AUTHOR'S NOTES:

This is it! The last chapter of this story! I honestly can't believe we made it.

Stick around at the end for some sappy shout-outs and a look at what I've got planned coming up after this fic. In the meantime, I wanna say a huge thank you to Shahryar, chaosmutated, crestoflight3, Crystal and YumeTakato for your reviews on the last chapter, and to everyone who has added this story to their follow and favourites list.

I hope you enjoy!

CHAPTER FORTY-NINE | EPILOGUE

The ballroom had been decorated with great swathes of fabric in beautiful creams and peaches. Crystal chandeliers hung from the great ceiling, casting tiny rainbows across the dancefloor. Kairi glanced across the crowd, picking out familiar faces as they ate and drank and danced. It had been a long time since they'd all been on the same world together, and the sight of everyone under one roof made Kairi's heart soar.

Sora pushed his chair towards hers and nudged her shoulder with his.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked. She smiled, leaning her head on his shoulder.

"How lucky I am," she answered. He snaked his right arm around her shoulder, and used his free hand to hold hers. A rainbow danced across their fingers, glinting off their matching rings and making them explode with all the colours of the sunrise.

The ceremony had been small but beautiful. They'd held it on Destiny Islands, where everything had begun for them. Naminé, Aqua and Xion had arrived at Kairi's house early that morning to help weave fresh flowers in to her hair and her dress, and Naminé had surprised Kairi with a photograph in an ornate frame. It was a picture of Kairi and her mother in the Graveyard, their foreheads pressed together, and the sight of it had left Kairi in tears for a solid twenty minutes before the others had managed to calm her down enough to row her out to Play Island where their friends and family were waiting.

They'd exchanged oaths under the midday sun, and after sharing their first kiss as husband and wife the moment had been made perfect by a shower of petals that seemed to appear from nowhere. As Kairi had glanced out towards their friends and family, she caught sight of a ghostly woman with crimson curls standing in the shadow of the Secret Place, watching them with a tearful smile, and when Kairi had waved discretely from beneath her bouquet her mother had waved back before disappearing.

They'd made their way back to the main island where a small buffet awaited them, and after being stuffed full of food and drink (and smothered by more hugs than Kairi could count) they had boarded a Gummi Ship to Radiant Garden. Given that the nature of other worlds was perhaps the worst-kept secret in all of the Realm of Light, their parents had been allowed to leave Destiny Islands for the occasion by the joint permission of all six current keyblade Masters – Aqua, Terra, Mickey, Axel and Sora, who had eagerly accepted the title a few weeks after their return from the Graveyard.

(Kairi had been given an honourary title but, ever the straight-A student, she was determined to earn it 'for real'. She would be taking it in a few months' time with Roxas and Xion who had finally been convinced by Sora that there was no reason for them not to take it.)

They'd been expecting a small gathering at Merlin's, and had been surprised when Aerith had met them in the square and had led them up to the castle where Ansem had decorated the ballroom in their honour. There was more food, more drink and – to Kairi's great relief – her grandmother, who had showered them both with compliments as she walked them a small sweetheart table set near the dancefloor.

Whilst Kadira had met Sora several times in the years since their return from the Graveyard, it was the first time that she had met Kairi's parents, and Kairi had been more than a little nervous. Sora had told her not to worry he had quickly been proven right; after some initial awkwardness they had gotten along seamlessly. Their worlds might have been different, but they quickly found common ground when they started sharing stories of Kairi's childhood. Kadira regaled her parents with stories of Kairi's infancy – of the time she had tried to convince Jiniya and Edsel that pigeons bobbed their heads because they could hear music in their brains – and her parents answered with tales of Kairi's childhood on the islands – of the time she had covered the kitchen in slime trying to make a volcano for her science project. Kairi had quickly excused herself after that, too embarrassed to listen to any more tall tales, but she couldn't deny that every time she heard their laughter float across the room a great warmth rushed through her chest.

