Sassy's Note: Italics indicate a flashback. Just so you all know and are not (even more) confused. Though this chapter should help you understand, if you're clever. Also, if this seems a bit choppy, I apologize. I've been writing on it all day with a few breaks for friends and tussles with a possessed DDR pad. But, anyway, enjoy.
The World's Heart
"Good morning," Sora chirped at him, large grin on his face. He was strutting around the kitchen in his pajamas, drinking a glass of orange juice. Riku made a noncommittal noise in the back of his throat and went straight to the coffee maker. "Yaknow, that stuff's not good for you."
"Your mother just tells you that so you won't drink any. You and caffeine would not make a good duo. You're already spaz enough."
Sora shrugged. "Smells nasty anyway." He drained his glass and rinsed it off in the sink. Riku snorted. He thought coffee smelled lovely, thank you very much.
"Is your mom awake yet?" he asked the brunette as he finally got the coffee started.
"Not yet. I think she was up late last night." That wasn't unusual. Ileana, Sora's mother, was a lawyer, and a damn good one at that. She was the reason Riku acquired his own house at ate sixteen – not that he really ever went home anyway. He loved being with Sora and Ileana. They were his real family.
Riku nodded. "Big case she's got. She's been working herself sick over it."
"Yup," Sora said with a hint of pride in his voice. "She's determined to win it, and I'm pretty sure she will. All the evidence is on her client's side."
Riku grinned. Ileana could talk her way into anything. "Too bad you didn't get her eloquence, Sora. It might have made the past few years easier."
Sora stuck his tongue out at Riku. "I'm the Keyblade master. I don't need to be eloquent."
"It wouldn't hurt things," Ileana yawned as she walked into the kitchen, short brown hair sticking up at odd angles. It was easy to tell Sora was her son sometimes.
"Mom, don't take his side," Sora whined. Riku smirked when Ileana gave him a good morning peck on the cheek first – possibly because he was the one making coffee, but Riku didn't care. Sora pouted until she gave him one as well.
"You know, I think you're past the age to pout," she said with a raised eyebrow at him.
"Yeah, pouty-faces on adults are restricted, Sora," said Riku, handing Ileana a coffee mug. "Haven't you learned anything?"
"I've only been an adult for a month and a half. Bite me."
"Not in front of your dear old mother or you'll give me a heart attack."
"But, Mom, I thought you wanted me and Riku to get married."
"Only because the two of you would make beautiful children together."
Riku snorted. "Yeah, Sora, I've always wanted kids. Let's get busy."
"Go find a girl, then. I roll over for no man."
It was playful banter like this that made Riku's life all the more enjoyable. He didn't know what he would do without both Sora and Ileana. It took being away for two years to show him how much the two of them really meant to him.
"Speaking of girls, have you talked to Valeria recently?" Ileana asked her son. He shook his head.
"She's been… busy. I dunno…" He tapped his fingers on the table, looking slightly put out.
"What? Is she not showing interest anymore?" Riku asked, taking a seat while the coffee was made.
"She is," Sora said, nodding. "I just don't know if her dad likes me very much."
Riku snorted. "From what Kioshi said, he doesn't take to his daughters' boyfriends very fast. It's not that he doesn't like you. He's just protective."
"When did you last talk to those guys?" asked Sora, vaguely attempting to change the subject.
"About a week ago. The orphanage, library, and elementary school are up and running smoothly now. Their next project is the community park."
"Looks like Radiant Garden really will be restored to its former glory." Ileana smiled.
---
"Riku?"
"Hm?"
"I've been thinking."
"Oh god, it's Armageddon."
"Shut up!"
"Sorry, but you set yourself up for that one."
"I'm being serious!"
"Okay, okay. What's up?"
Sora hauled himself up and sat next to Riku on the paopu tree. "I was thinking about… all the worlds out there and how they're all kinda connected, you know? Well, they also all have keyholes, right?"
"Yeah." Riku raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"Because… we never found the keyhole to Destiny Islands." Sora looked genuinely upset about this.
"I always assumed that strange door had something to do with it." Riku nodded his head back toward the secret cave.
"Well… what if it does? It's not stopping… the Heartless."
"If it prevents the keyhole from being accessible to us, then it has to stop whatever is coming through the keyhole."
Sora gnawed on his lip for a moment. "Yeah… maybe you're right. Dunno why I'm so freaked out all of a sudden."
"Trust me. You've got nothing to worry about with that door."
"Have you ever tried opening it?"
"Well, no. I don't know how you could," said Riku with an offhanded shrug. Sora looked at him, a funny expression on his face.
"What?"
"It doesn't have any hinges or holes or-"
"No, Riku, what are you talking about? What couldn't you do?"
Riku blinked. "Uhm, open the door."
"Why would you want to?"
"You just asked me if I've tried!"
"No I didn't!"
Riku sat there, staring into his best friend's confused face. He heard him. Was Sora's memory really that bad? Sora studied his face intently, becoming worried.
"Riku, are you okay?" He felt Riku's forehead with the back of his hand.
Riku pulled away. "I'm fine. Must be hearing things."
Sora smirked. "Obviously." He still looked discontent, but Riku didn't say anything.
They sat there and enjoyed the sunset together.
---
"When is Kairi coming home?" Ileana asked Sora while she poured over documents and he helped Riku cook dinner.
"In two weeks, I think." He handed Riku a can of tomato sauce. "Right, Riku?"
"Yeah." The older teen poured the sauce into the pan over the noodles. "Though she may not want to come home. Her letter said she was enjoying herself."
Ileana smiled and glanced up. "I still can't believe she's going to be an art student. I never saw it until you three came back."
"Naminé," Riku and Sora said at the same time.
"So I've been told."
