The Road to Dawn
By Ariana Aislinn
Chapter 32: The Strength of Friendship

Thank you again to both Megumi and Perhelediel, my wonderful beta readers!

Standard disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts and its characters are the property of Square-Enix and Disney, not me.

The morning sun filtering in through the window woke Riku. He discovered that he'd somehow managed to lie down on his pallet and wrap himself in the blankets without remembering it. He still wore his blindfold, but as usual, it helped him to see quite well in the early morning light. The lamp had gone out at some point during the night, and someone must have been in the room, because the half-eaten sandwich and apple had been removed.

Riku's stomach growled, reminding him how little he had eaten in the past twenty-four hours. He sat up, straightening his rumpled clothes as best he could, and checked on Kairi and Naminé – both were sleeping peacefully.

There was a knock at the door, and Riku cleared his throat. "Uh…come in," he called softly, so as not to wake the girls.

The door creaked open to admit a small, mousy form. Riku got to his feet, sighing in relief. "Mickey! Am I glad to see you."

The king grinned, setting a tray of steaming, covered plates down on the table. "Heya, pal. Sorry I didn't come by last night, but we thought we should leave you alone for a while. How are they doing?"

Riku shrugged, turning to look at his charges. "Not much better…but at least Kairi finally started sleeping quietly. She tossed and turned half the night." He met Mickey's eyes and shook his head helplessly. "I wish I knew exactly what was wrong, and what to do about it."

"I talked with DiZ last night, and he said it was because they went through the twilight unprotected. Looks like there isn't much we can do, except wait. He did give me a bottle of some kind of medicine for them, though – it's supposed to help a little."

"Good, thank you." Riku nodded. "How much do I give them? Should we try to wake them up so they can take it now?"

Mickey shook his head. "Nah, let them keep sleepin' a bit longer! DiZ says that's really what they need most. Just a spoonful apiece should do it…the bottle is right there on the breakfast tray."

Riku sniffed, his stomach growling. "Breakfast? What is it?"

Mickey grinned. "For the girls – oatmeal. For you, though, there's also some bacon and eggs if you want it."

Riku uncovered a plate and discovered the promised food, sniffing appreciatively. "Mind if I dig in?"

"Go right ahead!" Mickey chuckled. "Actually, unless you need me for anything, I was going to head back to the library. That book you showed me has some pretty fascinating stuff, and once Kairi and Naminé are feeling better, I'd like to show you some passages."

Riku nodded, swallowing a bit of breakfast before he spoke. "Of course. Look, thanks for understanding, about the girls. I just wish I felt like I was doing some good, you know?"

Mickey smiled. "Of course you are, pal. It always does someone good to have a friend standing by them." He headed for the door with a wave of his hand. "Just call if you need anything else, okay?"

"Thanks, Mickey." Riku smiled back as his friend left the room, closing the door behind him. As soon as the mouse was gone, however, he turned back to look at the two sleeping forms before him, sighing a little as he did so.

His sigh was answered by a soft murmur from the bed. Naminé stirred, blinking her eyes slowly and squinting in the morning light. "…Mmm?" She blinked, her brilliant blue eyes casting about the room as she struggled to sit up. Recognition dawned as she realized where she was, and her gaze fell on Riku. She smiled weakly as Riku came over to hand her a glass of water. "Hi. I…suppose we made it back safely, didn't we?"

"Well, it depends on what you mean by safely." Riku shrugged, managing a bit of a smile in response. "How do you feel?"

Naminé took a sip of water, wincing slightly. "My head aches, and I feel tired and sore all over. But aside from that…not too bad. How's Kairi?"

Riku frowned, glancing at the other girl, who was still deeply asleep. "…Better, I think, but she's not doing too well. I guess the trip through twilight affected her more than you."

"So that's what happened. I didn't have time to wonder much about it, but I knew something was wrong when we went through the portal." She frowned worriedly. "Will she be all right?"

Riku shrugged helplessly. "DiZ says she will. I hope he's right." He took the empty glass Naminé handed back to him and set it on the table, then sat down on the edge of the bed. "Naminé," he said earnestly, "can you tell me what happened? DiZ said that you went to this place called Twilight Town, I think, to get your memories back. I need to know what happened to you there. Did…did it work?"

