Me: Welcome to my crazy, mixed up mind. This fic was just thought of this morning. Weird, huh? Inspiration comes at the weirdest of times. Anyway, meet my wonderful, and very sexy, muse, Riku.

Riku: Why me?

Me: Yeah, I'm also the author of Flickering Light. I'm not sending this to Digital to beta for several reasons, incase she's reading this. A). She isn't into Kingdom Hearts much at the moment and I know she's obsessed with One Piece and B). She already has enough with the other two stories. I know, excuses will come to bite me in the ass in the future but I don't care at the moment. Please enjoy.
Fire: I'M the beta reader! Hehehe Power. (hugs Riku) Now get reading people.

New Beginnings

Riku swung his short, stubby legs back and forth from the weak branch of a blooming paopou tree. He had been warned if he sat on it too long it would snap, only just having been planted last year. But Riku trusted the plant to hold him, and it never failed to give him a comfy spot to sit on. Who had planted the tree? He and his best friend had. Where was his best friend? Riku was too scared to confirm what his mind was screaming at him.

The five-year-old threw his head back and quickly shut his eyes as the sun glared down upon him. Soft, silvery locks swirled about his face, almost reaching his shoulders but not quite. The skin was pale no matter how much time he spent in the sun. Green eyes set under fine eyebrows looked back at you and could give you the feeling he was reading your mind. It was scary, but his friends got used to it.

Deciding he had waited enough, Riku slowly crawled off of the tree. It was now taking shape, the tree bend tilting to the side from being sat on so much. His sandals made flopping noises as he walked across the bridge. He longed to just jump off into the clear waters below but he was scolded for doing so the last time. He wore black shorts and a yellow tee-shirt. A silver chain necklace looped around his neck, bearing a crown pendant. He adored it and was never seen without it on.

Riku pushed the door to the hut open with small hands and stepped inside, letting the cool damp air enclose around his skin and the darkness cloud over his eyes. He trotted down the creaky steps and emerged through the door on the other end.

His eyes quickly scanned the area before him, looking for any signs of the brunette. But it was still too early, he thought. It made sense no one was here, but Riku knew for a fact that Sora's parents had been pissed off yesterday. That being known, Riku was positive Sora would be here. The brunette always came to this island after... nights like that.

Riku followed the path through the rainforest like trees, keeping a close eye out. He knew Sora was here, even when he didn't want to be found. The younger boy hated being weak, thus hiding from his best friend. He would never let anyone see him cry; everyone, that is, except for Riku.

As a matter of fact, Riku was the only one Sora would talk too and that was literally how things were. Riku guessed the fact that Sora never said a word pissed his parents off even more, making it even harder on the poor brunette. Sora would just stop talking completely when others were around, and he seemed happy enough when it was just him and Riku playing together. Riku wanted to do something... he wanted to so bad! He couldn't stand seeing Sora like this and it made him hurt. But there was nothing, all Riku could do was be the shoulder Sora could lean on.

Riku brushed away at the bug on his forehead, frowning. He checked all of Sora's favorite hiding places; the cave, the waterfall, the hut, everywhere.

"It must have been bad last night," Riku murmured sadly.

"Your majesty, your majesty, are you there?"

Riku whipped around and eyed the bushes. He could have sworn he had heard a voice coming from behind them. Shrugging it off, Riku was turning around to leave when he heard it again.

"I'm not sure, the chart says I'm on an island."

Riku stopped completely now and turned around. Very slowly on tip toes, he crept silently to the bush. Using his hands to brush away some branches of small leaves, he peered from in-between them and saw a tall, tall person there. He may not have been that tall, but to Riku, he was. The man was talking into a strange black box and Riku listened to hear more.

"Yes, Destiny Islands... No, I'm not sure. She may be around here somewhere, I'll go look for her."

Whoever this strange man was, he was wearing a black cloak that looked like a uniform and black boots. A badge was on his chest but Riku was too young to read what it said.

"How long are we going to be stuck on this world?" the man whispered into the box.

Riku gasped; another world! The man had pressed another button when he heard Riku's gasp and buried the thing back into his pocket. "Oh no..." the man muttered.

