"Donald!" Aleisa screamed. "You were gonna leave me behind! I knew it!"
"Wha-what?!" Donald yelled in defense. "Do you see us jumping in the hole?!"
"No, but you're standing right next to it," Aleisa said, walking away from the airship that had taken her to the desert.
"Don't look at me," Donald said, looking across the way at Goofy, who was snoozing next to a broken-down machina that supplied shade. "Goofy was the one who thought to leave you."
"Don't even go there," Aleisa said. "Sora told me you're notorious to do things like that. Blame the worst of the situation on others."
Donald laughed nervously. "Lighten up. We were gonna uh.. just scare you a little, is all."
"Hmph." Aleisa turned her back on him. "I'm sure that's what it was," she said sarcastically.
"So, you believe me?" Donald said with a grin.
"Ugh. No, I don't, you retard," she said.
Donald rolled his eyes and walked over to Goofy, stepping on his toes. "Wake up, Goofy. Aleisa's joined with us."
"Oh, good," Goofy said, yawning. "I knew she'd catch up if we waited on her. See? I'm not as dumb as I look."
"Yeah, you are," Donald said. "You don't get it that I was trying to leave her behind, do you?"
"Hey, Kairi, wanna fight me?" Navani said with a grin.
"I don't know," Kairi said, putting her toes in the foamy seashore water as she sat on the beach. "I'm a little down today."
"I can teach ya how to fight," he said. "I know since you're a girl, it doesn't sound so great, but Cheisu ran off somewhere, and I can't find him. We can do something else if you'd like."
She smiled. "Well, whatever your preference is."
"I wanna show you something," he said, standing up from the shore.
"Like what?"
"Just come on. I'll show you." He stood above her and knelled down to take her hand. She was led away to the caves. She followed him into the musty, familiar cavern labyrinth that had been sitting there alone for a while.
"Navani, I already know about this," Kairi said sadly.
"I know," he said, "but take a look at this."
He led her into the chambers of the caverns, and Kairi saw the same, familiar door that led to who knew where against the wall, but it was glowing.
"See? Isn't it weird?"
"I've never seen it glow before," Kairi said. "I wonder if it means anything."
Navani was like Kairi's older brother. He never seemed like he was flirting with her, so she was much more comfortable around him than Cheisu or even Magnolia, seeing Magnolia had a tendancy to be kinda snobbish. He had shoulder-length, raven hair that curled slightly at the ends, a tropical tan, and large, dark eyes. He looked to Kairi and smiled. "You know how Magnolia and Cheisu tease you because you want that boy to come back, but they're so sure that he won't?"
Kairi looked to the ground. "Yeah.."
He smiled warmly. "Don't worry, I think he will." Kairi looked up to him, her eyes slightly wide. He nodded. "I have someone that I've lost, too. She lives in another world. She looks so much like you, and I miss her everyday, but I'm not gonna flirt with you like Cheisu because you and she are two different people." He paused. "You're actually much more kind than she is, but she's just sensitive is all. I won't act unfaithful to her, even though she could be millions of miles away."
"She's your girlfriend?"
He scratched his head. "No, but I want her to be. Maybe, just maybe, if I could rescue her, she would notice me. When I first saw you, you probably noticed that I was a little frightened to be around you at first because you do look so much like her, but I came to realize that you were someone else. It turns out, you may ultimately be the better person."
Kairi frowned and shifted her feet side to side.
Navani smiled. "Don't worry. I know you're saving yourself for someone else. I'm not going to make you feel nervous because you're willing to wait for him to come back. Just like I'm waiting for her."
"Did she ever even know you existed?"
"Well, we went to the same school, sat in the same classes, my name is similar to hers, so I always sat right in front of or behind her, and to top it all off, I could've walked to her house in five minutes."
"Was she stuck up?"
"Me and her had a lot in common. I'm sure we could've been good friends if I would've just had the guts to stand up to her. As a matter of fact, she had some of the same friends I did, so you can see the comparison."
"You'd be a really good person for her."
He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure."
"Don't be so quick to judge yourself," she assured. "Like you said, you and I are close like siblings, and I see you have a good heart. Much like Sora does."
He smiled. "Thanks so much, Kairi." He frowned. "Though, I'd be careful around Cheisu."
"What do you mean?"
He shrugged. "Maybe I'm just paranoid, but he likes you more than you may realize. He could be kind of your stalker."
Kairi laughed. "He wouldn't have very far to stalk me on this island, would he?"
Navani smiled slightly, then looked to the door, which was still illuminating. "Who knows? Maybe this door glowing is some type of sign that he's near."
"It happened on the night of the Heartless," Kairi said with a frown. "I'm a little worried."
"The only way to connect the worlds is to summon the Heartless, you know."
"I know." She looked to the ground. "That's why I'm so worried.."
She had yet to tell anyone that she was the Queen of Hearts.
(I have just this evening made a drawing of Cheisu and Kairi, in case your were wondering what Cheisu looked like, and I have it submitted on Search: Saikia. Enjoy if you want to see the ebil drawing '.')