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S A C R I F I C E
x;; Kairiku collection
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oo2 ;; wish
The moonlight cut soft lines from Heaven to the shoreline, sprinkling a silver glow along quiet waves and dark palm trees. Nighttime had recently painted the sky a deep navy, free of dying pastels and vibrant blues while darkness – a more peaceful concept, but deceitful nonetheless – overwhelmed the islands. Tiny, glimmering pinholes dotted the sky, adding to the milky celestial light with dull blinks of white. A pair walked calmly down the beach, water tickling their bare toes every now and then while the wind tossed locks of red and silver around lips and noses. And the moon's tranquil light surrounded her silhouette like an angelic aura, he mused, silently stealing glances in her direction while they got farther away from the dock.
It might have been romantic if he knew that he was on her mind, and not Sora; but it was an unspoken fact that Kairi couldn't stop worrying about the brunette. He had recently been called back to the outer worlds at the King's beckoning, supposedly for nothing other than a recollection of past events and plans for the future. But the redhead never budged on her strong opinion: they should all start traveling together, for none of them wished for the previous years-worth of separation to creep back into their lives. Sora insisted that King Mickey only wanted him to attend, and barely persuaded her by promising letters everyday of his stay. "And Riku will be here with you," the teen remembered him saying, flashing Kairi his infamous heartthrob smile, "So you have nothing to worry about."
Riku couldn't remember if it made her feel better or not – but he guessed it hadn't.
Regardless, she called him to their old Play Island near ten at night with an offer that he couldn't refuse: company.
It wasn't often that the two got to talk anymore: about what happened, what they wished would happen, or just little conversations that friends are supposed to have. Maybe that was why there was a heavy silence lingering between the two bodies, blocking out each others voices that rested idly in their throats but had no desire to be noticed. It had been so long since they walked the shore together, it became frighteningly foreign – it was always Sora and Kairi or Kairi and Sora now, but never Riku anymore. He should have seen it coming; he should have understood when he realized that Kairi's heart took shelter in Sora's, not his. He should have accepted it when he locked himself behind that door and made Sora give him a promise (Take care of her because I failed I failed I failed I'm so sorry I hurt you). But somewhere inside him, he still had a bit of hope; he was still the naïve boy that thought he could wake her up or get her heart back with a kiss, because he was her hero and she was his princess.
"A lot has happened, huh?"
The silence was broken; her honeyed voice caressed his ears with truth, and he realized that there was no response that summed up how much he agreed. Yes, a lot had happened – more than you could ever know. But he kept silent and he found his shoulders rolling upwards in a nonchalant shrug, as if he could beat back the memories with his coolness.
But part of him knew that she didn't need an answer; she already knew what it was, as she waited in the serene stillness and stared at the sand beneath their unclothed feet.
It was another five minutes of endless silence as they walked and thought.
Riku had eventually taken to staring up at the sky, a quiet captivation held within the soothing stars. It was almost frightening to remember that, if he had stargazed before, he would have been watching them flicker out – one by one, worlds consumed by the darkness that he had once released. That he had once believed in. That he had once controlled. Kairi managed to catch him scanning the sky, lips curling into a gentle smile while she timidly connected his pessimistic pastime with one of her own.
"When I was little, I used to wish on stars at night," Kairi reminisced, her pale neck lightly arching back to peer up at the sky. His mouth didn't move, but his eyes trailed back down to their world, cautiously connecting with her elegantly illuminated face. When she realized that he wasn't to respond, she continued: "What would you wish for?" He hadn't noticed that she turned to look at him again after her awkward question, for he was instantly spellbinded by how blue her eyes were, and how more enticing they became when the moonlight shone against them. He blinked once to close the contact, licking his suddenly bone dry lips and actually contemplating her question. If it had been a year ago, he would have wished to be with her – but he tried to believe that he wasn't so selfish now, and turned the thought away.
"Nothing." The answer might have come out harsher than he wanted it to, but Kairi didn't take notice.
"Really? Nothing at all?" Her inquisitive voice almost made him cringe; it was too obvious that her intentions had been to ask: no regrets?
I have too many regrets to name. But…
He didn't answer, and she stopped walking. Like a loyal pet, so did he. Her head tilted for a moment, and he could tell that she was biting her lip from hesitation; he was sure he knew what was coming next, and wasn't too willing to hear it.
"Riku," She started quietly, her voice no longer airy and innocent but holding a deep confusion that he knew he caused. "You've changed. Why don't you talk to me anymore?"
He took in a deep breath to recover from the reality, blinking harshly before devising a plan and allowing a semi-amused (but fully fake) smirk to lift the corners of his lips. "Maybe I would, if you weren't so damn persistent."
At first she was shocked, eyebrows knotting in puzzlement and annoyance and failure. Perhaps it was his casual swear that made his accusation so real; he knew she hated it when he swore at her, but eventually she caught his joke and rolled her eyes. It was hesitant nonetheless, because they both knew that they were hurting inside – they both wanted each other's voices and conversation just to know that not everything had changed because of some stupid mistakes. But before he knew what was happening, he was off balance and tumbling into the ocean; she pushed on his shoulder, and either she had grown incredibly stronger or he was completely out of it (he was willing to bet on the latter). He blinked stupidly after splashing into the cold liquid, gaze trailing upwards to the wickedly smiling redhead.
I don't need a wish.
There was never a truer smile that coiled around his lips while a devious flame flickered in bright aquamarine and she burst into gigglefits. But her laughs soon melted into screams of protest when he grasped her wrist in his hand, and pulled her into the water with him.
This is all I could want.
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a u t h o r s . note ;;
Wow. My ending was really cliché, but at least I updated, right? Nyeh. For the record, I have about… six or seven drabbles started and saved on my computer, but I keep losing muse and I'm pretty sure over half of them are too poorly written to see FFnet. I'm going to try to finish another one soon, though. Yay.
And thank you everyone who reads or reviews, it's much appreciated. I love getting input on what I write, and I'm glad that you seem to be enjoying it so far.