Naminé looked away, staring out the window at the orchards for a few moments before she answered. She clasped her hands together, twisting them nervously. "It…mostly did. Some of it is still missing, but I think bits and pieces started to come back while I slept. But – " Tears welled up in her eyes and spilled down her face.

"Whoa!" Riku reached out to pat her awkwardly on the shoulder. "Hey, I don't know what happened, Naminé, but you can tell me. What was it? Did someone hurt you? What happened to Roxas? Why didn't he come back with you?"

Naminé sniffled, trying to wipe her eyes, but the tears continued to come. "I'm not hurt, I just – it was so much all at once, and then Roxas – " She let out a choking sob, then coughed, trying to steady herself. The tears continued to run down her cheeks. "Darkside attacked us, and Roxas stayed to buy us time. Darkside, he – he took him."

Riku frowned. "Wait, Darkside? Isn't he the leader of the Organization?"

"Y-yes, he is." She shivered.

"So that's why he wasn't at the islands!" Riku swore under his breath. "We just missed him, and while we were busy trying to save the islanders, he was – gah, how could we have been so stupid? I should never have let you two go off with only Roxas for protection!"

Naminé shook her head. "Roxas did everything he could to save us! We wouldn't have gotten out at all if it weren't for him, him and – " She swallowed suddenly.

Riku eyed her sharply, but she wouldn't meet his gaze. Finally he finished her sentence for her. "Sora, right? Roxas and Sora saved you two."

She turned to look at him, her eyes wide with surprise. Her tears had momentarily stopped, leaving dry, salty tracks on her cheeks. "Sora? But how did you–"

"Kairi woke in the night. She wasn't really awake – just babbling, mostly, but she mentioned Sora. He was there in Twilight Town, wasn't he?" Naminé merely nodded, and he continued. "How did he get there? You told me he'd awoken in Castle Oblivion and gone off to find transportation in Gateway, but after that…?"

"Well…DiZ told me he'd sent some friends to find Sora. I wasn't really sure who, but DiZ said something about Hollow Bastion. I think that's where Sora's been, at least recently. But somehow he figured out how to make a portal to Twilight Town, and he was looking for something there. He had no idea the three of us were there, too. Unfortunately, he didn't know about the dangers of traveling through twilight, either, so he'd come through the portal without any protection. When Darkside showed up, he wasn't able to fight very well, and he was vulnerable to attack…" Naminé's voice trailed off.

"So he and Roxas fought Darkside?" Riku pressed.

"Not directly, no. I think…Darkside was just toying with us. He distracted them with Heartless and Nobodies, and then…well, he said he needed the Keyblade master to reopen the Door to Darkness, but his – his heart didn't have to be whole." Naminé swallowed hard.

Riku's blood ran cold, and he grasped the girl's shoulders. "Naminé, what happened? Is Sora all right?"

She shook her head, the tears beginning anew. "I'm so sorry, Riku! I didn't really know what was happening, it was all so fast! One moment he was fighting next to Kairi, and then…he was lying on the ground, and he went still, and…" She choked back a sob.

Riku was silent for a moment, letting his hands drop from Naminé's shoulders as he just stared at her, thinking. Something wasn't right here. If what she'd said was true, then Darkside hadn't wanted to kill Sora – but he couldn't have taken his heart, either. If he had, Sora would have become a Heartless, or Darkside might have tried to possess his body, as Ansem had once done with Riku. Once Riku would have cringed at that memory, but now his thoughts were focused only on figuring out what had happened to his best friend. "Naminé, what exactly happened to him?"

"I don't know!" she wailed softly. "It happened so fast, and then suddenly Kairi grabbed my hand, and we ran through the portal!"

"But…Kairi would never have left him, not unless – " Riku's heart skipped a beat, but he took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, telling himself not to jump to conclusions. He glanced over at Kairi's sleeping form. Did he dare wake her? She was resting so peacefully now, and he knew she needed it – but he had to know what had happened to Sora.

Naminé's sobs distracted him, and with a heavy sigh, Riku put his arms around her and pulled her to his chest. "I'm sorry, Naminé. I know this is hard on you, too. I just…I need to know what happened to my best friend."

Naminé clung to his shirt, burying her face in his shoulder as she tried to stifle her sobs. "I should have done more. If I had just – "

"Hey, what could you have done? You and Kairi were defenseless back there – it's a miracle you got out safely. Look, don't beat yourself up over this, all right? It's not like you can use your memory powers in a battle."

