Chapter 4

Closing The Doors

Once Ansem fell, I gasped in pain. All of the injuries Ansem has sustained, were now on me. I fell to my knees. Riku was gone. How could RIKU be gone??? I watched as Sora ran into an exploded tree, where Ansem had reappeared. But Riku was gone... I stood up, and charged after them, casting curaga on myself. I jumped over the edge of the tree, and into the small, natural arena. If there was ever a raging spirit, I was it. I slashed away at Ansem until he disappeared, and reappeared by Sora, but even that didn't deter me as I ran after him again. He was soon defeated, but the floor gave way beneath us. I screamed as we fell, through everlasting darkness. I was falling quickly. Too quickly to see anything but the darkness. "This is Kingdom Hearts..." Ansems voice rung out, "Look hard as you can.. you will see no light here..." The darkness was compressing. I could hardly breath. Hope was fading quickly. I didn't want to live. I didn't want to stay in a world where I have to stay alone, when Riku was in that of the darkness... I'd do anything to get him back... And still a glimmer of light always reflected in my heart, but that too was fading. I slowly gave up. I let myself be taken. Why shouldn't I? I didn't care anymore... "Come on Dory! I thought you were stronger than that!" I heard Riku cry out. I wrenched upwards, my eyes shooting back open. I wrenched my arms into motion, throwing them upwords. "LET THERE BE LIGHT!!!" I screamed, and a pillar of light shot through my heart, just bright enough for me to see the monster Ansem truly was. I did a small flip, and raced toward the creature, suspended by invisable wings. With my Moon Mythril Blade, I slashed, and slashed at the beast, until I felt myself being sucked up into a vortex. I found myself in a room of darkness, heartless swarming around me. "DORY!" I heard Kairi cry out, and we both started fighting. It wasn't long until all the heartless were dead, and we were thrust back out to Ansem. Kairi and I both faught him, until we were sucked into another vortex. "DORY! KAIRI!" I heard Sora yell, and these heartless were killed even quicker. After that, defeating Ansem was simple. We stood on a plat form in front of huge doors, humanoid Ansem standing in front of us. "Y-you haven't killed me... you'll see... Kingdom Hearts... is darkness..." he managed. I shook my head. "The heart may be weak. And sometimes it may even give in. But I know this without mistake." I tilted my head back, "The heart was borne in light. And Kingdom Hearts, is light!!!" I shifted my gaze to the doors, and they started to open slowly, light pouring out of them. The light engulfed Ansem, and pulled him in. Sora, Kairi and I ran to the doors, and tried to push them shut. "It's hopeless!" Kairi cried. Sora was sweating, "Don't give up!!" He yelled. I broke into tears, trying my best to push the doors shut. Suddenly, I saw a hand, taking hold of the door from inside. I followed the arm.. it was Riku. I was locking Riku in... I backed away from the door. "Dory! Shut the door!" He yells to me. I shook my head, "I can't.. I can't.." I chanted. He shook his head. "Dory.. Don't worry.. There's always a door to the light.. I'll come back..." I shook my head vigurously, "I can't... I can't..." I stuttered. The doors slowly started closing without me. "RIKU!!!!!!!!" I screamed, running through the crack of the door, and breaking the barrior. I threw myself into his arms, as the doors slammed shut behind me. He gasped, horrified that I had done such a thing, yet glad at the same time. He put his arms around me, and whispered soothing words into my ear. I smiled into his chest. I didn't want to move. I wanted to stay in this moment forever.. "Please don't cry.." He whispered, smoothing my hair, "I would have always been with you.. we are connected.." I hugged myself closer to him. I gasped as our surroundings changed, giving the illusion of outside. Sora ran to Kairi. "Kairi! Remember what you told me? About always being with me? I'll always be with you too!" He held her hand, standing in front of her. Kairi was crying lightly, She nodded, "I know." she whispered. The land they were on split, and they were pulled away from each other, but Kairi refused to let go. "I'll always be with you!" Sora yelled, and they were forced away. Kairi nodded silently, crying still. Light began to rain down on them, warm to the touch, I could feel it. Kairi held her hand out, and caught a fragment of it. She squeezed it, and let it go. She was teleported to Destiny Islands.

-After-

Kairi appeared at the shore of the ocean, tears still streaming out of her eyes. She seemed alone. Everything was still, except for the wailing wind, and the roaring tides. She wiped her eyes, and slowly walked toward the cave we had spent so much time in. She walked inside, and saw the portraits of Riku and I. She turned to look at the ones of Sora, and her, but something was different... Coming from Sora, an arm was extending toward Kairi, a star shaped fruit in its hand. Kairi sniffed, imagining that she saw Sora sitting there, carving it in, and kneels down, picking up a sharp rock. She carves a mirror image, coming from her, and offering the Poupu fruit to Sora. She nodded, and stood up, turning, and walking out of the cave. Life was pretty much normal for her after that, except she didn't have Sora to tease, Riku to argue with, or me to protect/tease. Selphie, and her friends never even noticed we were gone. If someone had asked her if she remembered Dory, she would say, "Who?" It seemed their memories of us were completely erased. Sora, Riku, Kairi and I were the only ones who knew what had passed. The days that passed as a single night to every one else. How could they forget us so easily? Were we really that unimportant? But one person was missing. My father. If you asked Selphie, he died on that night four years ago. Every night, Kairi would walk back to the cave to talk to us. And we'd listen. "Hey Riku. I hope your having a good time with Dory, there in Kingdom Hearts. I know Sora isn't with you. I helped close the doors after all.." She let out a feeble laugh, "I only wish you could have slipped out, Riku. That would have made this all a lot easier for me. Then Dory would be here to, y'know?" inside Kingdom Hearts, I, now fourteen, was clinging to Riku's arm, watching, and listening. "Anyway.. Like I told you, I'm trying to make new friends. There will never be another 'Lazy bum' like Sora, or another 'battle queen' like you, Dory, and there will never be another person who can defeat the battle queen... I know that now... But I'm hoping there won't have to be. I know Dory has this... connection to another world. It may be a crazy thought, but maybe she can teleport you two there, and then open the doors again so we can be together..." She sighed, and shook her head, "I'm being selfish, aren't I? I just want us to be a family again..." a tear glimmered down her cheek. "Well. I gotta go to bed now.." She muttered, laying down. "Good night.."

And Sora remained missing. Riku and I couldn't track him, the way we did Kairi. Sometimes I think he really is within her. But if that was the case, our tracking attempts would lead to her, not blackness... I was glad that I had Riku. I had gone crazy the moment I thought he was gone forever. And then I found him, oddly, but not for long. No, not for long at all. I didn't want to lose him again. I couldn't bare it. The very thought made me sick to my stomach... but it had to be done. It had to be done.

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I don't own any of the characters except for Dory. I admit this freely.