-Kingdom Hearts 2
These Chains That Bond Us
- Lament

Author's Notes: I'm sorry this took so long to get up. My internet went down for a majority of my summer. I'm still in the middle of chapter 3 (sorry again), but hopefully we'll see it in the not-too-distant future.

Chapter Two Summary: New places, new people... Sora and Riku must rely on each other and their new friend in order to get used to their new environment. Meanwhile, Kairi's lamenting over the loss of her dearest friends and decides to investigate the mysterious fog about Destiny Island...

Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts 2 does not belong to me; it is the property of Square Enix/Disney Interactive/Buena Vista Games.

- Chapter Two : That Glimmer in Your Eyes -

The waves sifted through the grains of sun-warmed sand. It lapped at pebbles, splashed over rocks. Things seemed alright on the large island the children - who were not quite children anymore - of Destiny Islands called home. Yet there was something astray, as would be thought every time things seemed eerily content.

A girl in her school uniform - blue plaid skirt, white button-up tee, matching blue plaid tie, black knee-high socks, and simple black shoes - took a step back in disbelief, a gasp passing her lips. "What's going on…?" She muttered, shock lining her voice.

"I don't know, Selphie…" Her companion answered; red-haired Kairi stood where the waves met the shore, staring at the source of their distress. She too wore her school uniform, exact to Selphie's - minus minor size differences. Bookbags were abandoned to the side in their prior rush to the beach at the sight of their beloved island playground.

"Guys…" A familiar voice drifted towards them. The girls turned; Tidus and Wakka, wearing the boys' school uniform, stood nearby. The former had a vexed look glazed over his face.

"You know something, Tidus?" Kairi dared to ask after a moment of awkward silence, her voice broken.

"No, nothing about what happened to the island…" He replied, staring at the shroud of mist across the water. "But… I heard that Sora and Riku apparently never came home last night… Wonder what happened?"

"Wh-what?" The redhead was perplexed. If they hadn't come back yesterday, where would they be? They couldn't… "They're not still on the island, are they!" She exclaimed, causing her friends to take a step back from her.

"Are you o-okay?" Selphie questioned timidly as she tapped Kairi on the shoulder. The other girl spun on her heel, throwing a cold glance in the brunette's direction before rushing off to the docks; either to check if all the boats were there, or something more spontaneous.

"Kairi!" Her friends called in unison after recovering from the outburst. Noticing that she wasn't even acknowledging their calls, they looked at one another nervously. Tidus was the first to drop his bag and run after.

"Kairi, what are you doing!" The blonde boy exclaimed once he had caught up to her; gripping her arm, he was determined to hold her back.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I have to go find my friends, Tidus! If you had the smallest bit of empathy for them, you'd join me!" The girl snapped back, trying to pull away. "Now, please, let me go!"

"You've got to no be so impulsive. They'll be fine. We'll go search for them once the fog clears, ya?" Wakka attempted to calm and otherwise convince her once he had caught up.

"Please don't go!" Selphie shouted, plain and simple.

'You guys don't care if they're hurt, do you!" Kairi continued to argue, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

"Kairi." Tidus spoke firmly, his voice taking a serious tone that caused the three others to stop and turn all attention to him. "Listen to me. Those two are my best friends too, so obviously I'd care for them. A lot, in fact. But we can't immediately assume the worst - besides, what if you got hurt over there? Then what? We can't just keep sending people over without a sense of safety, and a stupidity to what may be lurking over there. Sora and Riku have gone through a ton, way more than you ended up with; they'll be fine. Let's just not worry too much until the fog clears, then we'll go look for them like Wakka said, okay? C'mon Kairi, listen to your common sense."

Tidus' speech was astounding, leaving his friends breathless and taken by his words. Selphie stepped forward to place her hand upon the blonde's, gently urging him to step back. He nodded and freed the redhead from his grasp; Selphie took his place and spoke softly to her friend.

"Tidus is right… They'll be okay, and you'll be okay… Come on Kairi… Let's go…" The brunette pulled at the taller girl's arm. A moment passed; Kairi finally nodded and returned inland with the others, but solemnly hung her head the rest of the morning and well into the afternoon.