The biggest surprise of the evening came from an unexpected gatecrasher who somehow managed to slip past both Aeleus and Dilan (who had taken to guarding the perimeter at Ansem's request). Sora had spied him near the string quartet that Ansem had hired to serenade them for the evening, and as Sora dragged Kairi across the room they heard the stranger huff.

"What is this?! You can't have strings at a party! This is totally the wrong vibe!"

"Demyx?" Sora exclaimed. The man turned, running a hand through his spiky blonde hair and grinning from ear to ear.

"Sora! What's up? I heard you were in town. Congrats, by the way!"

"What are you doing here?"

"We heard there was some fancy party going on and we thought we'd see what all the fuss was about." He ducked his head a little, leaning in towards Sora to add: "I get what you were going for here, but don't you want your guests to have a little fun?" Sora laughed and glanced to Kairi who shrugged uncertainly.

"I mean… sure, I guess," Sora answered at last, though he didn't sound entirely convinced. Demyx's face lit up and he pumped the air before turning sharply on his heel towards the small stage. He lifted his hands in to the air and gave a big thumbs up, and suddenly several people emerged from the crowd to descend upon the quartet. Kairi winced.

"Should we be worried about-"

"Nah, they're just gonna takeover." He blanched and suddenly threw his hands up, his eyes wide and nervous. "Not in a Xehanort kinda way! Just the music, I swear!" Sora chuckled, though she noticed him keeping one eye on the stage as he turned back to Demyx.

"So what happened to you, anyway?" he asked. "Isa said you were back in the Organisation again, but we didn't see you."

"Oh yeah, that," Demyx groaned. "Well after Xehanort benched me I got outta there, and I didn't look back. I was always tellin' them that I wasn't cut out for the Organisation life but nobody ever listened to me. I laid low for a while, made sure the old Nort-ster wasn't gonna try and re-recruit me again, and after a while I started hanging out with a new crowd." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder to where the other members of his band were setting up. A young man pulled a cloth covering away from a bass drum, and Kairi saw the words The Wrong Guys painted haphazardly across the front. Sora frowned.

"But Demyx," he said, "does that mean that you're still a Nobody?" Demyx shrugged again, blowing a wayward strand of hair from his face.

"Who knows? I was never officially recompleted, if that's what you're asking."

"I could… I mean, we probably defeated your heartless already… so if you wanted me to…" Sora's offer hung awkwardly between them for a moment until Demyx finally caught on. He laughed and threw up his hands.

"No way, man. My fighting days are over. Besides," he said, pausing to pat his chest. "I've been working on something new, and I kinda prefer it to the old one." Sora's face lit up at that.

The party picked up when the band took over (much to the chagrin of the string players who, despite an hour of playing, had yet to coax anyone on to the dancefloor). Even Axel had begrudgingly admitted that Demyx's band wasn't the worst that he'd ever heard, though he made Kairi swear never to repeat that around Demyx.

Kairi found herself pulled on to the dancefloor on several occasions. First by Olette who dragged her towards Hayner and Pence. They had managed to convince Axel and Isa to sneak them off-world for the reception, and were spending the night trying to avoid attention (and deportation), but after dragging Kairi through the motions of several unrecognisable dances they had created such a spectacle that Kairi would have been surprised if any of the Guardians didn't know they were here.

Kairi finally managed to escape several songs later, but her desperate search for a drink was interrupted by Yuffie who helped carry her skirts through the crowd to where Aerith was waiting with a pitcher of ice-water. Kairi thanked her and gulped a glassful down between making small-talk about the ceremony and how stressful it had been trying to plan an event with people separated on so many worlds.

"It's all worked out perfectly," Aerith said as she refilled Kairi's glass. Yuffie tapped on her arm.

"Was that part of your plan too?" she asked, pointing towards the crowd.

