Kingdom Hearts II The Untold Chronicles

Chapter Two – Chance

It was the morning after and Shuku felt great. She stretched her arms over her head and sighed out. Shuku had allowed Sora to go and be with his friends. Shuku had some soup for dinner and bundled up.

Shuku turned her head to the window because the sun was shining in. Shuku felt bad for taking Sora's room, but he offered it to her. Shuku climbed out of bed in a pair of pajamas that Sora's mom donated to her. Shuku began to brush her long hair. It was a task to handle because she couldn't reach some parts. Shuku ran her fingers in her hair. There was an empty feeling in her heart. It felt some one was supposed to be brushing her hair. Shuku couldn't remember. She only remembered Sora, the kind face that pulled her from the water. Shuku's eyes connected with the mirror and she was over whelmed. Images of dark, wet places crept into her mind. She heard a saw grinding against bones. She dropped the brush, staring into the mirror.

Mirrors were known for their theoretical spiritual power, something Shuku was full of but had not acknowledged it. Shuku's reflection in the mirror pulsed. The mirror's glass turned into water. Shuku leaned forward putting her finger tips in the water. It didn't harm her so she stuck her head in. Soon, she found herself swallowed up whole by the mirror. It was a subtle blue. Shuku could see a serpent like creature floating towards her.

"Leviathan…" The words came to Shuku's mouth. She remembered her powers. Shuku remembered her gift.

"Shuku! Shuku!" A voice cried. She recognized it.

"Sora…?"

Shuku was immediately spat out of the mirror and onto Sora's wooden floor. She was soaking wet. Sora knelt down to Shuku, shaking her.

"Shuku, thank goodness! I thought you left!" Sora said.

"I have a gift… I think it just grew…" Shuku touched her wet hair.

"What are you talking about?" Sora was confused. Shuku stormed out of Sora's house, but he followed her. Shuku rushed to the beach with her arms loosely at her side. "Shuku, what are you doing…?"

"O Leviathan, I summon you. Fulfill your obligation to me and appear before this spiritual offering! Incrementum Aqua Deus!" Shuku recited, lifting her arm. The sea water shot up into the air, touching the clouds. The cylinder of water started to spin sending wind everywhere. Shuku's wet locks flowed backward. She felt something was missing. Shuku had created a cyclone.

People in the town started to look out their windows because the tower of water was very noticeable. Sora's mother noticed that Shuku and her son was AWOL. She knew Sora would be at the root of the cyclone.

"Shuku, be careful!" Sora warned. Shuku was in another place mentally. The cyclone started making its way towards the island. Sora grabbed Shuku's shoulders.

"SHUKU!" He cried out again. The tower of water dropped instantly. Shuku lowered her arm. Sora sighed. "That was close!" Shuku was unconcerned with the well being of the island. She stared at her hand.

"Something is different. Could this be the next level of my gift…? Watera?" Shuku whispered.

"…You're a mage?"

"Something like that… I'm not sure." Shuku turned to walk back to Sora's house.

"Either way, we need to get you into some dry clothes!" Sora became cheerful as usual. Shuku smiled at him.

"I hope you had fun scaring the crap out of everyone, Sora." His mother mocked at the door. Sora stepped in with a hand behind his head.

"Sorry, mom."

"Well, try and keep that kind of thing under control!"

"Yo moms! Do you have anything that Shuku can wear? She's kinda wet." Sora broke the news. His mother scowled.

"You went off and got the poor girl all wet with your stupid conjuring!" His mother yelled. "What did she ever do to you?" Sora's mother pounced and grabbed Shuku by the shoulders leading her into the master bedroom.

"But…!" Sora tried to clear his name.

"The only but in this conversation is a sore one! So zip it, Sora!" His mother threatened with a smirk. She slammed her bedroom door.

"Oh well." Sora sat at the kitchen table to wait.

Sora's mother reached into her closet. Shuku sat on Sora's mother's bed. She insisted that Shuku sit there despite her wet behind.

"I finished making your outfit sometime in the evening on Halloween. I hope you'll take to it." She smiled to Shuku.

"Thank you very much." Shuku took the outfit.

"I'll leave you alone so that you can change in peace. And by the way don't let that Sora bully you. He bullies all the girls he likes." His mother revealed. Shuku blushed.

"I won't." Shuku placed the blame on Sora. Those two words kept his mother believing that Sora dunked Shuku in the cyclone. His mother parted the room, leaving Shuku by herself. "My… This is beautiful!"

