A/N: Well here's the next chapter in this little saga. Sorry about the wait. It's been a busy couple of weeks. Anyways, I want to dedicate this chapter to a close family friend who passed away. She was truly an inspiration and may she rest peacefully in heaven with God.
Disclaimer: Nope I still don't own Kingdom Hearts.
Chapter 1: And so it Begins...
Kairi sighed as she looked up from the picture that she was mindlessly doodling on her paper. Her history teacher, Mr. Leon, was still droning on endlessly about some war that was fought years ago and how this war was involved in the overall scheme of life. He showed no sign whatsoever of stopping. Although an entertaining man most of the time, as well as a nice piece of eye candy, Kairi just couldn't seem to concentrate today. Kairi could feel her head beginning to fall the short distance to her desk.
If I could just shut my eyes for a moment, thought Kairi as she listened to the hum of Mr. Leon's voice as he passionately lunged into an explanation of the maneuvers used to win the war. Kairi felt her eyes closing and was rewarded with a sense of peace. I won't go to sleep though…
As Kairi lay with her head down and eyes closed, she felt herself slide into blackness. After a few moments, Kairi began to feel cold. She opened her eyes to find herself lying on a dark colored, stone floor that was made visible by an extremely pale light. She no longer heard Mr. Leon's voice as he lectured, but the voice of an older woman. Kairi remained as still as possible while she strained to hear the quiet, but harsh, words of the woman who sounded as if she stood above Kairi.
"Good work, my loyal subject," the woman replied, a smile evident on her face. "You have done well."
"Thank you, your majesty," replied a much closer voice. Whoever had spoken was male and was obviously kneeling. However, the voice sounded quite familiar…
Intrigued, Kairi decided to turn around and see who was behind her. To her horror, she couldn't move. She tried again with all her strength and still no movement came. She tried to speak, but no words came. Panic began to well up in her. And still the voices continued.
"Now that we have the seventh and final Princess of Heart, Kingdom Hearts will be mine," cried the woman, her voice malicious. She suddenly began to cackle, sending a chill up Kairi's back. The woman was evil that much Kairi knew for sure.
"Put her with the other princesses," came the woman's voice, the joy in it quite evident. "I have waited far too long for this moment."
Kairi heard movement behind her then suddenly felt two cold hands run underneath her already cold skin. She felt herself being picked up and managed to catch a glimpse of silver hair before she was thrown roughly across the male's muscular shoulder. And still she couldn't move. The boy (she had figured it was a boy due to his lack of stature) carried her for what seemed like forever without stopping and Kairi watched the beautifully colored floors as they passed below, helplessness the only sensation she could feel. Kairi could feel them being lifted up at times and a few times the colored carpets were replaced by stone and a chilling breeze. Finally the boy stopped and Kairi felt his muscles tighten as he pulled open what seemed like a heavy door.
When the boy had walked several paces, Kairi began to notice some kind of weird projection coming off the wall. They almost looked like pods found in a spaceship from Kairi's point of view. The boy suddenly stopped and Kairi heard him punch something in on a keypad. She then heard the whoosh of a door as the boy stepped out of the way. He shifted Kairi around so that he held her in his arms. Kairi tried to lift her head so as to look at the boy, but still no movement came to her. Her frustration and terror were unbearable. The boy laid Kairi down in something that reminded Kairi very much of a coffin. When Kairi could finally look at the boy, his face was hidden by the light that shown brightly behind his head. Kairi could feel tears streaming down her cheeks and she felt the boy wipe them away.
"I'm sorry," he said with an emotionless tone. "But not even the Keyblade Master can save you now."
The boy hit a button and the door began to close. Kairi couldn't breathe for the overwhelming panic that had now so fully encompassed her. She began to scream, but still no sound could be heard. She didn't stop though, determined that someone would hear her and come to her rescue. She screamed and screamed until suddenly her voice became audible to her ears. Surprised at first, this revelation only fueled her on more as she screamed harder and louder than previously. This was the only spark of hope that she had to hang on to since she still couldn't move.
Suddenly her scream seemed to shake the pod that she was in. Or maybe she was trembling. She stopped screaming only to feel the pod continue to shake. And then the pod began to call her name and Kairi suddenly realized that no one had used her name previously. It also struck Kairi as being odd that the pod's voice sounded just like Mr. Leon…
Kairi's eyes snapped open only to find herself staring into the extremely handsome face of Mr. Leon. Kairi could feel the eyes of the classroom on her and the blood began to rush to her face in her embarrassment. She had fallen asleep and was having a bad dream.