"Who are you?" Riku asked, brows furrowed. He looked adorable, especially with his cute little voice (Me: SQUEE!).

"Y-you can... oh no," the man muttered. "Go away," he insisted, making shooing motions with his hands. "Get out of here!"

"It's my home," Riku said, crossing his short arms over his chest. "What are YOU doing here?"

The man sighed. "None of your business, alright kid? Just go on home."

"I am home," Riku pointed out. Then he tilted his head to the side. "Are you new here?"

"Yes, yes I am," the man said, nodding. "I am new here and I'll be leaving shortly, so if you don't mind..."

He left the clearing, brushing past Riku as he went. But the silver-haired boy would not give up so easily, and he just followed him.

"What are you doing here?" Riku asked as he trotted to keep up with the giant (who isn't really a giant).

"I'm doing something," he answered.

"What?"

"Business."

"What's business?"

"Boring stuff."

"What's boring?"

"Talking to you!" the man finally roared, turning around to face the little boy. They were on the beach now, and he looked down at his stalker, who was too cute to be a stalker.

Riku sniffed slightly, water brimming in his eyes.

"Oh, kid, I'm sorry," the man murmured, kneeling down, putting a hand on Riku's shoulder. "I didn't mean it, don't cry."

At this Riku wiped at his eyes and shoved the man's hand away. "I'm not crying!" he insisted stubbornly.

The guy chuckled as he stood back up. "Whatever." And he walked away again, not at all surprised Riku was following him again.

They walked in silence for a while before the man broke it with a heavy sigh. "Okay, what is it going to take for you to stop following me?"

Riku grinned. "What's your name, mister?"

"Oram," he replied.

"I'm Riku!" the little boy stated proudly.

Oram chuckled again. "That's nice, Riku. Now if you don't mind, I have to go find my friend."

"Cool!" Riku said. "I'm looking for my friend, too. We can look for them together!"

Before Oram could protest, Riku reached up and grabbed his hand and lead him forward. "C'mon, mister."

"Don't call me mister," Oram said, but allowed himself to be dragged onwards. Riku was just too cute to resist.

They walked for a bit before Riku stopped.

"What is it?" Oram asked.

"He's here," Riku said, smiling.

"Ahh, your friend?" Oram said. "Where is he?"

"He's a bit...err, shy," Riku mumbled. Turning his head back to the forest. "Sora, come on out of there!" he shouted. "This guy's a new friend!"

Oram waited patiently, eyes fixed on the woods. There was a slight rustling, but no on came out.

"Wait right here," Riku commanded, letting go of the man's hand. Oram watched as the boy disappeared into the woods for a few moments. He heard a small gasp of surprise, but it sounded like it came from Riku.

Another few minutes later, Riku emerged with a smaller boy holding onto his hand. Oram watched as Riku brought forward a small brunette. His face was hidden, but he was wearing clothes similar to Riku's, except his shorts were red and his shirt white.

"Hey there," Oram said, but the boy still didn't look up. Riku gave the man a look that said clearly "You're too tall!" and Oram obediently lowered himself to one knee so he was level with the boy.

"Hello, Sora is it?" Oram said.

The boy nodded lightly, still not looking. He had a light tan on him and his face was turned to the left so all that Oram could see was the right side of his face.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Oram asked quietly, tilting his head to the side to see more of Sora's face but Sora just turned more to the left.

"It's okay, Sora," Riku said brightly. "This guy's a friend, he won't hurt you!"

Oram smiled to himself slightly, happy to be called a friend by the cute little boy. But he was nothing compared to his best friend who stubbornly refused to look around.

"He's just really shy," Riku assured him, then looking back at the younger boy. "Sora, it's okay. Maybe this guy can help us!"

Oram blinked in slight confusion and watched as Sora slowly leaned his head further to the right, showing bright blue eyes that reminded him of the ocean that currently surrounded them. But that was only one eye, the other still hidden from view. But his one eye told enough. It showed signs of fear, unmistakable fear. But he was giving Oram a look that told him clearly he was trying to trust him. Trust was hard, but the man had no idea as to why it was so hard for this little boy to even look at him.

