Wow, I'm lazy.
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Last time on KVH ...
Riku shook his head slowly. He stopped rowing and walked over to Sora. Riku picked up his friend as if he was a feather and threw him overboard. Sora flew through the air, his expression still blank. As soon as the brunet hit the water, he smashed into a thousand peices ...
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They both sat up as the door slammed open. Riku stood there, raging mad. His eyes flashed between Sora and Christie. "I'm going to kill you!" He screamed at Sora.
"No, Riku, wait - " Christie tried to explain, but was hushed by Sora's hand on her waist. She turned to see Sora glaring venomously at Riku. "Sora?" She whispered.
"Get your hands off her, Sora!" Riku yelled.
"I'm not going to let you hurt her anymore, Riku!" Sora yelled back.
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Christie screamed as Riku let Sora, who was now knocked out, fall into the water. She scrambled to the edge of the boat and reached out. "Sora!!" She cried.
Riku grabbed her wrist and pulled her against him. "He's not going to intrude anymore." He said, soothingly.
Christie was so scared. She pulled back her fist and punched Riku in the cheek. He fell backwards. "Snap out of it!" She screamed, watching him touch his face gingerly. "He's your best friend!" She called out before jumping into the icey-cold water.
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Both girls wore the same style of poofy ball-gowns that resembled Belle's, from Beauty and the Beast. Christie's was dark blue with a lavender trim, while Kairi's was white with a pink trim. In Christie's hair was some small, violet flowers, and Kairi's hair was decorated with a pink and white carnation.
Christie blushed and looked at her hands, playing with her small, gold bracelet as Kairi spoke. "Do you like it?" The red-head asked.
"Yes," both boys said simutaneously.
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Christie blushed. "I'm more interested in knowing where the 'place most beautiful' is. I don't know where the moon would hit its -" she cut herself off. In the distance, she noticed the island with the mountain. " ... self." She finished. She looked at Riku. "I have to sing in the crystal cave." She said to him.
He stood up. "Well, then, come on - let's go!" He said, smiling.
Christie, Sora and Kairi stood up as well. "But, Riku," Christie muttered. "Drendes said I have to sing a song with a thousand words - I don't know a song like that!"
"Maybe you have to sing more than one song?" Kairi asked.
Roujin walked up to them. "Drendes has a funny way of riddling. He could have meant precisly that."
"C'mon you guys," Sora said, smiling. "We can figure it out once we get there."
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Christie watched as Sora and Riku helped Kairi out of the boat, and stood when they held their hands out to her. She carefully walked over and gingerly held the boys' hands as she hopped out. The crowd that had gathered on the small island was eerily quiet as they watched the blonde walked across the beach, closely followed by Riku, Sora, Kairi and Roujin.
"The cave isn't that big," she said quietly to the crowd. "I'll go alone."
Riku reached out suddenly and grabbed Christie's wrist. "No - I'm going with you."
Kairi and Sora stepped forward. "Us, too. No way are we going to let our newest best friend leave without us hearing her sing one last time," Kairi said.
Christie's eyes watered as she looked at the three in front of her. "Th-thank you, guys - that means a lot to me," she squeaked out, smiling.
Her friends smiled back as Roujin spoke. "I should probably tag along as well - you never know when my magic may come in handy."
Sora looked at the old man, concerned. "No, Grandfather Roujin, it's too dangerous for you to climb the mountain."
Roujin chuckled under his breath. "My good boy! You think that after 45 years of visiting the islands on this world I haven't even learned the simple task of flight?" He asked, grinning. The man snapped his dirty fingers and sparks began to fly from their tips. Within a few seconds, his feet lifted from the ground. "I'll see you three kids at the top!" He called out behind him as he flew up to the crystal cave.
"Talk about handy," Riku said, scratching the side of his head, a look of befuddlement on his face.
"N-no fair ... !" Christie whined.
Sora looked around. "Where'd Kairi go?" he asked.
"'C'mon, you three!" Kairi shouted. The three looked up the side of the mountain where they saw the young redhead had already climbed nearly halfway. "Don't keep an old man waiting!"
"Race you!" Riku said, taking off. Sora followed him, leaving Christie in the dust, surprised.