"Are you ok," asked Mr. Leon, concern evident in his voice. Something struck Kairi as being weird about the way he said that until she realized that she was still trembling and drenched in sweat.
"Yeah, I was just having a nightmare," replied Kairi quietly looking away from Mr. Leon's intense gaze. "I'm so sorry."
Luckily the bell chose to ring at that exact moment signifying lunch. Everyone began to collect their stuff and Mr. Leon realized that he hadn't assigned any homework.
"I want a five page paper on the ten things needed to win a war. You may use the class discussion as a basis. Bring it to me tomorrow."
Great, thought Kairi. Fortunately for her, she had managed to miss all of the discussion while screaming. Sighing, Kairi grabbed her books and headed towards the door only to be stopped by Mr. Leon.
"Kairi, are you sure you're alright," asked Mr. Leon again. He was staring at her intently which, in turn, was making her extremely uncomfortable.
"I'm fine, I promise," replied Kairi. "I'm so sorry for falling asleep. I won't let it happen again."
Mr. Leon continued to stare at her.
"Alright Kairi," replied Mr. Leon finally, dropping the stern look. "Make sure you don't because you don't want to have to write two papers again."
Kairi immediately caught on to what he was saying.
"Another paper," questioned Kairi, the distress evident in her voice.
"Yep," replied Mr. Leon coolly. "Since your dream was so much more interesting than my lecture, I want a three page paper on the dream. Fair enough"
Kairi sighed. She should have known that she wouldn't get off that easy.
"Extremely fair," muttered Kairi.
"Good, I'll see you tomorrow," said Mr. Leon as he ushered her towards the door. "Have fun writing!"
Kairi waved goodbye as she left Mr. Leon's classroom and began walking towards the lunchroom. She could have kicked herself for falling asleep.
Well, what's done is done, thought Kairi as she reached the lunchroom and walked through the mass of students, unnoticed and uncared about. No one was saving her a seat like so many of the other students that also went to Destiny High. She belonged to no cliques and for the most part was left alone except for those few who choose to make fun of her for whatever occasion they had chosen. Kairi didn't really mind that she didn't have any friends. She was happy enough without having to deal with all the emotions that accompanied a friend. When one was without friends, one only had to worry about oneself. Sure Kairi used to have friends, but that had been a long time ago.
Kairi reached the far side of the lunchroom and pushed open the door to the outside world. The sun was shining beautifully as puffy, white clouds floated slowly across the sky. Kairi still felt a little cold from the dream, but the warmth of the sun was already remedying the problem. Kairi walked to a big oak tree that had been planted not to far from the school and set down. Since she had no friends, the tree saved her a seat as long as it was not raining.
Kairi laid her head back against the tree and closed her eyes for the second time that day. The nightmare kept coming back to her. It had been so vivid. Kairi had never really had nightmares until she was about ten years old. It was also at the young age of ten that she had discovered her adept ability to write. Both occurrences had been brought on at the same time when Kairi suddenly realized the undeniable truth about the world: Everyone and everything changes no matter how much you wish that it wouldn't.
When Kairi was ten, the world had been perfect. Her days were spent at school and her evenings were spent on the little island that set across from their big island. It was on this little island that Kairi would set and watch the breathtaking purple, pink, and yellow sunsets reflect of the crystal clear, blue water, her two best friends setting on either side. At the age of ten, Kairi had not only had friends, but two best friends. They had been best friends since the moment Kairi had come to Destiny Islands so long ago. They were inseparable, spending every free moment together. Sora and Riku watched out for Kairi as well as competed for her attention. Although there had been other children on the island like Selphie, Tidus, and Wakka, Kairi was happiest with Sora and Riku. It was almost like time stood still when they were together. That was until the last day of summer when Kairi was ten.
On that dreadful day, Kairi had rowed out to the island noticing the foreboding rain clouds that hung in the sky. When Kairi had made it to the dock and tied her boat to it, she realized that something was not right. Seeing Riku and Sora on the little piece of land that connected to the island by a bridge, Kairi ran to them, her footsteps fueled by fear. When she had finally reached them she was taken back by the resolution in Riku's jade green eyes and the sadness in Sora's bright blue eyes. It was Sora's eyes that hurt her the most. Kairi had no idea that Sora was capable of feeling so much sadness let alone showing it.
