Crowned Hearts Chapter Eight

By Blue Dragon

"Yeah! That's the dress I want!" Selphie hopped in delight at the sparkling yellow dress cut of at the knees in the window.

"Jeez. For guys, it's just a tux. If you want to get something for a girl, bring a magazine! You'll be there for hours!" Tidus sat down on the ground for the two hundred and twenty-eighth time as Selphie went to the fitting room. Kairi had picked out a really nice pink dress that came with gloves and a ribbon at the back.

"Curse that Riku," said Sora, sitting in the lobby of the store. He was kindly refusing more girls' offers for a date.

"I sit here trying to find a girl all my life, that boy spends his trying to get away from them"

"I hear ya, Sora" Tidus responded.

"Woops. Did I day that aloud?" Sora made it clear that he had purposely said it for all to hear.

"Sora, lets talk more about video games"

"I'll keep score," said Wakka as he sat down in a lobby seat, his tux paid for.

"Okay Tidus, how about we continue our argument on Metal Gear Solid"

"Bring it on! Do you think Raiden's wearing a wig?"

"Yeah, like three of them"

"No, I mean his real hair. Yours is weird Sora, but not as weird as his!"

"That'd be stupid. Why would he be wearing a wig on top of a wig?"

"Maybe he wants to throw us off"

"Well what about Substance. Why do you think he's dressed like a ninja?"

"Substance?"

Sora opened his mouth in awe.

"Don't tell me you don't know about Substance!"

Riku was thinking along the lines of more intelligent things, however.

How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?

After a few minutes Kairi and Selphie left the fitting room with their purchased outfits.

"Finally!" Wakka said as he stood and walked off with the rest of the group.

"What now?" Tidus asked.

"You guys like laser tag? We might as well enjoy ourselves before the big dance" Kairi suggested.

"I have a better idea" Wakka removed a SOCOM from his pants.

"Hey, that gun looks almost real!" said Selphie.

"Dat's because it IS real" he said.

Everyone looked at him as if he had a Behemoth coming out of his nose.

"What?"

"I can't believe you have a gun! You could hurt someone!" said Riku.

"Don't worry, its not loaded!" Wakka pointed the gun up at the plaster and shot.

BOOOMMM!

Plaster fell from the ceiling, Wakka's friends covered their eyes, and the crowds of people ducked and started screaming.

"Woops." Wakka quickly put the firearm back in his pocket before anyone could see.

"Wakka. That was boneheaded," said Sora.

"Sorry! I didn't tink it was even real!"

Lisa looked around for the perfect dress. She needed to wear just the right thing. After all, what was she worth if Riku wasn't happy? Besides, she really liked him too.

I just hope he doesn't take it to hard.

She decided on one of pure white.

Sora, Kairi, and Wakka crouched behind the black obstacle.

"Where pinned down! They got us on all sides!" said Sora.

"No dey don't!" said Wakka. He tried to take a step but immediately recoiled when he saw fire ricochet off of the floor in front of him.

Selphie kept her strategic location from south, Riku from northeast, and Tidus from northwest. The plan had definitely worked. Riku was a war genius.

"We almost have them!" Selphie yelled. A fatal mistake. Wakka shot out three shots that hit Selphie directly.

"Crap! I'm hit."

Tidus flipped out in slow motion, hitting both Kairi and Wakka.

"Noooo!" Sora slowly jumped out, took his fallen comrade's weapon, and blasted away, knocking Tidus to the ground.

Riku and Sora faced off, both hiding behind dark obstacles, the only ones left on their team.

Riku suddenly got an idea. He went around the maze slowly to sneak behind Sora. Sora noticed what he was doing and began firing wildly and nervously.

Riku stepped out behind him and held up his gun.

"No!" Sora shot him, only to find that he was out of laser artillery.

"Darn it!"

"Seems like you're out, Sora" Riku held his gun to fire, only to find that his was empty as well.

"Crap"

"Yeah! It's a draw"

"The agreement was that the losing team buys the pizza, Sora, so now what are we going to do?"

"I know!"

The group sat at the mini-Chubby Chocobo's, all splitting the cost over pizza.

"Well, this isn't too bad I guess" Riku said to Sora.

"What do we do next?" asked Selphie after swallowing a big slice.

"We could split into teams again and have a water balloon fight" Kairi suggested.

"That'd be great! I have this great idea. My team could gather and use our stockpile of water balloons to get everyone, you and you have to dodge" Selphie added to Kairi's idea.

"That sounds pretty challenging, plus it gives you guys a handicap." Tidus said with his mouth half full.

"Yeah, but you're team almost beat us last time, we deserve a handicap. We could call the formation Stonehenge, and we could refer to our balloons as colors and."

"Selphie! That's it! You know that you're stealing those names from something. Don't you know you're violating copyright laws? Have you no sense of justice?"

"Sora, you're doing it again. I told you I made this stuff up. I didn't plagiarize!"

"Whatever Selphie" A flock of birds flew by past the window.

"Guys its been fun, but I gotta go" Riku stood up from the table.

"Hey, you're leaving again?" asked Wakka.

"Sorry, but its getting a little late, and I want to get an early start for tomorrow. We have school, and Crowned Hearts"

"Okay then. See you, Riku" Kairi waved goodbye with the others as Riku left again.

I hope they don't think I'm avoiding them. It's just that this prom has me all psyched out. I'll have to spend time with them extra long after Crowned Hearts, and I'll bring Lisa and introduce them! That's it! I'll introduce them all at the dance, and I'll really be happy!

Lisa sat on the docks dangling her feet into the clear blue sea. Of course, she had been waiting for Riku, even if he wouldn't come. They hadn't arranged to meet, but something had told her she would see him again.

She treasured every moment with him. Even though she had just met him, she had known him all of her life. It was something that she couldn't explain. Crowned Hearts was an event that she both looked forward to and shuddered to think about.

Her eyes of hazel reflected back at her in the pool as she gazed down at it.

"Lisa?"

Riku walked to the dock and sat by her.

"Ready for tomorrow?"

She smiled.

"I look forward to it."

"I'm glad."

Instead of breaking the gaze, Riku looked into her eyes as she looked back at his. It seemed she was hiding something that should be obvious, but the islander couldn't quite put his hands on it.

"Wow" Riku accidentally said aloud.

"Yes?"

Crap. I shouldn't have said that aloud.

"It's nothing"

"Are you sure? I know you said 'wow' about something, Riku.

"Forgive me, but it's just that you're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. Looking at you makes me feel better, like everything else is just fine. As if I have no problems, everything's perfect. All the pain, sorrow, anything that I've been feeling has been replaced with happiness just being around you. In a few days you've put me on top of the world. You, Lisa, are probably the greatest things that have ever happened to me."

She smiled softly at Riku's words, and tears began to roll down her eyes.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to--"

"Thank you so much, Riku. That was the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me. I feel the same way. It's just that."

The tears came faster and she held on to Riku tightly.

"Lisa?"

"Don't ever leave me, Riku"

"I would never do that"

"Even if you didn't have a choice?"

"Lisa.are you going somewhere"

"No. I'll always be here. Always"

That night she had made a promise that she intended to keep. She wouldn't ever leave Riku.