It had been no that Naminé and Riku had been together for the better part of the day. They had been the first choice for the roles of maid of honour and best man, which meant that once Kairi had arrived at the island the two had been duty-bound to stay together for the ceremony and during the reception afterwards. Kairi had kept stealing glances at them throughout the speeches, waiting for them to cross the line between friendship and something more, and she was just about ready to give up when she spied Naminé drain her champagne glass and place a delicate kiss on Riku's flustered cheek right before Sora and Kairi had cut the cake.

Kairi couldn't help but watch them as they danced awkwardly around each other, Riku too much of a gentleman and Naminé too nervous to risk making fools of themselves. It was a stark contrast to Roxas and Xion who were dancing casual, goofy circles around each other; a piece of cake had made its way in to Roxas' hair, and Kairi couldn't be certain that Xion hadn't been behind it. Terra and Aqua were nearby too; her head was nestled against his chest, her eyes closed with a content smile as they swayed in slow circles, and Kairi didn't miss the way that Terra and Riku seemed to share some sort of silent exchange whenever they caught each other's eye, as though Riku was asking for answers Terra couldn't give with Aqua and Naminé so near.

"Good ol' Riku," Sora laughed, appearing from the crowd to slide an arm around Kairi's waist. He took a glass of water from Aerith with a grateful grin. His shirt was rumpled, his bowtie hanging loose around his neck, and his hair seemed even wilder than usual as he stared after their childhood friend with a fond smile. "Still hopeless with girls." Kairi took another sip of water to smother a laugh.

"I don't think you're in any place to judge," she said, smirking and prodding him lightly in the side. "You were totally alone with me for five months in the labyrinth before you finally managed to say anything." He shrugged and grinned that goofy grin that still made her stomach tie itself in knots.

"We weren't totally alone," he countered. "Besides, I had more important things to worry about."

"So did Riku."

"Like what?"

"Like making sure you didn't disappear on us again." She meant it as a joke, but she couldn't quite force the laughter in to her voice, the shadow that flashed through his eyes made her heart skip a painful beat. He reached for her hand and pressed a delicate kiss on to her fingers.

"Never."

They had been pulled apart again after that; Donald had staggered towards them with a somewhat nervous Goofy in tow, proclaiming that he had 'husband-ly advice' to impart upon Sora. Kairi had found him even harder to understand than usual, but she understood enough to know that Donald intended this to be a talk 'for men' (Goofy had apologised profusely on Donald's behalf, and Sora had shot Kairi an apologetic look before agreeing to listen to Donald but only if the mage promised to drink a pint or two of water).

Kairi was drifting through the crowd when she felt a hand snare her wrist. She twisted with a grin, slipping easily from her assailant's grip. Axel grinned and threw back the rest of his drink.

"Just makin' sure you're not gettin' sloppy," he said, reaching between Isa and Ienzo to steal Isa's drink. Isa had let out a heavy sigh, but otherwise gave no indication that he had just been robbed, and Axel grinned. "So, how is the blushing bride?" The alcohol on his breath stung Kairi's nose and she laughed.

"Axel, are you drunk?"

"Not yet I'm not," he quipped with a grin. "How 'bout you? You doing okay?" She'd been better than okay for a very long time now, but it had become such a staple in their conversations ever since that day in the woods that it was almost impossible to break the habit. So she smiled and glanced towards Sora, and when he wrapped an arm around her shoulder she leant in towards him.

"Yeah," she sighed. "I'm okay."

The next few hours were a blur of laughter and dancing. Kairi lost one of her shoes, and after enduring several good-natured 'Cinderella' jokes she had discarded the other one and taken to the dancefloor barefoot. She and Sora kept losing each other in the swell of the crowd, pulled into dances and conversations and plied with drinks, but they were never apart for long. Kairi would spy him through the crowd, and before she knew it he would be by her side again, sweeping her in to a kiss amidst a chorus of clinking glasses.

