A.N: I don't know if anyone's reading this story, but I'm having fun writing it. I hope you enjoy!
There was one thing Rapunzel was completely certain about: Montressor's port had to be the most crowded place she would ever see in her life.
A wide variety of ships and sailboats glided gracefully across the heights as they peacefully zigzagged their way through the architecture, complimenting the sunny sky overhead. Bustle, chatter and all kinds of smells filled the warm air as otherworldly creatures of all colors and sizes incessantly exchanged and carried around large boxes, heavy sacks, barrels and full two-wheeled wooden carts from one site to the other. A group of teary creatures wished luck to their sailor friends, while many others ran excitedly to what looked like long-awaited reunions.
Rapunzel thought it was miraculous that they didn't bump into each other, as if there was some sort of confusing but harmonic choreography she couldn't quite figure out. Most of the citizens seemed to come from a distant universe that the green-eyed girl would dare to dream of only in her deepest sleep. Almost all of them had more than four arms, an oversized body part, beaks for mouths or several tentacles for legs.
Nonetheless, Riku didn't seem to be half as surprised as she was.
But he was twice as alert.
"Stay close" Was all he would say, as he led their way through the diverse crowd. Rapunzel hugged her hair tightly, eyes wide, a short trail of gold slowly following her lead. Luckily for her, Montressor's habitants had seen far more impressive things than a lengthy golden hair, so they barely paid attention to them.
Riku came to a full stop, making a paranoid and distracted Rapunzel bump into his back.
"Sorry" She shrugged with a sheepish smile. He gave her a discreet grin, before shielding his eyes with his hand and turning to glance at his surroundings.
"Wait here" Spotting something, Riku gave her a small nod and directed himself to what looked like a green man with snail-like eyes in the distance. Rapunzel let out a short breath and let her eyes wander around the place, paranoia slowly melting away, the fact that very few minded their presence helping her to be at ease.
"Relax, Rapunzel. No ruffians or thugs so far." She sighed. "That's a relief…"
"Why? You got something to hide, bright-eyes?"
Pursing her lips with a quick turn on her heels, she looked frantically for the owner of the voice. But no one was there.
He chuckled. "Up here".
Her eyes darted up to the sky only to meet those of a brown-haired young lad, silently hovering a few feet over her with the help of a slender coppery board with a small sail attached to it and a propeller in one of its ends. Pushing the idea of danger to the back of her mind, Rapunzel found it hard to unglue her eyes from the unknown device.
"What? You wanna come?" He smirked, snapping the girl out of her thoughts.
"N-no, thanks. I'm waiting for someone" She crossed her arms tighter and pretended to look somewhere else, hoping he would lose interest and leave. He huffed humorously.
"That's too bad, because if you wanna live, you're gonna have to come with me".
Before the taken aback girl had a chance to reply, the stranger kicked the pedal below his foot, placing himself right in front of her before nimbly yanking her arm.
Suddenly her surroundings went blurry and the chatter that filled the place was replaced with the sound of the wind echoing wildly in her ears.
The drowning feeling that took over her lungs brought her back to reality. Only then she noticed she had forgotten to breathe.
"W-WHAT ARE YOU DOIIING?! PUT- PUT ME DOWN! PUT ME DOWN!" Rapunzel screamed at the top of her lungs, her arms tightly gripped around her kidnapper in a desperate attempt to hold for dear life, as they darted through the air.
"Sorry, can't do that!" He replied, slightly annoyed at the volume of her voice in his ears, as he maneuvered skillfully through the buildings and the floating ships of the port in spite of the many angry protests that could be heard in the distance. He didn't seem affected by the girl's firm grip in the slightest way.
Rapunzel wanted to yell at him and demand to be put down. She knew she would've kicked him had she been able to forget the imminent threat of a 80ft fall, but no sound came out of her pallid lips when the board took a 360 degree turn in order to dodge two minor ships in their way.
Glancing back at the irritated -but safe- passengers, she felt an ephemeral relief. They barked unintelligible sounds that Rapunzel was certain were meant to be words, but was too shaken to try to make them out.
"I've been called worse by better!" Her young kidnapper shouted back, before letting out a laugh. Unlike the blonde, he seemed to be enjoying himself.
Rapunzel gathered the courage and the breath to speak up. She would not die in the hands of a careless boy and certainly not when she was finally out of her tower. "Look, you ruffian! If you don't put me down this instant, I'm going to-"
Squeezing her eyes shut, a sharp stir of the board made her swallow her words as a sparkling laser missed them just by inches. Luckily it also missed her hair.