"You okay?" Oram asked. Looking back at Riku, he said, "Is he okay? Should he head home?"

Riku shook his head frantically. "No, Sora's parents are mean!"

'Of course,' Oram thought. 'All kids get mad at their parents sometimes.' But something about this was different, he could tell by the way Riku said it and how Sora hadn't spoken a word.

"Can you face me?" Oram pleaded quietly. "Come on, I know you can."

Slowly, very slowly, Sora turned his head until it was setting straight on his shoulders, looking up at Oram with innocent eyes. What the man saw made his gasp and he could feel his heart slowly starting to break.

Spreading over the entire left side of his face was a huge bruise. His eyes was red and splotched, the black and blue skin making it all the more horrible. He slowly brought his fingers up to touch the bruise lightly, making Sora wince and step back.

"Be careful!" Riku snapped in his childish voice.

"Sorry," Oram apologized. He tilted Sora's face to the right by his chin, inspecting the injury carefully. "How did this happen?" He also now noticed another bruise peeking out from underneath his shirt sleeve, and another on his other arm.

Riku opened his mouth to say something but Sora cut him off, speaking for the first time in front of Oram. "I tripped." Riku glared at his friend but Sora just ignored him.

"You tripped?" Oram said, raising an eyebrow.

Sora nodded. "Yeah, I fell and hit my eye."

"Oh really?" Oram let go of Sora's chin and went to his shirt, yanking up his sleeve. "What's this, then?" he asked, heart swelling with sadness as he saw yet another ugly mark on his arm. This one had five tiny cuts on it that surrounded a shaped bruise, almost as if someone had gripped him so hard nails dug into his skin.

"I told you, I fell," Sora said, yanking his arm free and gasping as he winced in pain from moving it too quickly.

"And this?" Oram continued, finding an identical mark on the other arm. Something was wrong, here. Something inside of him knew, but he stubbornly shoved the thought away.

"How many time do I have to tell you, mister?" Sora said, pouting. "I fell down!"

"Sora..." Riku began and then they heard laughter coming from the other end of the island. Several boats were making their way over and several children were rowing over.

"Oh no," Oram muttered. It was bad enough two saw him, but more? "I have to go, kids."

"What, where?" Riku asked, blinking.

"Just somewhere," Oram said. He knew Riku wouldn't buy this, and he was right.

"Wait," Riku said. "We'll come with you!"

Oram sighed. "Now?"

"Yes, now," Riku said.

Oram sighed again, this time in defeat. "Okay, just hurry up."

Riku pulled a reluctant Sora along with him as they followed Oram back into the forest, away from the three children who were exiting two boats. They walked quickly, despite Riku's protests to slow down. When they were far enough so that they could no longer hear the sounds of laughter, he came to a halt and waited for the two boys to catch up.

"In a hurry?" Riku asked sarcastically as he pulled Sora through the bushes.

"Sorry," Oram said absent-mindedly, looking around. They were all the way on the other side of the island now, the position of the sun giving him reason to believe it was around noon.

"What happened to not being seen?" a mocking, female voice said. The three looked over to see a woman around Oram's age walking over. She had a black cloak hung loosely over her shoulders with another badge. She stopped when she finally came up to them and stared down at the two boys.

"Awwww, so cute!" she squealed, causing Sora and Riku to back up and hide behind Oram.

"Hey, what happened to you?" she said with a look of concern as she bent down to look at Sora.

"He 'fell down'," Oram said, rolling his eyes. "In other words, they aren't telling me."

"He doesn't have to if he doesn't want to," she said, patting the boys head slightly.

"Who are you?" Riku asked curiously.

She laughed. "Name's Ninna, kid," she said, ruffling his hair. He pouted and swatted her hand away. Chuckling, she stood up and looked at Oram. "Where'd you run into these two?"

"They just followed me, I swear!" he said, putting his hands up.

"Yeah, yeah, but what is the King gonna say about this?"

"We'll worry about that later, now we just need to get back."

Sora and Riku, who had stepped out from behind Oram, watched the discussion, confused. "What are you two talking about?" Riku asked.

"I just talked to him. He said the vortex will open up in a bit," she said, not hearing Riku. "I guess the barriers just had a little burp and brought us here. But it can definitely take us back."