The party finally began to wind down some hours later. The lights dimmed and the music slowed, and when Kairi and Sora hobbled their way back towards their sweetheart table they found Kadira waiting to bid them goodnight.

"I can't party like you young ones anymore," she had sighed, taking their intertwined hands and wrapping them in her own. She fixed them both with a bright smile, her eyes shining as she wished them well for her honeymoon. "If you survive, that is. The women in our family are nothing if not strong-willed, so you watch yourself, Sora." Kairi's ears had flushed and Sora had laughed, promising that he would be careful. Their parents had followed soon after; Ansem had offered them rooms in the castle for the duration of their stay, and Kadira had offered to show them around town in the morning. All four of them had handed over a large pouch of munny and made Sora and Kairi promise to bring back lots of souvenirs from their travels before shwering them with kisses and hugs and turning in for the night.

Leon and the others followed suit shortly after, bidding them goodbye and good luck. Yuffie had made them promise to visit, and Merlin had surprised Kairi with a beautiful new notebook and an ornately gilded pen.

"It's enchanted ink," he said proudly, smoothing his beard as she ran her fingers over the cover. "Write your letter to whomsoever you wish, and it will find its way to them. Not that you need it with those fancy cell phones, I suppose, but there's always something somewhat more charming about a letter instead of one of those new-fangled text messages you all seem so fond of sending each other-" Kairi had cut him off with a tight hug, and he had wished her every happiness before disappearing to take Hayner, Pence and Olette home.

By the time Demyx and his band ran out of music, they had pulled the chairs in to a circle on the dancefloor. Kairi's brain was pleasantly fuzzy, and she offered the band a small round of applause as they brought their final song to a close.

"You suck!" Axel hollered in a drunken slur. Demyx laughed and leant in to the microphone.

"Missed you too!" Axel snorted in to his drink and waved a hand towards the stage. Isa rolled his eyes and plucked the drink from Axel's hands.

"I think you've had enough," he sighed, holding the drink at arm's length as Axel tried to reach for it with such vigour that he fell out of his chair with a groan.

"Be nice to Demyx," Roxas grumbled, nudging Axel with his toe. Axel murmured something incoherent in to the dancefloor.

"So where are you guys going first?" Riku asked (and Kairi didn't miss how his fingers were laced with Naminé's).

"Well you guys made up that list of all the worlds I'd been to," Sora answered. His voice rumbled through his chest and tickled Kairi's ear. "We figured we'd just follow that. It's as good a route as any, and I figure I'll finally get to tell Kairi all those stories I promised her."

"Make sure she tells you some of her stories, too," Naminé said. Her smile became mischievous as she caught Kairi's eye. "And you might want to keep an eye on her while you're in Olympus." Kairi plucked one of the withered flowers from her hair and threw it in Naminé's direction; it fell to the ground some distance away from its target and Naminé laughed.

"Do I have competition?" Sora chuckled, his fingers tracing circles on Kairi's shoulder. She shivered and looked up at him with a smile.

"Never."

When at last they were ready to leave, Ven leapt from his seat with an eager grin on his face.

"Stay here, just a sec!" he urged, motioning for Sora and Kairi to stay in their seats. "I got an idea!" He quickly ushered the others outside, leaving Sora and Kairi to sit in confused silence for several minutes before he finally came racing back in to the room. "Okay," he panted, "we're ready."

They lingered to let him catch his breath before allowing him to lead them outside where the others were waiting. They had organised themselves in to two lines, and Ven quickly leapt away from Sora and Kairi to take his place nearby.

"Vanitas!" he hissed. Vanitas was leaning against the wall some distance away, and when Ven fixed him with a furious stare he rolled his eyes and dragged himself in to position opposite Ven who smiled and grinned. "Ten-shun!"