"You guys are such haters!" She called after them, walking to the foot of the mountain where the two boys had already begun scaling to the cave. She let out, "Hmph. Men." under her breath as she glared at the two.
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"'Bout time you got here," Riku said coolly as Christie reached the ledge.
"Aw, shaddap," she said, glaring once again at the boys. "Help me up."
Riku grinned as he and Sora gently lifted the blonde to her feet.
"Really sorry about that," Sora pardoned politly, smiling, "We got a little carried away."
Christie glanced from Sora to Riku and sighed. "Yeah, I forgive you both." She smiled and poked them lightly. "I can't stay angry at either of you."
They followed her into the cave. Christie's heart was heavy, and they could see it in her face. Her lips formed a straight line, and her face was terribly flushed. Riku reached and gently touched her hand, softly whispering, "It's okay - we're here."
Christie kept her mouth shut, but nodded. She looked up at Grandfather Roujin, then at Kairi, then up to where the moon shone in through the ceiling. She sighed again, and looked back at Roujin. "Now what?"
"Now we wait until the moon 'hits itself'," the old man replied in his husky voice. "Until then, I suppose we'll try to figure out Drendes' riddle."
"Well, we'd better make it fast," Riku said seriously, "There's only a few minutes until the moon comes over the mountain - half and hour, tops."
Christie gulped and looked around. Roujin stood with his eyes closed, deep in thought. Kairi stood next to him, biting her lip and staring off to the side. Sora leaned against the wall, staring intently at his shoes. Then to Riku - he stood with his arms folded and a pained expression across his eyes.
Christie looked at the ground. She knew exactly what he was thinking. The blonde looked back at him and, very gently, reached out and touched his arm. "It's okay - I'm here." She whispered softly, just as he had done.
He jumped and looked at her. His eyes filled with tears as he whispered back, "Yes - but not for long."
Christie frowned and walked up to the boy, wrapping her arms around him tightly. She smiled through her own tears as he hugged her back. "Save your tears, 'cuz I'll come back." She said, closing her eyes and burying her face into his chest.
Old Roujin, you must get back to your Destiny Islands and ask her to sing one thousand words at the place most beautiful, where the moon hits itself.
... ask her to sing one thousand words at the place most beautiful ...
... ask her to sing one thousand words ...
... one thousand words ...
"Save your tears, 'cuz I'll come back ... " Christie whispered again.
Suddenly, the girl gasped and pushed Riku away. "Save your tears, 'cuz I'll come back!!" She yelled very suddenly.
Riku looked at her, shocked. "Yeah - I heard you the first and second time. No need to shout."
Christie smiled. "No, no! It's a line in a song!" She said, laughing. "A song called '1000 Words'!"
"Well, that makes sense," Kairi said. "It's a whole lot easier than singing a song with a thousand words."
"Do you think that that's what Drendes meant? To sing that song?" Sora asked.
"Most likely. I wouldn't doubt it if he knew songs from all the worlds." Roujin said, nodding.
"Look," Riku said, "the moon's coming." He looked at Christie and whispered, "Are you ready?"
A lump formed in Christie's throat - all she could manage was a nod.
The group waited until the moon began casting it's light onto the gems, the light once again reverberating and beating off the walls. Roujin, Riku, Sora, and Kairi stepped back to the entranceway. Christie was now the only one who was standing in the gems' lights. She cleared her throat, trying hard not to cry, and began to sing;
"I know that you're hiding things,
using gentle words to shelter me.
Your words were like a dream,
but dreams could never fool me ...
Not that easily."
The gems' moonlight, through some magic, began to grow brighter.
"I acted so distant then,
didn't say good-bye before you left,
but I was listening.
You fight your battles far from me ...
far too easily."
Tears ran down Christie's eyes as she looked at her group. They were all crying, Roujin, Kairi and Sora smiling, Riku with a grim look on his face. The blonde gave him a sad smile.
"'Save your tears, 'cuz I'll come back,'
I could hear that you whispered as you walked through that door,
but still I sought to hide the pain.
When I turn back the pages,
shouting might have been the answer -
what if I cried my eyes out,
and begged you not to depart?
But now I'm not afraid to say what's in my heart."
Christie closed her eyes and focused on putting her heart into her words. She could feel her energy pulsing around her body.
"'Cuz a thousand words,
called out through the ages,
they'll fly to you.