--

A light. Glimmering, pure light. It bathed a boy and his best friend in its innocence. The intensity had pained their eyes at first, but by now they were fine, slowly trying to find their way through the infinite emptiness. Where had they begun? Where would they end? It seemed as though hours had passed before they had stopped. They were pausing to think when suddenly the light that surrounded them slowly began to fade. The boys clung to each other for fear of separation, before the light returned in tenfold, stealing consciousness from their bodies.

The younger boy was first to stir. Slowly, sapphire eyes eased themselves open, eyelids fluttering while his pupils adjusted to the light in the room. His eyes scanned what he could see from the spot where he lay; it wasn't much, but very unknown to him. He raise his right arm rest in front of him to brush chocolate bangs from his face. After a slight yawn, showing that sleep still riddled him, he attempted to sit up when he noticed a weight across his torso.

"Huh?" The boy brushed his fingers along the curious surface, realizing his fingertips met skin. He traced along the edge of what he found to be an arm, up to the sleeve, and finally looking up to the face. A deep crimson red came to his normally pale face at the recognition of the person.

"Riku…" He barely breathed out. At the slight noise, his companion barely stirred. The brunette held his breath for just a moment before the silver-haired teen returned to his serene slumber. Cautiously, the former barely raised Riku's arm and slid off the bed, careful not to crush himself into the wall that was there. Replacing the other boy's arm on the bed, he was finally able to peer about the room properly.

Plain wooden walls, a windowsill seat, plain white curtains, small mirror resting on a lonely desk, two chairs, all set in a cozy space, upon a soft tan colored carpet; it appeared like a room at an inn. Another yawn escaped the brunette when he spotted two doors. Peeking in the closer one, he found a plain white-tiled bathroom with a close. There was a toilet, sink, and shower; white towels were hanging off a towel rack adjacent to the toilet. The boy used the toilet fairly quickly, and left after washing his hands. Checking the other door, he was greeted by a young girl, fist raised as if to knock.

"Oh, I'm sorry." She spoke quickly, cheeks slight tinged pink. She bowed deeply before continuing. "I'm Aya Chiosu. I'm the maid for this hall. May I come in?" The boy looked her up and down. She was wearing a simple black dress, lined with dozens of petticoats (or so it appeared). Her white apron was lined with lace, as were the ends of her sleeves, which began in cute little puffs. Her black hair was tied back in a high ponytail, a delicate-looking headband of white lace held back any short locks; black roses adorned the left half. She also wore white gloves with matching black roses. Plain white stockings disappeared into simple black shoes with little ribbons of more lace. Her eyes were a shiny grey, glimmering in the pale sunlight about the room.

"Uh, yes, of course…" The boy stepped aside. "I'm-"

"Sora, I know."

The brunette appeared dumbfounded and at a lost for words. "How…?" She nodded her head towards the bed before she strode towards the bathroom. Sora turned, staring at Riku's sleeping form.

--

The night was quiet, like many nights before. But it was different this night. An emptiness lined the redhead's heart. She felt… incomplete. The warm smiles that attempted to comfort her were familiar, but not right. Images faded in and out of her mind.

'Hey Kairi! Want to go swimming?'

'Kairi! Come watch me and Riku race!'

'Let's go work on the raft, Kairi!'

'Isn't it awesome being friends?'

'I'm so happy we're all together again!'

The girl cuddled her legs into her chest, her chin resting upon her knees. A tear rolled down her cheek painfully. It had only been a day, of course… But she couldn't remember a time when she wasn't with either of the two boys other than when they had been off on their adventures for a couple of years. But they had just gotten back - actually, truly returned, only to disappear with rising mist. The tears freely fell from her eyes and she sobbed into her arms.

Moments later, her crying subsided mostly, though her face was still sticky from the saline. Standing up, she was determined to find her lost friends. Gathering herself together, she advanced on the floating boats on the docks. Setting loose her own, she rowed out, not caring whether or not she would get hurt.

As soon as she reached the dock on the opposite island, she realized how thick the fog was. The redhead set herself upon the sands, when the haze seemed to envelop her entire being. At first, she shrugged it off and trudged through, shouting out Sora and Riku's names. But the deeper she walked in, the harder it was to hear her voice echoing. Kairi was becoming a bit unnerved.