Kairi had tried to comfort Sora, asking him what was wrong, but he had simply turned his back on her and she could tell that he was crying. Kairi looked to Riku, but Riku shook his head. He then pointed to her boat as if telling her to leave. Kairi was speechless, so stern was his face. When her voice finally returned the only reply she could muster was the word "why".
"Because, Kairi, we don't want to be your friend anymore," spat Riku as a tear rolled down his cheek. Sora only sobbed louder as he sank to the ground.
"You don't mean that," Kairi begged as she too began to cry.
"Yes we do Kairi," shouted Riku as the wind picked up and the rain began to fall. "You're just a stupid girl. Why would we want to be friends with you?"
Kairi's mouth fell open. Riku had never talked to her like that before. Kairi looked over at Sora, who now had his knees to his chest. His hair hung limp in his face from the rain.
"You too Sora," asked Kairi, her voice trembling.
Sora mumbled something and Kairi felt her temper rise.
"Answer me Sora," cried Kairi, unable to control the pain welling up in her.
"Yes," replied Sora, audible enough for Kairi to hear him. He didn't even bother to look at her.
In that instant, Kairi felt her heart break. She looked from Sora to Riku and when neither offered to look at her she turned and ran across the bridge. Once she got to the beach, the rain was coming down in sheets. Her t-shirt stuck to her tired body and her reddish brown hair was plastered to her face. And still she ran. When she reached the dock, she untied her boat and began to paddle against the raging waves. When she had gone about a hundred feet, she looked through the rain and could just make out the form of Sora watching her leave. Sora looked away, unable to meet her gaze.
When Kairi had reached the dock near her house, she hurriedly tied her small boat to the dock, not caring if it would be there tomorrow. Kairi took to running as fast as her small legs could carry her. She could no longer see for all of the tears that were falling from her deep blue eyes. She just wanted to get home, lock herself in her bedroom, and never come out again.
When Kairi reached her home she bust through the door not even bothering to glance at her adoptive mother who was quite surprised by her abrupt entrance. She ran upstairs, slammed her door shut, and then collapsed on her bed. Sheer exhaustion and heartbreak were setting in, and Kairi could do nothing to stop it. The tears began anew as Kairi hugged herself, unable to keep from trembling. Her world had dissolved around her. Without Riku and Sora by her side, how could she possibly hope to face tomorrow?
Kairi lay in her room for hours, sobbing until she could no longer breathe, and still the pain did not reside. It was, however, joined with a feeling that Kairi had never experienced in full. She had been madbefore, but she had never been all encompassed by anger. It was a scary and uncontrollable emotion. Kairi wanted to lash out at someone, anyone just to make the pain go away. She grabbed her tear-soaked pillow and began to scream into it. She screamed until her throat hurt and her voice grew hoarse. The pain and anger were still there just like a poison running through her veins.
Kairi took the pillow and tossed it, shattering a picture frame that held the picture of Riku, Sora, and herself. She walked over to the picture and stood looking at it when a notebook caught her eye. Kairi picked up the notebook and grabbed a pen and returned to her place on the bed. Kairi opened the notebook and began to write.
She described in the words of a ten year old how her heart was breaking and how she didn't think that it would ever heal again. She wrote of the pain she felt when she realized that she wouldn't be able to return to the island and see her two best friends smiling faces. She vowed to never return to the island. That night, Kairi inscribed on that piece of paper the words that only her heart knew how to say.
With each word she put on paper, Kairi began to feel a weight lift off of her. She had found her outlet, her ability to exist. So, with each passing day afterwards, Kairi began to write more and more, while the memory of the two boys' betrayal became a more and more distant memory. Eventually, she was totally immersed in her stories, no longer desiring to have close friends who could hurt her. Ideas from her stories came from everywhere. She could pass any number of people, places, or things and hundreds of ideas would pop into her head. There had also been the dreams that she had started to write down.
After the loss of her friends, Kairi began to have weird dreams. They featured people Kairi had never met. These people always talked about the same things, although Kairi usually couldn't make sense of what they were saying, much like the dream she had had in Mr. Leon's class. They all seemed to be connected, even though Kairi had as yet to figure out that connection.
A bird chirped not far above Kairi's head bringing her out of her thoughts. Kairi picked her notebook up and opened it to the first available page. She would write about the dream first since she had failed to pay attention in class and would have to research the subject.
Why does life have to be so complicated, thought Kairi to herself as the words began to flow to the paper as only the heart knows how to write them.
A/N: Please read and review. Next chapter soon!