Even though I can't see,
I know that they're reaching you -
suspended on silver wings.
Oh, a thousand words,
one thousand embraces,
will cradle you and make all your weary days
seem far away - they'll hold you forever."
The echo Christie was making made some crystals from the ceiling fall. They shattered loudly, they're fragments reflecting more moonlight. Instead of fading, however, the light shimmered behind the girl, slowly growing as more crystals fell, shattered and caught the moonlight
"Oh, a thousand words
have never been spoken.
They'll fly to you,
they'll carry you home
and back into my arms,
suspended on silver wings.
And a thousand words
called out through the ages.
They'll cradle you,
and turn all of the lonely years,
into only days.
They'll hold you forever!
Oh, a thousand ..."
By now, the light was as large as half the cave. The crystals suddenly stopped falling, and Christie breathed out the last word:
"... words ..."
The tears streamed silently down the group's faces. Roujin was the first to speak; "W-well," he paused to wipe away tears, "that certainly was very ... very nice. But I think you should leave now, before the portal behind you closes, else, I fear, you may be stuck here."
Christie nodded silently. She looked at the ground, then back up to her friends. A sad smile crossed her face. "I guess this is good-bye."
Sora and Kairi ran up to the blonde and hugged her tightly, which she embraced like a lifeline.
"I hope you have a safe trip home, Christie," Kairi said when she let go.
"We're going to miss you," Sora said.
"Thank you - I'm going to miss you guys, too," Christie replied, still smiling.
The two stepped away to let Roujin say his good-bye. The old man took the girl by her wrist and bowed low. "It was a pleasure to meet you - it's a pity we don't have time to talk more about your world."
Christie gave Roujin a lopsided smile and bowed equally as low. "It was a pleasure to meet you too, but it's for the better we don't talk about my world - trust me."
The man let out a low chuckle from the bottom of his throat. "Maybe you're right, maybe you're right," he muttered, moving aside.
The four looked at Riku, who hadn't moved from his spot since Christie finished her song. Very slowly, he walked up to her. "I'm," he said, barely over a whisper, "not good with good-byes."
Christie took the boy's hands in hers and smiled up at him. "Don't say 'good-bye' - good-byes are forever." She looked at his hands, then back at his face, fighting back tears. "I'll see you later." Her voice quavered as she spoke.
Riku's bottom lip trembled, but there was no other sign that he wanted to cry. Instead of speaking, he took his hands from Christie's and reached into his pocket, pulling out a beautiful necklace made of shells - and, in the centre of five long shells that formed a star, was a large pink pearl.
"I-" Riku's voice cut off for a second, "I made this for you. These shells-" he touched the long shells gently, "-they're called Thalassa shells. They're supposed to bring good luck."
Christie's smile widened and, despite her attempts to hold them back, tears rolled down her cheeks. "Thank you, Riku - it's gorgeous." Riku smiled as she let him put the necklace on her neck.
Roujin cleared his throat. "I think it's time to go, Christie ... " he said politely.
Christie nodded again, and turned on her heels. She was just about to step into the portal, when she was pulled back. Riku wrapped his arms around her tightly and kissed her deeply. When he finally pulled away, he whispered, "I'll see you later."
Christie smiled at him. "See you." With a small kiss, she pulled away. Waving to her friends, she stepped into the portal.
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Sounds and images swirled around the girl.
Christie screamed as Riku let Sora, who was now knocked out, fall into the water. She scrambled to the edge of the boat and reached out. "Sora!!" She cried.
Riku grabbed her wrist and pulled her against him. "He's not going to intrude anymore." He said, soothingly.
Christie was so scared. She pulled back her fist and punched Riku in the cheek. He fell backwards. "Snap out of it!" She screamed, watching him touch his face gingerly. "He's your best friend!" She called out before jumping into the icey-cold water.
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Sora took Christie's mug away from her and set in on the ground, then gently opened the blankets and scooted closer to her. He wrapped his arms around her and took the edges of the blanket from her hands. He brought her closer and whispered, "You're never alone."
Christie's mind went blank. She had no clue what was going on. The lightning flashed, and she knew at that moment that she was safe. Sora would keep her safe. She wouldn't be lonely with him. Christie rested her head on Sora's shoulder, smiling.
