O ne .L a s t .T i m e
chapter- one
x. insert standard disclaimer here .x
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'Things were never originally this way.'
A young boy, cloaked in midnight black, sat the trunk on his favorite tree. He gazed wistfully into the sunset, trying ever desperately to quell the raging storm of thoughts in his mind. The war raged on inside of him, heart against head. The barricades his mentality had laid were being breached… tears were already slipping down his sun-kissed cheeks. Translucent pearls strung into a flowing rosary of sorrow.
Beside him sat his female confidant. She seemed as saddened as her brunette companion. But no string of lucid beads fell from her eyes. For once, she was being strong. She had already shed her share of lament months ago.
"So… we're leaving again, hmm?" Kairi's voice was just above a whisper.
"I guess so." Sora somehow managed the three words through his sulking.
"Don't worry, we'll be together, and we'll come back together, just like last time."
"It's not that. I was just thinking how much better our lives would have been without all this happening."
"Sora! Don't say that! We-" The red head found herself at a startling revelation. Each word her best friend had just spoken had a stinging side effect. A side effect only the truth could carry.
Kairi's icy eyes dropped half mast. Hanging her head in grief, she attempted to hide her sudden feeling of guilt behind a curtain of carmine locks. Somehow finally being here with Sora and Riku wasn't enough. His words were more potent than he probably intended, but Kairi knew that she too would be happier if the previous chapters of their lives were never even written.
"…We can't stop destiny. All we can do is go with what it brings our way, good or bad." Her voice seemed to tremble. A year ago everyone was so happy and carefree. All three of them were excited to set out on their raft and explore new lands. Ironically, their plans followed through, but at their loss, and now the happiness was just a mere memory of childhood dreams.
"If destiny wasn't so cruel, we could have gone on with our lives like normal kids. If destiny wasn't so cruel, countless people could have lived. But because destiny is so cruel, we have to accept everything it gives us. We have to take every piece of shit it throws our way. God dammit, I wish destiny didn't even exist." Sora's thoughts continued to entangle him. Rage erupted from every crevice of his body. Each new wave of blazing ire quaked his already shuddering body, making him look half way between uncontrollable laughter and overwhelming saturnine. He looked nothing like the optimistic boy who traveled from world to world searching for a way to obliterate the darkness. The gravity defying spikes now drooped over, his deep azure eyes glazed over with a grayish hue.
Riku ran up behind the two and took his usual spot on the side of the tree. He looked at his friends, and for a moment, was bewildered by their awkward expressions. Knowing it wasn't his place to be asking questions at the moment, the silver haired male attempted to somehow lighten the mood.
"The raft's ready. We better get a move on before it gets too dark."
"Let's go." Kairi jumped off the tree and offered her hand to a depressing silhouette. The three made their way to the shoreline. A grotesquely built raft floated with the shifting waves, awaiting their arrival. And in the rush of feelings of leaving home once again, Sora took one last look at the islands. More memories flooded his mind and he broke down into another wave of angst. He had never acted this way before. Maybe he was PMSing? No… boys don't get PMS. Maybe everything just finally came crumbling down on him. The truth hit him right in the face and he never saw it coming.
Regardless of what was causing his sorrow, Sora concentrated on their current state. The vague letter that had drifted to shore was their only guide. Two words scribbled in rushed handwriting served of little use to their cause.
'Send help.'
Their only clue to who sent it was the seal that bound the paper in a neat roll. The king was in trouble and it seemed this was an urgent matter, considering the fact that only two days have past since the conclusion of their past adventures.
Of course, without the Gummi ship, there really wasn't any other form of transportation to get from world to world. The three took a leap of faith in taking on Riku's theory of using the raft. Exactly how it would work out, none of them knew, but they had to get around somehow.
The redhead untied the raft from the dock. With a push off the rocks, the trio was off into the unknown. Their elongated shadows danced on the white sands as they sailed further toward the horizon. Gulls sang out in a wonderful chorus and the sun provided a lightshow, adding on to their glorious departure. It was a scene taken straight out of a fairytale.
As the sun finally set, the three had their share of guzzling down innumerable bottles of soda. Obviously it wasn't a good idea to scarf down two boxes of sea-salt ice cream as dinner. By the time the stars began to peek out of the darkening sky, everyone was thrown into a delirious high. Everyone with the exception of a certain keyblade master who's tears wouldn't allow the sugar to set in. Nevertheless, Kairi and Riku danced around the fire they had carefully lit on the raft, singing at the top of their lungs.
" Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me! We pillage, we plunder, we rifle, and loot, drink up, me 'earties, yo ho! We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot, drink up me 'earties, yo ho!" The elder male grabbed his cherry mopped companion's hands and swung about the embers, laughing psychotically.
" Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me! We extort, we pilfer, we filch, and sack, drink up, me 'earties, yo ho! Maraud and embezzle, and even high-jack, drink up, me 'earties, yo ho!" Kairi looked like a crazed drunkard even if her dainty hands had never even touched a bottle of liquor. Amazing what twelve sodas and five ice cream bars could do.
Sora smiled; a bit relieved his depression hadn't dampened his friends' spirits. He turned around to face the full moon hovering aloft the swishing waters. Its shape was reminiscent of a certain organ. A few seconds later, everything around him began to blur. His head felt heavy and his eyelids refused to remain open. It wasn't exactly a sleepy feeling, more like a groggy daze. As his eyes slammed shut, Sora's body hit the tightly bound logs with a muffled thump. The two pirates were still lost in their ecstasy to even notice.