"Ermmm... hello?" Riku said.

"That's great, now we just have to not be seen."

"Guys?"

"Yeah, that's right. It should open in a few hours time."

"HELLO!" Riku shouted. All three looked at him, and Riku blushed lightly. Clearing his throat, he asked, "What are you two talking about?"

"Are you leaving?" Sora asked quietly, looking at Oram.

"Yeah, in just a bit," he said casually.

"Where are you going?" Riku asked.

"Back to my home," he said, smiling sadly as he saw the downcast expression on their faces.

"So soon?" Sora said sadly.

Oram nodded. "Yes, I am." He caught Riku giving his friend a look. It seemed as if Riku was waiting for Sora to tell them something, but Sora didn't say a word and just looked down at the ground.

"Hey Riku, can I talk to you for a bit?" Oram asked.

"Sure," Riku said nodding. "Sora, stay with Ninna."

Sora nodded and allowed the woman to bend down and look at his injuries.

Riku followed the man a bit away until they were out of earshot of the others. "Okay, Riku, what's going on?"

"What do you mean?" Riku asked innocently, but he didn't fool anyone.

"I know Sora didn't get hurt from a fall," Oram pointed out. "And I know you know what happened to him."

Ninna's ears perked up and she listened closely while talking absently to Sora.

"I...I can't," Riku murmured.

"Why not?" Oram asked. "I know something is wrong and if you want any help, you're gonna have to ask for it." Oram found it a bit shocking at how he had grown so fond of the two boys. It was weird, he was already worrying over them.

"But I promised I wouldn't tell!" Riku exclaimed. "We pinky swore!"

Once again, Oram squatted down to the boy's level and looked him straight in the eye. "Riku, if you're really his friend, if you care about him so much, then you need to help him. If you made everything better, I think he'll forgive you for breaking a promise."

"But we pinky swore," Riku whispered, looking down sadly.

Oram realized this was getting them nowhere, so he tried a new approach. "Okay, how about this?" he said. "You tell me and I won't do anything you don't want me to do about it."

Riku gave him a reproachful look. "You promise?"

"Pinky swear," he said, holding out a pinky. Grinning, Riku hooked the man's pinky for a brief moment and let go. "So, are you going to tell me?"

Riku nodded.

"Okay then," Oram said, "how did Sora get hurt?"

A moment of silence, and then the quiet response of, "His parents are mean."

It took a moment or two for the words to finally get through his thick skull. "You mean..."

"They're really mean to him," Riku said sadly. "I walked in on them in the kitchen one time. They were hitting him."

Oram just sat there, dumbstruck. How could they do such a thing? he thought. Why would anyone want to hurt a little boy like him? And the innocent little voice Riku said it in just made things worse.

"Mister?"

Oram snapped back into reality and saw Riku glaring at him. "You won't do anything, will you?"

"Well I have to do something!" the man exclaimed but Riku cut him off.

"No, you promised!" Riku cried. "You promised me, you pinky swore, you wouldn't do anything!"

"Why haven't you told?" Oram asked.

"I tried," Riku said sadly. "I tried telling my mommy, but no one believes me. Nobody trusts a kid when a adult says they're wrong."

Oram felt a pang of sympathy; he was right. When it came down to it, people believed adults over kids. Especially a five-year-old kid who barely understood the word 'abuse'.

"But this is wrong," Oram whispered.

He stopped talking when he saw the look on Riku's face. It was that of pure and utter sadness, and something like dawning comprehension. There was a war going on inside the boy's head and Oram couldn't tell what it was.

"What is your home like?" Riku asked in a choked whisper. "Is it... a nice place?"

The older male blinked in confusion, but spoke anyway. "Yes, it's a wonderful place. There are a lot of nice people there."

"Is there a sun? A sky?" Riku asked.

This just served to confuse Oram even more, but he held his tongue about it. "Of course. The sun is always shining, and you can see the stars... every night."

Riku nodded and he choked as a sob erupted from his tiny throat.

Ninna had been listening the whole time and stopped talking to Sora the moment she heard the cause of his injuries. How could someone do something like that! She kept on eavesdropping, thanking the gods for her good hearing and ability to hold another conversation with someone at the same time.