The others stood tall, clicking their heels together as eleven keyblades appeared in a blinding flash. They lifted them high, forming an arch, and they fired several showers of sparks in to the night sky like fireworks. Ven caught Sora's eye and he tilted his head with a grin. Sora laced his finger's with Kairi's and pulled her along, past Ven and Vanitas, Terra and Aqua, Roxas and Xion, Axel and Isa, Naminé and Riku, to find Mickey waiting for them at the end with Donald and Goofy standing to attention on either side of him. They gave a sharp salute as Sora and Kairi emerged from the archway, and Mickey reached in to his pocket with a broad smile.

"I had Chip and Dale whip up a little somethin' special for ya," he said. He held out both his hands, offering them two green Gummi gems which they gladly accepted. "She's called the Oathkeeper, and she's all yours."

"Your majesty…" Sora breathed. "You didn't have to do that!" Mickey laughed and ducked his head.

"Well gosh, Sora, am I ever gonna get you to just call me Mickey?" Sora grinned and shook his head.

"Maybe next time," he answered. Mickey's eyes glistened, and Kairi saw Donald wipe away a tear as Goofy's nose quivered.

"You be good, Sora," Donald admonished fondly, his words a little sharper than they had been earlier.

"That's right," Goofy added. "Don't you go g-gettin' in to any trouble now, y'hear?" Sora ran towards them, dropping down between them to throw and arm over each of their shoulders and pull them in to a tight hug.

"Wouldn't dream of getting in to trouble without you guys," he said. "Pint and a half, remember?"

"Pint and a half," they chorused.

The others each took a moment to wish them well, and Kairi found herself swept up in several tight hugs (she was surprised when Vanitas let her hug him, and even more surprised when – for the first time – he returned the gesture). Riku and Naminé were the last, and Kairi allowed Naminé to pull her aside.

"I'm going to miss you," Naminé hiccupped. Kairi smiled and squeezed her hands.

"Don't cry," she laughed, "or you'll make me cry, and you've already done that once today." Naminé hiccupped again and Kairi laughed, brushing her hair from her face. "I'll message you every day."

"And you'll send me lots of pictures?"

"Of course," she answered, "but only if you tell me everything that happens with you and Riku." Naminé's eyes bulged and her cheeks flushed crimson.

"I… I don't know how to… I have no idea what I'm doing!" she finally squeaked. Kairi laced their fingers together and squeezed her hands gently.

"Just follow your heart."

Riku soon took Naminé's place and for a moment they just stood in companionable silence, sharing a quiet smile. They'd had their fair share of silences over the years but, perhaps for the first time, neither of them looked to Sora to break it.

"I'm so happy for you both," Riku said at last. "After everything you've been through, it finally all worked out." The words he didn't say were deafening, and Kairi reached for his hands with a reassuring smile.

"You and Naminé are going to be fine," she said. His eyes widened for a moment before he let out a sigh and smiled nervously.

"Funny," he murmured. "Sora said the same thing."

"Well if you can't take my word for it, you can definitely take his," she said with a laugh. The corners of Riku's lips twitched silently, but his shoulders were still tense. "You're a good man, Riku. You deserve to be happy just as much as anyone."

"He said that too." He paused, an unreadable expression flashing through his eyes. Finally he smiled and reached for her hands, squeezing them gently. "You two really are perfect for each other." Kairi wasn't really sure what to make of that, but she caught Sora smiling at her over Riku's shoulder and so she pulled him in to a tight hug

"Believe in yourself as much as you believe in Sora," she murmured. She felt him stiffen in her embrace and she smiled in to her shoulder.

"Well that's just about as much as I believe in you," he answered. She pulled back, studying his smile before offering him one of her own.

"Funny," she murmured, "because that sounds like almost as much as I believe in you."

He was almost quick enough to hide the tear that slid down his cheek; it was gone by the time Naminé slipped her hand in to his to watch them depart.