Colors, so many colors rushed behind the boy's eyelids. The colors soon materialized into images of an awfully familiar place. Stark white walls surrounded an extensive bleached table with several candles positioned in the center. At one end sat a young woman, her pale blonde hair twisted into a loose ponytail and rested on her right shoulder. Striking sapphire eyes stood out profoundly from her pale appearance. Silence layered thickly in the room, yet the only audible sound was the scribbling of a pencil. Sora looked around, befuddled by his sudden warp from reality.
"Oh, I wasn't expecting you so soon." The girl looked up and smiled cheerfully, laying down her sketch pad and pencil on the table.
"Um… and you are?"
"We've met before, but you just don't remember. You aren't supposed to remember."
"Excuse me?"
"My name is Namine. I'm a nobody created from your heart. Uh well technically Kairi's heart."
"So exactly when did we meet?"
"The first time we met each other was quite a while ago. It's been a year now. We met in a place called Castle Oblivion. The reason you don't remember is because I played with your memories."
"You played with my memories?"
"I was ordered to do so under the command of Marluxia. He was a member of Organization XIII. The story is a bit long and time is of the essence at this moment. You'll vaguely remember the events as time passes by… if you allow them to resurface from the darkness in your heart.
"If I am correct, you received a letter from the king yesterday. The letter was a very distressing sight and you are traveling with your best friends to assist his majesty, correct?"
"Yeah, can we skip to the point?" He tapped his toes anxiously, playing with his hands in his lap. Those eyes, they were so intense it was difficult to keep staring.
"Yes, of course. Sora, are you familiar with Fragments?" Namine picked up her pencil again and began drawing, shifting her piercing gaze from the keyblade master to her sketch pad. Sora shifted in his seat, somewhat more comfortable without her staring straight at him.
"Fragments?"
"Yes, Fragments. They're beings formed from forgotten memories. We all tend to forget things now and then, but sometimes we forget very important things. As time passes, it becomes more and more difficult to remember until one day we can't even recall the event from happening. The same works with people. The memories eventually begin to pile up in the Crossroads of Time, and pretty soon they take a life of their own. Nevertheless, they do not possess hearts. Fragments look almost exactly like the people they represent; however, they know not who they are. Their only clues are the dreams they have that reflect the forgotten events." An awkward silence settled in, but the blonde continued to draw, her eyes fixated on the age-stained sheets.
"I don't quite understand fully how this has to deal with what's going on in real life."
"Let me finish. Nobodies can turn into Fragments too, you know. Some Nobodies you might remember from the past are already beginning to turn into Fragments. In retrospect, Fragments are missing pieces of people. Although, they don't necessarily have to have a person to be a missing piece.
"What I have just told you may be quite confusing, but the heart is a confusing thing. I myself am a bit perplexed by these new discoveries. The king will be able to help you more."
Sora looked blankly at his mentor. Indeed, everything was coming down on his head. A new enigma was already pounding at his door. What's worse was his current emotional state wouldn't be able to support another fast-paced thrill ride.
"Sora, your next adventure isn't going to be easy. You should already know this. This time you'll be accompanied by your friends. It may sound like a better deal, but things are a little more twisted now. Are you ready?"
"I-I… I think I had too much sugar."
Namine smiled and looked up. Her face was getting blurry. Music began to escape her lips. The sound wasn't her voice at all. It was a more masculine tone with maybe a second voice underneath of a perky girl. "Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me! We kindle and char, inflame and ignite, drink up, me 'earties, yo ho! We burn up the city, we're really a fright, drink up, me 'earties, yo ho!"
The copper spiked lad reeled back in shock. He rubbed his eyes furiously and squinted with all his might, yet everything continued to get blurrier. The same annoying melody kept going verse after verse. "We're rascals, scoundrels, villans, and knaves, drink up, me 'earties, yo ho! We're devils and black sheep, really bad eggs, drink up, me 'earties, yo ho!"
Black cumbersome boots tripped over each other, sending Sora tumbling over. In the pinnacle of his fall, something caught him by the wrist. It obviously wasn't Namine, the hand was too strong. The blurry picture subsided and there in front of the poor youth was his overjoyed chum, still basking in his sugar rush. With a snap of the wrist, Sora went flying back onto the raft. Riku whipped around and raised his hands in the air, beaming with delight.
"Whoa almost took a dive there, buddy! Oookay! Kairi, last verse is all yours!"
"Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me! We're beggars and blighters, ne'er-do-well cads, drink up, me 'earties, yo ho! Aye, but we're loved by our mommies and dads, drink up, me 'earties, yo ho!" A bottle of bright crimson liquid that almost matched her hair was raised high in the air. Kairi did one last spin and fell right on her bottom, giggling like a school girl.
"Whoo! I'm pooped. Being a pirate's not an easy thing, y'know! Haha, all righty, let's all hit the sack. We get up bright and early tomorrow." The aqua eyed male elbowed his disoriented friend right in the gut, causing him to send dinner overboard.
Sleep somehow came easier for everyone. Even Sora got his share of shut eye, yet even in his dreams he could not escape the haunting words from earlier.
'things are a little more twisted now.'
Closing Notes: miff, writer's block sucks. i tried my best to get over it though, i really did. on the contrary, it was pretty fun working on this. the whole hyper pirates thing got me somewhat motivated. "Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me!"