"S-Sora… R-Riku…" She stammered, now creeping very slowly across the beach. "S-Sor-" The fog was beginning to act extremely strange. It cleared about her in a wide circle, as if creating a ring just for her. Then figures began forming from the mist; dancer-like forms pranced eloquently about her, crisscrossing paths, more and more. They were crowding closer and closer, inviting her to waltz with them, mysteriously enrapturing her. But her circle was becoming smaller; the air was becoming thick, harder to breath, her vision was clouding.

Kairi fell to the ground; unconscious before her body came to rest upon the sands.

--

"Sora, you were still out cold when we ended up here," Riku explained. The silver-haired boy was sitting up in the bed, the blankets splayed across his legs. He scratched at his head, his hair flung about before he ran his fingers through to smooth the locks back out.

"So… Where are we exactly?" His brunette companion inquired, settled at the foot of the bed, hugging his knees.

"I don't know. I fell asleep soon after telling Aya our names." At the very moment, the girl appeared in the doorframe of the bathroom.

"You're in the village of dreams, Magical Twilight," She elucidated, a sparkle in her eye at the response. "It really is mystical."

"Magical… Twilight?" Sora was dumbfounded yet again, this time his gaze locked on the raven-haired maid.

"Yes. It's a wonderful story, actually."

"Do tell." Riku turned to her as well, as interested as his best friend.

"Well… Alright. When the founders of this village passed the hills and discovered this valley, they found the land to be fertile enough to harvest and make a living on. So they began to build their homes. And the very night they discovered this valley, an amazing phenomenon occurred - a meteor shower passed just over their heads. They didn't know what a meteor shower was at the time, though, so they decided it to called it "Magical Twilight" because they thought it was a giant spell cast in the night sky. Then, after a year, this village still had no name. People thought it had been a very long time to decide on a name. So, a village meeting was called. Everyone discussed the matter, but no one name could be agreed on. But as darkness began to fall, the spectacular phenomenon appeared in the sky again, on the opposite side of the sky in the opposite direction. Since then, the town has been named after this phenomenon that is best viewed here, in this town, every year."

"Wow…" Sora's face was lined with awe, staring out the window. "Say, when was the last time you saw the meteor shower?"

"Oh, I'd say it passed just half a month ago."

"So in other words we just missed it," Riku muttered, disappointment in his voice. The silver-haired teen looked slightly discouraged, hanging his head. Sora noticed and tried to cheer him up.

"Aw, Riku, don't be so glum. It's yearly, so it's not like it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience, right?" The brunette smiled, showing a little excitement. The older boy glanced up, aqua jewels meeting sapphires; it was as if the cheerfulness Sora had was contagious. His lips formed a smile and he nodded in agreement.

Aya smiled as well, before glancing at a dull silver pocket watch that hung from her apron. "I'd love to stay and converse more with you, but I must be completing the rest of my duties now." She curtsied, bowing her head, and politely left, shutting the door slowly on her way out.

They sat in silence for a while, taking a moment to register what had just happened. Sora then turned his head to stare blankly out the window.

"It's so… different. But kinda like Traverse Town."

"With less hustle and bustle."

"Say, Riku... You promise you won't up and leave me to fend for myself, right?"

"Sora, you know I'd never let you go alone in a new world... Not ever again. Best friends forever, remember?" A smile and warm expression lined the older teen's face. His younger friend took a moment to soak in the given response, then gave a small chuckle.

"How could I be so stupid." He returned the smile, and placed a hand upon the slim, yet powerful arm of the silver-hair boy. Riku glanced at the placement, then gazed into Sora's shining eyes. A moment passed, and a strong hand wrapped itself around the smaller one, holding on as if for dear life. Slowly, the older one brought their entwined hands to his cheek, eyes shut as he savored the moment.

"Sora... As long as you promise that we'll always be together, always be best friends..." His words drifted as he rested his cheek on his friend's hand, silver locks cascading over his shoulders.

"Riku, even if we tried, nothing could ever really pull us apart. You're always gonna be my best friend, and I'm always gonna be yours. We'll always be there for each other!" An almost naive happiness lined his voice, as if ignoring the fact his hand was captive between Riku's hand and cheek; Riku could feel a pure smile centered on him. Slowly, he opened his eyes to once again meet with those sapphire jewels he adored; the sunrise flashed through their eyes at an oddly perfect moment.

"It's amazing."

"What?"

"That glimmer in your eyes..."