"What did I say!" Oram exclaimed, startled at the tears.

"Take him with you."

Omar blinked as he sat on the ground in front of the little boy, tired of kneeling. "What?"

"Take," sob, "him," another sob, "with you!"

"I don't understand what you're saying, speak clearly," Oram ordered.

Riku wiped away at his eyes and took a deep breath; it seemed as if every word was causing Riku pain. "Take Sora with you, to your home."

"I can't do that!" Oram exclaimed.

"He can't stay here," Riku said sadly. "He'll never be happy. He says to me that he is, but I know he isn't. Sora's hurting, he's my best friend. I don't want him hurt! If he has to leave here to be happy, that's okay."

Oram wiped the fresh tears away from the boy's face. "You... you really want to take him with me? What about you?"

"I don't care about me!" Riku declared. "I just want Sora to be happy. We've been best friends forever, I promised to take care of him. Even if we aren't together, I'll be happy knowing he's happy. He needs to forget about this place, about his mommy and daddy. He has to leave so he can be happy again. That's all I want! Please, please, take him with you!"

Oram bit his lip as he tried to comfort the shaking frame of the boy, as well as fight back his own tears. "But, you may never see him again..."

"I know," Riku whispered. "But... I won't ever forget him, and that'll have to do. He needs to leave this place, you need to take him with you!" He choked back more sobs, fighting to keep them at bay.

Oram looked into the innocent face so full of courage. He knew he couldn't fight this, he just had to. "Alright."

"You'll take him with you?" Riku asked, looking both relieved and incredibly sad at the same time.

Oram nodded with a sad smile on his face. "If you'll be okay, it's fine."

The next thing he knew he was being hugged by the smaller boy. Riku wrapped his arms around his new friend's neck and hugged him hard. "Thank you," he whispered. "Thank you, thank you..."

Oram hugged him back. "I'll keep him safe," he promised. Looking up, he saw Ninna and Sora making their way over to them.

Letting go of his friend, Riku gave Sora a watery smile. "Go get him packed up," Oram whispered into Riku's ear.

"C'mon, Sora," Riku said with a fake cheerful voice.

"Where are we going?" Sora asked as he walked along side his friend back towards the dock.

"We have to go and get something."

Ninna and Oram watched them leave. When you could no longer see them, the woman said, "It's hard to believe anyone would ever want to hurt a sweet little kid like him."

"He talked to you?" Oram asked tonelessly.

"Yeah," Ninna said. "Said that if Riku was fine with us, so was he."

There was a moments pause before Oram said, "Am I doing the right thing?"

"I'm sure King Mickey'll be fine with it," Ninna assured him. "Once he figures out what hap-"

"That's not what I meant," he said. "I mean, they may never see each other again once the barriers are up!"

"But it's what he wants," Ninna said. "It's not really our place to meddle in the affairs of this world, but sometimes we have too. And if it means helping Sora, then it'll be okay. And who knows? Maybe they will see each other again someday."

"I guess you're right," Oram said, although he still looked doubtful. "But, do you think they'll be okay away from each other?"

"I'm sure they'll be fine," she assured him.

Oram chuckled. "Damn those kids sure grew on me," he observed. "And I've barely known them for two hours.

"They're just soooo cute!" Ninna squealed.

They both laughed a bit, the tense atmosphere lifting slightly. Strange how they could both get so deeply involved in two boys' lives and having barely known them for a day. I guess it's some people's nature to worm their way into other's hearts.

An Hour Later

Riku was fighting the urge to go to Oram and call the whole thing off and keep his friend here. He never wanted him and Sora to part. They were best friends! Through thick and thin they were there for each other, always. And now, as a final attempt to put a light back in Sora's heart, he was sending him away.

"Riku, why did you pack up some of my clothes?" Sora asked curiously as Riku carried a red tote bag that held a few of Sora's clothes, a flashlight (don't ask), and a tooth brush.

Riku sighed, looking over at his friend. "Sora, you're going on a trip."

"A trip?" the small boy repeated.

"Yep," Riku said, proud with his answer.

