there is darkness it must always carry a glimmer of light. "
"What is this place?"
"Is this the answer you've been looking for?"
"This is the world in its true form."
"Maybe our journey meant nothing after all."
A world between worlds
A forgotten world
The gathering
Kairi joins Sora on the end of the dock. "There's still one thing I don't get… Why do you look so young? You didn't seem to age a day. If any thing you look like you've gotten younger."
"That's a tough one to explain." Sora smiles wildly, his cheeks burning from embarrassment. "It's sort of a side effect of warping without a gummi ship. Your atoms decelerate in the warp field causing you to gradually get younger. I've obviously been traveling a lot, but now its seemed to stop." He pauses a moment. "At least I hope it has." He laughs nervously. "Wouldn't that be a sight? Baby Sora trying to hold up the Keyblade which is ten times taller than him." Sora laughs, amused.
"Well at least your alive." She lays her head on his lap, which causes Sora to blush slightly. "It's been a long time Sora. I missed you a lot. Promise me you'll never leave me."
"I can't promise that." Sora pulls back a few strands of Kairi's hair and pulls it behind her ear. "I need to go soon. I can't stay, and I don't want to put you in any danger. Please understand this. I do love you and now that Riku is dead he trusts me to protect you. What I have to do is very important. Unless I do this history will repeat itself."
"At least stay with me for a little while there's something I want to show you."
Sora's face softens to a sweet smile. "I can at least do that."
You've grown so much… My Sora.
Sora wakes up to find himself in a strange room. The reddish brown haired woman turns around from her perch at her desk.
"Oh good. You're awake. I was starting to think that you would never get up. You must have hit your head pretty hard when you came down. You were out for days."
"Sora you lazy bum"
"Yeah. I must have" Sora sits up in the bed and rubs his head. His hands find a small lump on the crown of his head. "Were am I?"
"That depends on how much detail you want on that. It's a vague question at times. Though judging how you got here you may want to know what world your on." The woman spreads her arms out as a welcoming gesture. "Welcome to the Destiny Islands." The woman presses a hand to Sora's forehead, pulling back the light brown spiked strands falling across his face. "He looks just like you."
"He looks just like you."
"Who?"
The woman waves away the comment with her hand. "Just a friend. But you can't be him. He would be at least 20 by now. Don't worry about it kiddo."
Sora tugs nervously at the laces that ran halfway up his shirt, his face a mask of worry and pain. He turns his eyes away from the woman. "It must have been painful for you. How long has he been gone?"
The woman laughs and pats Sora on the head, pressing a few of his spikes down flat against his head. "Your pretty smart for a little kid. If you must know… it's been six years since we've seen each other. I sometimes imagine him running up to me and holding be tightly. He's kiss me lightly and tell me 'I'll never leave you again.'" She smiles sweetly and playfully pushes Sora's head down with her index finger. "You need some more sleep. It's almost night and I'm probably boring you with the ramblings of an old maid." She pulls the covers up to his chin and tucks him in, then pulls a wicker chair up to the bed.
"What was his name?"
The girl looks mildly surprised at the question, but smiles and leans over the bed to kiss him on the forehead. "His name… Is Sora."
"Where's Sora?
We must find him..."
Sora wakes up to find the woman asleep at his bedside, her head resting lightly on the edge of the bed. He quietly slips out of the bed and places a star shaped key chain in her open palm. He carefully draws back her soft brown hair and kisses her softly on the cheek then quietly sneaks out the door.
"Kairi"
Sora kicks up small puffs of dirt as he runs down the long stretch of beach towards the dock. The night wind picks up blowing him slightly off balance. The Keyblade appears in his hands in a soft glimmer of light, he lifts it to the sky and closes his eyes. The wind picks up as a beam of light extends from the blade, resting on an unknown star.
"Sora!… Sora wait. You are Sora right? Only Sora would have my good luck charm." Kairi runs down the beach waving her hands over her head. "Sora? Where are you going? Are you leavening me again?" As she draws closer to the boy he can see tears streaming down her face. "Were you going to leave without telling me that you were alive?"
"Kairi…" Sora drops the blade, as it falls it breaks apart into a million glimmering fragments.
"He looks just like you."
"I didn't want to see you cry when I left. I guess that's inevitable now." Sora hangs his head, avoiding Kairi's eyes.
"Maybe our journey meant nothing after all."
Kairi pulls Sora into a tight hug. "Why?… Why do you even have to leave? Sora…Why?"
"Sora?"
"Sora... Why?"
"Your Highness? But why?"
Hours seem to pass like minutes, as they stare at each other silently. Sora sits on the edge of the dock, looking out into the ocean. The sun begins to raise before Sora breaks the silence. "When I sealed the Kingdom of Hearts I had also sealed Riku and the king in there, along with what had to be millions of heartless. Lately there has been an outbreak of heartless near where the end of the worlds used to be. The worlds are once again connected and new warp holes have opened all over the place. I'm afraid that we may have missed a world, and not just any world, but a world that holds the door to the darkness. Right now I'm looking for this world. Where there is light there is always a shadow, where there is darkness it must always carry a glimmer of light. "
"What is this place?"
"Is this the answer you've been looking for?"
"This is the world in its true form."
"Maybe our journey meant nothing after all."
A world between worlds
A forgotten world
The gathering
Kairi joins Sora on the end of the dock. "There's still one thing I don't get… Why do you look so young? You didn't seem to age a day. If any thing you look like you've gotten younger."
"That's a tough one to explain." Sora smiles wildly, his cheeks burning from embarrassment. "It's sort of a side effect of warping without a gummi ship. Your atoms decelerate in the warp field causing you to gradually get younger. I've obviously been traveling a lot, but now its seemed to stop." He pauses a moment. "At least I hope it has." He laughs nervously. "Wouldn't that be a sight? Baby Sora trying to hold up the Keyblade which is ten times taller than him." Sora laughs, amused.
"Well at least your alive." She lays her head on his lap, which causes Sora to blush slightly. "It's been a long time Sora. I missed you a lot. Promise me you'll never leave me."
"I can't promise that." Sora pulls back a few strands of Kairi's hair and pulls it behind her ear. "I need to go soon. I can't stay, and I don't want to put you in any danger. Please understand this. I do love you and now that Riku is dead he trusts me to protect you. What I have to do is very important. Unless I do this history will repeat itself."
"At least stay with me for a little while there's something I want to show you."
Sora's face softens to a sweet smile. "I can at least do that."
You've grown so much… My Sora.