She glanced back, only to feel blood draining from her face as she glimpsed two ships that looked very similar to the one that had brought her to that world.
Except these didn't seem to have friendly intentions.
"Whatever you did, please just LET ME GO!" Opposite to her words, the strength of her grip on the young lad increased.
He scoffed ironically. "Wait, you seriously think they're after ME?! Just-" Shaking his head after successfully dodging a couple of lasers, he tossed her a small metallic card with a smooth screen. She barely caught it, hardly lifting her arm from his body. She gasped.
It showed the image of only minutes ago, when she had just arrived to Montressor's port, Riku having been somehow left out of the picture. Unreadable signs served as frame, except for one word: "Reward".
"Every pirate on a range of one moon has it."
As if sensing the lump that his words had caused in Rapunzel's throat, he continued almost immediately.
"Relax, I'm no bounty hunter pirate. But I thought you could use some help"
"B-but, what do they want with me?!" Had they found out about her secret? But how?!
"You tell me!" He exclaimed, hiding the sail with one movement of his foot and ducking in order to fit into a narrow ventilation duct, the deafening sound of metal clashing against metal thundering as they made their way across it. The sunlight waiting for them in the other side.
"We made it! We're alive! We're alive!" Rapunzel celebrated once the metallic sounds were replaced by the pleasant gust of the wind once again, for a brief moment letting go of the no-bounty-hunter.
"Yeah, I wouldn't throw a party yet"
"What?" Rapunzel muttered under her breath, not resisting the urge of glancing back once again.
A bigger ship came from behind a building, a massive blaster charging, the menace of an even deadlier laser coming their way. The cold look in the eyes of the stranger she so tightly held on to, letting Rapunzel know this time it would be harder for it to miss its target.
The sound of a triggered blaster filled the air. Rapunzel glimpsed two more lasers coming their way. If she jumped right in that second, she calculated that she could safely land in a small passing ship a couple of meters below them. Her instincts desperately begging her to do so, the bitter threat that the last sound she would ever listen to, would be that of the lethal and inevitable impact.
Yes, the blonde could do it before the savage (but now useless) maneuvers she knew would follow soon began. She could do it. She had enough time to save herself. She SHOULD do it.
She pushed her former kidnapper off the board instead.
And, indeed, an impact was what she heard.
"Rapunzel!"
Her ears rang, not noticing the echo of the wind anymore. Her vision darkened, as she gave into nothingness, the numb sensation of falling endlessly taking over her.
Then everything went black.
#
Riku laid back his head as he let out an exasperated breath, trying to keep his calm and his patience intact. Of course, as a Keyblade master these were qualities that he was very familiarized with, but he had been in very few situations similar to this one before and he'd never been good at them either.
Especially when there was nothing left to do, but waiting.
"Hey, relax. She's going to be fine. That girl's tougher than she looks like, you know?" He paced across the room only to lean against the wall. "At least I know I won't be forgetting that anytime soon" He rolled his eyes at the memory, taking a sip of a glass of water.
"It's been nearly six hours. I've used every single healing magic I know, and still she hasn't awaken. It was a stupid mistake leaving her alone-"
"Whoa- Wait, wait, wait. Is that guilt I'm hearing? You do know that if it weren't for you, her body would be just a bunch of ashes right now, right?" He sat on the couch across to his. "And so would mine."
"If it weren't for me she also wouldn't happen to be in a coma." Riku huffed humorlessly. "It's thanks to you that she's still breathing."
"Yeah, she and I are pretty much even on that one." He laid the back of his head on the wall as well, one corner of the silverette's lips rising slightly in response.
"True" Riku replied, before both of them fell silent for a few minutes.
"So, uh, how'd that happen anyway?" The boy in front of Riku asked, pointing towards the room where Rapunzel lied unconscious and back to him. Riku's eyebrows furrowed somewhat in suspicion.
"C'mon, you owe me an explanation. I already gave you mine"
"Why would you even hack into pirate networks, Jim?" Riku inquired, pushing his back off the couch.
"I'm always willing to check out for interesting stuff" Jim shrugged. "Here's the result".
Riku chuckled weakly, his face relaxing. "Alright." He sighed. "I needed Cid to install the gummi block I gave you. I heard he was back in Traverse Town and there she was. The usual story of a world lost to darkness." He looked down.
"World lost to darkness? So I wasn't imagining it, then. I was hoping something else was going on out there." Jim stated "What did Cid say?"