Shuku emerged in a black sleeveless dress with pink lacy trim. The dress flared out at her hips and stopped at her thigh. At her hips were hand full pink belts. Sora's mother accessorized Shuku with black shoulder gauntlets that flared out at her hands, also with lacy pink trim. It gave a Lolita feeling.

"Cool." Sora said calmly.

"Do you like it?" Shuku blushed.

"Yes. I like it a lot." He turned cherry red. Sora's mother waltz by with a knowing smile.

Sora sat on the dock by himself after dinner. Shuku and his mother were busy talking. His mother was trying to help Shuku recap about her past. Shuku was unaware from where she had come from. He bit his nail in a nervous habit.

He suddenly heard distant crying. Sora jumped from the side of the dock into the sand. Sora followed the sound of crying and it lead him to the cave were Kairi, Riku, and himself played when they were younger. Riku's friend, Ashley was sitting on the ground with her face tucked into her knees.

"Hey, Ashley, you okay?" Sora asked.

"I-I'm not supposed to be talking to you." She didn't raise her head.

"Why not?" Sora asked, plopping next to her.

"Riku told me not to." Sora winced. Sora thought Riku was over this—mental complex.

"How about we start with, why you're crying." Sora moved his face close to her buried one.

"Well," Ashley began, lifting her head. A tear was falling from her eye when she did so. Ashley's distant power took flight. She had a gift to make memories come alive and peak into the weak-minded people to see the past. It was a power still trying to grow but, left on the back burner for her fire abilities…

"I went home like Riku told me…" The night became reality for Sora. He looked over his shoulders. "I waited in his room for him to return. But he didn't." Ashley stood in a room by herself with no lights. Sora raised his hand to comfort her. His hand went through her body as she walked past him. "There was a bang. I went out of the room to see and I…" The reality distorted. Ashley and Sora were back in front of the cave.

"What happened? You can trust me…" Sora put his hand over Ashley's.

"Riku and Kairi were kissing—in the living room."

"Wow. I saw that coming."

"…You knew…?" The anger in Ashley's voice started to form at Sora.

"No! It's just that Riku has liked Kairi for a long time and since I didn't have any interest in Kairi, she probably took a chance with Riku." The air around Sora became hot. Ashley was depressed and angry. Her feelings were reaching a climax that her powers would mimic. Ashley burst into flames that didn't consume her. Sora had to move away because the flames were so intense.

"Please leave…" Ashley said quietly to Sora.

"Come with me!" Sora shouted over the blaze.

"Sora… Thank you, at least some one cares." Ashley turned her back to Sora putting her face into her knees.

Four days had past and Sora went to see Ashley every night at the cave. She sat unmoving with the fire around her never dying. He left her food to eat, but when he came back the next time, it was still there. Sora confronted Riku, bring Shuku along.

Sora pounded at Riku's door. Riku answered half dressed.

"What is it, Sora?"

"Don't 'What is it, Sora?' me! Do you even know where Ashley is?"

"No. I don't care." Riku said shutting the door. Shuku stuck her foot in the door to prevent him from closing it. Shuku felt the energy that Sora was giving. Shuku knew what to do.

"Sora really wants to talk to you." Shuku said. Riku stared her down.

"You must be Shuku. Why don't you go talk to Ashley?" Riku suggested.

"I don't know who that is." Shuku said. "Just talk to Sora first, and then we'll talk to this Ashley."

"You don't know an Ashley?" Sora asked Shuku. She shook her head. "I really think they know each other. They have similar power traits and they showed up at the same time. Shuku is suffering from some type of trauma-induced amnesia."

"Ashley is as well." Riku responded.

"Riku, Ashley is at the cave." Sora told him.

"I told you, I don't care." Riku said through the crack of the door. Shuku grunted and kicked Riku's door open. Riku's answer offended Shuku more than it did Sora.

"Sora cares. You should, too!" Shuku reprimanded Riku. Riku was not pleased.

"Look, it was fun taking care of her for a while but I don't have the time." Riku said.

"You and Kairi really hurt her." Sora reminded. Riku looked away.

"So what?" He was cold. Sora winced at his behavior. It was indeed Riku to be so selfish. "She had nothing to do with my feelings."

"You know," Sora shook his head in disbelief "Ashley really liked you."

"She liked me because I gave her some where to stay! She didn't like me." Riku reasoned. Sora turned his back.

"Whatever, Riku." Sora scoffed, leaving.