"It's why Sora can actually sing now," said Riku with a mad cackle. He'd heard Sora's singing before… and wished he hadn't. Sora tried to stomp on his foot.
"I wasn't that bad!"
"The hell you weren't. You couldn't carry a tune in a bucket. You should thank Roxas. Now your voice makes all the girls melt."
"Valeria, at least," said Ileana, shaking her head, visibly amused. Sora flushed. "And, yes, I know about that, dear."
"Riku!" Sora squawked indignantly. The older teen just waved a wooden spoon threateningly at him.
"Everyone knows about that, Sora. If you're going to sing love songs to your girlfriend, don't do it in public."
Sora sunk down into a chair, hiding his face with his hands.
"Oh, Sora, I'm sure Vale loved it. And the idea was sweet."
"Yeah, it's not that embarrassing," said Riku with a smirk. "Didn't you know that Leon eventually talked Cloud into singing for him?"
After dinner and all the amusing conversation it brought, Ileana retired to bed early, and Riku and Sora sat in the living room together, watching whatever happened to be on TV at the time. Sora was fidgety, Riku noticed, and after a while it began to grate on his nerves.
"What's wrong?" he finally asked his friend.
Sora sounded tired when he replied, "I… don't know. I'm just restless."
"You're not still thinking about that stupid door, are you?"
"… kind of."
Riku sighed patiently. "Sora, even if there were any Heartless, you and I could take them out no problem."
"Well… that's not…" He looked uncomfortable.
"What? Is there something you're not telling me?"
"… no…"
"Yeah, that sounds convincing." Riku turned the TV off with the remote and turned to face Sora. "What's up? You've been acting funny the past couple of days."
"Eh… hehheh It's nothing." Sora grinned and rubbed the back of his head. Riku still didn't buy it for a second.
"Sora…" His tone was that of a concerned friend who could – and would – beat your ass if you didn't tell them what was troubling you.
Which, when one thinks about it, Riku was.
Sora cast his eyes downward. "It's just… I'm eighteen now, you know. I'm an adult. There are… things… expected of me now. It's kind of overwhelming."
Riku laughed slightly. "Sora, you may be an 'adult', but at heart you'll always be the same. Not much changes, really. So don't worry about it. You'll probably enjoy life more now than ever before."
Sora smiled – almost sadly – as he said, "It doesn't seem like it's been four years since I first got the Keyblade."
Riku nodded in agreement. "Seems like it was last week."
"I'm glad I did though."
"Me too."
"He sealed his fate."
Riku's head jerked around. What was that? It hadn't been Sora. He'd been looking right at him, and it definitely didn't sound like his voice. Riku slowly scanned the room for anything out of the ordinary.
"Riku?" Sora waved his hand in front of his face. "What are you doing?"
Riku snapped out of it. "Sorry. Heard something strange."
Sora just stared at him, a curious expression on his face. "Riku, have you been - … forget it."
"What?"
"Nothing.HehLosing my mind."
"What?"
"Nothing, I said."
"Sora!"
"Riku!"
"Do you want me to kick your ass?"
"I'd like to see you try."
"I totally could. You know that."
Sora grinned manically and sprung to his feet. Riku noticed a challenging light shining in his eyes. "Bring it, pretty boy!"
Riku, grin matching Sora's, pounced on the slightly smaller brunette, and they rolled across the living room floor. The tussle lasted until both of them were sufficiently out of breath.
"The prince's journey will be complete."
Riku's head snapped round again, but Sora didn't notice.
---
"Has Sora been acting strange around you?" Riku asked Ileana the next morning. Sora had opted to sleep in this morning, which in itself was quite unusual.
Ileana paused in front of the stove where she was flipping pancakes. "So… you've noticed it too."
"Yeah." Riku fiddled with the handle of his coffee mug. "Think it has anything to do with Vale?"
"It may," she sighed, turning the heat on the stove down. "To tell you the truth, Riku, I first noticed it just after his birthday."
"He said something about being an adult and feeling overwhelmed. I told him nothing really changes."
"Maybe he's just worried about college classes or something."
"Possibly." Riku looked up at Ileana. "He also said something about his… expectations?"
She raised an eyebrow. "Ex…pectations What is that boy thinking?"
"No idea," Riku chuckled. "It's not like he hasn't had to deal with being the Keybearer for the past four years."
"Mm hmm." Ileana's eyes grew slightly misty. "My boy had to grow up way before his time. I don't know why he's stressing about it all now."
"He's Sora. He's full of surprises."
She laughed. "That's right." She turned her smiling face to Riku. "Both of you… you were so young. Still are, in my opinion. I can't imagine what you've both been through."
"It was a hell of a journey," he said with a nod. "But when I think about it, I'm glad it all happened. I mean… there are some things I did and said that I wish I could take back, but everything turned out alright in the end."
"Mm hmm." Ileana smiled brightly at him. "Both of my boys came back alright."
Riku blushed.
"It's time."
---
Cloud was shaking, hardly able to stand on his own. Leon supported him. The scarred man was pale as a ghost, but he kept his cool as he hauled Cloud up and said, "Come on. We can't stay here."
There was a firm hand on Riku's shoulder, then another under his arm. He was lifted up. He didn't resist, but he couldn't force himself to move either. He was like a doll that someone had to pose.
"Come on, Riku," came Leon's voice, more gentle than the teen had ever heard it. "Let's get out of here. Let's just go. There's nothing we can do right now."
At Leon's word, Riku choked out a broken sob. There was a lurking feeling in the back of his mind that he had known this would happen all along.
To be continued…
Sassy: Do you understand more, or are you all just more confused? Understand? Good! Here's a cookie. More confused? GREAT! Here's a cookie.
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