And the thunder rolled.
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Both teens studied the picture. It showed a young girl with short hair and glasses with a very tall young man with spikey hair. Why does he look so familiar ... ? Christie thought. The picture next to it showed an old man in a cloak shooting the girl and the young man jumping and reaching towards her wrist. Then there was a large spiral and there were no more pictures.
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Sora put his head into his hands and rubbed his face. Christie thought he looked more like a 40-year-old than a 14-year-old. Sora sighed. "I don't know what's gotten into me ... like, I know you're not my girlfriend, but my mind still put you under the 'Heavy Protection' list." He rubbed the back of his neck and looked at Christie.
The blonde thought for a moment. "Well ... I guess I'm going to have to get off that list, aren't I?" Sora nodded and a hint of a smile appeared at the sides of his mouth. "Okay, so, from this point on, you and I are just friends. That means we can't appear in public as much anymore, and, most importantly, I can't sleep in the same room as you. Tomorrow, we work double duty to get you and Kairi together, got it?"
Sora grinned and Christie smiled back at the 14-year-old she knew and had fallen in-and-out of love with. "Great," he said, standing up. He crossed the room again.
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"What does he have that I don't? I'm older, smarter, stronger and better looking!" Riku asked, following her.
"He's nicer, sensitive, my age and knows when to quit!"
Riku caught up with her and walked beside her. "Come on ... You know I'm attracted to you and I know you're attracted to me." He reached out and grabbed her hand.
"Riku, stop! What's gotten into you?" Christie demanded, stopping to face the boy and yanking her hand away.
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All this happened in a flash. Riku put his hand around Christie's waist and pulled her in. She was so close, she could feel the muscles in Riku's chest as he breathed. Riku's lips brushed against Christie's and her breath caught in her throat. She finally breathed in, causing her mouth to open. Riku took this as an advantage and pushed his lips into hers. His tongue brushed against her lower lip... around... and tickled half-way across her top lip, sending a shiver down her spine. He pulled away half an inch and whispered, "Foget that," as if it were an easy thing to do.
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Riku jumped back and lunged again. This time, Christie dodged and swung her sword around. Riku spun and blocked it. For a while, Christie would swing while Riku blocked, then Riku began trying to hit Christie while she blocked. He spun so he stood behind the girl. She held up her sword right before Riku hit it. They both stopped, breathing hard. Riku was standing so close to Christie, she could feel his heartbeat. At first, she didn't notice his hand on her stomach. When she did, her face went red.
"Careful," Christie said, giving a sidways smirk around her shoulder, "I'm pretty sure Sora wouldn't miss a heartbeat to punch you in the mouth." The blonde took the boy's hand and pulled it off.
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"Ugh..." Christie moaned. She opened her eyes and stood. Looking around, she saw she was in a bedroom, and, judging by the posters of girls, it was a boy's bedroom. She went to an open window and saw nothing but a beach, the ocean and an oddly familiar island far off. "Wow..." she whispered, smiling. Then she noticed the two people, a boy and a girl, talking on the beach. "Th-that's..." she squeaked out, but she couldn't finish the sentence. Instead, she listened in.
"Kairi, there's something I wanna tell you..." the boy started.
Kairi, the girl, turned and smiled. "What is it, Sora?"
"Uhm," Sora rubbed his arm nervously and blushed, "...I like you, Kairi..."
"I like you too, Sora."
"Really?"
"Yeah, you're a great friend. It's tough not to like you!"
Geez, she's dense, Christie thought, nuzzling her chin in the palm of her hand.
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Christie sat up in her own bed. Looking around, she saw that nothing had changed - and her Kingdom Hearts game was safely paused. She stood up and turned off her PS2. It was just a dream, she thought.
She walked over to her window and looked out, resting her elbows on the sill. She smiled and watched the sunrise in the horizon. Nine years, the girl thought, tears springing to her eyes.
The blonde sniffed and walked across the hall to the bathroom to get some tissue to wipe away her tears. She unrolled some toilet paper and gently dried her face, walking to the mirror. She grinned at herself. What an imagination you -
Around her neck, Christie saw the necklace Riku had given her. More tears found their way down her cheeks as she gently touched the pearl.
"Riku ... " the girl whispered.
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The end?