"Whatever, Riku." Shuku said too, following behind Sora. Riku slammed his door as soon as Shuku set foot outside. "What a prick."

"I'm disappointed at Riku. I would have taken an opportunity like that and started over." Sora sighed.

"Why would Riku need to start over?" Shuku asked innocently.

"Riku has done some bad things, Shuku. Things that people still haven't forgiven him for." Sora started walking towards the beach. "Come on! I'll try and introduce you to—whoa!" The air became unbearably hot.

The enraged Ashley appeared over the horizon. Her clothes she borrowed from Riku were in shambles. Ashley was barely dressed, but in her eyes Sora could tell it didn't matter. With every step she took the heat intensified. Shuku slanted her head like a puppy.

"Riku!" Ashley cried in a booming voice. "Riku!" She wailed again.

"What's that girl doing?" Shuku asked Sora.

"Something desperate." Sora said. A fire ball streaked across the sky. It curved and scorched the plants in the town square. Immediately, people shut their curtains and watched quietly.

"Riku!" Ashley cried. Kairi came trotting down a hill and into the square.

"Sora, what's going on?" Kairi asked. Sora squeaked.

"Kairi get the hell out of here! Ashley is going to burn you to a crisp!"

"She's gonna what?" Kairi said confused. It was too late. Ashley locked on to Kairi.

"You!" Ashley hissed. Ashley gathered a large ball of fire in her hands. "You! I thought you were my friend!"

"I don't know what's she's talking about!" Kairi denied. Ashley kept gathering power.

"I told you that I adored Riku! I told you that evening! You betrayed me! You said you liked Sora, Kairi! That I had nothing to worry about! Nothing!" Ashley was boiling over. The ball of flames was massive. Kairi was stunned with fear. Ashley unleashed her merciless rage. The ball flew past Sora. The edges of his hair burned.

"Kairi, move!" Sora called out.

The ball was deflected into the sky. Riku stepped in front of Kairi. He smacked it away equipped with an Aqua Glove. Riku's glove went up in smoke. Ashley hesitated.

"How about you pick on some one your own size?" Riku taunted.

"Riku! That isn't what she needs right now!" Sora shouted.

Shuku felt something pulse in her chest. Something was telling her to go towards Ashley. Shuku took a step forward and then began walking towards Ashley. Ashley took a step backwards.

"S-Stay away!" Ashley warned. Sora gasped.

"Shuku, get back here! You don't know what you're dealing with!" Sora shouted.

"I guess it's a shame your little girl friend will get roasted." Riku said apathetically. Shuku held her hands out, surrounding her hands with a Watera spell. Ashley let Shuku approach.

"You must be good if you're with Sora, but I can't allow you to keep me from my goal." Ashley said once Shuku was in the flames.

"It's okay." Shuku said gently placing her hands on Ashley's cheeks. Shuku had successfully entered Ashley's flames with her Watera spell. "It's okay." She said again. Then, Shuku let the water surge through out Ashley's being, extinguishing her flames. Ashley cried out for mercy, the water like acid to her flesh. Shuku didn't let go as she covered Ashley in water. Their eyes connected as Ashley screamed. Like a flash flood, their memories of each other were restored. There were fragments still missing, but this was a start for them. Ashley closed her eyes and her power died down. Shuku let go of Ashley's cheeks and she fell to the ground, smoking.

Shuku waved for Sora to come over to Ashley.

"You were amazing, Shuku!" Sora congratulated.

"I remember, Sora. Ashley's tortured eyes help me remember. And yes, I do know her. Ashley and I go way back." Shuku said that and glared at Riku. Shuku stormed up to Riku.

"What now?" Riku huffed.

"You should be ashamed. I should have let Ashley toast your ass. You're a heartless bastard." Shuku spat into his face and it landed on his nose. Riku lunged at her to knock her lights out, but her energy stopped him. He felt a sudden surge of energy as she turned away. Riku didn't know what it was. Shuku knew it was her summon, Leviathan, protecting her.

Sora and Shuku picked up Ashley and moved her to Sora's house.

Riku looked at Kairi with cold eyes.

"You tricked her." Riku said. He had heard Ashley screaming at Kairi.

"I didn't trick her." Kairi lied.

"Kairi, you of all people, shouldn't like to play games." Riku finalized the conversation. Riku went inside of his house and examined his hand. Ashley had done a bit of damage to his hand. Even though his hand was wounded, Riku punched a wall in his home—driving his fist through it. "She won't forgive me now…"