Epilogue

Riku made his way through the underground corridors of Radiant Garden with haste. There appeared to be fewer heartless and nobody than there used to be. Not bothering to waste his time on them, Riku avoided battles by reducing encounters as much as possible. Soon, he arrived at his destination – philosopher Ansem's study room. Without knocking, Riku opened the door.

Just as he thought, Sora was there, sitting behind the Ansem's spacious desk. He was reading a book. There were dozens of similar books piled in front of him.

"There you are," said Riku, walking towards Sora as he spoke. "We've been looking all over for you." Sora didn't respond. Instead, he continued reading. It was just as Riku suspected. It had been three days since they had destroyed Omega and all the NeoNobody. After that, Sora, Kairi and Riku went back to Destiny Island. Everyone returned to their own world. Then, two days later, Sora went missing. It took a while of searching before Riku discovered that the gummi ship the King left them for emergency was gone. With help from King Mickey, Riku was able to borrow another gummi ship to look for Sora.

"Sora, what are you doing?" Riku asked in a calm voice.

Sora shifted his gaze away from the book to look at Riku. "Reading," he answered plainly.

"Do you know what you're doing?" Riku's voice grew louder. He couldn't suppress the anger within.

Closing the book he was reading, Sora turned to face Riku with a serious expression. "Riku, don't you ever wonder why there are Heartless and Nobody in this world? They're not wanted and not needed. Yet they exist. I want to know why."

Hardly believing what he was hearing, Riku had to refrain himself from hitting his friend. "Do you know that right now you're walking down the same path Xehanort and Ansem went?! Looking into the heart will only lead you to greed and hatred!"

"I won't walk the same path as them, Riku," Sora reassured.

Riku slammed his fist on the desk, sending loose papers flying. "Don't you understand? They didn't know they'd be consumed by darkness to start with." In only a few days, Sora matured so much he seemed like a different person. He couldn't forget Sora's face when Moogly asked him where Roxas was. His best friend was devastated. The others told the little moogle that Roxas had to go somewhere and wouldn't return in a long time.

"Heartless and Nobody should not exist. Their existence is painful to them as it is for others. I have to stop this cycle, Riku. There shouldn't be any new Heartless and Nobody in this world," said Sora in a resolute tone.

"That's impossible," Riku stated flatly. He hated the room he was standing in. It was filled of research about darkness, heartless, nobody and the heart. No one in the world should ever investigate so deep into the heart. He wished he could just burn it all up right there right then. He hoped King Mickey would hurry up and do something about it. Or else he would.

"Even if it looks impossible, I have to do something. I can't just sit here and do nothing, not after what happened to Roxas and Namine," said Sora. It was the first time he mentioned their names after the two were gone.

Riku closed his eyes. Him alone knowing the truth about the fate of Roxas and Namine was enough. Sora didn't have to know. That was what he thought. Did you know this would happen, Namine? Riku thought to himself. Is this why you want Sora to forget? It is better not to remember, isn't it?

Eventually, Riku spoke. "Sora, all Roxas and Namine want is for us to live like ordinary people."

"Roxas entrusted me with his life," Sora paused for a moment. "He would want me to walk the path I choose."

Sighing deeply, Riku turned around as Sora returned to reading. Never had he saw Sora read seriously until now. Normally, he would have laughed at the sight. But now he couldn't force a smile. Sora sounded so decisive it was almost shocking. Disheartened and speechless, Riku left the Ansem's study.

Author's rambling: Finally, I can pull the curtain and call this story complete. Sorry for dragging it for so long; and thank you for your patience. In my opinion, the short epilogue isn't vital to the story as a whole. However I feel that something should be said about Sora, after all that he has gone through. I have ended it on a heavy note. At the moment, I won't rule out a possible sequel to this story. If I'm inspired enough I may give it a go. Sequels can be wondrous but can also be disasterous. So I have said nothing. Well then, please review now that you have read the entire story!