The Oathkeeper was like no ship that Kairi had ever been aboard before. There was a small lounge area with a loveseat surrounded by doors that led off to a bathroom, a small kitchenette, and a large bedroom with chests full of clothes – gifts from the Good Fairies. On the upper deck, the cockpit was smaller than most and was equipped with two luxurious seats set side by side, lined with deep red velvet and trimmed in elaborate swirls of gold. Sora set himself down heavily in one of the seats started familiarising himself with the controls.

"Where to, your higness?" he asked with a charming smile. Kairi collapsed in to the seat beside him and prodded his elbow.

"You're in no condition to fly," she laughed. His head lolled backwards to look at her with a goofy grin.

"Are you volunteering?" he asked. She laughed and shook her head.

"I'm no better," she sighed, kicking of her shoes and curling in to the chair. She pulled her skirts up and turned them in to a makeshift pillow which made Sora laugh. She pouted.

"I love you."

She sat up a little, a pleasant flush coming to her cheeks. It still sent a little thrill running through her whenever he said it, but there was something special about the casual way he said it this time as he stared at her, draped haphazardly over the chair with her skirts in a bunch and wilted flowers in her hair. A smile slowly pulled at her lips as she drank him in; his hair jutting out in all directions, his shirt hanging open, his jacket discarded on the floor nearby and his bowtie now missing entirely. His hair was wild, his cheeks were flushed, and his gleaming eyes were staring right through her. He'd never looked more handsome.

"I love you too."

He reached out with a finger to jam a large button on the controls. A screen fizzled in to existence on the cockpit as Chip and Dale scurried eagerly in to view.

"Hiya, Sora! Hiya, Kairi!"

"Is something wrong?"

"Can you take control of the ship for us?" he asked. "We probably shouldn't be flying right now." Kairi's cheeks flushed a little and she pushed herself up until she was sitting properly in the chair. Chip and Dale leapt in to action.

"Sure thing!"

"You guys sit back and relax, and we'll take it from here!"

It was strange, sitting in the cockpit as the ship came to life around them. After several moments of whirring, clunking, thumping and grinding the ship slowly began to move forwards, turning about until it was facing the other direction before taking off. Radiant Garden quickly faded from view, and soon they were whizzing through the star-studded darkness of the Lanes Between.

Sora was silent. His eyes locked on the sky but his gaze seemed miles away, and Kairi studied him for several moments before leaning over to nudge his shoulder with hers.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked. It took him a moment to respond, and she watched a content smile spread across his face for several seconds before he finally spoke.

"We did it. We really did it." The trails of light danced across his eyes as he watched the stars whizzing past the cockpit. "It really was a perfect ending."

The words made Kairi's heart soar, and yet… A tear came to her eye, and she quickly blinked it back. It had been a perfect ending – better than any of her childhood fairy tales – but it felt sad to think of their story as over, especially when she wasn't ready for it to end. She reached out, taking his hand in hers and rubbing her thumb over his wedding band.

"No," Kairi murmured. Sora turned to her, confused, smiled. "It was a perfect beginning."

THE END

I've done it. I've finally done it. I've finally completed a story, start to finish, and posted it online. I'm going to try and keep this short and sweet, but I have a lot of feelings, so bear with me.

I'll start with what's coming up next: for my next project, I'll be jumping over to the Digimon fandom for a while. If you're a fellow Digi-fan, I hope I'll see you there! If not, then do keep an eye on my profile. I currently have at least one more KH fic mapped out, with another plot bunny in the works, so once I'm done with my Digi-fic I'll be jumping back in to Kingdom Hearts.

If you're interested in any of the projects I've got coming up, please make sure to add me to your follow list so you don't miss any future updates.

And now on to the sappy bit:

It's strange to this that this story was supposed to be a palette-cleanser. And yet here we are – 10 months and more than 300,000 words later.

Thank you for reading this story. Thank you for coming on this adventure with me. I cannot thank you enough. Every view, every favourite, every follow – they all mean the world to me.

Thank you, and I hope I'll see you again soon.