"But I…I could." She sniffled, trying to stop the tears. "I can use them to – to shatter hearts." Riku could feel her stiffen in his arms. "Marluxia tried to make me do that to Sora, back in Castle Oblivion. I…I did it to you. I mean, to the fake Vexen made." She straightened, trying to push Riku away.

Riku let her go, but he kept his hands on her shoulders. "Hey," he said, trying to get her to look at him. "If you…really did that…you know it wasn't me. That fake hated everyone and everything. He tried to kill me, and I bet he tried to kill Sora too, didn't he?"

Naminé nodded, sniffing as she wiped away tears.

"You did what you had to do. Look, everything that happened at Castle Oblivion is over and done with. There's no point in looking back. And if you'd tried to use that power against Darkside – even if you had wanted to – I bet you couldn't, could you?"

The girl shook her head. "No. He…he has no real heart to shatter. At least – not a heart as we know it. I can't get at his memories, either; he's too strong."

"Right, so you couldn't have done anything. That means you aren't allowed to be angry at yourself for being unable to fight. What's the point in holding yourself responsible for things you can't control?"

Naminé nodded. "I…suppose you're right."

Riku grinned. "Of course I am. Now, here's what we're going to do. First, you're going to go clean yourself up. You're a mess." He laughed lightly. He managed to keep it from sounding forced, although inside he was still wracked with intense worry. He'd been so concerned about Kairi and Naminé, but now his fear for Sora made it difficult for him to think about anything else. He pushed that aside for the moment, however. Naminé is upset enough as it is. I can't worry her further.

Naminé managed a weak smile. "I suppose I do look a little the worse for wear…"

"Yeah…but you'll also feel a lot better once you freshen up. How are you feeling? Can you get out of bed?"

She nodded. "I think I'd better. I can get to the bathroom, anyway."

"Okay…so how about this? You can go wash your face, maybe change into some fresh clothes, and when you come back you can have some of this wonderful oatmeal Mickey brought for you. If you can get that down okay, maybe we can get you something else to go with it. Meanwhile, I'll see if I can wake Kairi and get some answers." Riku sighed. "I hate to do it, but I've got to know what happened."

"Yes." Naminé nodded, a little grimly. "I'm sorry I don't remember more."

Riku shrugged. "Hey, I understand. I've been in plenty of battles too, you know? Everything just blurs together. Now, do you feel any better? Think you're ready to get up?"

"I…think so." Naminé managed another smile.

"Good." Riku hugged her around the shoulders and stood. "Up you get, then. I'll see if I can get someone to deliver some hot cocoa, how's that?"

This time Naminé grinned, pushing back the covers and swinging her legs over the edge of the bed. "That sounds wonderful."

Once Naminé had left the room, Riku turned his attention to Kairi. For a moment his gaze rested on his now-cooling bacon and eggs, but by now his appetite was mostly gone, and he could wait no longer to find out about Sora. He sighed heavily and looked at Kairi, folding his arms across his chest and shaking his head. After a moment, he went to the cot and dropped to his knees beside it, grasping Kairi's shoulder and shaking her gently.

Kairi was not easy to wake. She was sleeping so deeply that Riku had to shake her several times. He nearly began to panic, but then she stirred, rousing slightly.

"Kairi, come on, wake up. I need to talk to you."

"Mmm…" Kairi shifted on the cot, her eyes opening slightly. Slowly she lifted her right hand, which had been resting on her chest, and moved it to her pocket, feeling for something. When she found it, she let out a long, shuddering breath. "Gone…" she whispered.

"What's gone, Kairi?" Riku tried to make his voice calm and reassuring, but impatience kept creeping into his words.

"I…" She blinked, opening her eyes all the way and turning to look at Riku. It took a moment for her to focus, but this time she really did seem to be awake enough to register his presence. "Riku!" Kairi struggled to sit up.

"Whoa, hey." Riku put his hand on her shoulder. "Take it easy, okay? You're still sick. How do you feel?"

Kairi groaned softly. "Everything's buzzing. I feel so…so weak."

"Well, you seem better than you did last night, anyway. Don't worry, DiZ said you'd be all right."

"Feels like…my teeth won't stop chattering."

Riku frowned. "Are you cold? I can get you an extra blanket."