"Well, we're still trying to figure out the details" Riku stared blankly at the floor. "But I need her to wake up first" He closed his eyes, letting his back fall down on the couch again.
"Hey, you're so depressing, stop beating yourself so much. Besides I got good news for you."
The silverette opened his eyelids, not moving from his comfortable position.
"I thought it'd take me longer, but I think I'll be done with the gummi ship by tomorrow morning." Jim smirked, trying to light up the mood.
"Tomorrow morning? Didn't you say it would take you two days?"
"Let's just say it's my thank-you note to your brave friend" The brown-haired boy grinned, pocketing his hands, sinking further in the couch.
Silence fell over once again, only to be interrupted by the light steps of a middle-age brunette, her presence alone causing the two young men to stand up in a rush. She looked tired, but relaxed.
"How is she?" Riku inquired taking one step, his heart pounding at the sight of the woman.
"She's fine, dear. She's awake now" The woman smiled, her words taking a burden of Riku's chest.
"Told you" Jim punched lightly Riku's back. The Keyblade master eyed him briefly, his whole body visibly relaxing.
"Thank you for everything, Mrs. Hawkins." He turned to her, his voice somewhat solemn. "Can I talk to her?"
"Please, just call me Sarah. And of course" She grinned kindly, before turning to Jim, her expression changing drastically. "James, you and I have to talk"
"Ugh, not this again" He rolled his eyes, taking a palm to his forehead.
Rapunzel lay on the bed, her head resting comfortably on a soft pillow. The windows displayed a surreal and colorful flower field that the girl would have been eager to explore if Sarah Hawkins had not showed her they were only binds.
Two knocks came from behind on the wooden door.
"Rapunzel? May I come in?"
"Riku? Is that you?" She asked, her voice eager but weaker than usual. "Come in"
He opened the door slightly, peeping an eye before fully stepping into the room, closing the door behind him.
"Hey there" Riku grinned, his voice matching the softness of hers, before taking a seat in a chair next to the bed. "How are you feeling, pirate girl?"
"I'm okay, I guess" She whispered with a playful grin in her lips that soon vanished. "What happened to the boy I was with?"
"Really? That's what you're worried about?" Riku glanced down, letting out an incredulous chuckle, before facing her again. "You saved his life. His mother is the one that took care of you. They run this inn" He motioned at the room.
"I'm sorry, Riku." Her voice trembled, full of anguish. "I didn't mean for any of this to happen. Now it'll take us longer to find Jim Hawkins" Rapunzel frowned.
Riku let out an authentic laugh for the first time since he had begun this quest, confusing the blonde a bit. "You're in for a good surprise, but hey, I am the one that should be apologizing. In fact that's one of the reasons I wanted to see you, you know. I'm sorry I left you alone"
Rapunzel blinked twice. No one had ever apologized to her before. She smiled back. "It's not your fault."
"Maybe not, but I know whose fault it is" A new voice answered.
The former kidnapper of the blonde stood less than a meter away from them, leaning his back on the now open door, as he took a bite of a green apple.
"I-it's you!" She muttered.
"I don't think we've been introduced properly." He walked in her direction, offering her his free hand. "Jim Hawkins"
Mouth wide open, Rapunzel slowly sat on the bed, Riku helping her a bit in the process, as she shook Jim's hand absent-mindedly "You… are Jim Hawkins?"
"At your service" He nodded, his mouth still full, before bowing curtly.
"Surprise" Riku whispered huskily to her ear, sending a pleasant shiver down her spine.
"B-but how? I remember listening to an explosion and then…"
"And then this guy right here saved us both" Jim stabbed his thumb to the side, pointing at Riku, before pocketing his hand. "He even stole a solar surfer for you, that's how he got there so fast and then he healed us both but you wouldn't wake up, so he spent the next two hours casting healing magic on you and refusing to leave your side." He raised an eyebrow teasingly, only to be hit with Riku's elbow. "Ouch!"
Rapunzel turned her gaze to the silverette and back to Jim. "Thank you both". She smiled in a way that lit up the whole room, or so both of the young lads thought.
"Don't mention it" Jim scratched the back of his head. "Hey, you guys are hungry? There's a delicious dinner downstairs."
BOOM!
Blood drained from his face, he turned to the door before he darted out of the room. "Mom!"
Riku called after him, but only the hurried steps of the boy could be heard. He turned his gaze to Rapunzel. "Can you walk?"
The blonde was already trying to stand by herself. "I think so"
"Come on" Riku took her arm and placed it around his neck. "Let's go".