Fallen Star

Riku didn't understand why Sora insisted on being alone at times like this. There wasn't much that Sora kept from him anyway. Their perilous adventure, dubbed as "Kingdom Hearts", was over now. The Door to the Light had been opened and the heartless just…ceased to exist. Everything was back to what it was before; their island, their friends, they all survived.

So what was making his best friend so sad?

He stopped off the boat and onto the dock, where the only moving object in sight was the ocean. The drifting clouds, dark and ominous, headed this way. That's what sent him this way- a thunderstorm was coming and Sora still went to the island. Besides, there was no point in having his friend sick over something that could be solved.

He made his way across the beach and set about on his task. Ah, there he waas, sitting on the small island overlooking the turbid ocean. Normally Sora would have heard someone coming by now. He was either in deep thought, or he didn't care…

When Riku finally got to the bridge, he heard the source of Sora's distraction. The upbeat sounds of an electric guitar and drums flooded the area, and Riku could see the set of headphones buried in Sora's messy hair.

"I watch the stars as they fall from the sky," Sora sang, completely oblivious to his friend behind. A CD player lay next to the boy, revealing the volume to be at the max.

"I held a falling star and it wept for me, dying,"

"I feel the fallings stars encircle me-" He lied back in the sand and spotted Riku's smirking face.

"-Oh, er…hi Riku!" The brunette chuckled nervously and turned the volume down.

"Is this what you do every time you want to be alone?" He teased. Sora glared at him, embarrassed, and shook his head.

"I was just thinking!"

"Oh yeah? About what? You've been acting strange lately, and as one of your best friends, I demand to know why."

A silence commenced, and Sora's face fell solemnly.

"I…I guess I just miss Donald and Goofy, and everyone else." He finally admitted.

"I mean, I moved around so much when I was looking for you and Kairi. I didn't pay much attention to it at the time, but now that I think about it…it was exhilarating."

Sora wasn't looking at the ocean anymore, not with the glazed look in his eyes. The smile his friend adorned was a nostalgic one.

"If you guys had been with me, it would have been the perfect adventure."

And that wistful smile gave way to a disappointed frown. That same frown was the one Riku caught on Sora between the laughter, in-between the smiles and the serene times.

"And now you're stuck at the point I was before Kingdom Hearts, right?" Riku stated. Sora kept silent, and looked at him as the fear flashed through his eyes. They both knew they were treading on thin ice right then.

"You're scared, aren't you?" He roughly barked, half out of guilt and shame. His friend cringed, and slowly nodded.

"…There's nothing to be scared about." He said softer this time. He couldn't look Sora in the face, so instead, he turned his gaze to the ocean. He wanted to apologize a million times over for the past, yet Sora and Kairi had already forgiven him. It didn't feel like that was enough.

Sora gradually smiled.

"You're right. If anything happens, I'll just beat the darkness up!" He cheered. Riku smirked at the comment.

"Come on, Sora. Get a grip."

"Hey! I'm serious here!"

A small pause, and then a loud bout of laughter erupted from the boys. Unfortunately, a loud clap of thunder interrupted them, and Riku was reminded yet again of his task.

"It's gonna storm. Let's go home."

Sora agreed, and they raced each other to the docks, leaving the still-playing CD player in the sand. Stuck on repeat, the guitars and drums started over.

"Of late, it's harder to go outside,

To leave this dead space with hatred so alive

Writhing in sickness

Thrown into banality

Killed by the weakness,

But Forced to return."

"I watch the stars as they fall from the sky…"

Fin

A/N: Random bit of inspiration when I was in school…The wonder of plot bunnies Diclaimer: I don't own anything! Song was from A.F.I called Death of Seasons.

Chigiri