Kairi shook her head. "No. It's just…" She reached out and clasped Riku's hand, taking a deep breath. "Something…happened. We should never have gone." Tears welled up in her eyes. "Getting my memory back isn't worth it."

He didn't want to, but he had to ask. "Kairi…I need you to tell me what happened." Riku's voice was soft but serious. "Do you remember? Naminé wasn't sure what was going on in the heat of the battle, but she told me some."

Kairi just nodded, seeming unable to speak.

"She said…you saw Sora in Twilight Town."

Despite Riku's admonition to take it easy, Kairi sat up and threw her arms around him, sobbing. She shuddered, either with emotion or pain, or possibly both. Taken aback, Riku just sat there for a moment, then slowly brought his own arms up around her. "You did, didn't you?"

Kairi nodded, tears dripping onto Riku's shoulder. He was dimly aware that his sleeve was still wet with Naminé's tears. Whatever happened, it's sure turned the girls into emotional wrecks. Despite the cynical thought, Riku's heart wrenched to see them both in such pain. It seemed odd, actually – he felt strangely uncomfortable, sitting there and hugging Kairi. She'd been one of his best friends for so long, and for a long time there'd been another facet to their friendship – something he'd never mentioned, but it had put a new edge on his good-natured rivalry with Sora. It was what had led him to seek out Kairi alone after Destiny Islands' destruction, using the powers of darkness and anything else that came his way to try to help her regain herself. His feelings for Kairi had become nearly an obsession, and that obsession had transformed itself into an obsession with darkness, in turn.

Something had changed, however. Riku cared as much for Kairi as ever, but it was different now. He felt protective of her, but it was almost as if…as if he weren't watching over Kairi for his own sake, but for Sora's. Sora couldn't be here now to take care of her, so Riku would do it in his place.

"He'd come to Twilight Town looking for something," Kairi eventually choked out. "Another Keyblade, I think. I'm not sure. It's…kind of a blur now."

Riku was silent, forcing down his impatience for answers and letting her speak at her own pace. Kairi sat back, and Riku let his arms drop. She clasped his hand in hers, though, and he could feel her shaking as she tried to wipe her tears with her other hand.

"The four of us talked. It…took us a while to figure out something was wrong. He was weak from the twilight. I guess…now I know what he was feeling." She shook her head as if in denial. "Why didn't we see sooner? If we'd just gotten him out of there…"

"Naminé said that Darkside attacked."

Kairi nodded. "He said he needed to get inside the mansion – something about reopening the Door to Darkness. He also needed Sora and me to do it. Sora and Roxas fought the Heartless and the silver things, and Naminé and I did our best to help…but there was no way we could last long against Darkside. Roxas was able to make a portal, but before we could get to it…" Kairi sniffed, fresh tears rolling down her face. She had managed to quell her sobs, but it took her a few moments before she could speak again. "Darkside, he – he attacked Sora with something made from darkness. He said something about the black keyblade, the one that unlocks hearts. I guess it was…doing something to Sora's heart, and Sora didn't think he could last long." Her voice shook, but she forced herself to continue. "We couldn't get him to the portal in time, and if he stayed there – in the twilight world, Roxas said that if darkness takes you, you don't lose your heart. Your heart's destroyed, but it stays inside you, and you become a Nobody. That's what the members of the Organization are, and the silver things too, I guess. If…if it had happened to Sora, then Darkside still could have used him to reopen the door, but Sora would have…" She stopped, her voice catching.

Riku shook his head. "That didn't happen though, right? You said if it had happened. So…Sora is…"

Kairi blinked sadly at Riku's expression. He knew he sounded hopeful, but he also knew he didn't believe it himself. Sora wasn't safe. If he were, Kairi wouldn't be on the verge of falling apart like this.

"He asked me to keep his heart safe," Kairi choked out. "Just like he did with mine."

Riku stared at her. "But…but how?"

"I don't know! I don't know how I did it, it just…happened!"

"Wait…you did it?" Riku's eyes grew wide. "Then that means…"

Kairi nodded, pressing her free hand to her chest. "Sora's…heart is inside me."

Riku opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

"I…I think he helped me fight off the twilight last night. I remember the buzzing and the pain being so much worse, but then I fell asleep thinking about him. It's…much better now. Still there, but…" She trailed off, and they sat in silence for a few moments. After a while, Kairi spoke again. "I had to leave him, Riku." Her eyes glistened as more tears spilled out. "We couldn't bring his…his body with us. Darkside must have him." Her grip on Riku's hand tightened. "I left him, Riku! I left him!"