"Will you be coming with me?" Sora asked.

Riku sighed, thinking of what he could possibly say. He couldn't tell Sora he was leaving forever, the brunette would hide and never leave. "You know how I said one day, you and I could go on a big adventure?"

Sora nodded, remembering.

"Well, this is it," Riku said.

"But I thought you and I would go on an adventure together?" Sora said sadly, bottom lip quivering.

"No, not on this one," Riku said sadly. "We are going on different adventures."

"NO!" Sora cried. And before Riku knew what was happening, Sora glomped his middle, sending them both toppling to the ground.

"Sora!" Riku cried. It was hard enough saying goodbye, but this was making things worse. "Come on, you need to let go."

"No!" Sora said defiantly, hugging his best friend closer. "If I let you go, you'll leave me!"

Riku knew this was getting them nowhere so he just wrapped his arms around the other boy and hugged him back. They stayed like this for a while until Riku heard stifled sobs. Looking down, he saw tears leaking from Sora's eyes.

"Hey, hey, don't cry!" Riku said, wiping away the tears. He carefully wiped the tears away from his left eye, but it still made Sora wince. "This is why you're going on a trip," Riku told him, pointing to the bruise. "So you can get away from your parents."

"But I want you to stay with me!" Sora insisted.

"No, this is where I belong," Riku said sadly. "And it wouldn't be a great adventure if we went on the same one! If we go on different ones, then we can tell the other all about it when we get back!"

Sora sniffed and looked into a pair of green eyes. "Really?"

"Yup," Riku said, nodding.

"Okay," Sora said hesitantly, getting off of the silver-haired boy.

"C'mon, we gotta go get to Oram and Ninna," he said, picking up the tote bag in one hand and Sora's hand in the other.

"Where am I going?" Sora asked.

"It's a secret," Riku laughed, but even he didn't know.

"We'll see each other again soon, won't we?"

"Yeah, of course!"

And with that, they walked to the docks where they could have their final goodbye.

They reached it in a mere five minutes. Oram looked up and placed a grin on his face when he saw the two boys approaching. "So, you ready to go, Sora?"

Sora nodded. "But where are we going, mister?"

"You'll see when you get there," he said. "I'm sure you'll love it there."

"But I can come back and see Riku soon, can't I?" he asked innocently, and he felt Riku's hand tighten on his own.

Oram smiled sadly. "We'll see."

"It's coming in thirty seconds, get ready!" Ninna cried, checking a small machine that she held in her hand before snapping it shut and tucking it away safely in her pocket. "Riku, stand back."

Sora tried to release Riku's hand, but Riku held on. "Sora, promise me something."

"Okay," Sora said in a small voice, confused in his lack of knowledge.

"Promise to be good," Riku said. "Make new friends, don't get too scared... and never forget to smile." He grinned sadly. "And most important, don't forget me, okay?"

"Okay," Sora choked, small tears running down his cheeks.

"Twenty seconds!" Ninna warned.

"Here, take care of this for me," Riku said. He pulled his chain crown necklace off of his neck and pulled it around Sora's. "I'll be wanting this back, so take good care of it."

"I will," Sora said nodding.

"Ten seconds!"

"I'll miss you," Riku said.

"Just don't forget me, okay?" Sora said sadly.

"I won't..." and he hugged Sora close, just one last time.

"It's opening!" Oram cried. "Sora, let's go!"

"I'll come back!" Sora said. "Wherever I'm going... you'll always be my best friend!"

"I'll see you again," Riku whispered, stepping backwards. Their hands finally slipped apart and a swirling blue vortex opened behind them. Oram took Sora's shoulders gently and dragged him backwards, stepping slowly through the portal. The last the two boys ever saw of each other was the other waving goodbye, tears in their eyes. Best friends forever, hearts combined...

Done

Me: For now, I am done. Thing get better soon, so stay tuned!

Riku: Now for you to work on Flickering Light.

Fire: yup. Give Digi back her job. I must say this wasn't half bad spell checking (Whacks spell checker) But it STILL wont take Sora and Riku as real names! ( continues whacking computer.)

Me: (sighs) I know, leave me alone! Ja ne and review, people!