"No," Riku said slowly, "you didn't leave him." He looked into Kairi's anguished eyes and managed a smile. "You brought him with you. You're keeping his heart safe, like he asked, and we're going to get him back."

"But…" Kairi's voice wavered.

"He's right." They both looked up as Naminé entered the room. Neither had heard her quietly open the door. She walked a little shakily, but she looked much better; she'd changed into a clean dress and had washed up a bit and brushed her hair. She went to sit in the chair by her drawing table, her hands clasped in her lap. "As long as you have his heart with you, we can bring him back. All we have to do is get his body back."

"But…" Kairi took a deep breath, releasing Riku's hand and sitting up straight. "How do we do it?"

"I don't know." Naminé shrugged, smiling slightly. "But I know that we can, especially if we work together. We all care about Sora, after all. You're the one he entrusted with his heart, Kairi, but we're all his friends – and it's going to take all of us to help him." She saw the looks on their faces and shook her head. "A few minutes ago, I half believed Sora was dead. I didn't know what was happening during the attack, and I thought…but it doesn't matter. Don't you see? If you have his heart, then there's still hope! I'm willing to help, of course. Just tell me what to do, and I'll do whatever it takes to bring Sora back."

Kairi was silent for a moment, but then she smiled weakly. "Naminé…you're a good friend."

Naminé blushed. "I…only just started to learn what a friend is," she admitted, "but…I've had some good teachers." She smiled, and Riku looked at the ground, feeling his cheeks grow hot. She didn't mean him, of course; she meant Sora, and Kairi and Roxas, probably.

Riku cleared his throat and stood up. "Okay. Naminé, you're right, we can help Sora – but we're going to have to think of a plan. We'll need to talk to DiZ and Mickey, and we'll need to get some leads on where Darkside might have taken him."

"Roxas too," said Naminé quietly.

Well…as frustrated as Riku was with Roxas, he couldn't just abandon him, either, he supposed. "Right, Roxas too," he agreed, trying not to sound reluctant. "But the first order of business is breakfast! If we're lucky, your oatmeal is still warm." He pointed a finger at Naminé. "Okay, you start eating, and take a spoonful of the medicine in the bottle DiZ put on the tray, and you – " the finger turned to point at Kairi – "stay in bed, and I'll bring you a washcloth and some water. Once you're cleaned up and you've both had some food and medicine, we'll see if you're still hungry. Maybe I can get the kitchen to cough up some cinnamon rolls or something. Okay? First things first. You girls have to take care of yourselves and get better. It's great to see you awake and back to yourselves, but you're both still kinda weak, so you'd better take it easy." He folded his arms and looked at the girls sternly.

To Riku's annoyance, Kairi and Naminé exchanged glances and smiled. "Okay," said Kairi, "if you insist, Riku." She grinned at him. Despite his irritation, he had to admit that it was good to see her smile again.

Naminé nodded. "You go and get the wash water, and I'll get her oatmeal and the medicine."

Riku sighed. "All right then, but just remember, you're an invalid too, Naminé!"

Her smile turned mischievous. "An invalid? Hmm. Maybe I shouldn't mention what Queen Minnie says when you're not around, then."

"Whoa, wait. What does she say?"

"That you shouldn't push yourself the way you do. Even though it's been several weeks since you were bedridden, she still worries about your health."

Riku groaned, embarrassed. "I just took on three of those guys in the Organization and all the Nobodies they had to throw at me! And the queen thinks I need to take it easy?"

Naminé poked Riku in the arm as she reached for the breakfast tray. "Just don't do more than you're ready for." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "I know the darkness affected you more than you want to let on, Riku. Just…be careful, okay?"

Riku smiled in spite of himself. "I will." He headed for the door. "I'll be back in a moment." He shut the door behind him, realizing his cheeks felt warm again.

Girls, he thought to himself, shaking his head as he walked down the hallway.

I finally got this thing edited! It's been beta read and sitting on my hard drive for ages, and I've just been either too busy or uninspired to work on it. I have one more chapter written that I'm going to get beta read, and then we'll see if I can sort things out and start working on new chapters. Sorry I go through these long hiatuses now and then. Hopefully we'll see more of the story soon...